This course is concerned with helping students develop an informed and critical understanding of the mass media, the techniques used by them, and the impact of these techniques on society. We learn how various media work, how they produce meaning, how they are organized, and how they construct our reality. Students acquire skills and knowledge of resources that will help them as teachers develop their own curricula. Foundations of Media Design A broad but rigorous orientation to design concepts and practices for basic production of communication media. Readings and hands-on activities cover principles of perception and applications in graphic design, photography, audio, and video.
Students are able to explore their personal strengths in different media.
Use of relatively simple equipment to solve problems of media design is stressed. Students must have access to a 35mm camera and an audiocassette recorder. This course emphasizes proactive approaches to understanding and using media as tools for social change. Case studies supplement readings of educational and social theory and practice and provide a framework for class discussion.