Professional Documents
Culture Documents
SYLLABUS
MEETING TIMES AND ROOM
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9:35-11:30 a.m. in ATC 222
REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS
Richard Barsam and Dave Monahan. (2015) Looking At Movies (5 th ed.). W.W.
Norton & Company.
Karen Gocsik and Richard Barsam. (2015) Writing About Movies. (4th ed.). W.W.
Norton & Company.
WELCOME
Welcome to COM 230, A Survey of Mass Media Industries in the United States! Some
course content will be presented as lectures, but this class primarily is a “learn by
discussion” portfolio class. You will produce media communications in various formats
using basic building blocks of storytelling and journalism. You will spend much of the
time discussing readings, engaging in small group presentations, and working on
assignments during class time. I encourage you to think, question, apply, and integrate
the course materials. Your active involvement will ensure the semester is productive
and enjoyable. Therefore, I expect you to complete all reading assignments before
class, be prepared to engage in class discussions and activities, complete all
assignments on time, and put your best effort into all coursework. Please contact me
when you have questions. Chat with me in my office, by phone or email.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Office Hours: M/W 9-9:35 AM, 2-3 p.m.; T 3-4 PM, F by appointment, ATC 307
Email – Use your MCCC student email account to email me: lkeatley@mc3.edu
Phone -- Call me during office hours or leave a voicemail at (215) 641-6313.
COURSE OVERVIEW
Course Description
The popular arts of “the movies” and television are carefully prepared constructions of
sights and sounds. Watching them is the chief way our society comes to recognize
itself. COM 230 is about learning to get more enjoyment and meaning from these
products of the image industries. The course examines how meaning is created and
communicated in non-print media. Basic concepts and techniques in constructing and
interrelating visual and aural images will be discussed in light of the historical
development of film and video technology and techniques. This course meets General
Education Core Goal 1a: Communication Skills: Written; Core Goal 5: Information
Literacy; and Core Goal 7: Aesthetic Sensibility and the Arts.
Learning Outcomes
STUDENT SERVICES
The Student Success Center offers free substantial mentoring, tutoring, co-curricular and
other support services for all students.
Tutorial Services is a FREE service that helps students develop learning strategies based on
their unique learning styles with the goal of creating successful students and independent
learners. Tutorial Services helps students achieve academic success by providing tutoring in
course content and study skills, math and writing workshops, study skills workshops, and
computing skills. View tutoring hours and locations. At Main Campus, Tutorial Services is in
College Hall 180, across from the Cafeteria. The AV Librarian and the Information Literacy
Librarian also offer support. Also, 24/7 FREE online tutoring is available at Tutor.com that you
Basic Needs: If you or a student you know has difficulty accessing resources to meet basic
needs, i.e., safety, food, and/or stable housing and believe this may affect academic
performance, please get support. Contact the Director of Student Retention and Success in
College Hall’s Student Success Center, send an email to csmith3@mc3.edu, or call 215 641 2803
for help.
Services for Students with Disabilities: Montgomery County Community College welcomes
qualified students with disabilities and endorses principles of nondiscrimination and reasonable
accommodation found in Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (504) and the Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). Check if you are eligible for services and reasonable
accommodations by reviewing the policy on the Disabilities website or visit the Disabilities
Services Center College Hall, Room 225, or call 215 641-6575 for information.
Services for Veterans: Student veterans may be eligible for benefits. Contact the Veterans
Resource Center or 215-619-7307 to learn about education and healthcare benefits.
School Closings: The day class cancellation number 320 will be reported by 6:00 a.m. for day
classes (all classes that start before 3 p.m.), and by 2:00 p.m. for evening classes.
Course & Faculty Evaluation: Please complete an anonymous, online faculty evaluation form
before the course ends. Faculty cannot access evaluation results until after grades have posted.
COLLEGE POLICIES
Sourcing: All assignments must contain at least two properly cited sources that support
your work. Papers require additional sources.
A- 3.67 = 90-92%
B+ 3.33 = 87-89.99%
C+ 2.67 = 77-79.99%
All grades are final and will not be changed unless there was a mechanical error in
recording.
The "Incomplete" Grade ("I"): The "I" grade is not granted, and the final grade is
posted when required by the College. If the outstanding work is turned in by a date
agreed on by the student and professor, it will be graded, and the final grade
recalculated and sent to the registrar to post.
Withdrawal from Class: Withdrawal from Class: There are three periods of time for
withdrawals listed on the college’s website:
Note: If you or your spouse face Military Deployment or Reassignment and need to
withdraw, see College policies for assistance in the process.
The “Audit” Grade”: Auditing a course means that a student attends classes but is not
required to submit assignments or take examinations unless agreed upon with the
instructor beforehand. An auditor, therefore, receives neither a grade nor course credit.
