PSU 009—First Year Seminar: Communications

Sold Separately:

Parents and Children in Consumer Culture

PSU 009 Section 005 – Fall 2002

First Year Seminar: Communications

Wednesday 3:35 – 4:25

New classroom: Willard 309

Instructor: Matt Jackson

Office: 219 Carnegie

Phone (O): 863-6419

E-mail: mattj@psu.edu

Web page: www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/m/x/mxj20

Office hours: Wed 1:30-3:00, Thurs 2:30-4:30, and by appointment.

Objective:

This book-based course looks critically at how media texts are marketed and understood by children and adults. The course will explore the role of gender and social class in children’s television programming and advertising. We will examine cartoons and commercials to explore social constructs of gender, class, childhood, and adulthood. This course touches on the role of media, particularly television, in shaping our understanding of the world. As a first-year seminar, this course is also designed to introduce you to university life, the College of Communications, and various resources available at Penn State. Seminars are small classes where the focus is on learning through dialogue and discussion rather than lecture.

Textbook: Sold Separately: Parents and Children in Consumer Culture by Ellen Seiter (1995). The book is available at the Penn State Bookstore on campus and the Student Book Store, 330 E. College Ave. Please let me know if you cannot find a copy. Click here for the study questions for each chapter.

Attendance: You are expected to attend every session.

Web page: The syllabus and reading assignments may change fairly often. You are expected to check the online syllabus for any changes to assignments and the schedule. In addition, I frequently communicate with the class via e-mail. Make sure you check your e-mail on a regular basis, at least twice per week.

Assignments and grading: For ALL written assignments make sure you read and understand the guidelines for written work.

Individual and group quizzes—300 points

There will be short quizzes based on the reading assignments.

Orientation web site—100 points DUE: September 11

Explore the "Orientation 100" web site: http://www.psu.edu/ouic/orientation100/

Take at least FIVE of the tours.

Type a 2-3 page paper discussing the following:

1. Discuss something you learned from each tour.

2. Which was your favorite tour and why?

3. Which was your least favorite tour and why?

Campus Resources—100 points DUE: September 25

Each group will choose one campus resource from the following list. The group will go to that resource and then give a brief presentation to the class. (Where it is located, hours of operation, what is available there, the most interesting thing the group saw there, etc.). The purpose of this assignment is to (1) get you comfortable working with your group, (2) give you practice making presentations, and (3) introduce you to some of the resources at Penn State, and (4) give you practice finding your away around campus!

Palmer Museum of Art

Multicultural Resource Center

Career Resource Center

Center for Counseling and Psychological Services

Center for Women’s Studies

Matson Museum of Anthropology

University Learning Resource Center

Paul Robeson Cultural Center

Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center

Zoller Gallery

or a resource of your choosing! (Please check with me first!)

Group research article presentation—100 points DUE: October 23

Each group will find one research article about children and television and present a report to the class. Everyone in the group MUST read the article and participate in the presentation. The purpose of this assignment is to (1) give you practice using the library resources, (2) give you a sense of the wide variety of research (and research methods) that focuses on children and television, (3) give you practice working in groups, (4) give you practice making presentations, and (5) give you the opportunity to explore a topic of interest to you.

Each group must choose a different research article that examines the relationship between children and television. For example: does TV violence affect kids, does TV have an effect on creativity, are there special regulations for commercials on children’s programs, how does television affect child development, how does television change the concept of childhood, how are different types of kids portrayed on TV, how do kids process TV content, how does news programming affect kids, etc.

What were the research questions and hypotheses?
What theory did the authors offer to explain the phenomenon?
What research method was used?
What were the results and conclusion?
Do you agree with the theory? The research method? The results?

You will have 10 minutes for your presentation. Everyone in your group must participate. If possible, try to find a short example of the type of programming being discussed.

Faculty research paper—100 points Due: November 13

Students normally see professors in the classroom. Yet teaching is only part of the job. Tenure-track professors are expected to spend half their time doing (and publishing) research that contributes to our understanding of the world. The purpose of this assignment is to (1) find out what your teacher does when she is not in the classroom, (2) get a better sense of your teacher as a person (yes we have lives too!), (3) give you more practice using the library catalog, and (4) get you comfortable talking to professors in their offices, which is crucial if you want to get the most out of your education!

