Course Catalogue

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This course will survey the emerging media forms and formats which affect the lives of many

young people. "New Media" in this course is broadly defined to encompass a wide array of

artifacts and technologies which flavour modern childhood, including but not limited to:

movies, games, videos, websites, virtual reality, apps, toys and transmedia assemblages.

Seven online sessions of 1.5 hours each.

None

Participation / Discussion (20%) - Understandings of what participation can look like and

how it should be marked will occur in the first session.

Final Project (80%) - students will select one of two projects to demonstrate their ability to

select, analyse, and make meaning from/with children's media:

1) Self-devised essay (3000 words)- students will devise their own essay question in

relation to the material covered in the course which will need to be approved by the course

lead before the proposal is submitted.

2) Design Fiction (2500 words) and Reflective piece (500 words) - students will write a

piece of design fiction - a short story - to imagine a children's or youth technology as it

might exist in context (~2500 words) this will be accompanied by a reflective paper that links

the creative writing to the course materials and readings (500 words). Interactive pieces and

illustrated works are also possible, with consultation of the instructor.

The overall project is worth 80% of the final grade; however, the proposal or story outline

(10%) is included in the final grade. Students should submit a proposal committing to one of

these two options by the fourth week of the class.

The aim is to have students engage critically with these diverse media forms, examining how children and youth

incorporate them (or don't) in their daily lives, and how adults shape and reshape notions of

children's/youth culture and play. In the process, we grapple with diverse conceptions of

both media and children/youth, and confront issues that sometimes lie below the surface of

media creation and use, such as power and control, privacy, safety, gender bias, cultural

stereotypes, authority and violence.

LO1: Examine media design, selection and use in relation to the changing conceptions of

children/youth and childhood.

LO2: Apply knowledge of children/youth and media to contemporary social concerns.

LO3: Contribute to debates on the effects of media on children's/youth culture and behaviour

LO4: Analyze and evaluate diverse technologies, media, programs, or services designed for

and/or adopted by children/youth

LO5: Identify and discuss emerging trends in new media for children/youth

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.