social success skills
culturally relevant media production
game development
graphic novels
interactive narratives
(Degand, 2013)
An evolving online information resource for existing research theories and models about social success. An archived selection of books and research articles about social success are introduced and reviewed.
"How do you know when you’ve won? The case for social success mediation theory".
Greater emphasis is being placed on teachers learning how to develop social success skills, schools incorporating the teaching of these skills into their curriculums, and students demonstrating them in multiple meaningful ways. However, there are many debates concerning how social success skills should be assessed, whether they can be nurtured, and what impacts they can make in an individual’s life. I am working on a book manuscript tentatively titled A Contextually-Rich Historical Exploration of Social Success Skills. This book furthers our understanding of the current dialogue by looking at key moments during American history when notable works of literature about social success skills were published. I provide a comprehensive, yet concise, synopsis of select articles and books about social success skills while also providing details on the historical context and the sociocultural factors that influenced each author.
"Mediated Production Activity Theory: A theoretical framework for analyzing media production processes"
"Stereotypes vs. strategies: Toward a theory of culturally relevant media production."
I am developing an online resource for media producers, media consumers, educators, and parents who are interested in culturally relevant media. The site will be an evolving online information portal with strategies and guidelines that can be followed during the production process. Existing media products will also be reviewed and graded to determine if and how they follow the Culturally Relevant Media Production criteria.
"Forge of Empires"
"NBA 2K11"
This document includes the game mechanics and design decisions that will be implemented in a game I am creating about the reliability of information.
I am investigating the use of HTML5, JavaScript, and CSS to create an online interactive comic book framework that can be re-used by swapping out different creative assets and settings.
A review of literature on African American graphic novels and the sociocultural context surrounding their creation, distribution, and societal impact.
"Society and the Evolution of the Graphic Novel" is a course that will provide students with a historical overview of the origins of graphic novels and the role society has played in the evolution of this media format. We would also analyze how technology has influenced the different ways graphic novels are experienced and we will examine the social messages that are communicated in graphic novel stories.
A review of literature on Interactive Narratives and the sociocultural context surrounding their creation, distribution, and societal impact.