Students

JPNS3015 – Japanese Contemporary Culture

2024 – Session 1, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Lecturer and Convenor
Tom Baudinette
tom.baudinette@mq.edu.au
Contact via Email
TBD
By appointment, on Thursday mornings
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
JPNS1220 or JPNS2020
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit provides a comprehensive overview of Japanese contemporary culture through critical reflection and analysis of Japanese media. Placing a particular focus on the study of popular culture as a site to acquire sophisticated understandings of Japanese society, students will gain advanced insight into the socio-cultural, political, and economic influences which shape contemporary Japan. Working with authentic Japanese media texts, the unit builds students’ Japanese cultural literacy and prepares them for careers in either Japan or which require significant engagement with Japan. Further, the unit situates the study of Japanese contemporary culture within the broader context of the global media landscape, extending students’ intercultural communicative competence through engagement with a range of sources in both Japanese and English. Students will complete reflective and persuasive writing tasks based in critically engaging with Japanese media, developing advanced skills in research and communication.

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: Develop advanced critical insights into Japanese contemporary culture through the scholarly study of Japanese media and popular culture.
  • ULO2: Critically read and interpret authentic Japanese media texts to identify and analyse key concepts related to Japanese contemporary culture.
  • ULO3: Situate and explicate understandings of Japanese contemporary culture through critical reflections on Japan’s positioning in the global media landscape.
  • ULO4: Articulate analysis of Japanese contemporary culture in a clear, focused and cohesive manner, both orally and in writing.
  • ULO5: Search for scholarly and other relevant materials and use them ethically and effectively in reflective and persuasive communicative tasks.

General Assessment Information

Late Submissions, Extensions and Supplementary Tests

Assessment tasks are compulsory and must be submitted on time. If you anticipate unavoidable difficulty in completing an assessment task (in class and/or online), contact the convener or your tutor as soon as possible.

Late Assessment Penalty

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of ‘0’ (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted.

Submission time for all written assessments is set at 23:59pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a demonstrable technical issue. This late penalty will apply to written reports and recordings only. Late submission of time sensitive tasks (such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs) will be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application.

Special Consideration

If a student is prevented by serious and unavoidable disruption from completing unit requirements in accordance with their ability, they may apply for support under the Special Consideration Policy. To access this support, students must notify the university via ask.mq.edu.au. Students should refer to the Policy for further information (see the link provided in the 'Policies and procedures' section of this unit guide).

Examples of Assessment Tasks

Indicative examples of assessment tasks will be available in class and/or iLearn.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Participation 15% No Continuous
Quizzes 15% No Weekly, except Weeks 1, 8 and 13, Wednesdays 23:59PM
Reflective Presentation 30% No 23:59PM, 21/04/2024
Research Essay 40% No 23:59PM, 09/06/2024

Participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: Continuous
Weighting: 15%

 

Students are required to actively participate in all activities.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Develop advanced critical insights into Japanese contemporary culture through the scholarly study of Japanese media and popular culture.
  • Critically read and interpret authentic Japanese media texts to identify and analyse key concepts related to Japanese contemporary culture.
  • Situate and explicate understandings of Japanese contemporary culture through critical reflections on Japan’s positioning in the global media landscape.
  • Articulate analysis of Japanese contemporary culture in a clear, focused and cohesive manner, both orally and in writing.

Quizzes

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: Weekly, except Weeks 1, 8 and 13, Wednesdays 23:59PM
Weighting: 15%

 

Online multiple-choice quizzes assessing students' knowledge of each module's key ideas and themes

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Develop advanced critical insights into Japanese contemporary culture through the scholarly study of Japanese media and popular culture.
  • Critically read and interpret authentic Japanese media texts to identify and analyse key concepts related to Japanese contemporary culture.
  • Situate and explicate understandings of Japanese contemporary culture through critical reflections on Japan’s positioning in the global media landscape.

