University of Sunderland Faculty of Arts, Design, Media

MEDIA AND CULTURAL STUDIES

Module Guide 2011/2012

MAC281 Cybercultures

Assessment due date: 15th May 2012, 3pm Prospect Building Library Services and WebCT/SunSpace

TITLE: CYBERCULTURES CODE: MAC 281 LEVEL: 2 CREDITS: 10 FACULTY: Arts, Design, & Media MODULE BOARD: Media and Cultural Studies PRE-REQUISITES: MAC129 CO-REQUISITES: None LEARNING HOURS: 100 hours, the exact nature of which is specified in the module guide LEARNING OUTCOMES: On successful completion of the module, students will have demonstrated: Knowledge 1. the ability to apply these concepts in the critical analysis of various forms of cyberculture; 2. the ability to communicate information, arguments and analysis cogently and fluently Skills 3. knowledge and critical understanding of the theoretical concepts and issues and debates relating to the study of cyberculture; 4. an understanding of the history and key concepts of cyberculture CONTENT SYNOPSIS: This module allows students to continue their study of cybercultures from level 1 (MAC129). Students will explore topics such as: the relationship between the internet and the music, film and television industries, blogging and journalism, cybersex, podcasting, digital art, the representation of virtual reality in popular culture, cyber-nations, and open source communities. TEACHING AND LEARNING STRATEGIES: Illustrated lectures will demonstrate key concepts while tutor-led seminars will provide a forum in which to explore and critically discuss these issues. CONTACT TIME: Lectures: 12 hours Seminars: 12 hours Self-directed study: 76 hours ASSESSMENT METHODS: End of Semester Written Assignment (2000 words)
(assesses Learning outcomes 1,2,3,4)

100%

PROGRAMMES USING THIS MODULE AS A CORE OR OPTION:

1) Core: BA (Hons) Mass Communications 2) Option: All Media-related programmes 3) Option: All Media-related programmes within Combined Subjects

MODULE LEADER: ROBERT JEWITT Room 201b, Tel: 0191 515 3431 email: robert.jewitt@sunderland.ac.uk twitter: @rob_jewitt

CONTENTS
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Timetable Staff Tutorial advice WebCT/SunSpace/MySunderland Weekly sessions Reading material Assessment info

1 - Timetable
Lectures take place in the Cinema, St Peters Campus Media Centre at 2pm on Monday afternoons (with the exception being Week 2 well be in MC219) Seminars take place at 11am in MC235 on Tuesdays. An additional session may be added if class sizes increase. Some seminar sessions may be delivered as a virtual seminar delivered via WebCT Vista due to timetable clashes for staff. Staff will inform students which sessions are delivered this way in the lecture timeslot or via WebCT Vista Check your timetables to see which group you are in. If you have any problems contact Ashleigh Little ashleigh.little@sunderland.ac.uk

2 - Staff Teaching on this module

Most of your contact time will be spent with the module leader and he should be your first point of contact. Robert Jewitt (Module Leader): robert.jewitt@sunderland.ac.uk @rob_jewitt John Paul Green: john-paul.green@sunderland.ac.uk @JPaulGreen Eve Forrest: eve.forrest@sunderland.ac.uk @eveforrest Alex Connock: @MrAlexConnock

3 Tutorial advice
For individual advice outside of the seminars, all members of full-time teaching staff have office hours, or appointment arrangements. The details of these are normally posted on office doors and available from the Media Centre Reception. These hours are for the benefit of all students of course, and should not be used as a substitute for class time except when you are catching up on work missed because of illness or other circumstances beyond your control.