Choose one of your current teachers and go to his/her office. Ask her (1) how she decided to become a professor, (2) to describe her current research and why she is interested in that topic, and (3) for the citations to 2-3 of her articles. Then use the CAT to see if the journals are available in the library.

Write a paper that answers the following questions:

What kind of research does this professor do? Is it interesting to you? Why or why not?
Are the journals available at Penn State in online or hard copy form?
Was the professor’s office “welcoming”? Was it what you expected? Any interesting pictures or objects? Was it clean or messy?

Children’s Website Project—300 points

Each group will analyze a web site for kids based on the themes we have been discussing in class. Each group member must recommend a web site to his/her group. After each person in the group has looked at all the web sites, the group will choose one site to analyze (or a particular aspect of one site). The purpose of this assignment is to (1) give you more practice working in groups (which you will do throughout college and your career), (2) help you develop critical analysis skills, and (3) give you more practice making presentations. See the project page for details!

Part 1--Paper DUE: December 4 (150 points)

Each group will write a 3-4 page analysis of the group’s chosen web site, discussing the site in terms of the themes of the class.

Part 2--Presentation December 4 & 11 (150 points)

Each group will make a 15 minute presentation analyzing their website.

Grading:

Grades are obviously important to you. Please wait 24 hours before requesting a grade change. You must include a WRITTEN explanation of why you think your grade should be changed.

Quizzes 300 points

Orientation paper 100

Campus resource presentation 100

Group research presentation 100

Faculty research paper 100

Children’s website project 300

Total 1000 points

The grading scale is as follows:

A 930-1000 points

A- 900-929 points

B+ 875-899 points

B 830-874 points

B- 800-829 points

C+ 775-799 points

C 700-774 points

D 600-699 points

Academic Integrity: Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly and creative activity in an open, honest and responsible manner, free from fraud and deception, and is an educational objective of the College of Communications and the university. Cheating, including plagiarism, falsification of research data, using the same assignment for more than one class, turning in someone else’s work, or passively allowing others to copy your work, will result in academic penalties at the discretion of the instructor, and may result in the grade of “XF’ (failed for academic dishonesty) being put on your permanent transcript. In serious cases it could also result in suspension or dismissal from the university.

As students studying communication, you should understand and avoid plagiarism (presenting the work of others as your own). A discussion of plagiarism, with examples, can be found at: http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/m/x/mxj20/comm381/plagiarism.htm

The rules and policies regarding academic integrity should be reviewed by every student, and can be found online at: www.psu.edu/ufs/policies/47-00.html#49-20, and in the College of Communications document, “Academic Integrity Policy and Procedures.” Any student with a question about academic integrity or plagiarism is strongly encouraged to discuss it with his or her instructor.

Additional Information: One of the advantages of attending a large university like Penn State is the vast array of FREE resources available to you. I encourage you to take advantage of them! For a complete list of services, go to: http://www.psu.edu/ur/students.html

SCHEDULE: Wed 3:35-4:25 Carnegie 001 UPDATED October 9

Date	Topic	Reading—PRIOR to class
Aug 28	Introduction
Sept 4		Chapter 1—Social contexts of consumption: Comparing motherhood then and now
Sept 11	Orientation paper due College life, role of media
Sep 18		Chapter 2—Toy advertising to parents
Sep 25	Campus resource presentations	Chapter 3—Real power of commercials:
Oct 2	Library—Meet at 302 Paterno
Oct 9		Chapter 4—commercials for kids
Oct 16	No class
Oct 23		Chapter 5—cartoons for girls
Oct 30	Group research article presentations Website choices due!
Nov 6	Faculty research paper due	Chapter 6—cartoons for boys
Nov 13	Student 2 Student Program *Website selection due!*
Nov 20	Miscellaneous	Chapter 7—Toys R Us
Nov 27	Thanksgiving
Dec 4	Presentations
Dec 11	Presentations Website paper due

Quizzes 300 points

Website choices due!