Reflective Presentation

Assessment Type 1: Creative work
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: 23:59PM, 21/04/2024
Weighting: 30%

 

This collaborative group presentation requires students to critically reflect on a genre of Japanese media studied in the unit.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Critically read and interpret authentic Japanese media texts to identify and analyse key concepts related to Japanese contemporary culture.
  • Situate and explicate understandings of Japanese contemporary culture through critical reflections on Japan’s positioning in the global media landscape.
  • Articulate analysis of Japanese contemporary culture in a clear, focused and cohesive manner, both orally and in writing.
  • Search for scholarly and other relevant materials and use them ethically and effectively in reflective and persuasive communicative tasks.

Research Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 40 hours
Due: 23:59PM, 09/06/2024
Weighting: 40%

 

This task requires students to write a fully referenced persuasive essay, including appropriate examples and scholarly references.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Develop advanced critical insights into Japanese contemporary culture through the scholarly study of Japanese media and popular culture.
  • Critically read and interpret authentic Japanese media texts to identify and analyse key concepts related to Japanese contemporary culture.
  • Situate and explicate understandings of Japanese contemporary culture through critical reflections on Japan’s positioning in the global media landscape.
  • Articulate analysis of Japanese contemporary culture in a clear, focused and cohesive manner, both orally and in writing.
  • Search for scholarly and other relevant materials and use them ethically and effectively in reflective and persuasive communicative tasks.

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

JPNS3015 adopts a partial "flipped classroom" approach in which students complete various study activities each week before entering the classroom (either physically or virtually). In order to successfully participate in seminars/forum discussions, each week starting from Week 2 students will be required to:

  1. Watch the pre-recorded lecture
  2. Read the required readings
  3. Complete a pre-seminar online quiz
  4. Complete participation activities in seminars/online forums (depending on nature of enrolment).

More information concerning the study schedule can be found in iLearn.

Please note that there is no pre-recorded lecture in Week 1, but students must complete the relevant participation activities in their seminars/online forums (depending on nature of enrolment).

Technology

Students are required to have regular access to a computer and the internet. Mobile devices alone are not sufficient. This is particularly true for online tests/quizzes (to be conducted at home).

Students are required to access the online unit in iLearn by the end of Week 1 and follow any relevant instructions and links for downloads that may be required. 

Unit Schedule

Unit Week

Topic

1 (Feb 19)

Orientation: Cultural Myths of Japan [No Quiz]

2 (Feb 26)

Consumer Culture: Media Tribalism, Fashion, Neoliberalism

3 (Mar 4)

Manga and Anime: Gendered Production and Consumption

4 (Mar 11)

Boys Love (BL) Media: Queer Sexuality in Japan

5 (Mar 18)

Japan's Media Mix: Database Consumption, Moe, and Otaku

6 (Mar 25)

Contents Tourism: Fan Pilgrimage. History, and Consumer Space

7 (Apr 1)

Japanese Popular Music: A Cold-War History of “J-Pop”

8 (Apr 8)

Reading Week (No Class) [No Quiz]

Recess

*Video Presentations Due (end of Recess W1) [No Quiz]

9 (Apr 29)

Idol Talents: Postmodern Celebrity Culture in Japan

10 (May 6)

Enka: Performing the Invented Traditions of Japan

11 (May 13)

The Korean Wave in Japan: East Asian Entanglements

12 (May 20)

Cool Japan: Transnational Consumption and Soft Power Debates

13 (May 27)

Japanese Media in Australia: Cross-cultural Communication [No Quiz]

14 (June 3)

*Final Essays Due (No Class)

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 connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

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

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

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

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.

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.

Changes from Previous Offering

A new pre-requisite for Japanese language competency equivalent to having completed JPNS1220 or JPNS2020 (Intermediate Japanese) has been instituted as of 2023. Please contact the convenor for guidance if you do not possess Japanese language proficiency.

Unit information based on version 2024.01 of the Handbook