4- WebCT/SunSpace/MySunderland
A copy of this module guide and various lecture handouts and reading guides are available in the MAC281 WebCT Vista/SunSpace area which you can access here: http://vista.sunderland.ac.uk. If this module is missing from your WebCT list you must contact the faculty administrator as soon as possible. The easiest and quickest way for you to fix this issue is by contacting administrative staff and completing a Module Change Form available from reception in the Media Centre. Academic staff cannot add you to WebCT/Sunspace this can only be done via the signing of the Module Change Form. There is a MAC281 Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mac281-Cybercultures/151261091594440 You may also find relevant material on the module leaders blog www.remedialthoughts.com

5 - Week by Week Schedule

Week 1: Introduction to the module & a short history of Cyberculture An overview of the module content and assessment Week 2: Copyright in the Digital Age This session will establish some of the major arguments that inform the current copyright climate in the UK, and the West more generally. In particular it will look at the ways in which recent legislative changes have developed to support content creators in the face of filesharing by exploring the Digital Economy Act and its impacts. (Rob Jewitt) Week 3: The Music Industry and the Net Part 1: Producers, Profits, Pirates & Peers - This session will consider the crisis facing the music industry posed by recent changes in the organisation and distribution of music in the age of the Internet. The primary focus will be on the industry. It will consider claims made by the industry about sales and will consider business models for the music industry. (Rob Jewitt) Week 4: The Music Industry and the Net Part 2: The Suits vs The Scene This session will consider the opportunities presented to music consumers provided by the Internet. It will reassess some of the claims made by the music industry in context of actual audience members and analyse some of the reasons "pirates" give regarding sharing music via the Internet. (Rob Jewitt) Week 5: Openness, Crowdsourcing & Participatory Culture The knowledge and resources of millions of people can now be harnessed through self-organising groups via blogs, wikis, chat rooms, forums, peer-to-peer networks, and personal broadcasting platforms, etc. This session will consider the impact of low-cost online collaborative production tools and the importance of open data and free culture to the participatory nature on the Web. (Rob Jewitt) Week 6: We're all in this together - Today, thanks to Twitter and blogs, and enabled by mobile devices that can post photographs and videos to a global audience within seconds of an event occuring, anyone can be a journalist, and rare is the event that is not instantly covered. So what does this mean for journalism? Does it make it better, more interesting, more diversely-sourced? Or does it make it less credible and trustworthy? What's the opportunity for young journalists seeking to make their names - almost always now in very different ways than the generation that went before? (Alex Connock) Week 7: Video Games, Narrative and Play The history of digital games stretches back over the best part of half a century yet academia has been slow to engage with this interactive form beyond offering moral objections. This session will consider the ways game scholars have attempted to situate and explain this new medium by discussing narrative design and play mechanics. (Rob Jewitt) Week 8: Game Music, Design and User Experience This session will build upon contemporary discussion of game design and user experience by focussing on the frequently overlooked aural experience. It will consider the various ways in which music features within gaming experiences by touching upon the licencing of game soundtracks, incidental music through to a consideration of rhythm-based gaming experiences. (Rob Jewitt) Week 9: The 'Actualities' of Virtual Realities - An exploration into the history, application and cultural and social impact and implications of virtual reality. The lecture will draw on key examples of VR from popular culture and industry as well as its use as an actual technology. (John-Paul Green)

Week 10: Getting around in online environments - How do we come to know and explore our way around online places? This session will seek to define and explore more deeply our relationship with different online places and sites and ask how we come to habitually know and navigate around them. It will examine a variety of different places including virtual and gaming worlds as well as social networks, thinking about the ways that we know and interact with these different but very familiar environments. (Eve Forrest) Week 11: Digital Photographic Cultures Online Are we all photographers now? With photographic technology becoming cheaper and more accessible we can capture, store, print, upload and distribute our images like never before. This session will examine the explosion of amateur photography, looking at the different impacts and varying aesthetics of the photograph online. (Eve Forrest) Week 12: Net Neutrality and the Future of the Internet Network neutrality is a complex issue that has generated intense levels of political discussion in the United States in recent years, and attention has turned to regulation in the UK. This session will consider the whether network operators should be prevented from blocking or prioritising certain network traffic or traffic from particular sources effectively creating a two-tiered Internet and who stands to gain from this (Rob Jewitt) #NB: This lecture session falls on a Bank Holiday a podcast of the lecture will be available in advance for students

