Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Unit Convenor
Qin Guo
Contact via qin.guo@mq.edu.au
Monday 9 am - 5 pm
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Credit points |
Credit points
4
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
Admission to MIntComm or MIntRel or MIntCommMIntRel or MIntBusMIntComm or MA in Media Law and Culture
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
This unit studies communication theories and strategies for development and social changes in an interdisciplinary approach. Drawing on theories of communication, human motivation, media and cultural studies, we will critically discuss development, communication and development communication; strategic communication (community and participatory media and communication, integrated marketing communications); and practical issues of development communication (media freedom and ethics, community responsiveness and empowerment). Theory and practice will converge in critiques on development communication cases in various social, political and cultural contexts.
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Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
Name | Weighting | Due |
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Participation | 20% | week 1 - week 13 |
Research paper | 40% | Week 7 Monday |
Group project | 40% | week 10 Monday |
Due: week 1 - week 13
Weighting: 20%
Students are expected to engage actively in all teaching and learning activities, including:
a. (10/20) Students are expected to actively contribute to discussions around the readings allocated for each week.
b. (10/20) On rotating basis, each group are required to co-chair discussion sessions in the weekly seminars. Your performance will be assessed in terms of preparation for the topic, cooperation with other group members, and leadership skill as demonstrated in facilitating the discussions.
Due: Week 7 Monday
Weighting: 40%
The task of this assignment is to select a previous development communication project in the real world, and analyse and critique the role of media in the selected project. The word limit for the research paper is 3000 words.
Your work should be able to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of the contents taught in this unit. Specifically you are expected to show the following:
(1) conceptual and insightful knowledge of media effects and functions, and development and development communication;
(2) high level critical thinking skills in identifying and discussing the complicate relations between mass media and development communication
(3) and, capability to apply interdisciplinary knowledge and theories to critique the selected development communication project.
Due: week 10 Monday
Weighting: 40%
Select a specific issue of concern in a real society/community and design a development communication campaign to address the issue. Pretending that you are a group of communication experts and you need to apply for financial support for this development communication campaign. You are required to present your project to the selection committee. Your aim is to convince the committee that your project is significant, feasible and worth the support. The group presentation should cover the following:
Introduction of the selected topic (justification, background information of the issue of concern);
Design of the development communication campaign (its objective, target audience, media selection, communication strategy, evaluation strategy);
Discussion/analysis on the campaign (advantages, disadvantages)
Each student is required to prepare a 1000-word presentation note, which clearly identifies:
the main points made during your part of the presentation;
your contribution to the group project;
a mark, between 0 and 10, for each member of your group evaluating their contributions to the group project.
Important announcement and additional L&T material will be uploaded on iLearn during the semester. Students are expected to visit iLearn regularly.
Week 1 Introduction
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Reading: 1. Unit Outline 2. Paolo Mefalopulos (2008), Development Communication Sourcebook, pp18-28, Washington: The World Bank |
Week 2 Culture, Media and Communication |
Reading: 1) “How the Media Work” by Michael O’Shaughnessy and Jane Stadler (2004) in Media and Society 2) Study the 12 areas of influence of the media in national development summarised by Schramm (Andrew A. Moemeka, Development Communication: A Historical and Conceptual Overview). Thinking: Reflect on the different views of the media. What is your view about the role of media in development communication?
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Week 3 Development and Development Communication
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Reading:
2. Search the internet about the issue of inequality between the rich and the poor. Thinking: What are the different views about inequality have you found? Does inequality matter? Why?
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Week 4 Mass Media Strategy and Case Study |
Reading: 1. Promoting Family Planning Through Mass Media in Nigeria 2. Clifford Odimegwu (1999) “Family Planning Attitudes and Use in Nigeria: A Factor Analysis” (http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/journals/2508699.pdf) Thinking: (1) What media were used in the Nigeria case? (2) What roles did these media play in the Nigeria case? (3) What do you learn about organizing a development communication campaign from the Nigerian case?
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Week 5 Small Media and Community Development
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Reading: 1) Rural Newspaper Forums: Another Model of Communication for Development 2) Radio Strategies for Community Development Thinking: What are the strengths of the Rural Newspaper Forum? What are the weaknesses? Should radio still be considered as an important medium for development communication? Why?
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Week 6 Participatory Communication and Case Study
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Reading: 1. Involving People in a Participatory Process 2. Working with Indigenous Communities Thinking:
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Week 7 Achievement Motivation theory and DevCom
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Reading: 1. Creative Message Design Strategies in Designing Messages for Development Communication (pp155-172) 2. A Theory of Achievement Motivation in Human Motivation (pp 180-202) Thinking: 1) How do you understand audience-responsive message design? 2) What are the components of audience-responsive message design? 3) Find some examples of the following creative strategies: • USP strategy • Image strategy • Positioning strategy • Entertainment and education strategy (These strategies are discussed in page 165 of the first reading material.)
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Week 8 Integrated Marketing Communications
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Reading: 1. Belch, G.E. and Belch M. A (2007) pp5-25, “Chapter 1 An Introduction to Integrated Marketing Communications” in Advertising and Promotion, Boston: McGraw-Hill 2. Do an online search on current critiques about IMC. Thinking: 1) What are the components of the IMC mix? 2) What do you think is the core of the IMC concept?
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Week 9 Media Freedom and Ethics
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Reading: 1. Syed Arabi “Press Freedom and Responsibility in a Developing Society” (ICM814 Reader) 2. Aidan White (2009) “Media Accountability: Setting Standards for Journalism and Democracy” http://ethicaljournalisminitiative.org/assets/docs/009/135/b548609-5902487.pdf Thinking: 1) How do you understand the meaning of Freedom of communication? 2) How do you understand the relationship between media freedom and responsibility?
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Week 10 Public Sphere and Public Journalism
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Reading: 1. Arthur S. Hayes (2008) “Public Journalism: Press Criticism as an Ongoing Experiment” in Press Critics Are the Fifth Estate (Chapter 8)
2. Philip Meyer (1995) “Public Journalism and the Problem of Objectivity” http://www.unc.edu/~pmeyer/ire95pj.htm Thinking: 1) What is the core concept of the Public Journalism theory? 2) Is this decade old theory still relative in the present day? Why?
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Week 11 Group Project and Presentation
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Group Project and Presentation
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Week 12 Group Project and Presentation |
Group Project and Presentation
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Week 13 Group Project and Presentation |
Group Project and Presentation
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