MEDIA 309 Watching Television - Course Outlines

Course Prescription

Explores the historical development and distinctive aesthetic style of television; examines television’s role in the production of individual, national and global identities; and interrogates television’s negotiation of social meanings in the context of everyday life. Specific topics include domestic context; audience reception and negotiation; fandom and celebrity; the regulation of childhood; commodity culture and tabloid television.

Course Overview

This course examines the medium of television as an aesthetic, cultural and industrial phenomenon. It provides a history of television from broadcast to contemporary streaming platforms. It links these technological shifts to an examination of changing conventions, formal and/or narrative qualities of television genres including comedy, drama and reality television. Examples will be used throughout the course from texts ranging from Married at First Sight to high production value television dramas, such as Game of Thrones and Mad Men.

Television will be examined from the perspectives of production, audience reception and textual analysis. Particular attention will be paid to the role of television in both shaping and reflecting socio-cultural context(s). The representation of gender and race on television will be examined and mapped over television’s history.

By the end of the course you will have developed an understanding of some of the most important concepts relating to the study of television, such as issues of seriality, temporality, flow and segmentation, authorship and fandom, and have had the opportunity to critically analyse television shows of your choice. While there will be no assigned viewing, lectures and tutorials will be heavily illustrated with a variety of clips.

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: 30 points at Stage II in Media, Film and Television Restriction: FTVMS 211, 309, MEDIA 211

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

Analyse television from the perspectives of industry/production, text and audience reception and understand significant developments and changes in relation to these three areas (Capability 1.1)
Critically reflect on students’ own consumption of television and viewing practices in relation to scholarly literature and concepts (Capability 1.1 and 1.2)
Demonstrate knowledge of the key narrative and aesthetic features of a range of television genres and apply them to existing and possible televisual texts (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 3.2, 4.1 and 4.2)
Evaluate concepts and methodologies from the discipline of television studies and apply to a range of examples (Capability 1.1, 2.1, 2.3, 4.1 and 4.2)
Demonstrate an understanding of how television texts reflect and/or shape discourses of gender, race, history and time (Capability 1.1, 1.3, 2.3, 4.1, 4.2 and 6.3)

Assessments

Assessment Type	Percentage	Classification
Critical Reflection on Viewing Practices	15%	Individual Coursework
TV Pitch	20%	Individual Coursework
Essay	25%	Individual Coursework
Final Exam	40%	Individual Examination
4 types	100%

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, you can expect 2 hours of lectures, a 1 hour tutorial, 2 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 5 hours of work on assignments and/or test preparation.

Digital Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website at http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Well-being always comes first
We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information, look at this Canvas page (https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz/courses/33894), which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter (https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html).

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course you may be asked to submit your coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. The final decision on the completion mode for a test or examination, and remote invigilation arrangements where applicable, will be advised to students at least 10 days prior to the scheduled date of the assessment, or in the case of an examination when the examination timetable is published.

Capability 1:	Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2:	Critical Thinking
Capability 3:	Solution Seeking
Capability 4:	Communication and Engagement
Capability 6:	Social and Environmental Responsibilities

MEDIA 309 : Watching Television

Arts

2020 Semester One (1203) (15 POINTS)