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Visual Communication and Digital Media (MECM20014)
Undergraduate level 2Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)
About this subject
- Overview
- Eligibility and requirements
- Assessment
- Dates and times
- Further information
- Timetable (login required)(opens in new window)
Contact information
Semester 1
Overview
| Availability | Semester 1 |
|---|---|
| Fees | Look up fees |
This subject offers a critical analysis of the ways in which contemporary practices of visual communication are being reshaped by digital media. It provides an overview of the digitisation of key visual media such as photography, cinema and video, and addresses the social and political implications of the growing use of digital networks as primary forms for the distribution and consumption of images. On successfully completing this subject, students will have gained an understanding of a wide range of issues affecting contemporary communications.
Students will engage with key issues for 21st century media industries including:
- How professional organisations such as news media and institutions such as courts deal with the changing ground for claims to truth and realism by media such as photography, film and video
- The implications of photo-sharing and social networking websites as new cultural forms for the circulation of images
- The blurring of lines between amateur and professional media production, and the growing use of visual communication by activists and NGOs.
Intended learning outcomes
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Demonstrate knowledge of the key concepts of visual communication, digital media, visual analysis, and networked culture
- Recognise and explain the differing methodologies for understanding the relation between technological change in media industries and new practices of visual communication
- Identify and critically engage with an interdisciplinary approach to contemporary modes of visual communication
- Demonstrate a capacity for critical thinking in relation to local and global processes of visual communication in the digital era.
Generic skills
At the completion of this subject, students should gain the following generic skills:
- Prepare and present their ideas in both verbal and written mode, and in conformity to conventions of academic presentation
- Reflect on their own learning and take responsibility for organising personal study
- Participate in discussion and group activities and be sensitive to the participation of others.
Last updated: 31 January 2024
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
None
Corequisites
None
Non-allowed subjects
None
Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)
The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.
Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home
Last updated: 31 January 2024
Assessment
| Description | Timing | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
Class presentation
| From Week 2 to Week 11 | 10% |
Tutorial participation
| From Week 1 to Week 12 | 10% |
Visual Analysis Essay
| Mid semester | 30% |
Research essay
| End of semester | 50% |
| Hurdle requirement: 1. Attendance hurdle requirement: This subject has a minimum requirement of 80% attendance at tutorials, seminars, or workshops. There is an expectation that students attend lectures. | Throughout the teaching period | N/A |
| Hurdle requirement: 2. Late Penalty and Assessment hurdle requirement: Assessment submitted late without an approved extension will be penalised at five per cent (5%) of the possible marks available for the assessment task per day or part thereof. All pieces of assessment must be submitted to pass the subject. Each submitted assessment must be complete, constitute a genuine attempt to address the requirements of the task and will not be accepted after 20 University business days from the original assessment due date without written approval. | Throughout the semester | N/A |
Last updated: 31 January 2024
Dates & times
- Semester 1
Coordinators Tommaso Durante and Scott McQuire Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours 36 hours per semester: 1-hour lecture and 1.5- hour tutorial per week. Total time commitment 170 hours Teaching period 26 February 2024 to 26 May 2024 Last self-enrol date 8 March 2024 Census date 3 April 2024 Last date to withdraw without fail 3 May 2024 Assessment period ends 21 June 2024 Semester 1 contact information
Time commitment details
170 hours
What do these dates mean
Visit this webpage to find out about these key dates, including how they impact on:
- Your tuition fees, academic transcript and statements.
- And for Commonwealth Supported students, your:
- Student Learning Entitlement. This applies to all students enrolled in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP).
Subjects withdrawn after the census date (including up to the ‘last day to withdraw without fail’) count toward the Student Learning Entitlement.
Last updated: 31 January 2024
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
There are no specifically prescribed or recommended texts for this subject.
- Links to additional information
- Available to Study Abroad and/or Study Exchange Students
This subject is available to students studying at the University from eligible overseas institutions on exchange and study abroad. Students are required to satisfy any listed requirements, such as pre- and co-requisites, for enrolment in the subject.
Last updated: 31 January 2024