ClassInfo

DC 105 Digital Media Literacies

Patrick Wimp

Fall 2017-2018
Class number: 12398
Section number: 701
M 6:00PM - 9:15PM
STDCT R0330 Lincoln Park Campus

Summary

This course is designed to help students develop an informed, critical, and practical understanding of new communication media including analysis of digital media. We will explore the goals and methods of various media industries, identify the effects media has on us, understand benefits and potential negative effects of media content, and identify techniques to become more media literate as individuals and a society. This course helps students develop their media literacy and analytical skills. Such topics as the influence of advertising on content; the effects of media on our cognitive abilities; and the importance of real-world knowledge are addressed. We will explore the messages sent out from the media and how they implant themselves, often subtly and even subliminally, in the real world of people, locations, and events. The goal is to better understand media content, media industries, and how they affect us.



Texts

No text required.


Grading

Attendance and Participation - 20%
Weekly Media Journals - 30%
Midterm - 20%
Presentations - 30%


Media Journals and Presentations

Students will be responsible for maintaining and posting a weekly media consumption journal. Journals will be centered around a series of questions designed to analyze students' media habits and observe potential growth in terms of message consumption throughout the term.

Journals will also call on students to reflect on in-class screenings and discussion from week-to-week. As such, attendance is both mandatory and critical to success in the class. During the second half of the quarter, students will be divided into groups and tasked with presenting thorough research into hot button topics in media literacy.

Students will be required to provide sources and cover all sides of the particular topic. Understanding of media habits gained throughout the quarter should be reflected in the presentation.


Arts and Literature Domain

DC 105 - Media Literacy is included in the Liberal Studies program as a course with credit in the Arts and Literature domain. Courses in the Arts and Literature domain ask students to extend their knowledge and experience of the arts by developing their critical and reflective abilities. In these courses, students interpret and analyze particular creative works, investigate the relations of form and meaning and through critical and/or creative activity to come to experience art with greater openness, insight, and enjoyment. These courses focus on works of literature, art, theatre, or music as such, though the process of analysis may also include social and cultural issues.

Students who take course in this domain choose three courses from such choices as literature, the visual arts, media arts, music, and theater. No more than two courses can be chosen from one department or program.

Learning Outcomes
1. Students will be able to explain, in well-written prose, what a work of art is about and/or how it was produced.
2. Students will be able to comment on the relationship between form and content in a work.
3. Students will be able to assess the formal aspects of their subject and put those qualities into words, using, when appropriate, specialized vocabulary employed in class and readings.
4. Students will be able to contextualize a work of art. They will be able to do so with respect to other works of art in terms of defining its place within a broader style or genre. They will also be able to contextualize a work of art in terms of contemporaneous aesthetic, social, or political concerns, discussing how these might shape the work?s reception and how that reception might differ amongst various peoples and historical periods.

How Learning Outcomes Will Be Met
Through a series of lectures and discussions students will be introduced to various forms of multimedia and the modes and habits for their consumption.

Writing Expectations:
Students will be expected to complete a minimum of 20 pages of writing for this course.

How Writing Expectations Will Be Met 1. Students will be responsible for the creation of short media journals each week.
2. Students will write a 3 to 5 page presentation.

Course Objectives
- By the end of the term students will:
- Demonstrate an understanding of various forms of media and their consumption.
- Demonstrate an understanding of how to analyze and speak about their own media habits.
- Write and present a comprehensive presentation about a current media topic


School policies:

Changes to Syllabus

This syllabus is subject to change as necessary during the quarter. If a change occurs, it will be thoroughly addressed during class, posted under Announcements in D2L and sent via email.

Online Course Evaluations

Evaluations are a way for students to provide valuable feedback regarding their instructor and the course. Detailed feedback will enable the instructor to continuously tailor teaching methods and course content to meet the learning goals of the course and the academic needs of the students. They are a requirement of the course and are key to continue to provide you with the highest quality of teaching. The evaluations are anonymous; the instructor and administration do not track who entered what responses. A program is used to check if the student completed the evaluations, but the evaluation is completely separate from the student’s identity. Since 100% participation is our goal, students are sent periodic reminders over three weeks. Students do not receive reminders once they complete the evaluation. Students complete the evaluation online in CampusConnect.

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism

This course will be subject to the university's academic integrity policy. More information can be found at http://academicintegrity.depaul.edu/ If you have any questions be sure to consult with your professor.

All students are expected to abide by the University's Academic Integrity Policy which prohibits cheating and other misconduct in student coursework. Publicly sharing or posting online any prior or current materials from this course (including exam questions or answers), is considered to be providing unauthorized assistance prohibited by the policy. Both students who share/post and students who access or use such materials are considered to be cheating under the Policy and will be subject to sanctions for violations of Academic Integrity.

Academic Policies

All students are required to manage their class schedules each term in accordance with the deadlines for enrolling and withdrawing as indicated in the University Academic Calendar. Information on enrollment, withdrawal, grading and incompletes can be found at http://www.cdm.depaul.edu/Current%20Students/Pages/PoliciesandProcedures.aspx.

Students with Disabilities

Students who feel they may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact the instructor privately to discuss their specific needs. All discussions will remain confidential.
To ensure that you receive the most appropriate accommodation based on your needs, contact the instructor as early as possible in the quarter (preferably within the first week of class), and make sure that you have contacted the Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD) at:
Lewis Center 1420, 25 East Jackson Blvd.
Phone number: (312)362-8002
Fax: (312)362-6544
TTY: (773)325.7296