6 - Reading List
Its worth noting that debates in the are covered by this module are everchanging, therefore the reading list below is provided in order to familiarise students with the basic arguments and trends. It is recommended that students pay attention to a wide range of debates taking place in the technology and media spheres. Staff will most likely be tweeting (see page 3 for addresses), bookmarking and sharing relevant material throughout the module so you are encouraged to join the conversation. Week 1: Introduction to the module & a short history of Cyberculture David Bell (2001), An Introduction to Cybercultures. London: Routledge David Bell (2004), Cyberculture: the key concepts. New York : Routledge David Bell & Kennedy, B. (2000). The Cybercultures Reader. Routledge: London David Gauntlett (2004), web.studies: Rewiring Media Studies for the Digital Age (second edition). Arnold: London Week 2: Copyright in the Digital Age James Boyle (2008), The Public Domain: Enclosing the Commons of the Mind, New York & London: Yale University Press, http://www.thepublicdomain.org/download/ Tarleton Gillespie (2007), Wired Shut: Copyright and the Shape of Digital Culture, Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, http://www.wiredshut.org/ Fabian Holt (2010), The economy of live music in the digital age, European Journal of Cultural Studies, Vol 13, No 2, pp.243-261, http://ecs.sagepub.com/content/13/2/243.abstract Wiliam Patry (2009), Moral Panics and the Copyright Wars, Oxford: Oxford University Press Week 3: The Music Industry and the Net Part 1: Producers, Profits, Pirates & Peers Andrew Leyshon et al. (2005). On the reproduction of the musical economy after the Internet in Media, Culture & Society, Vol. 27, No. 2, pp 177-209. http://mcs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/27/2/177 Lawrence Lessig (2004), Free Culture: How Big Media Uses Technology and the Law to Lock Down Culture and Control Creativity, London: Penguin Press (ebook available here) Felix Oberholzer & Koleman Strumpf. (2004). The Effect of File-sharing on Record Sales: An Empirical Analysis (March): http://www.unc.edu/~cigar/papers/FileSharing_March2004.pdf Andrew Sparrow (2006), Music Distribution and the Internet: A legal guide for the music business Aldershot: Gower Joe Karaganis (ed) (2011), Media Piracy In Emerging Economies, Social Science Research Council report, http://piracy.ssrc.org/the-report/

Week 4: The Music Industry and the Net Part 2: The Suits vs The Scene Ian Condry (2004). 'Cultures of music piracy: An ethnographic comparison of the US and Japan' in International Journal of Cultural Studies, Vol. 7, No. 3 pp 343363. Matt Mason (2008), The Pirates Dilemma: How hackers, punk capitalists and graffiti millionaires are remixing our culture and changing the world, London: Allen Lane (ebook available here) Lawrence Lessig (2009), Remix: Making art and commerce thrive in the hybrid economy, London: Bloomsbury (ebook available here) Chris Rojek (2005), P2P Leisure Exchange: Net Banditry and the Policing of Intellectual Property in Leisure Studies, Vol. 24, No. 4, pp 357-369. G. W. Woodsworth (2004), Hackers, Users, and Suits: Napster and Representations of Identity in Popular Music and Society, Vol. 27, No. 2, pp 161184. Week 5: Openness, Crowdsourcing & Participatory Culture Jean Burgess & Joshua Green (2009), Youtube: Online Video and Participatory Culture, Cambridge: Polity Jeff Howe (2008), Crowdsourcing: Why the Power of the Crowd is Driving the Future of Business, London: Random House Henry Jenkins (2006) Confronting the Challenges of Participatory Culture: Media Education for the 21st Century, MacArthur Foundation white paper: http://digitallearning.macfound.org/atf/cf/%7B7E45C7E0-A3E0-4B89-AC9CE807E1B0AE4E%7D/JENKINS_WHITE_PAPER.PDF Henry Jenkins (2006). Fans, Bloggers, and Gamers: Exploring Participatory Culture. New York: New York University Press Clay Shirky (2008), Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations, London: Allen Lane Don Tapscott & Anthony D Williams (2008), Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything Expanded Edition, London: Atlantic Books Week 6: Weblogs and the Rise of Citizen Journalism Mark Deuze (2007), Media Work, Cambridge: Polity Dan Gillmor (2004) We the Media. USA: OReilly Dan Gillmor (2010) Mediactive Dan Gillmor (pdf copy) Andrew Keen (2008), The Cult of the Amateur: How blogs, MySpace, YouTube and the rest of todays user-generated media are killing our culture and economy, London: Nicholas Brealy Jodi Dean (2010), Blog Theory: Feedback and Capture in the Circuits of Drive, Cambridge: Polity (.pdf of proof)

