Description

To make sense of what is happening in the world around us, you need to appreciate the complexity of how the world works and the way that everything around the world is connected to everything else. To achieve this, you will examine the relationships between historic and contemporary political, cultural and social forces, as well as the relationships between the major world religions and their influence on the modern world. This unit also examines the roles the mass media and the Internet play in shaping the modern world and in disseminating modern ideas around the world. This unit will engage you in thinking about the myriad of problems confronting the modern world and how we can make sense of these problems in terms of the conflicts between ideas. Through the study of this unit, you will develop effective critical thinking skills in the way you think about how the modern world ‘works’ and about your own place, as individuals, in the modern world.

Prerequisites

Nil

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:

1. Define and discuss the key ideas and historical events that have shaped the
    modern world.
2. Critically analyse the conflicts between the ideas defined above.
3. Demonstrate through oral and written presentations, as well as classroom
    interaction, a heightened awareness of how these different ideas have led to
    the development of different cultures around the world.
4. Discuss the ethical issues involved in dealing with people from other cultures.
5. Demonstrate how contemporary events and issues in the modern world can
    be explained through the ideas examined in this unit.

Description

In this unit, you will be introduced to the core concepts and theoretical traditions within media studies, including textual analysis, empirical studies and cultural studies. These are aligned with historical and contemporary examples of social, economic and political debates about media industries and audiences. You will also examine the way in which power and influence are exercised through media in cultural and social life. We will also be considering to what extent new technology has changed the media landscape and the communication practices that dominate our everyday lives. In the first four weeks, we will explore 'who you are', focusing on how the media contributes to your sense of national identity, ethnicity, gender and sexuality, and finally to communities with which you identify. Following this, we explore in greater detail some of the theories of media studies that explain the construction of identity, ideology and the influence of media, as well as how individuals actively use media. This is a core unit in the Monash College Diploma of Arts, Part 2.

Prerequisites

Nil

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:

1. Demonstrate an appreciation of the historical development of media
    industries.
2. Recognise and be able to apply available frameworks for critically
    understanding the relationship between media, culture and society.
3. Demonstrate an understanding of the social, economic, political and cultural
    factors that shape the production, distribution and consumption of media.
4. Demonstrate an appreciation of the ways that the mass media contribute to
    understandings of the world.

Description

The contemporary world is in flux. The United States, the sole superpower since the collapse of the Soviet Union, appears to be in decline. In Asia, China has broken from its Communist past to emerge as an economic powerhouse and seems set to challenge U.S. dominance in the region. The Middle East remains locked in conflict with no sign of a peaceful settlement in sight. In Europe, the optimism that followed the end of the Cold War has only been partially justified. All of these developments are rooted in events that stretch back at least to the twentieth century and in many cases far earlier. These events shaped the world that we live in today. This unit provides an insight into the historical background and equips students with the conceptual tools to understand the political, economic and social complexities of the contemporary world, and tracing the key political, economic and social developments since 1945 that have brought us to where we are today.

Prerequisites

Nil

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:

1. Identify and explain key concepts of globalisation;
2. Explain key historical, political, economic, and social developments of our
    contemporary world;
3. Evaluate current affairs and debates based upon understandings of recent
    history;
4. Evaluate primary and secondary sources, analyse ideas and develop
    arguments.

Description

Sociology is a rich and diverse discipline in the social sciences. Policy makers, politicians, the community sector, those in the media and creative industries – to name a few – draw on sociology understandings of social life to help them address social problems and understand the world. The unit introduces students to the concepts and approaches used by sociologists to analyse the contemporary social world. In particular, students will learn to apply sociological frameworks to the key debates and dilemmas we face in contemporary life and to examine various patterns of diversity, inequality and social change in society. This unit also considers the role that class, gender, age, culture, religion and other structural factors play in shaping the lives of everyday people in society. This unit is taught in two ‘modules’ with the first one focused on sociological foundations and the other on gender.