The auditing fee, however, is the same as when a student is regularly enrolled for credit.
Students are permitted to audit one or more courses.
Writing Standards: These are the minimum standards expected of all students for
written assignments:
1. Proofread your work carefully. I will deduct points for spelling, capitalization
and grammatical errors.
2. Type all assignments. Use Arial 12-point font, one-inch margins and double
spacing.
3. Place page numbers in the right-hand footer.
4. Type a header in the top left-hand corner for the first page of every
assignment:
a. Your Name
b. Course Name and Section
c. Assignment Title
d. Instructor’s Name
e. Date
5. Check Blackboard for writing resources.
6. Save a copy of all written assignments for your records and course portfolio.
Assignments
Your grade will be based on your performance on assignments and activities listed on
the chart below. Assignments may change during the semester at the discretion of the
instructor. Submit all written assignments to Blackboard SafeAssign™, a plagiarism
detection service. Instructions about assignments will be discussed in class and posted
on Blackboard.
Assignment/Activity Percent
Participation 10%
Movie Response
25%
Papers
Movie Introduction
5%
Presentation
Exams 15%
Research Paper,
Thesis Statement,
10%
Outline and Annotated
Bibliography
Total 100%
Movie Introduction Presentation (5%). You will be assigned a movie to introduce to the
class before its screening. Your presentation must be 3-5 minutes and include a
presentation aid (e.g., slide show). Your presentation must contain information about the
movie’s: release date, run time, director, producer, main actors, any critical reviews, any
accolades and awards, and any other pertinent trivia.
Research Paper, Thesis Statement, Outline and Annotated Bibliography (5%). This is
a research assignment you will complete to prepare you to write your term paper.
Research Paper (20%). You will write a five to six-page term paper on an approved topic
about the film industry and explore the chosen topic in depth. Failure to submit a term
paper means you will receive an “F” grade in the course. Further details and instructions
will be posted on Blackboard.
Digital Media Portfolio (10%). You will submit a digital portfolio of your coursework by the
last meeting day of the semester.
CITIZEN KANE Final Analysis and Presentation (5%). You will be assigned one aspect
of the classic film, CITIZEN KANE, to analyze and present to the class during finals week.
Detailed instructions will be presented in class.
SEQUENCE OF TOPICS
A list of the general topics that will be covered in this course is listed below. A detailed list of
topics, assignments, and deadlines is posted in Blackboard in the “Course Schedule” section.
Assignments must be submitted no later than 10 minutes before the start of class on the
due date. I do not accept late work. You will receive a zero grade for missing assignments
or late work you submit, unless you provide written proof that you experienced an
unforeseen and verifiable emergency.
Your attendance is mandatory and will be recorded in Blackboard. I expect you to attend
class regularly, arrive on time, and remain in the class session until you are formally
dismissed. You may miss three classes without consequence. After a third absence, your
final grade will drop one full letter grade. So, if you had a final grade of A but missed four
classes, your final grade will be a B. Missing 5 classes with the final grade of A drop your
final grade to a C, and so on.
If you have an emergency or personal crisis, I require written proof without exception to
grant you an excused absence.
Lateness will negatively affect your grade. For every 2 late arrivals, you earn 1 absence.
I record attendance at the beginning of class. If you arrive late, I will have marked you
absent. It is your responsibility to ensure I changed your absence to a late arrival.
If you miss class, do not send me an email or use class time to ask what you missed.
Ask a classmate first. Exchange contact information with a classmate early in the
semester for this purpose. If you still have questions, talk with me after class or during
my office hours to discuss what you missed.
Blackboard (Bb)
The course learning materials are organized in weekly folders on Blackboard under the
weekly content folder heading “Weekly Content Folder.” Please submit ALL your
assignments on Blackboard. Do not email assignments to me. Upload all assignments
to Blackboard with the following title format: Last Name_ First Name_Assignment
Research Standards
For research assignments, use Google Scholar, the Library’s Communication Collection
(books), the AV Library, and the other peer-reviewed databases on the library website.
Encyclopedias and blogs should not be used as sources.
Below are the minimum writing standards of performance expected of all students. They
apply to ALL assignments.
Proofread your documents carefully. Use Grammarly.com. I will deduct points from any
written assignment that contains spelling, capitalization, or grammatical errors.
Example: KeatleyL_ResearchPaper
Use writing resources in Writing Guidelines and Resources folder in Bb, Course
Materials.
Keep a copy of all written assignments for your records.
Warning: Materials used in conjunction with this course may be subject to copyright protection. You
may not reproduce, re-use, or re-purpose course material in any way without written permission from
the instructor and Montgomery County Community College. See Blackboard for more information.