Week 7: Video Games, Narrative and Play Mia Consalvo & Nathan Dutton (2006). Game analysis: Developing a methodological toolkit for the qualitative study of games in Game Studies: the international journal of computer game research, Volume 6, Issue 1. http://gamestudies.org/0601/articles/consalvo_dutton John Dovey & Helen Kennedy (2006), Game Cultures: Computer Games as New Media, Open University Press Aphra Kerr (2006), The Business and Culture of Digital Games: Gamework and Gameplay, London: Sage Simons, J. (2007), Narrative, Games, and Theory in Game Studies: the international journal of computer game research, Volume 7, Issue 1. http://gamestudies.org/0701/articles/simons Jason Rutter & Jo Bryce (eds) (2006), Understanding Digital Games, London: Sage Week 8: Game Music, Design and User Experience Bryan G. Behrenshausen 2007, Toward a (Kin)Aesthetic of Video Gaming : The Case of Dance Dance Revolution, Games and Culture 2007 2: 335 William Gibbons, 2011, Wrap your Troubles in Dreams: Bioshock http://gamestudies.org/1103/articles/gibbons Rod Munday, 2007, Music in Video Games. In Jamie Sexton (Ed.), Music, Sound and Multimedia: From the Live to the Virtual (pp. 51-67). Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. (Google Books Link) Karen Collins, 2008, Game Sound: An Introduction to the History, Theory, and Practice of Video Game Music and Sound Design. Cambridge, MA and London: MIT Press (Google Books Link) Kiri Miller 2008a, "The Accidental Carjack: Ethnography, Gameworld Tourism, and Grand Theft Auto," Game Studies 8/1. http://gamestudies.org/0801/articles/miller Kiri Miller 2008b, Grove Street Grimm: Grand Theft Auto and Digital Folklore. Journal of American Folklore 121/481, pp. 255-285. Zach Whalen 2004, Play Along: An Approach to Videogame Music. Game Studies 4/1. Retrieved December 27, 2011 from http://www.gamestudies.org/0401/whalen/ Zach Whalen 2007, Film Music vs. Game Music: The Case of Silent Hill. In Jamie Sexton (Ed.), Music, Sound and Multimedia: From the Live to the Virtual (pp. 6881). Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. (Google Books Link) Week 9: The 'Actualities' of Virtual Realities Howard Rheingold (1992), Virtual Reality. Simon & Schuster Inc

