Social Issues though Comic Books Online Class

It’s been called the education module of the future- Massive Open Online Classes for people who want to learn about subjects for free. They cover a wide variety of topics and attract all walks of life. The technology is state of the art with video lectures, online testing, articles and Google hangout chats. Some accredited and big name universities sponsor classes and they are taught by real professors.

Last year’s Gender through Comic Books attracted some 7,000 participants for the six week class. This year, the instructor, Christina Blanch of Ball State University, is back to teach Social Issues through Comic Books. The course, spanning six months, plans to tackle big issues and look at them through a variety of comics both classic and contemporary. The class features live interviews(with student participation) for industry giants like Dennis O’ Neil(Green Lantern), Matt Fraction(Sex Criminals), Jeff Lemire(Sweet Tooth, Underwater Welder, Justice League Dark), Greg Rucka(Gotham Central, Batwoman, Daredevil), Scott Snyder(The Wake, American Vampire, Batman), Gene Luen Yang(American Born Chinese), Mark Waid (Kingdom Come, Daredevil, Irredeemable, The Flash), Jonathan Hickman(Avengers, Fantastic Four, East of West), and Warren Ellis(Transmetropolitan, Planetary, The Authority), among others… Issues to be dissected, studied and discussed at length are addiction, environment, social inequality, immigration, media, government intervention, and information privacy.

The class features lectures, interviews, discussions, and quizzes. Class readings (comics) are for the student to acquire but can be found online or from a local library (also offering a 10% discount if you are buying books online). Each topic takes a month to complete, with only the live interviews on a strict schedule. The class will end in August. Successful completion of the course results in a certificate of completion (college credit is not available). 

The official course description is as followed: 

Are you a lifelong learner? Do you like comic books? Do you think it would be interesting to discuss social issues using comic books as a lens? Are you an educator looking for different methods to present your material? If so, this course is for you! From the creator of Gender Through Comic Books (aka the SuperMOOC), this six month course will examine current social issues through comic books while understanding how popular culture is shaped by its surroundings.

We will read a variety of comic books including Scalped, Daredevil, Swamp Thing, and many more. While reading these books we will examine topics such as social inequality, the environment, government intervention, addiction, and information privacy. Using lectures, live interviews with academics and comic book professionals, discussion boards, and readings, we will learn about social issues and how they are presented in comic books and the impact that those books have had on the issues whether large or small scale. This will be more than a class – it’s a formation of a community.

Registration is open here!

Try it out, the class is free and no penalty if you don't complete it!