58120 Creativity and Culture
UTS: Communication: Cultural StudiesCredit points: 8 cp
Result Type: Grade, no marks
Requisite(s): 58119 Text and Context
There are also course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.
Handbook description
This subject prepares students with a reflective knowledge about contemporary directions and debates in current creative practice. Students research, design, write and publish a creative project in essay, non-fictional or fictional form. They analyse a range of different perspectives (philosophical, psychological, inspirational and practical) on the connection between creativity and invention and on generic forms of creative, essayistic, fictional and non-fictional writing. Theories of narrative and voice, relationships between identity, subject and the representation of the self in the creative text, as well as contemporary approaches to the essay and to experimental forms of critical discourse, are discussed throughout the subject. Students respond to these contexts in the creative work they complete during the semester.
Subject objectives/outcomes
At the completion of this subject, students are expected to be able to:
- discuss a range of perspectives on creativity
- discuss creative practice in transdisciplinary and transcultural contexts
- locate, access and utilise a wide range of texts dealing with creative practice or creativity
- critique academic and/or creative texts
- work effectively in collaborative projects
- create online contributions using a variety of media
Contribution to graduate profile
This subject makes a major contribution to students'capacity to think analytically, inquire critically and work collaboratively. It also enables students to apply the gained knowledge and skills in discussing creativity and creative practice.
Teaching and learning strategies
This subject involves a one hour face-to-face lecture and a two-hour tutorial each week. Lectures are interactive, and supported by visual and multimedia teaching aids to demonstrate relevance of texts, arguments and genre conventions. Weekly readings are available online through UTS Library website. You will gain most from the lectures if you read each week's material in advance.
Tutorial activities based on weekly readings assist students in developing innovative and creative responses to discussion topics.
Students undertake independent learning through directed reading, directed resource sampling and categorization and independent research to learn to create case study presentations and online contributions using a variety of media.
UTS-Online will be used in this subject for class announcements and online collaboration (Wiki-fiction project).
As a student in this subject, you are expected to attend and participate in all tutorials, actively contribute to online discussions, complete your assignments by their due dates and participate fully in your group for the Wiki-fiction project.
This subject is 8 credit points. This means that throughout the semester you should be spending an average of 12-14 hours per week on this subject, including the class time.
Content
This subject investigates a variety of disciplinary approaches to creativity and creative practice, with a particular emphasis on philosophical, psychoanalytical, spiritual, biological, sociological and anthropological interpretations. Furthermore, it canvasses a range of constraints that typically limit the possibilities inherent in the creative process, including issues related to identity/identification, subjectivity, ideology, discourse, taste, branding, narrative, medium and genre. Finally, it problematizes creativity in the context of postmodern societies, by discussing a) its political aspects in relation to cultural citizenship, contemporary social movements, cultural policy and creative industries; b) the new modes of creative expression
made possible by technological advancement, such as interactive fiction, DIY filmmaking, blogging etc; and c) the changing notions of authorship and intellectual property ushered in by the advancement of electronic reproduction, interactive technologies and the circulation of digital media via online social networking.
Assessment
Assessment item 1: Case Study Presentation
| Objective(s): | a, b, c, d, e |
| Weighting: | 30% |
| Task: | Students prepare and conduct a twenty-minute presentation on a selected example of creative practice, including facilitating five minutes of class discussion. |
| Assessment criteria: |
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Assessment item 2: Wiki-Fiction Project
| Objective(s): | d, e, f |
| Weighting: | 30% |
| Task: | Working in small groups, students develop a collaborative Wiki on UTSOnline, experimenting with different ways of re-working a literary text of their choice. |
| Assessment criteria: |
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Assessment item 3: Creative Project
| Objective(s): | a, b, c, d, f |
| Weighting: | 40% |
| Task: | The final project can be written in the conventional essay format, or as a fictocritical or creative response to a theoretical issue raised in one of the weekly lectures. |
| Assessment criteria: |
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Minimum requirements
Attendance is important in this subject because it is based on a collaborative approach which involves essential workshopping and interchange of ideas with other students and the tutor. An attendance roll will be taken at each class. Where possible, students should advise the tutor in a timely manner if they are unable to attend.
Students who fail to attend 85% of classes may be refused to have their final assessment item assessed (see Rule 3.8).
Required text(s)
A selection of e-readings, available through UTS Library website.