Alex Golub (2010), Being in the World (of Warcraft): Raiding, realism and Knowledge Production in a Massively Multiplayer Online Game, Anthropological Quarterly Vol 83, No 1. http://hdl.handle.net/10524/2116 Nancy Jennings and Chris Collins (2007) Virtual or Virtually U: Educational Institutions in Second Life, International Journal of Social Sciences, vol 2: 3 Steve Jones (2006) Reality and Virtual Reality: When virtual and real worlds collide, Cultural Studies, Vol 20, Nos 2-3: pp.211-226 Lee Knuttila (2011) User unknown: 4chan, anonymity and contingency, First Monday, Vol 16 No 10, http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/3665/305 5 Week 10: Getting around in online environments Tim Ingold (2000) Perception of the environment: Essays in livelihood, dwelling and skill London, Routledge (chapter 13 pp. 226-231) Eugnie Shinkle (2008) Video games, emotion and the six senses Media, Culture & Society Vol. 30(6): 907915 http://mcs.sagepub.com/content/30/6/907.refs Zizi Papacharissi (2009) The virtual geographies of social networks in New Media Society; 11; 199 220 http://nms.sagepub.com/content/11/1-2/199.abstract Week 11: Digital Photographic Cultures Online Kris Cohen (2005), What does the photoblog want? Media, Culture and Society, Vol 27 No 6, pp 883 901 http://mcs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/27/6/883 Julia Davies (2006) Affinities and Beyond! Developing Ways of Seeing in Online Spaces, E-Learning Vol 3 (2) pp 217 - 233 Available at: http://www.wwwords.co.uk/pdf/freetoview.asp? j=elea&vol=3&issue=2&year=2006&article=8_Davies_ELEA_3_2_web Lister, M (2000) 'Photography in the age of electronic imaging' in Wells, Lis (ed) Photography: A Critical Introduction London, Routledge Week 12: Net Neutrality and the Future of the Internet Paul Ganley & Ben Allgrove (2006), Net neutrality: A users guide, Computer Law and Security Report 22, Vol 22 Iss 6, doi:10.1016/j.clsr.2006.09.005 Lawrence Lessig & Robert W. McChesney (2006), No Tolls on The Internet, Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2006/06/07/AR2006060702108.html Gireesh Shrimali (2008), Surplus extraction by network providers: Implications for net neutrality and innovation, Telecommunications Policy, Volume 32, Issue 8, doi:10.1016/j.telpol.2008.06.005

Dave Everitt & Simon Mills (2009), Cultural Anxiety 2.0, Media, Culture & Society, Vol 31 (5): pp. 749-768 Jonathan Zittrain (2008), The Future of the Internet And How To Stop It, London: Yale University Press (ebook available here)

You may be directed to specific readings and chapters during each lecture. Handouts may also be available via WebCT Vista/SunSpace.

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7 Assessment
MODULE TITLE: CODE: MAC281 CYBERCULTURE

MODULE SCHEME OF ASSESSMENT Task 1. 2000 word written assignment UNIT DESCRIPTION: You will be required to write a 2000 word assignment on one of the following topics: Podcasting The Internet and the music industry Blogging Digital collaborative production Cybersex Video games Virtual reality Internet regulation Digital photography Open source communities Weighting 100%

Essay titles will be released via WebCT Vista in week 6. Word Count: 2000 words [word-processed] LATE SUBMISSION OF AN ASSIGNMENT MAY RESULT IN A FAIL SUBMISSION DATE AND TIME: 15th May 2012 PLACE OF SUBMISSION: Library Services, Prospect Building, St Peters Campus Students are required to submit an electronic copy of their essay via WebCT/Sunspace as well as a hard paper copy

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IN GENERAL THE FOLLOWING GRADE-RELATED CRITERIA WILL APPLY TO THEORETICAL MODULES: Grade points 0% Plagiarism and/or collusion Fail 1-39% Failure to show understanding of the question Unintelligibility of argument Gross inconsistency of argument Failure to identify relevant material Gross inaccuracy Little or no evidence of critical reading 3rd 40-49% Some understanding of the question Some identification of relevant issues Lack of clear and consistent argument Limited range of material covered Some inaccuracy Little evidence of critical reading 2:2 50-59% Understanding of the question Identification of main relevant issues Organisation and clarity of argument Limited range of material covered Some inaccuracy Evidence of critical reading 2:1 60-69% Critical understanding of the question Critical engagement with main relevant issues Clear and coherent argument Integrated treatment of topic Some complexity of argument Use of wide range of relevant material Use of critical reading 1st 70%+ Critical understanding of the question Critical engagement with main issues and approaches Clarity, coherence and depth of argument Fluency of argument Integrated treatment of topic Complexity in treatment of topic Use of wide range of relevant material Effective use of critical reading Detailed assessment criteria can be found below:

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GENERIC ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