Prerequisites

Nil

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:

1. Identify and explain the key concepts and perspectives used in sociological
    analysis.
2. Critically reflect and analyse the structural factors that influence how people
    experience everyday life.
3. Locate and evaluate scholarly sociological sources.
4. Communicate ideas and arguments in a variety of formats.
5. Use evidence to construct coherent and organise written assignments on
    sociological topics.

Description

In this unit, we will focus on developing effective communication, particularly in written form, in professional contexts. We will study and produce types of writing and documents that are essential for you to secure professional employment, as well as to thrive in the workplace. The unit uses practical exercises to develop your abilities as a writer and editor of professional-standard texts, and is also designed to further your conceptual understanding of key issues in professional communication: audience, context, and language. The unit will introduce analytical and critical approaches to contemporary communication issues such as changes in literacy practices and the forms and mediums of communication. We will also study principles of information-gathering for professional contexts, and put these into practice through activities and assignments. In this unit, we will focus on developing effective communication, particularly in written form, in professional contexts. We will study and produce types of writing and documents that are essential for you to secure professional employment, as well as to thrive in the workplace. The unit uses practical exercises to develop your abilities as a writer and editor of professional-standard texts, but is designed also to further your conceptual understanding of key issues in professional communication: audience, context, and language. We will also study principles of information- gathering for professional contexts, and put these into practice through activities and assignments. This unit aims to assist you to develop professional writing and editing skills to the high standard expected by employers of university graduates. These skills will also help you to become the successful candidate when applying for employment both during and after your tertiary educational journey.

Prerequisites

Nil

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:

1. Recognise, analyse and appraise different genres of professional writing.
2. Plan and design effective professional documents applying linguistic features
    such as register, style and rhetoric.
3. Identify expectations of communication for different professional audiences
    and contexts and apply these in written documents and presentations.
4. Use essential skills of English usage (grammar, spelling, punctuation and
    structure) in writing and editing documents.

Description

MCD6050 Communications and Society is a unit designed to give you insights into the way that contemporary media technologies shape the way that we act and communicate within contemporary society. When we communicate with others, the communication technologies that we choose to use influence the meaning of what we wish to say. Communication technologies shape what we can say, what we cannot say, and what we must say. This same principle applies to the films and television programs we watch, the music we listen to, the podcasts and radio broadcasts we listen to, the newspapers and books we read and the games we play. But the communication technologies themselves are also subject to influences that are political, social, cultural, and economic as well. These various forms of communication expand beyond the very literal messages of speech, audio-visual symbols and text, and extend to forms of non-linguistic communication, non-verbal forms of communication, as well as social effects that may not have a single source. By studying these different forms of communication between society and technology, we can start to understand how contemporary society shapes - and also is shaped by – communication technologies.

Prerequisites

Nil

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:

1. Employ techniques to generate ideas, overcome writer's blocks, and structure
    argumentation.
2. Have acquired or revised basic concepts of grammar, punctuation, spelling,
    use and style, and be able to apply these in correcting faults and in
    developing exposition, authorial voice and expression in essays.
3. Have developed research skills in relation to primary, secondary and tertiary
    sources, both in hard copy and online sources.
4. Have developed professional practice in the skills of referencing, quoting,
    paraphrasing, and the avoidance of plagiarism.
5. Have developed techniques of argumentation by studying logic, fallacies, and
    techniques of persuasion and influence.
6. Have acquired skills in the genre of academic writing, such as expositional
    sequences, rhetorical strategies, register, audience, and authorial voice.
7. Have developed skills in drafting, redrafting, editing and proofreading.
8. Possess a basic understanding of the field of communication.
9. Employ basic concepts in the study of communications.

