Media Studies 200: Intro to Media Studies
Intended for 70 undergraduate students
Spring 2025 at the University of Victoria
lək̓ʷəŋən and WSÁNEĆ territories
M and Th, 10 - 11:20am | 1.5 units | prereq: AWR
Taught by Jentery Sayers (he / him) | jentery@uvic.ca
Office hours: M and Th, 12-1pm, in CLE D331
Teaching assistant (marking): Maya Linsley (she / any)
Worksheet 4 covers the second half of material from Module 3: Approaches. Your response is due via Brightspace by Thursday, April 3rd at 10am.
The worksheet is open-book, meaning you are allowed to use handouts, the course website, my slides, your notes, recordings of class sessions, the library, and the internet to address the prompts.
Please cite your source material.
Please download the worksheet (DOCX format) to complete it in a word processor such as Microsoft Word, Google Docs, OpenOffice, LibreOffice, or Pages for Mac.
This open-book worksheet contains five prompts. You should respond to four of them, and Prompt 5 is required.
Each response is worth 25 points for a total of 100 points.
Some prompts ask you to create media. Please attach your audio, image, or video files to your response in Brightspace. Do not use YouTube, SoundCloud, Vimeo, Google Drive, or any other non-Brightspace platform to submit files.
Prompt 1. Identify a UVic program or community where you’d like to see change. Now, create a poster to appeal for that change. The poster should include text and images, and it should make three types of rhetorical appeals. Then use no more than 350 words, including terminology from the “Persuasion” handout and “Media” and “Communication” modules, to: 1) identify the program or community to whom you’re appealing, 2) describe the three types of rhetorical appeal(s) you’re making for change, 3) describe the problem motivating the change you wish to see, 4) identify who would be affected most by the change, and 5) explain what it would take for the program or community to make the change. Don’t forget to attach your poster to your response.
Prompt 2. Use an image to index a moment when a fictitious character in a TV show, web series, comic, or similar format helped you feel seen. You can create the image, find one online, or take a screen grab. Then use no more than 350 words, including terminology from the “Representation” handout and “Communication” and “Media” modules, to: 1) describe the image, 2) describe the moment you felt seen, 3) explain how the character helped you feel seen personally, 4) explain how the character helped you feel seen socially, and 5) say how frequently you feel seen by media in this way. Don’t forget to attach your image so I can see it.
Prompt 3. Identify a space that was designed to tell a story. Examples include museums, exhibits, escape rooms, amusement parks, video games, and even some stores, malls, and restaurants. Now, use photography, video, or screen caps to document the space. Then use no more than 350 words, including terminology from the “Narrative” handout and “Communication” and “Media” modules, to: 1) identify the space, 2) describe it, 3) describe how it evokes, embeds, and/or enacts stories, 4) describe how it prompts or stages emergent storytelling, and 5) share what you learned about narrative and environmental storytelling from this exercise. Don’t forget to include some documentation of the space.
Prompt 4. Select a piece of fanwork that interests you. Examples of fanwork include fanfiction, fanart, fanvids, fanzines, and podfic. Then use no more than 350 words, including terminology from the “Fandom” handout and “Communication” and “Media” modules, to: 1) describe the fanwork, 2) explain what makes it participatory, 3) explain what makes it transformative, and 4) share what you learned about fandom and participatory culture from this exercise. Please include a URL for the fanwork or attach it to your submission.
Prompt 5 (required). I asked you to attend a media workshop or lecture on campus this term. Please share documentation of your attendance at the lecture or what you did during the workshop. Then use no more than 350 words to: 1) tell me what you learned, 2) reflect on what you learned, and 3) comment on how the workshop or lecture intersected with what we did in Media Studies 200.
I will use the following rubric, based on UVic’s official grading system, to assess your responses.
1 point will be deducted for every 25 words over the prescribed word count.
10 points will be deducted from the overall mark if no references are included at the end of the worksheet (see “Citing Your Sources”).
5 points will be deducted from the overall mark if the references at the end of the worksheet are not formatted according to an established citation style (see “Citing Your Sources”).
The total of these points (0-100) will constitute 15% of your final mark in this course.
You do not need to meet the word count in each response to earn a high mark.
I recommend using prose (paragraphs) rather than point form in your responses. Prose is more synthetic and will allow you to make connections.
You should also avoid repetition within responses and across them. I do not, for instance, recommend writing about the same topic or theme in every response (e.g., four responses about video games, TikTok, or a particular fandom).
Please do not forget to cite any material from which you draw ideas or examples. This includes course handouts. You are welcome to use your preferred citation style (MLA, Chicago, or APA, e.g.).
Please submit a DOCX, ODT, PAGES, or PDF file containing your answers and references along with any media files you were prompted to attach or embed.
A response to Worksheet 4 is due by 10am on Thursday, April 3rd, but there is a 24-hour grace period. I will deduct five points for every business day I receive Worksheet 4 after 10am on Friday, April 4th. I will close the submission portal at 10am on Monday, April 14th and cannot accept any submissions after the portal is closed. I will not accept any submissions by email.