Writing Assignment 3
Using the discussion questions and any other notes that you have taken during the past few weeks of class, please prepare a short (2-3 page, double-spaced, size 12 Times New Roman font, regular margins) written assignment. The written assignment is an opportunity to pull together the discussion questions, and integrate them into what you’ve learned over the past couple weeks. Each submission will be worth 8% (for a total of 40%) of your final grade.
| Over the past few weeks, we’ve started looking at the effects of popular culture and examples of popular culture phenomenon. We’ve started to think about how popular culture influences our identity, our perceptions, and our behaviours.
With this in mind, your assignment is to…
1. Explain which of the phenomenon that we have studied so far – the CSI effect, Frozen and Disney movies, OITNB, Punk Rock (and sub/countercultures) – is the most important and why?
2. Think about your popular culture experiences (text and practices) – either something that you’re watching, reading, etc., right now or something that you return to again and again…
(1) Provide a brief summary of the text (in the OITNB article, it was just a sentence)
(2) Identify and explain some of its (or its messages) potential implications or effects
(3) Reflect upon how / if it’s shaped an aspect of your life, be it your identity, your perceptions, or your behaviours. (If you feel that it has not, think about and explain why)
3. Imagine that you wanted to shape / influence the perceptions or behaviours surrounding a specific social issue. State the issue that you want to address and describe the text you would create, the kinds of messages that you would want to send (optional: how you’d do it)
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Grading!?!?!
Yes, grades matter. Before we get into what you’ll be graded on, please note that these assignments aren’t essays. You have creative freedom when it comes to writing them (for example, it could be
…. in journal format
(i.e. I’m taking a class in Popular Culture which is sooooo interesting! I was surprised that we’re not watching movies all day. As someone that knew nothing about the field of popular culture, I was surprised to learn that…)
…. in conversation format
(i.e. John: Hey Sam! I hear you’re taking a class in popular culture. That’s cool! What’s it about?
Sam: Well John, popular culture is actually a very complex concept….)
… in “essay” format
(i.e. Before diving into the field of popular culture studies, it’s important to know what we mean by popular culture. Storey (2013) says….)
… in “video” format
(i.e. This could be on YouTube or as a Video file, but you could talk your way through this assignment. *Note that references will still be required)
Now that you know that you have lots of options when it comes to writing format, what do you need to do to earn full marks…
- Write (or speak) clearly: Your assignment should be easy to read and follow. It should contain no or minimal spelling and grammatical errors (because those take away from clarity).
- Write (or speak) concisely: You only have 2-3 pages (double-spaced). There is no need to be verbose or overly complicated. Using the first person is fine.
- Show that you know your stuff: Cite your sources. And do so consistently. This is the equivalent of showing your work. There’s no need to include a bibliography (and if you do, it doesn’t count towards your page limit).
- Show that you know your stuff (Part 2): Answer the questions that you’ve been asked by doing more than copying what has been said in class or in the readings. Put it in your own words, use examples. Really think about how you explain these questions to someone else.
- Follow the assignment guidelines: You have a lot of creative freedom in terms of the writing style, so please don’t get funny with the margins, font size, font type, etc.
- Submit your assignment on time: It’s due October 21st by 1pm and is to be submitted electronically on Brightspace. Late assignments will lose points.