MODULE SPECIFICATION TEMPLATE
MODULE DETAILS
Module title Studying Cultures
Module code
Credit value
HC152
Level Level 4 X Level 5 Level 6 Level 7 Level 8
Mark the box to the right of the appropriate level with an ‘X’
Level 0 (for modules at foundation level)
Entry criteria for registration on this module
Pre-requisites
Specify in terms of module
To have completed semester 1, level 4 courses on the Humanities
Programme. codes or equivalent
Co-requisite modules
Specify in terms of module codes or equivalent
Module delivery
Mode of delivery Taught X
Other
Distance Placement Online
Pattern of delivery Weekly X
When module is delivered Semester 1
Block
Semester 2
Other x Throughout year
Other
Brief description of module content and/ or
This unit introduces fundamental concepts and basic methodologies in cultural studies, focusing on the distinction

aims
Overview (max 80 words) between ‘lived cultures’ and ‘cultural texts’, grounded in case studies from Britain in the period 1968-74.
Module team/ author/ coordinator(s)
Cathy Bergin
School
Site/ campus where delivered
Humanities
Grand Parade
Course(s) for which module is appropriate and status on that course
Course Status (mandatory/ compulsory/ optional)
Globalisation: History, Politics, Culture
History, Literature and Culture
Compulsory
Compulsory
Humanities
Globalisation: History, Politics and Culture
Compulsory
Compulsory
Humanities: War, Conflict and Modernity Compulsory
MODULE AIMS, ASSESSMENT AND SUPPORT
Aims This unit aims to (i) introduce key concepts and theories in cultural studies and their application in the analysis of actual cultures, (ii) promote understanding of cultural conflict over ‘the
British way of life’ centred on questions of ‘race’, gender, class and youth at a key moment of historical change, (iii) develop awareness of the structuring of meanings, values and identities by cultural texts, and the ability to analyse a range of narratives in relation to their historical context.
Learning outcomes By the end of the unit students will: (i) be familiar with some basic methodologies of cultural studies, laying the foundations for the work of Levels 2 and 3; (ii) have begun to develop their capacities for independent and self-motivated learning; (iii) have developed their abilities to organise and present argument through oral and written work; (iv) have gained an introductory understanding of key concepts and explored their use in analysing cultural conflicts in Britain from 1968-74, (v) be able to analyse the structuring of meanings, values and identities in a

Content
Learning support range of cultural texts with reference both to their formal conventions and historical context.
This unit introduces two key approaches in the study of cultures: historical analysis of ‘lived cultures’, and critical reading of
‘cultural texts’. It examines key concepts and theories of culture that underpin these approaches, and explores how to apply them in case studies from Britain in the period 1968-74. Consideration is given first to the problem of how to conceptualize culture in
Britain at this time as a ‘whole way of life’. Contemporary perceptions of changes to and restructuring of ‘the British way of life’ are investigated, using theories of ideology, hegemony and cultural conflict over meanings, values and identities. Specific instances of conflict involving questions of ‘race’, gender, class and youth are situated and explored within this historical context.
Attention turns next to the structuring of meanings, values and identities by cultural texts, with a particular emphasis on forms of narrative. Theories of cultural representation and signification are introduced and applied to the analysis of language, narrative conventions, visual rhetoric and ideology in various texts produced during 196874, ranging from a girls’ magazine to an avant garde film. The unit concludes with critical interpretation of two complex narratives - a ‘popular’ film and a ‘literary’ novel - read in relation to the conflicts and ideologies of lived culture, both at the moment of their production and at the present time.
• indicative reading/reference
Barthes, Roland. Mythologies. London: Vintage. 2000.
Bennett, Tony, and Woolacott, Janet. Bond and Beyond: the
Political Career of a Popular Hero.
Basingstoke: Macmillan
Education. 1987.
Cohan, Steven, and Shires, Linda M. Telling Stories: A
Theoretical Analysis of Narrative Fiction. London: Routledge.
1988.
Gilroy, Paul. ‘ There Ain’t No Black in the Union Jack’: The
Cultural Politics of ‘Race’ and Nation. London: Hutchinson. 1987.
Mitchell, Juliet. Women’s Estate.
Harmondsworth: Penguin.
1971.
Turner, Graeme. British Cultural Studies: An Introduction.

(Second edition.) London and New York: Routledge. 1996.
Internet Resources http://culturalpolitics.net/ : A web portal to resources for Cultural
Studies.
• specialist materials and equipment
Course Reader.
Teaching and learning activities
Details of teaching and learning activities
Lectures (2 hours per week)
Seminars (1.5 hours per week)
Pre- and post essay tutorials: 0.5 hours for two essays
Private Study (12 hours per week)
Examinations
Allocation of study hours (indicative)
Where 10 credits = 100 learning hours
Study hours
SCHEDULED This is an indication of the number of hours students can expect to spend in scheduled teaching activities including lectures, seminars, tutorials, project supervision, demonstrations, practical classes and workshops, supervised time in workshops/ studios, fieldwork, external visits, and work-based learning.
40

GUIDED INDEPENDENT
STUDY
All students are expected to undertake guided independent study which includes wider reading/ practice, follow-up work, the completion of assessment tasks, and revisions.
160
PLACEMENT The placement is a specific type of learning away from the University that is not work-based learning or a year abroad.
TOTAL STUDY HOURS
Assessment tasks
Details of assessment for this module
• Assessment criteria
The essays are assessed in relation to Learning Objectives i, ii, iv and v with particular attention to students’ ability to (i) produce a clearly cogently argued essay; (ii) draw on an appropriate range of disciplinary resources and demonstrate their relevance to the question at hand; (iii) identify the key issues and problems in their analysis, (iv) demonstrate a reasonable understanding of philosophical thought.
The seminars and oral presentations are assessed in relation to
LOs iii,iv and v with particular attention to: (i) students’ ability to contribute effectively to group work, responding and listening appropriately to the contributions of others, (ii) clarity of thought and of argument in presentation, (iii) knowledge of key concepts and arguments in relation to required reading.
The examination is assessed in relation to LO i, ii, iv and v.
•Assessment process
All essays are assessed by the tutor, and then discussed with each student on return;

Seminars are assessed continuously by the tutor;
Seminar marks and comments are fed back to students by personal tutors.
Types of assessment task1
% weighting
Indicative list of summative assessment tasks which lead to the award of credit or which are required for progression.
(or indicate if component is pass/fail)
WRITTEN
COURSEWORK
Written exam
Two written essays of 800-1000 words (LOs i,ii, iii, iv, and v)
33.333%
33.333%
PRACTICAL Oral assessment and presentation, practical skills assessment,
EXAMINATION INFORMATION
Area examination board set exercise
33.333%
Refer to Faculty Office for guidance in completing the following sections
External examiners
Name Position and institution Date appointed Date tenure
1
Set exercises, which assess the application of knowledge or analytical, problem-solving or evaluative skills, are included under the type of assessment most appropriate to the particular task.

Darryl Jones Professor of English,
Trinity
Professor Mark McGovern Edgehill
Professor James Connelly Hull University
2009/10
2012/13
2009/10
Professor Brian Kelly Queens University, Belfast 2012/13
QUALITY ASSURANCE
Date of first approval
Only complete where this is not the first version
1993
Date of last revision
Only complete where this is not the first version
2012
Date of approval for this version
2012
Version number
Modules replaced
Specify codes of modules for which this is a replacement
Available as free-standing module? Yes ends
2013/4
2015/16
2012/13
2015/6
No