COMS 184: Social Media and Public Relations

ZCCM • Relieved • Economical

First Impressions

Before attending this FLC, I have never heard about the term Affordable Learning Solution. I did find that the textbooks are getting more and more expensive and may not always reflect the rapid changes that are happening in my field of public relations, and social media. Once I got to know what this FLC is about, I find it is a great opportunity to me to be creative in my course materials.

Benefits & Challenges

Benefits/Challenges/Discoveries
Benefits of AL$/OERs	Challenges of AL$/OERs	Discoveries
Since I aim to reduce the cost to 0, it did take me much longer time to prepare for a class than the traditional approach of adopting one textbook. I had to search on the internet for all open resources and make sure I cite relevant information accurately.	Finding quality materials was at first hard for me because when it comes to social media strategies, there were tones of information out there. I will need to be extremely careful and selective. However, it later became easier when I identified and focused on some well-established resources about social media strategies, such as HootSuite, SproutSocial. They also offered free certificate resources to higher education students so I immediately applied for that. My evaluation starts with my own reading and understanding the materials. Since I know the field of social media marketing and have been exploring relevant resources, I was able to quickly locate the resources that are most updated and align with the principles and strategies in public relations.	I used a combination of various terms when I searched for resources, such as social media campaign case studies, social media strategy plan, student certificate in social media, etc. I found that the most useful platform to get open resources would be the websites of established social media management tools such as HootSuite and SproutSocial, and social media case study website such as ShortyAwards, as well as the social media platforms themselves.

Pathway:

I chose to use the "Adopt" approach by looking for open resources and combining them as my course materials. The main reason is that social media management is a rapidly changing field and thus my course materials need to be updated frequently. If we stay with a textbook in the traditional way, we may not be able to help our students get ready for real jobs after they graduate.

Reflection on Resources:

The most helpful resources that I found are the websites of established social media management tools such as HootSuite and SproutSocial, and social media case study website such as ShortyAwards, as well as the social media platforms themselves. These website are usually most updated and share with social media professionals with the most recent news, campaigns, and resources on social media. My subject-matter expert librarian has helped me search for relevant information through the open resource database provided by our university library. They are a good starting point for me to explore further.

Course Materials
*Before*	*After*
This is a new course that I proposed and got approved a year ago. My initial plan was to adopt a textbook on social media and public relations and utilized the provided resources in the textbook.	After attending this FLC, I feel motivated and encouraged to reduce the cost of course materials to zero, as well as to seek for more updated resources on my subject matter. Thus I actively reached out to Hootsuite student program which provided free certificates to my students; I also searched for and combined resources about social media strategy plan, case studies, recent news, etc. from various open resources. I also designed a hands-on project where students work for my department on their social media accounts, instead of asking students to purchase social media simulation programs.

Student Data

Results
Free Certificate Programs	Social Media Open Resources	Free Hands-on Project
Since I exceeded File quota, I'm providing a quote from what I have in my Canvas course, instead of a screenshot. As part of the Student program, you will have free access to: Hootsuite Academy courseware for Hootsuite Platform (Hootsuite Platform Training.) Free Hootsuite Platform Certification* ($99 value)* Free Social Marketing Course($199 value) Free Social Marketing Certification* ($199 value)* Hootsuite dashboard (free features) I applied for Hootsuite Student Program for my class which enabled me to provide free resources and certificates to my students. One of my students said that "Hootsuite helps us with our future because of the certificates"	To keep my students updated with what's going on in today's fast-changing social media world, I also created a module titled Social Media Resources. In that module, I have organized and offered open resources of podcasts, campaign related websites, and social media news websites. In the first few weeks of the semester, students are asked to complete weekly discussion by reading/listening to one of the provided resources, and pick one piece of resource to share with their classmates. The prompts I put in the discussion assignment are: I have prepared a module Social Media Resources where you can find websites, blogs, and podcast that focus on social media and digital marketing. In this week's discussion assignment, you are asked to pick one resource from the list to follow, then choose one news article, or industry report, or blog post, or campaign, or podcast episode, and make a summary. Thus, in your submission, you need to include: The name and link to the news article or industry report, or blog post, or recent social media marketing campaign, or podcast episode that you have chosen from your selected resource Write a 200-word summary of the news article/blog post/campaign/podcast episode. Respond to at least one classmate's post by asking questions or providing insights. Your response will need to be at least 50-word long. Students are very engaged in these weekly discussion assignments and have brought to each other different pieces of information on social media.	Initially, I was considering asking students to purchase a simulation program that simulates the process of social media management and marketing. It will cost students around $69.99 or even more. After attending this FLC, I decided to invite my students to work with our department on their social media, specifically TikTok and Instagram. Students are able to gain hands-on experience with social media without spending any $$ on this project. The students generally enjoyed such "hands-on assignments" and "activities". They are glad that they are able to work together in groups and see their work turn into a presentation and actual posts that impact our department. And the whole experience is more real than a simulation product.

Recommendations & Advice

My advice is that it is not an easy job to replace course materials with AL$/OERs, but there is a long-term benefit of doing that. The best approach to make such changes might be to start from small changes and see how students respond to it.

Faculty Biography

Faculty Bio
	Cheng Hong is an Assistant Professor of Public Relations at the Department of Communication Studies, College of Arts and Letters. She teaches public relations, social media, and research methods. She also conducts research in corporate social advocacy, corporate social responsibility, and entrepreneurship strategic communication

**Program Sponsors**
	This work was supported by: Sacramento State Academic Affairs - Center for Teaching and Learning California State University Affordable Learning Solutions Program & SB 1359