20 Credit Modules

Module title:	Theory and Contexts of Advertising Communication
SCQF level:	11:
SCQF credit value:	20.00
ECTS credit value:	10
Module code:	JAC11108
Module leader:	MR PHILIP LODGE
School	Arts & Creative Industries
Subject area group:	Art, Design & Communication

Prerequisites

There are no pre-requisites for this module to be added

Timetables

Click here to view the trimester 1 teaching timetable

Click here to view the trimester 3 teaching timetable

2013/4, Trimester 1, Face-to-Face, Napier University

Occurrence:	001
Primary mode of delivery:	Face-to-Face
Location of delivery:	NAPIER
Member of staff responsible for delivering module:	MR PHILIP LODGE
Module Organiser:

Learning, Teaching and Assessment (LTA) Approach:

Learning and teaching methods including their alignment to LO's
The LTA approach is based on encouraging you to develop your own ideas through debate and in writing as these are the key forms of theoretical engagement, and each demands particular kinds of academic and scholarly understandings. (LO's 1,2,4,5)The main teaching platform is the seminar, where you are encouraged to share your ideas and develop them in response to other contributions ,so a high level of preparation and interactive engagement is crucial. (LO's 2,4,5) Parts of some seminars will be devoted to breakout activities such as short lecture inputs with the aim of introducing new concepts into the developing seminar themes. (LO 2).

Embedding of employability/PDP/scholarship skills
The ability to read and process amounts of complex material;, to develop an independent view based on evidence and sound reasoning, and to present that view in open debate and defend it in reasoned argument, are high-level graduate qualities valued by employers. Throughout your work in the module, scholarship will be emphasised: critical skills, research skills and academic literacy are central to your development as a student, and these skills are highly transferable. The material discussed in the module is closely related to ideas, concepte and practices in the advertising industry, and in discussing these issues you will not only develop a way of thinking about the advertising process but also through increasing your understanding increase your employability within the industry. This module is very much a part of the process of increasing professionalisation in the recruitment base to the industry.

Assessment (formative and summative)
During the module you will undertake two pieces of assessment, a tutorial paper and an essay. The tutorial paper will be chosen from a range of options outlined in the module guide, and you are expected to lead the group in discussing the issues in your chosen paper. In doing so, you will also present your own arguments on the concepts in the paper and encourage critical debate leading to a constructive and perhaps original view of the central themes. Your tutorial paper can take place at various times within the module programme depending on your individual choice of paper. You will also write and submit an essay, and the essay title will be chosen by negotiation with the module lecturer. This allows you the freedom to chose a topic from within the module which interests you and to develop your interest at some length through researching and writing about it. Scholarly technique is important in both pieces of assessment: extensive research, critical analysis of material, and clear and structured responses to the issues are central to your work. To help you gauge your progress and to provide a further opportunity to discuss your own views, individual feedback will be given on each piece of assessment.

Research/teaching linkages
Staff interests will form the basis of teaching in this module. The embedding of research into the module will encourage you to develop your critical thinking and problem solving skills and enable you to communicate effectively in both oral and written forms.

Supporting equality and diversity
This module aims to provide information and support related to intercultural initiatives, reflecting the impetus to widen access. Intercultural themes are pursued in the range of material studied, reflecting the nature of the subject.

Internationalisation
Communication, of which advertising is a manifestation, literally has no boundaries and is, in its academic study, genuinely international. Varying theoretical schools and approaches which reflect national approaches to the discipline are evident and are deliberately explored. The global nature of communication and the communication disciplines results in the recruitment of a wide range of international students, and their learning requirements are acknowledged in the design and delivery of this module.

Student Activity (Notional Equivalent Study Hours (NESH))
Mode of activity	Learning & Teaching Activity	NESH (Study Hours)
FACE TO FACE	Tutorial / Seminar / Class Groupwork	90
Independent Learning	Individual Learning Activities	110
	Total Study Hours	200
	Expected Total Study Hours for Module	200

Assessment
Type of Assessment	Weighting %	LOs covered	Week due	Length in Hours/Words
OTHER TUTORIAL PAPER	50	1,2,3,4,5	1-12	HOURS= 1.5
Essay	50	1,2,3,4,5	15	WORDS= 3500
Component 1 subtotal:	50
Component 2 subtotal:	50
Module subtotal:	100

What you will learn and what this module is about:

This module is designed to help you to think about "advertising". It assumes that advertising is a form of communication practice which is embedded in broad social contexts, and that those practices and contexts can be studied through a range of conceptual and theoretical ideas. You will study a wide range of disciplinary approaches, learn new methods of reading and analysing ads as texts, and examine the influence of contextual factors in structuring our understanding of advertising. In completing the module you will be well-equipped to critically reflect on the issues which shape and define the iconic communication industry and on your own creative practice within it.

Description of module content:

The module is a balance of theoretical perspectives drawn from contemporary communication theory and the examination of current issues which shape the process of advertising in the social context. Theoretically, issues studied include structural and phenomenological influences; mass media historiography; texts, transmission and reception; message meaning and construction. Contextually, issues studied include cultural capital; social capital; gender as ideology; race in advertising; social and political dimensions; new media, music and the use of humour.

Learning Outcomes for module:

Upon completion of this module, you will be able to:
LO1: Develop a critical understanding of key theories and concepts.
LO2: Engage in a theoretically creative way with complex advertising issues.
LO3: Examine the impact of advertising in a wider social context.
LO4: Apply sociological ideas and concepts to the advertising industry.
LO5: Develop a proper scholarly technique.

Indicative References and Reading List - URL:

T1: Cobley,P. (1996) The Communication Theory Reader, Routledge
T2: Leiss,W, Kline, S, and Jhally, S (1990) Social Communication in Advertising, Routledge
T3: Lang, Servaes & Goonasekera (eds) (2001) The New Communications Landscape
T4: Jenkins, R (1992) Pierre Bourdieu Routledge
T5: Klein, N (2000) No Logo Flamingo
T6: Campaign Magazine

Click here to view this module's reading list.

Related information

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