Class, Culture, Representation

Requirements

1. Consistent attendance and active, informed participation in all class meetings.  I will circulate an attendance sheet each day in class.  Your signature on this sheet is factored into your overall evaluation for the course.  Therefore, you must only sign for yourself.  (10% of grade)

2. Participation in online discussion of assigned primary and secondary sources.  You must post to the online discussion at least six times over the course of the semester. When posting, you need only answer one of the discussion questions.  You must complete at least three of these discussion posts before mid-semester (on or before 3/20). Ideally, you would post once once every other week.  Posts must be made before the class period in which the relevant materials are discussed.  (10% of grade)

3. Personal narrative about social class (2-3 pages, double-spaced). Due Monday, February 25, at 11:59 PM.  (15% of grade)

4.  Digital Project on labor, class, and poverty in Appalachia.  For this project, students will:

  1. Research economic conditions and class structures in Appalachia and their representation in popular, social scientific, and political discourses.
  2. Work in small groups to make public-facing digital exhibits using WordPress, Timeline JS, and StoryMap JS. (30% of grade)
  3. Present their completed project to the rest of the class.
  4. Provide written feedback on other group projects. 

5. Expository essay (3-5 pages, double-spaced) in which you find and analyze a post-World-War-Two print advertisement, while drawing on and critiquing Erika L. Paulson and Thomas C. O’Guinn’s “Marketing Social Class and Ideology in Post-World-War-Two American Print Advertising” (2018).  (25% of grade). Due Tuesday, May 21, at 5:00 PM.

Please send your essays to me as email enclosures. Citations should be prepared according to the Chicago Manual of Style or the MLA(7th edition or 8th edition).  You must include the academic honesty statement in the email message to which your written work is attached.  (The statement reads: “I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid on this assignment.”)  Please also see the attached page, “On Academic Honesty.”    For more information on citation practices, see the Library’s citation guide.

ACCESSIBILITY: Any student who feels that they may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me to discuss your specific needs.  Please also contact Student Accessibility Services to coordinate reasonable accommodations in this course.

LAPTOP POLICY:  Laptops may only be used during digital project time. Please print out readings and/or reading notes for reference during class discussions. Exceptions to this policy may be made on an individual basis.  

DISCUSSION GUIDELINES: A positive learning environment relies upon creating an atmosphere where diverse perspectives can be expressed. Each student is encouraged to take an active part in class discussions and activities. Honest and respectful dialogue requires a willingness to listen and tolerance of opposing points of view.

A Note on Technological learning:
Students come to the course with varying degrees of proficiency with WordPress, Photoshop, Timeline JS and StoryMap JS, and other applications. Part of what we will learn in this course is how to use a range of educational technologies to complete scholarly projects. As part of this process, students are encouraged to seek the assistance of digital media tutors in the Wilson Media Lab and/or complete relevant online tutorials.  I will also be available to consult with students in the Wilson Media Lab on Mondays and Wednesdays, 1:45-2:45.