Public Cultures: Protest, Participation and Power L4
| Code | School | Level | Credits | Semesters |
| CULT4060 | Cultural, Media and Visual Studies | 4 | 20 | Spring UK |
- Code
- CULT4060
- School
- Cultural, Media and Visual Studies
- Level
- 4
- Credits
- 20
- Semesters
- Spring UK
Summary
This module will adopt an interdisciplinary approach to exploring the relationship between public space, politics and technology. Drawing on research in a range of fields including: critical theory, cultural studies, cultural geography, digital studies, urban sociology and politics, it will give students an empirically focused account of debates the changing nature and uses of public space, with an emphasis on contemporary developments in urban environments. A range of protest movements will provide case-study material and offer a central focus for both theoretical and practical explorations of the role of new technologies in controlling space, resisting control and enabling new forms of civic participation.
Target Students
Only available to students on MA International Media and Communication Studies
Classes
- One 3-hour workshop each week for 11 weeks
This module also features additional asynchronous online activities, in lieu of a seminar. It will partly share timetabled classes with CULT3034. MA students will be given additional hour of contact time and more challenging tasks in the online activities.
Assessment
- 100% Coursework 1: Portfolio of written work or equivalent 4,000 words
Assessed by end of spring semester
Educational Aims
To extend student's understanding of the importance of technology in communication, through historically and geographically contextualised research. To facilitate student exploration of the contested and changing nature of public space, through a focus on different instances of social, political and cultural practice. To develop student's appreciation of the importance of inter-disciplinary research for the analysis of contemporary public culture.Learning Outcomes
A) Knowledge and Understanding: On completion of the module students should be able to:
1. Understand a range of different theoretical approaches to analysing public culture.
2. Apply these approaches to critically analyse case-studies.
B) Intellectual Skills: On completion of the module students should be able to:
1. Critically reflect on their own engagement with communications technologies and urban space.
2. Develop conceptually grounded accounts of the role of media technologies in shaping public culture.
3. Demonstrate an ability to synthesise materials from a range of disciplinary fields.
C) Professional Skills: The module will develop students' ability to:
1. Develop strong interpersonal skills through producing sophisticated group work.
2. Synthesise material from a range of primary and secondary resources.
3. Gather primary resources for analytical work.
D) Transferable Skills: The module will develop students' ability to:
1. Develop time-management skills through coordinating group work.
2. Enhance evaluative and analytical skills through producing high-quality written and oral work.
3. Manage both group and individual research.
Conveners
- Dr Jen Birks