POPULAR CULTURE, REPRESENTATION AND POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION
EAD 991B-001 • Spring 2021 • 4:10-7 PM: Thursdays • Online • Dr. Riyad A. Shahjahan
This course takes a cultural studies approach to critically examining the ways in which popular culture acts as a form of public pedagogy, representing postsecondary education, and/or engaged by educators/students inside/outside the USA. Areas of study may include, but are not limited to, television, film, music, advertisements, magazines, fiction, cartoons, novels, video games, newspapers, the Internet, and social media.
Learning Outcomes:
- A deeper understanding of the nuances of what constitutes popular culture and its manifestations in larger society
- A deeper understanding of the interconnections between popular culture about postsecondary education and knowledge production, identity, and power
- A deeper appreciation of various cultural studies research methods (e.g., visual studies, social media analysis, movie analysis, unobtrusive methods, etc.)
Possible texts we will use:
- Nealon, J.T. & Giroux, S.S. (2012). The theory toolbox: Critical concepts for the humanities, arts, & social sciences (2nd Ed.). Rowman & Littlefield.
- Tobolowsky, B. F., & Reynolds, P. J. (2017). Antiintellectual representations of American colleges and universities: Fictional higher education. Palgrave Macmillan US.
- Longhurst, B., Smith, G., Bagnall, G., Crawford, G., & Ogborn, M. (2017). Introducing cultural studies (3rd. Ed.). Routledge.
Email Dr. Shahjahan at shahja95@msu.edu with any questions about the course.