Grade

Relevance

Knowledge

Analysis

Argument & Structure

Critical Evaluation

Presentation

Reference to Literature

86100% 7685% 7075% 6069%

5059%

4049%

The work examined is exemplary and provides clear evidence of a complete grasp of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to the level of the qualification. There is also ample excellent evidence showing that all the learning outcomes and responsibilities appropriate to that level are fully satisfied, and that the work is exemplary in the majority of categories. It will demonstrate an original argument and a particularly compelling evaluation The work examined is outstanding and demonstrates comprehensive knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to the Level of the qualification. There is also excellent evidence showing that all the learning outcomes and responsibilities appropriate to that level are fully satisfied. At this level it is expected that the work will be outstanding in the majority of the categories cited above or by demonstrating particularly compelling evaluation and elegance of argument, interpretation or discourse. The work examined is excellent and is evidence of comprehensive knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to the Level of the qualification. There is also excellent evidence showing that all the learning outcomes and responsibilities appropriate to that level are satisfied At this level it is expected that the work will be excellent in the majority of the categories cited above or by demonstrating particularly compelling evaluation and elegance of argument, interpretation or discourse. Directly relevant to A substantial Good analysis, Generally coherent and May contain some Well written, with Critical appraisal of up-tothe requirements of knowledge of clear and orderly logically structured, using distinctive or standard spelling date and/or appropriate the assessment relevant material, an appropriate mode of independent thinking; and grammar, in a literature. Recognition of showing a clear argument and/or may begin to readable style with different perspectives. Very grasp of themes, theoretical mode(s) formulate an acceptable format good use of source material. questions and independent position Uses a range of sources issues therein in relation to theory and/or practice. Some attempt to Adequate Some analytical Some attempt to construct Sound work which Competently written, Uses a variety of literature address the knowledge of a fair treatment, but a coherent argument, but expresses a coherent with only minor that includes some recent requirements of the range of relevant may be prone to may suffer loss of focus position only in broad lapses from texts and/or appropriate assessment: may material, with description, or to and consistency, with terms and in uncritical standard grammar, literature, though not drift away from this intermittent evidence narrative, which issues at stake stated only conformity to one or with acceptable necessarily including a in less focused of an appreciation of lacks clear vaguely, or theoretical more standard views format substantive amount beyond passages its significance analytical mode(s) couched in of the topic library texts. Competent purpose simplistic terms use of source material. Some correlation Basic understanding Largely A basic argument is Some evidence of a A simple basic style Some up-to-date and/or with the of the subject but descriptive or evident, but mainly view starting to be but with significant appropriate literature used. requirements of the addressing a limited narrative, with supported by assertion formed but mainly deficiencies in Goes beyond the material assessment but range of material little evidence of and there may be a lack derivative. expression or format tutor has provided. Limited there is a significant analysis of clarity and coherence that may pose use of sources to support a degree of obstacles for the point. Weak use of source irrelevance reader material. Relevance to the requirements of the assessment may be very intermittent, and may be reduced to its vaguest and least challenging terms A limited understanding of a narrow range of material Heavy dependence on description, and/or on paraphrase, is common Little evidence of coherent argument: lacks development and may be repetitive or thin Almost wholly derivative: the writers contribution rarely goes beyond simplifying paraphrase Numerous deficiencies in expression and presentation; the writer may achieve clarity (if at all) only by using a simplistic or repetitious style Barely adequate use of literature. Over reliance on material provided by the tutor.

Fail

Pass

3539%

3034%

The evidence provided shows that the majority of the learning outcomes and responsibilities appropriate to that Level are satisfied for compensation consideration. The work examined provides insufficient evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to the Level of the qualification. The evidence provided shows that some of the learning outcomes and responsibilities appropriate to that Level are satisfied. The work will be weak in some of the indicators.

