MP5032 - The Creative Industries

The module is taught through a combination of lectures and seminars. The taught component of the module will consist of two-hour lecture slots accompanied by one-hour seminar slots across the year. Every lecture will have a corresponding seminar in which the issues will be explored in greater depth. The lectures will mainly introduce key theoretical contentions, historical/political/social/economic contexts, and issues. The lecture slot is long as to allow space for the tutor to: a) introduce theoretical, industrial and practical ideas; b) demonstrate the ways in which these examples can be understood in relation to theories of media and communication; and c) delineate areas of contention raised by the examples. The connections between the theoretical ideas and the issue at hand will be explored further in the seminars. The module includes a significant time allowance for self-directed study. During this time, you will be expected to engage in seminar preparation (for example, by engaging with relevant scholarship). You will be expected to attend the seminars prepared (i.e. having attended the lecture and conducted independent preparatory reading). The major theoretical texts are available from the campus library and electronic library, thereby ensuring that you can access the literature required for seminar work and assessment preparation. You are encouraged to read extensively beyond the taught components of the module.

The module tutor has weekly office hours during which you can drop in for academic support. All students are also provided with an academic tutor who also has hours to support student learning. The seminars will allow you to engage in group discussion and problem-solving with the module tutor and your peers, thus developing a constructive support network. The delivery of the module will be supported with learning and lecture materials that are accessible via the e-learning portal.

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

Knowledge & Understanding:
• KU1: Develop a detailed understanding of the methods, approaches and practices that characterise contemporary creative industries
• KU2: Develop a detailed understanding of the impacts that technological and cultural transformations have on contemporary creative industries

Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:
• IPSA1: Reflect on and develop your ability to critically evaluate debates relating to creative industries, both independently and in group discussion

Personal Values Attributes (Global / Cultural awareness, Ethics, Curiosity) (PVA):
• PVA1: Develop a detailed understanding of the creative industries landscape, accounting for social, political and cultural considerations that have led to the development of contemporary creative industries.

FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
To prepare you successfully to undertake the summative assessment(s) on this module, formative assessments will be set by the module team. These may take the form of in-class tasks or projects, developmental activities undertaken between classes, or learning exercises/activities set over a longer period. Feedback (written and/or oral) will be provided to help you learn from, reflect on, and develop in light of these formative assessments.

SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT
A a 3000-word essay in which you are expected to engage critically and reflectively with the work you have studied on the module and that you have independently explored.

The assessment strategy with respect to this module is designed to develop:

• The ability to present a well-organised, well-supported academic discussion on the chosen topic following all the academic conventions for example referencing.
• The ability to engage critically with the knowledge and understanding acquired
• The ability to communicate effectively complex information in a variety of different formats
• Independent research skills in information retrieval and organization

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Creative Industries combines conceptual thinking, practice-informed debate, and experiential learning into a distinctive and innovative matrix that will enable you to obtain a fully rounded critical understanding of the ways in which media and creative industries function and the challenges and opportunities that face them in the immediate future. The goal is to establish what we mean by creative industries while illuminating new practices through theories of production and consumption. This module will invite you to critically interact with historical and current concerns in the creative industries. Creative Industries will prepare you to talk about the local, national, and international markets for creative media. In this module, you will acquire skills to critically evaluate changes in the media and cultural industries and their economic and political significance. Creative Industries will shed light on the digital revolution and how it impacts the creative industries' production, dissemination, and consumption.