Face-to-face , first and second term, 18 hours of theory.

French.

Skill 4 - As a basis for personal critical reflection or use in research projects - use appropriate methods to gather, marshal and generate useful knowledge in the field of interactive and collaborative communication.

Learning Outcomes (students will be able to):

1. Demonstrate comprehensive understanding of the principal theoretical and methodological approaches in the field of social media and interactive and collaborative communication research.

2. Draw on knowledge from different disciplines to develop and defend personal critical reflection on the human and social implications of digital technologies, including relating to legal, deontological and ethical questions.

3. Undertake a novel action research project, applying theory and method with good judgement.

4. Present the results of a research project in a clear, coherent and structured manner, in written and spoken form, and in compliance with the norms for presenting and publishing academic work.

5. Keep personal expertise and practice up-to-date through strategic intelligence gathering on digital issues, social media and interactive and collaborative communication.

None

For the Master in Strategy and analysis of interactive and collaborative communication :

The master's thesis is, along with the internship, a culmination of the graduate training. Through the master's thesis, the student demonstrates his or her ability to produce original knowledge through a personal research work based on theoretical, methodological and critical elements of the discipline. The master's thesis demonstrates the student's ability to formalize a research question, construct a line of reasoning, synthesize complex material, analyze a body of data, and report on his/her work according to the formal requirements of academic writing and presentation.

The seminar aims to support the steps taken by the students in the context of their master's thesis. In no way does it replace the follow-up of the student's work by the promoter. The seminar is conceived as a space where the questions related to the intellectual and formal requirements of the thesis, the conceptualisation of the project and the practical organization of the different stages of the student's progress can be discussed.

The teaching unit articulates the following teaching methods:
- lectures (face-to-face or distance learning depending on the health situation);
- discussions (face-to-face or distance learning) based on students' personal productions; the active participation of students is strongly encouraged;
- reading of a reference book as a compulsory course material (see bibliography).

Moodle is used for document sharing, submission of assignments and pedagogical communication with students.

There are two stages along the students' path in this teaching unit.

1) The student has to outline the subject of the master's thesis and confirm the choice of the promoter. The ‘thesis form' must be submitted in the week following the beginning of the second semester (February, exact date to be specified). This form must be signed by the promoter, who must indicate his or her agreement, with reasons. The thesis subjects and the choice of promoters are validated at the Master's Council in March. The form is not graded.

2) The students must then elaborate and write a research project that develops a series of choices (theoretical, methodological, ethical or other) related to their research approach. The research project must demonstrate significant progress in the research. It must be submitted during the month of May (exact date to be specified). The research project cannot be submitted if the subject and the choice of the promoter have not been validated beforehand (in this case, referral to the 2nd session).

The grading of the teaching unit ‘Master's thesis and accompanying seminar 1' is carried out by the promoter of the thesis on the basis of the research project submitted by the student. The evaluation grid used by the promoters explains the evaluation criteria and their respective weightings. It is communicated to the students during the seminar.

The second session is organized as follows:
- The ‘thesis form' is to be submitted in May (exact date to be specified) for validation by the Master's Council in May. If the ‘thesis form' is not validated, the student cannot submit a research project in August. The teaching unit is therefore failed.
- The research project must be submitted at the beginning of the second session (date in August to be specified). It cannot be submitted if the ‘thesis form' has not been validated beforehand.

Students are expected to respect the rules of citation and referencing as recalled during the seminar sessions, in the document Référencement des sources, citation et non-plagiat (available on Moodle), and in the Code of ethics regulating the writing of scientific works as annexed to the implementing provisions of the General Regulations for Studies and Exams for the Master's degree in Strategy and Analysis of Interactive and Collaborative Communication. Any failure to apply these rules may lead to academic and/or disciplinary sanctions in accordance with the General Regulations for Studies and Exams.

Required reading:

SEURRAT, Aude (dir.), Écrire un mémoire en sciences de l'information et de la communication. Récits de cas, démarches et méthodes, Paris, PSN, 2014.

Recommended readings:

BEAUD Michel, L'art de la thèse, éd. rev. et augm., Paris, La Découverte, 2006.

CISLARU Georgeta, CLAUDEL Chantal, VLAD Monica, L'écrit universitaire en pratique, 2ème édition, Bruxelles, De Boeck, 2011.

KLEIN Olivier, Quelques conseils et quelques astuces pour réussir sa défense de mémoire, Unité de Psychologie Sociale, Université libre de Bruxelles, non daté. Disponible en ligne à l'adresse https://cescup.ulb.be/3401-2/ (dernière consultation le 10 septembre 2020).

LAWRENCE, Olivier, BEDARD, Guy, FERRON, Julien, L'élaboration d'une problématique de recherche : Source, outils et méthode, Paris, L'Harmattan, 2005.

MANGALAZA Eugène Régis, Concevoir et réaliser son mémoire de master I et master II en sciences humaines et sociales, Paris, L'Harmattan, 2010.

VAN CAMPENHOUDT Luc, MARQUET Jacques, QUIVY Raymond, Manuel de recherche en sciences sociales, 5ème édition entièrement revue et augmentée, Malakoff, Dunod, 2017.