Understanding Communication and Media (12217.1)

The communication and media landscape is changing faster than ever, and an early career professional needs to hit the ground running. In this unit, you will be introduced to key media studies theories alongside the history of communication and media. You will consider emerging social and technological trends and consider how they will impact your future work. You will begin to critically analyse texts, platforms and network actors and consider how meaning is made and how communicators shape public discourse. You will consider your relationship with audiences and learn how to engage and inform them with a growing toolkit of persuasive and rhetorical techniques.

Learning outcomes

After successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
1. Understand historical and contemporary communication and media ecosystems through a theoretical lens, considering social and technological trends;
2. Identify and locate audiences within increasingly complex media and information networks, using data and metrics;
3. Gather, evaluate and use information from a range of sources; and
4. Produce persuasive texts using rhetorical techniques and well-supported argument structures.

Graduate attributes

1. UC graduates are professional - communicate effectively
1. UC graduates are professional - employ up-to-date and relevant knowledge and skills
2. UC graduates are global citizens - think globally about issues in their profession
3. UC graduates are lifelong learners - adapt to complexity, ambiguity and change by being flexible and keen to engage with new ideas
3. UC graduates are lifelong learners - reflect on their own practice, updating and adapting their knowledge and skills for continual professional and academic development

Prerequisites

None.

Corequisites

None.

Incompatible units

None.

Equivalent units

11079 The Art and Power of Communication

Assumed knowledge

None.