GRADUATE STUDENT ADVISING
At the University of Texas, I regularly teach two undergraduate courses in the Department of Communication Studies: Using Technology at Work and The Cultural Impact of Innovation. I’ll be teaching both in Fall 2021! My teaching is dedicated to helping students understand how workplaces cultures impact the design, development and diffusion of new technology.
The Cultural Impact of Innovation
A new class at UT that uses design as a lens for thinking about the place of technology in the social world.
From barbed wire to the endless scroll of Instagram, technology in imbedded in almost every aspect of our daily lives. Yet, technology doesn’t just appear out of thin air. It is created by designers within cultures of production. It is resisted and reinvented by communities of users, audiences, and activists. In this class, students will learn critical and creative thinking skills through exploring the relationship between technology and society—revealing the ways that innovation disrupts, reflects, and shapes our culture. With this knowledge, it becomes clear that we aren’t powerless in this moment of rapid technological diffusion. Our technological landscape is radically contingent and capable of change.
Download a previous syllabus and reading list here.
Meg Ryan’s workspace in When Harry Met Sally (film still, 1989)
Using Technology at Work
This class has been taught at UT for over 10 years and I’m excited to bring my perspective to this legacy.
How do people use communication technologies in the contemporary workplace: email, instant messaging, smart phones, social media, and video chat? In this course, we will explore the complicated relationship between organizations, employees, and their devices. We will engage with scholarly theories, empirical research and practical case studies to examine workplace technologies—asking questions about their capacity for information delivery, connection, productivity, self-expression, and control. Throughout the quarter you will perform a series of independent inquiries that use scholarly and popular-press literature as a lens to examine your own experiences. You will build a skill set for assessing the potential benefits or challenges of technology in any professional environment.
Download a previous syllabus and reading list here.
What Students Say about My Classes
“The concepts in the class engaged me from the beginning, but what will really stick with me is the way the guiding ideas stimulated among the richest discussions with classmates I've experienced at UT.” The Cultural Impact of Innovation
“This class really encouraged me to engage with the course material and take a bigger part in my own learning experience. This class was fun, exciting and thought provoking.” Using Technology at Work
“I absolutely loved this class. I see course concepts appear in the real world often and I tell everyone about them.” The Cultural Impact of Innovation
“Throughout the course, I've learned how to become a better writer and convey messages in correlation to how the workplace and technologies intertwine.” Using Technology at Work
“Dr. Shorey is very passionate about this class, and it reflects in her teaching. The subject is extremely relevant to skills needed in the workplace and will definitely assist me in future internships and in developing work-life balance.” Using Technology at Work
What Students Say about My Teaching
“Dr. Shorey’s knowledge and insight goes above and beyond student inquiries. She is genuinely excited about the content she's teaching and it's contagious. She makes the course material relevant to the students and prepares them for work situations that they might face outside of college. I would take any class she teaches.” Using Technology at Work
“Dr. Shorey took interest in the students' comments and opinions and encouraged class participation. I actually liked going to lecture each day.” Using Technology at Work
“D. Shorey is one of the best professors I've ever had at UT. I absolutely loved the way the class was structured, our assignments were intellectually stimulating and super interesting, so it never felt like an assignment anyways. She organized the class in a way that you could never forget a deadline or feel lost about what was going on.” The Cultural Impact of Innovation