Undergraduate Course: Researching with Media (GEGR10134)
Course Outline
| School | School of Geosciences |
College | College of Science and Engineering |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | Building on a prior foundation in qualitative methods in geography, this course aims to provide students with an applied understanding of the principles and practices of media geographies, discourse analysis and ethnomethodology. Students in the class will explore a different topic each year based in their analysis of four different sets of qualitative data. |
| Course description |
COURSE STRUCTURE
General Information
This course is designed to provide a deeper understanding and acquisition of skills in analysing and working with media. The course consists of lectures and tied practical sessions that take place on Mondays and Thursdays of Block One (e.g. weeks 1-5) of the semester. Students will also be expected to do additional reading and data analysis outside of lecture and practical time in order to prepare a course report, which is described in further detail below. It is therefore essential that students attend and participate in all lectures and practical elements.
The course is broadly organised into four sections of researching with:
1. Internet forums - collecting communications mediated through the internet
2. YouTube - analysing videos posted to a public forum
3. Tik Tok - analysing posts and responses on this new media
4. Videogames - analysing video games posted on Twitch
Each section has a 1-hour recorded lecture, followed by 1-hour live discussion. These are paired with a 2 hour group-work practical. Both the lecture and the lab have two parts. The first part will focus on the 'search' of research, through looking at the nature of the medium involved, its organisation and the ethics of its collection. The second and more extended part will focus on the 'analysis' of research through the description, interpretation, understanding of empirical materials. It is hoped the class will also undertake 2 hour walks in small groups to informally discuss course content.
Course organiser: Eric Laurier
Demonstrator: Daniel Munñoz
Lecturers: Dr Eric Laurier Dr Rae Rosenberg
BLOCK ONE
Classroom hours:
11.10 - 12.50 Monday, 1.16, Lister Learning & Teaching Centre
11.10 - 13.00 Thursday, 2.05 Ogilvie, Geography Building
Times to be determined: Informal 2 hour walks as a class
BLOCK TWO
Office Hours:
Eric 11.10 - 13.00 Monday (weeks 6-9)
Rae 14.00 - 15.50 Monday (weeks 6-9)
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Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2021/22, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: 28 |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
196 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Course Work: 100%
Written Exam: 0%, Course Work: 100 %, Practical Exam: 0%.
The assessment is a 4,000 word report. It presents data and analysis from two of the lab exercises. The topic for the report changes every year and is one of human geographical relevance.
Assessment deadline: Week 10 |
| Feedback |
Formative verbal feedback will be given during weekly practical classes. Verbal feedback will be given for the group presentations in Week 5. Students will also receive formative written feedback on a 20% sample of their final report for the course, it is submitted during Week 5. Feedback will be given on summative assessment at the end of the course and all students will be invited to an examination feedback session following release of course results. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Demonstrate a detailed, integrated understanding of the theoretical, practical and ethical issues of using media and an understanding of how the field has developed
- Utilise techniques and approaches in presenting and analysing media in human geography and ethnomethodology, some of which are advanced and specialised
- Critically consider the appropriateness of media analyses for different sets of questions, problems and contexts
- Understand and have strategies for working with media data, so that students are then capable of communicating media materials effectively in research outputs (e.g. presentations and reports)
- Critically review and consolidate their analysis of media materials for the final assessment
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Reading List
Antaki, C., Ardévol, E., Néunez, F., & Vayreda, A. (2006). For she who knows who she is: Managing Accountability in Online Forum Messages. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication11, 114-132.
Birchall C (2006) Knowledge Goes Pop: From Conspiracy Theory to Gossip. Oxford: Berg
Jones, N., & Raymond, G. (2012). The Camera Rolls: Using Third-Party Video in Field Research. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 642(1), 109-123.
Smith L T (2012) Decolonizing Methodologies: Research and Indigenous Peoples. London: Zed Books |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Effectively search and collect online data from internet forums , video archives (e.g. Youtube) and other media repositories
Present data from media and especially online sources, as forms of evidence in empirically-based reports
Analyse the perspectives, experiences and sources of knowledge and power of people presenting their worlds through media
Report on a pre-established topic presenting and analysing empirical materials from multiple media sources. |
| Keywords | Qualitative methods,online media,sequential analysis,membership categorisation analysis |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Eric Laurier
Tel: (0131 6)51 4303
Email: |
Course secretary | Miss Carry Arnold
Tel: (0131 6)50 9847
Email: |
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