Students

GEND2030 – Sex, Race, and Rock

2021 – Session 2, Special circumstances

Session 2 Learning and Teaching Update

The decision has been made to conduct study online for the remainder of Session 2 for all units WITHOUT mandatory on-campus learning activities. Exams for Session 2 will also be online where possible to do so.

This is due to the extension of the lockdown orders and to provide certainty around arrangements for the remainder of Session 2. We hope to return to campus beyond Session 2 as soon as it is safe and appropriate to do so.

Some classes/teaching activities cannot be moved online and must be taught on campus. You should already know if you are in one of these classes/teaching activities and your unit convenor will provide you with more information via iLearn. If you want to confirm, see the list of units with mandatory on-campus classes/teaching activities.

Visit the MQ COVID-19 information page for more detail.

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor
Dr Rebecca Sheehan
rebecca.sheehan@mq.edu.au
Contact via email
W6A831
by appointment
Tutor
James Gardiner
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
40cp at 1000 level or above
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

In this unit, we explore the cultural history of and links between sexuality, gender, race, and rock music. Influenced by black and working-class cultures, and with sexuality embedded in its form and practice, rock music has challenged and transformed existing norms of family, sex and gender. Music has also been a site of struggle between the freedom that music enables and the commodification that spreads music globally. We begin with slave songs in the nineteenth century and travel through the 1950s boom of rock'n'roll and Elvis, the 1960s British Invasion, the 1970s emergence of disco, the 1980s MTV revolution and hip hop, and conclude with Laura Jane Grace, Beyonce, and the contemporary music scene. Along the way, we uncover the hidden histories and pioneering contributions of women, explore how glam rock, disco, and MTV laid the foundations of performative gender and queer theories, and learn how social identities and ideals have been reflected in and shaped by rock music.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Interpret sexuality, gender, and race in the cultural history of Western rock music and rock’s impact on social norms.
  • ULO2: Critically analyse popular cultural forms in scholarly ways
  • ULO3: Evaluate and express conceptually difficult ideas and independent critical thinking in oral and written forms
  • ULO4: Pose research questions
  • ULO5: Synthesise diverse sources to build and defend a reasoned position in response to research questions.

General Assessment Information

Detailed Assessment Guidelines explaining the requirements for each assignment are available on the GEND2030 iLearn page in the Assessment Resources section. You must read these guidelines in order to successfully complete each task.

All essays are to be submitted electronically through Turnitin on the GEND2030 iLearn page.

Please be aware of the following policies in regard to assignments:

Academic Integrity Policy: https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/academic-integrity. The university takes plagiarism very seriously and there are penalties for using other people's work as your own. This includes directly quoting other people's work without quotation marks and/or acknowledgement. Please check this unit's iLearn site for resources on how to cite your sources properly and avoid plagiarism.

Special Consideration Policy: https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/special-consideration

Assessment Policy: https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/assessment. For specifics on Grading Policy, click on the "Schedule 1" tab.

Requests for Extensions

To request an extension for a period up to and including 5 working days, please email your tutor.

To apply for an extension of more than 5 working days please complete a Special Consideration request and submit it online here: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/assessment-exams/special-consideration. For more information see the Special Consideration Policy above and find further details here: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/my-study-program/special-consideration. 

Late Assessment Submission Penalty

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – 10 marks out of 100 credit will be deducted per day for assignments submitted after the due date – and (b) no assignment will be accepted seven days (incl. weekends) after the original submission deadline.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Tutorial participation 20% No Weekly
Research proposal (1000 words) 30% No Week 7, Friday 10 September
Research Project--Essay or Blog 50% No Week 13, Friday 5 November

Tutorial participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 34 hours
Due: Weekly
Weighting: 20%

 

Active engagement in discussion is an important part of university learning. You are required to participate in tutorials each week. Your mark will reflect the quality and quantity of your participation. It takes into consideration: --your knowledge of the material (you show evidence that you have listened to the lectures and done the required reading) --your active participation in discussions and tasks. This includes, at minimum, responding to questions posed by the tutor and responding to what others in your tutorial have said.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Interpret sexuality, gender, and race in the cultural history of Western rock music and rock’s impact on social norms.
  • Critically analyse popular cultural forms in scholarly ways
  • Evaluate and express conceptually difficult ideas and independent critical thinking in oral and written forms
  • Synthesise diverse sources to build and defend a reasoned position in response to research questions.

