Your midterm exam will be held in class Mon., Oct. 7^th. You will not be able to use any notes, books, or online content, and you will not have any extended time beyond the 75-minute class period to complete the exam.

You should be familiar with the central claims, arguments, and concepts from the readings you have been assigned thus far this semester. The exam format will be a mix of matching, multiple choice, and short answer questions, along with one extended response (not a lengthy essay, but a few paragraphs). Matching and multiple choice will test your understanding of key words/concepts and their meanings, examples might include “convergence,” “accountability,” “storyboarding,” “supersaturation,” or “creative commons.” Short answer questions will test your ability to explain important concepts and approaches to digital writing and publishing; for example, you might be asked to explain some of the differences between analog and digital media/communication and their impact on our experiences with digital reading and writing. Other short answer questions may prompt you to apply some of the skills you’ve learned about writing in digital contexts by explaining, writing, or revising content or by responding to “what if” scenarios; some of these concepts may include writing concisely, chunking text, or choosing fonts and colors carefully. The extended response will ask you to review a piece of online writing, discussing its strengths and weaknesses, again, based on the concepts we have discussed this semester.

The list below might provide a starting point for your studies, though the list is certainly not exhaustive of all the concepts on which you could be tested. Remember that you can also consult the comments for the Key Terms homework assignment on our course website.

• Principles of Good Writing (Chapter 1)
• Characteristics of Analog Versus Digital Media/Communication (Chapter 2 and D2L reading on convergence)
• Convergence (D2L readings)
• The role of media audiences, active versus passive (Chapter 2 and D2L readings)
• Media torrent (D2L readings)
• Data smog (D2L readings)
• Information as a commodity (D2L readings)
• Copyright laws and debates
• Key tenets of online or Internet writing style (Chapter 3)
• Key tenets of effective web design, layout, and visual style (Chapter 4)
• Issues about and surrounding blogs (Chapter 7)

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