Description

Where is the world heading? This unit involves a journey of exploration around the contemporary world, examining the most pressing issues of the day. Globalisation is defined in different ways. Economists focus on international trade, historians might see globalisation as the intensification of a process that has been going on for centuries, and lawyers and politicians might focus on international legal agreements. It includes a close study of the impact of globalisation on four key areas: the movement of people, the environment, terrorism, and gender and the need to understand the complexities involved in each area.

Prerequisites

Nil

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:

1. Recognise and discuss the key social, economic and political questions facing
    the world today.
2. Cultivate cross-cultural competence through the study and analysis of
    problems in a comparative and transnational framework.
3. Critical thinking and communication skills will be honed through readings and
    discussion centered around controversial contemporary debates
4. Recognise the importance of debates about globalisation and its likely
    development.

Description

This unit is the second unit in sociology stream sequence, it builds on the skills and knowledge developed in the first unit Introduction to Sociology. It includes three important areas of sociological research and theoretical endeavor: Cultural Diversity, Popular Culture and Population and Society. This is a core unit in the Monash College Diploma of Arts, Part 2 (Sociology stream). This unit aims to deepen your understanding of the relationship between individual and society, drawing on a wide range of sociological theories, concepts and research.

Prerequisites

MCD6120 – Introduction to Sociology

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:

1. Have an understanding of the nature of social relationships and institutions;
    patterns of social diversity and inequality; and processes that underpin social
    change and stability.
2. Have an ability to apply sociological theories, concepts and evidence to
    sociological questions.
3. Have an ability to develop arguments by using evidence, evaluating
    competing explanations and drawing conclusions.

Description

This unit will introduce the key components of contemporary media challenges. We will address a range of questions to help us interrogate the nature of these challenges and the potential repercussions for cultural practices, social interactions, and political and/or economic circumstances. The aim here is to map out and analyse some key media challenges.
Some of the questions we will consider are: What do we mean by the terms “media’ and “challenges”? What are the greatest media challenges of our time that we face globally? How and where do we get our news? Which media are used as crucial news sources? And what does it all mean? How do we articulate or describe these challenges? What theories and studies can assist us in understanding their dynamics? How do these challenges impact our everyday media communications? What are some of the ways that these challenges may be overcome?
This course aims to map out and analyse the very challenging circumstances that define a new age and era of media communications.

Prerequisites

Nil

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:
1. Explain a contemporary global media challenge using interdisciplinary approaches
2. Manage, evaluate and interpret sources of information relevant to issues in the media
3. Communicate coherent and persuasive arguments both orally and in professional presentation formats
4. Utilise strategic and interdisciplinary thinking to analyse media challenges
5. Work independently and collaboratively with peers to investigate, analyse and report on a 'real-world' contemporary media challenge.

Description

Digital media are rapidly becoming the atmosphere through which we move – literally, in the case of mobile phone signals; figuratively in the sense that our communications, our entertainment practices, our work lives, and our information seeking and sharing practices are increasingly migrating onto online platforms. Digital storytelling is now a crucial part of messaging across a diverse range of industries, from journalism, PR, marketing to non-profit administration and filmmaking.
This unit provides theoretical and practical knowledge of the evolving digital "grammar" of video production, broadcasting, news reporting, advertising, and social media, as an essential skill for media communication professionals of the future. This "hands on", project-based unit provides students with a collaborative learning space where they can combine analytical skills in digital literacy with practical skills in media production to develop digital fluency.
This course aims to explore the ongoing popular discourses surrounding the emergence of digital media, but also to think about these in new and different ways, to put them in historical perspective, and, ultimately, to evaluate the claims with which we are inundated.

Prerequisites

Nil

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit, students are expected to be able to:
1. Identify and discuss the communicative role of specific digital media and different uses of digital storytelling;
2. Analyse key elements of a variety of digital communication;
3. Think critically about the legal and ethical issues of digital communication;
4. Work reflectively, independently and collaboratively with peers to develop and demonstrate technical proficiency and digital literacy skills;
5. Apply digital literacy skills to create a digital story that critically reflects on the evolving languages of digital communication.