Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.
Mark Twain
Course Description
Travel and Transmedia Storytelling examines travel as a communicative experience. In doing so, it introduces students to the basic principles of travel storytelling by leveraging visual, audio, and writing tools to produce blog entries, podcasts, essays, social media posts, videos, travelogues, and other types of content. The course infuses production of multimedia storytelling with robust theoretical and conceptual discussions that underpin ethical traveling, mindful intercultural encounters, and in-depth cultural understanding. Specifically, students will learn about competencies they need to critically reflect on their behaviors as travelers and as travel storytellers. In addition to acquiring skills to proficiently critique travel media artifacts ranging from adventure reality television to tourism guides, students will engage in experiential learning through applied workshops, field visits, project-based teamwork, and other hands-on activities. Throughout the semester, students will: (1) critically analyze traditional and new media travel storytelling media artifacts; and (2) develop travel storytelling skills with the aim of creating content for traditional and social media.
Learning objectives
By the end of the course, students are expected to:
- Develop ethical, technological, and intercultural competencies that inform responsible, environmentally-conscious, people-centered travelling and travel storytelling;
- Leverage the potential of mobile-phone devices to capture, document, curate, and disseminate travel experiences;
- Demonstrate enhanced self-reflexivity in their own behavior and attitude as a travelers;
- Articulate the dynamism and complexity of travel storytelling as it relates to cultural, social, political, environmental, and other determinants;
- Develop travel storytelling skills and produce media artifacts for traditional and social media
Professors
Registration open. Enroll today
Téwodros Workneh 