Research proposal (1000 words)

Assessment Type 1: Plan
Indicative Time on Task 2: 35 hours
Due: Week 7, Friday 10 September
Weighting: 30%

 

This 1000 word proposal is the first step in building your final research project. It provides you with the opportunity to research a topic of interest to you within the broad scope of gender, sexuality, race, and popular music. You can choose a question to answer from the list provided, or create your own question in concert with the tutor. This is a research assignment in which you will be expected to address a prompt/answer a question using an evidence-based argument. That evidence must be comprised of primary and secondary sources, including songs.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Interpret sexuality, gender, and race in the cultural history of Western rock music and rock’s impact on social norms.
  • Critically analyse popular cultural forms in scholarly ways
  • Evaluate and express conceptually difficult ideas and independent critical thinking in oral and written forms
  • Pose research questions
  • Synthesise diverse sources to build and defend a reasoned position in response to research questions.

Research Project--Essay or Blog

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 35 hours
Due: Week 13, Friday 5 November
Weighting: 50%

 

This assignment builds on your research proposal to complete an essay or blog.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Interpret sexuality, gender, and race in the cultural history of Western rock music and rock’s impact on social norms.
  • Critically analyse popular cultural forms in scholarly ways
  • Evaluate and express conceptually difficult ideas and independent critical thinking in oral and written forms
  • Pose research questions
  • Synthesise diverse sources to build and defend a reasoned position in response to research questions.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Each week there will be:

1 x pre-recorded 2-hour lecture that you can watch on demand via iLearn.

1 x 1 hour tutorial. For day students, there is a tutorial on campus (conducted via zoom during lockdown), and one zoom tutorial. For online students the tutorials consist of online discussion forums (equivalent to an on campus tutorial) accessed via iLearn.

All readings are available via Leganto through a link on the iLearn site.

Unit Schedule

UNIT SCHEDULE

Please note that this schedule is a guide and may be subject to change

Week 1

Lecture 1: Introduction and Rock’s roots: minstrelsy to R&B

Tutorial: Introductions; music and identity

Week 2

Lecture 2: Postwar to the 1950s: From Frank Sinatra to Elvis Presley

Tutorial: Gender, Race & Class: Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Little Richard & Elvis

Week 3

Lecture 3: 1950s: Belonging and Rebellion: rock’s fans and opponents

Tutorial: Reactions to rock’n’roll

Week 4

Lecture 4: 1960s: Pop, Artifice, and Cultural Politics

Tutorial: Crossing over: girl groups, Motown, and Nina Simone

Week 5

Lecture 5: 1960s: Rock, Authenticity, and Sexual Politics

Tutorial: Liberation and oppression: women and “cock rock”

Week 6

Lecture 6: 1970s: Liberating and Queering Rock

Tutorial: Performing Difference

Week 7

Lecture 7: 1970s: Resisting the Master: reggae, punk, and the rise of disco

Tutorial: Performing Freedom

RESEARCH ESSAY PROPOSAL DUE END OF WEEK 7

*SESSION BREAK*

Week 8

Lecture 8: 1960s-1980s “Fear of a Black Planet”: from hip hop to gangsta rap

Tutorial: Do the Right Thing

Week 9

Lecture 9: 1980s: “I Want My MTV”

Tutorial: Shape shifters: Madonna, Michael Jackson, Prince

Week 10

Lecture 10: 1990s: Grunge to Riot Grrrls

Tutorial: Gendering and Racialising Authenticity

Week 11

Lecture 11: 1990s-2000s: Erotica and Girl Power, R&B’s Renaissance, and the Digital Revolution

Tutorial: Survivors

Week 12

Lecture 12: The New Millennium; Conclusions

Tutorial: TBC

Week 13

Lecture 13: Research Essay consultations

Tutorial: Research Essay consultations

RESEARCH ESSAY DUE END OF WEEK 13

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

 

 

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to help you improve your marks and take control of your study.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

If you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2021.02 of the Handbook