SOCIOL 105 : Cultural Studies and Society

Arts

2020 Semester One (1203) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

A cultural studies approach to social life focuses on the way we experience the world, taking account of what we see, what we hear, what we consume and how we communicate. Sociological theory will be explored through investigating different cultural forms including film, advertising, art, social media, sport, and video games.

Course Overview

A cultural studies approach to social life focuses on the way we experience the world, taking account of what we see, hear, communicate, consume and produce. This course includes analysis of a wide range of cultural "texts" including (but not limited to) television, film, art, music, advertisements, video games, sport and subcultures. A cultural studies approach to the analysis of these "texts" examines the changing relationships between culture, society, history, politics and technology in the contemporary world. 
 
Students who successfully complete the course will have: 
 
  • A familiarity and critical understanding of a range of social and sociological theories relevant to the study of cultural studies and popular culture 
  • The ability to utilise the above theories in analysing a range of cultural "texts" 
  • An understanding of how people in western society are influenced by images and objects, including knowledge of the role of power in the production and consumption of such cultural texts 

Course Requirements

No pre-requisites or restrictions

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2: Critical Thinking
Capability 3: Solution Seeking
Capability 4: Communication and Engagement
Graduate Profile: Bachelor of Arts

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Analyse a range of cultural ‘texts’ (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.3, 3.1, 4.1 and 4.2)
  2. Understand a range of social and sociological theories relevant to the study of cultural studies and popular culture (Capability 1.1, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 4.1 and 4.2)
  3. Evaluate how people in western society are influenced by images and objects, including knowledge of the role of power in the production and consumption of such cultural texts (Capability 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 3.1 and 4.1)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Assignments 20% Individual Coursework
Essay 30% Individual Coursework
Final Exam 50% Individual Examination

Next offered

Semester one, 2021

Learning Resources

All mandatory readings for this course can be found in the following textbook:
Cohen, BMZ (ed.) (2012) Being Cultural. Auckland: Pearson.
The textbook can be freely downloaded from:
https://www.library.auckland.ac.nz/external/ebooks/Cohen_2012_Being_Cultural_CC.pdf

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, 3 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 4 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.

Acknowledgement of sources is an important aspect of academic writing. The University’s Referen©ite website www.cite.auckland.ac.nz provides students with a one-stop online resource for academic referencing needs. Referen©ite explains the essentials of referencing and how to avoid plagiarism. It also includes practical tools to help students reference correctly, use references effectively in writing, and gives fast access to some major reference formats with examples. 

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.

While we are all concerned for the 'well-being' of staff and students, it is important that as 'the critic and conscience of society' the University remains critically engaged with such issues. This is a useful reference for those interested in finding out more:

Davies, W. (2015) The Happiness Industry: How the Government and Big Business Sold Us Well-Being. London: Verso.

You are also welcome to contact the lecturer for this course for further references which problematise issues of 'well-being' and 'mental health'  in neoliberal society.

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.

Published on 25/07/2020 05:02 p.m.