1529% 114% 0%

The work examined is unacceptable and provides little evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to the Level of the qualification. The evidence shows that few of the learning outcomes and responsibilities appropriate to that Level are satisfied. The work will be weak in several of the indicators. The work examined is unacceptable and provides almost no evidence of the knowledge, understanding and skills appropriate to the Level of the qualification. The evidence fails to show that any of the learning outcomes and responsibilities appropriate to that Level are satisfied. The work will be weak in the majority or all of the indicators. Material appropriate for assessment was not submitted or evidence of an infringement is suspected

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FACULTY OF ARTS, DESIGN & MEDIA MEDIA AND CULTURAL STUDIES FEEDBACK FORM: WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS
Name: Knowledge & Understanding Familiarity with sources: Range of sources Relevance of sources Application of evidence in making an argument Understanding of scope and implication of question Analysis & Logical Development Clarity and coherence of argument Effective use of references Development of clear and structured argument (including introduction and conclusion) Syntheses/Creativity & Independent thought Integration of materials used Development of ideas and concepts Distinctiveness of point of view Presentation/Technique Compliance with conventions of scholarly citation & referencing (incl. bibliography) Spelling and punctuation Writing style: vocabulary and sentence structure 1st Programme: 2:1 2:2 3rd Fail Module Code: MAC281 Assignment No: 1

Comments and suggestions for improvement

1st

2:1

2:2

3rd

Fail

1st

2:1

2:2

3rd

Fail

1st

2:1

2:2

3rd

Fail

Note: the categories above are not intended as a mechanistic measure, but rather as an indicative guide to assessment (in conjunction with the Generic Assessment Criteria)

LEARNING OUTCOMES ADDRESSED BY THIS ASSIGNMENT: K1 ( ) K2 ( ) S3 ( ) S4 ( ) GENERAL COMMENTS:

Grade:

Marker:

2nd Marker:

Date:

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MEDIA AND CULTURAL STUDIES FEEDBACK: CHECKLIST FOR WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS

IDENTIFICATION OF KEY ISSUES AND APPROACHES Ask yourself: Have I teased out all the issues which this question is asking me to address? Am I clear about the ways in which I can best address them? CRITICAL ENGAGEMENT WITH TOPIC Ask yourself: Am I really thinking through the issues involved in this question for myself, and not just producing a list of the ways in which other people have addressed them? DEVELOPMENT OF A CLEAR AND STRUCTURED ARGUMENT Ask yourself: Does my argument make sense - to a reader as well as myself? Have I given appropriate weight to the different arguments and topics involved in the question, and not spent too much time on some aspects at the expense of others? Have I signalled clearly the different stages of my argument? Is the essay clearly divided into the different sections of my argument, rather than jumping from one point to another? Is it consistent - do I suddenly change my mind half way through? Have I kept to my plan and not become distracted by a particular aspect of the question? Is my argument supported by evidence? Does my conclusion pull my argument together for the reader? UNDERSTANDING AND USE OF CRITICAL SOURCES Ask yourself: Have I read widely enough in the critical literature on this subject to be in command of my arguments? Have I quoted the critics I have read at appropriate points? Have I made clear my own standpoint and the reasons for it? RANGE AND RELEVANCE OF MATERIAL COVERED Ask yourself: Have I ranged broadly enough to cover the question properly? Are the texts I have chosen to study for my answer the most appropriate to make my case? Have I studied enough texts to really make my case?

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INTRODUCTION Ask yourself: Have I established clearly for the reader the way in which I will address the question? Have I engaged the reader in my argument? STYLE AND PRESENTATION Ask yourself: Have I written in sentences and paragraphs? Are my spelling and punctuation correct? Have I spelt proper names correctly and included dates where necessary?

ACADEMIC REFERENCING AND BIBLIOGRAPHY Ask yourself: Have I quoted accurately? Have I referenced all quotations with their exact source (i.e. the page no. as well as the title of their source)? Have I indicated through quotation marks each time I have used someone else's exact words? Have I indicated where I have drawn on someone elses ideas but not quoted directly? Have I used the Harvard system of referencing? Have I included a bibliography and/or list of references with my essay, and is it accurate (spelling, title, dates, etc.)? CONCLUSION Ask yourself: Does my conclusion pull the argument of the essay together? Does it articulate my thoughts rather than simply listing what other people have said? Does it refer the reader back to the terms of the question and make it quite clear that I have produced a thoughtful and well-substantiated answer to that question?

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