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It's official! On May 5th the Academic Policies and Procedures Committee at Appalachian State University approved a Masters Degree in Media Literacy. That program will commence in spring 2000 with online and distance delivery expected in the future. The degree will be part of the Master of Arts in Educational Media which includes tracks/concentrations in media production, telecommunications, computing and now media literacy.The program affords flexible approaches to address various levels of student interest. For Example students may opt to:
take one class or a series of classes as part of a non degree track program.OR complete a Certificate of Completion in Media Literacy by undertaking 18 hours of study.
OR take the entire 36 hour masters degree.
If you are interested in taking one or more courses online or on campus, please complete the potential student profile.
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Purpose:The media literacy concentration develops the technical and intellectual skills to successfully utilize and critique traditional and emerging mass media formats and information technologies. Particular emphasis will be placed upon the impact and influence of media content and format on school and society, students and citizens. Attention will also be given to the subject of media audiences and media ownership. Graduates of the program will be prepared to foster media literacy initiatives, projects and curriculum development in a variety of educational settings.
These settings can be as diverse as K-12 education , faith-based programs, healthcare provision or education, juvenile justice or counseling.
The degree consists of 36 hours of classes which include design and production work as well as media analysis. Students are encouraged to select from a variety of electives offered from inside or outside the college.
The core of the degree will be anchored in 4 required courses, providing 12 credit hours.
CI 5830 Media Literacy.
This course examines what it means to be literate in a media era. Key concepts and principles from the field of media literacy are studied through an examination of motion pictures, advertising, television, photo journalism, broadcast news and the Internet. Emphasis is placed upon understanding media texts, media industries, media narratives and the form and language of numerous media. Students are provided with critical frameworks for analyzing media as well as with tools and techniques to be applied in several class projects aimed at deconstructing media.
Program coordinator, Dr. Considine
[4th from left] is also a member of the Board of
Directors of the Alliance for a Media Literate America.
Board members including Frank Baker, Renee Hobbs and
Elizabeth Thoman are shown here at the launch of the
organization during the 200l National Media Education
Conference in Austin. Executive Director of the National
Telemedia Council, Marilie Rowe, presents Canada's Neil
Andersen [far left] with the Jessie McCanse award
for individual contributions to media literacy. On the
platform with Neil are former recipients, Canadian's Barry
Duncan and John Pungente along with Appalachian's Program
Coordinator, David Considine. [Austin June,
2001]
CI 5940 Media: Image and Influence.
This media literacy course concentrates on media representations, media audiences and media effects. Film and television are studied in terms of their depiction of individuals, institutions and issues. Key categories of exploration include race, class and gender. Case studies include representations of the family, adolescence, minorities and schools. The social and psychological consequences of media content are examined with emphasis upon child and adolescent audiences, particularly in the areas of sexuality, violence and substance abuse.
CI 5630 Instructional Technology.
This course examines media and technology within the context of American education. Traditional and emerging technologies of instruction are studied in terms of their educational potential and their failure to transform schools. As an educational innovation, media literacy is contextualized within the culture and climate of the classroom and explored in terms of perceptions and paradigms that have subverted the role of media and technology in our schools.
CI 5635 Media Literacy and Curriculum Development.
This course locates media literacy within traditional and emerging models of mass communication. This includes a study of British, Australian and Canadian approaches to media education within their school systems.
Students are required to develop a rationale that links media literacy to key tenets and goals of American education such as the creation of responsible citizens.
An interdisciplinary and integrated approach examines media literacy as both an revolutionary and evolutionary concept. In addition to considering media literacy as a competency or area of study, it is also addressed in terms of classroom methodology and pedagogy. Curriculum design and development in the students area of interest will be required.
In addition to the four required classes described above, students in our program also have the opportunity to engage in Independent Study and Selected Topics.
In Summer 2001, for example, Barry Duncan, the founder of Canada's Association for Media Literacy, came to the Boone campus where he offered Global Issues In Media Literacy.
In July 2002 our students will have the opportunity to study with Kathleen Tyner, author of Literacy In A Digital World.
Visual Messages Integrating Imagery Into Instruction, Second Edition, (1999), traces the growth of media literacy in the U.S. in the 1990's, articulates a rationale for media literacy and demonstrates specific frameworks and curricula connections.
"I've read the proofs from Visual Messages and I am overwhelmed. It is excellent. It is thorough, insightful, and extremely thought-provoking. I think every teacher in America should have this on their desks." ----- Frank Baker, Chairperson of the 1999 National Media Literacy Conference -To order : Call 1-800-237-6127 - ext. 1, and ask for Dept. 9917
