Learning to cast True Sight: negotiating agency (and authority) in interactive and immersive digital narratives

1. Short Session Description. Leveraging librarians’ expertise in the design and support of literacy programs, this roundtable will examine the critical evaluation of immersive digital narratives such as:

• Slave Revolt in Jamaica, 1760-1761: http://revolt.axismaps.com/
• ReBuilding Haiti: http://apps.rue89.com/haiti/en/
• The Boat: http://www.sbs.com.au/theboat/
• Parisian Narratives in Virtual Reality: https://ablconnect.harvard.edu/book/parisian-narratives-virtual-reality 
  https://player.wondavr.com/p/a441bc65-0755-4842-9083-757071170627

Attendees will brainstorm approaches for incorporating aspects of literacy unique to immersive or interactive narratives into library instruction.

The roundtable discussion will touch on:

• identification of the ideological underpinnings of an immersive digital narrative
• how to understand the evolving relationship between user agency and authorial power
• major skill sets required for interactive digital narrative literacy

2. Session Format & Style. lightning talks & discussion roundtable

3. Takeaways. Attendees will leave the discussion with ideas for expanding existing information literacy programs to address immersive, multimedia experiences such as multimodal long-form journalism, AR/VR programming, and immersive games.

There will be handouts. Everyone loves handouts. And gleaning.

4. Organization. We would like to send out a CFP for others interested in presenting a lightning talk, to hear others’ experiences of this kind of work. Discussion will be guided by an agenda (shared beforehand) and questions posed through the lightning talks.

5. Contact Information.

Emily Bell: emilybell@fas.harvard.edu

Emily Coolidge Toker: etoker@g.harvard.edu

Paul Hanna: phanna@fas.harvard.edu