Capstone project in media and cultural studies
Offer semester
1st semester
Course description
The Capstone Project is a six-credit compulsory course for major students in a sociological subject to be offered in the final year of study. It aims to provide students with the opportunity to integrate their sociological knowledge and skills through a series of workshop, class discussion, student presentations, portfolio work and experiential learning. The Capstone Project should normally be undertaken in a small group of two or three students. Students will be allocated a supervisor who will help them identify a topic of interest that is relevant to the core discipline. All projects should contain an element of public engagement.
Students should take this course in Semester 1, however those with exceptional reasons (e.g. study abroad) may apply to the Department for special approval to complete the course in Semester 2.
Related courses
Course learning outcomes
By the end of the course, students are expected to have the ability to:
- Demonstrate their sociological knowledge;
- Analyse a topic of study with critical and reflexive perspectives;
- Articulate their learning experience into a written paper, other forms of creative output or community activities;
- Communicate the outcome of their study and their sociologically informed views to a public audience;
- Participate in group environment as well as in a larger community.
Assessment
Tasks | Weighting |
---|---|
Project proposal | 10% |
Work plan & process records | 30% |
Final work | 20% |
Capstone archive | 5% |
Public engagement (at capstone fair) | 35% |
Required reading
Becker, Howard S. 1986. Writing for Social Scientists: How to Start and Finish Your Thesis, Book, or Article, with a chapter by Pamela Richards. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Becker, Howard S. 2007. Telling About Society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Harper, Douglas. 1988. “Visual Sociology: Expanding Sociological Vision.” The American Sociologist, Volume 19, Issue 1, pp.54-70.
Turner, Victor W., and Edward M. Bruner. 1986. The Anthropology of Experience. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.
Course co-ordinator and teachers
Tom McDonald
Associate ProfessorResearch interests: Anthropology, China, Credit/debt, Communications, Digital money, Internet, Social media, TechnologySee full profileSatoshi Araki
Assistant ProfessorResearch interests: Social Stratification and Inequality, Education and Work, Comparative Social Policy/Comparative Education, Multidimensional Well-being, Family and Marriage, Research MethodsSee full profileTarani Chandola
Head, Department of SociologyResearch interests: Sociology of Health and Illness/Medical Sociology, Health inequalities, Ageing and social gerontology, Psychosocial factors, Work and Health, Social Science research methods, Quantitative research methodsSee full profileEric W C Fong
Chair Professor in Sociology
Associate Dean (T & L), Faculty of Social SciencesResearch interests: Migration, Race and Ethnicity, Urban sociologySee full profileSinn Won Han
Assistant ProfessorResearch interests: Social demography, Political demography, Norms and trust, Labor markets and public policies, Quantitative methodologies, Cross-national comparative researchSee full profileGordon Brett
Assistant ProfessorResearch interests: Culture, Cognition, Creativity, TheorySee full profileMarco Montagner
LecturerResearch interests: Anthropology of space and place, urban planning, governmentality, migrations, high-/low-end globalization, anthropology of sports, embodimentSee full profilePeng Wang
Associate ProfessorResearch interests: Crime and anti-crime, Corruption and anti-corruption, Policing, Bureaucracy and governance, Economic sociology, Law and society, China studiesSee full profileCarmen K M Tong
LecturerResearch interests: Education and schooling, Gender and sexualities, Self and identity, Media and cultural studies, Human-animal relationshipsSee full profileCho Li-Fung
LecturerResearch interests: Investigative journalism, Role of the state in transitional societies, Media corruption, Media and culture, Media and crimeSee full profileAu-Yeung Shing
Part-time LecturerResearch interests: Cultural policy, Production of culture, Sociology of art, New mediaSee full profileWong Wai Ling
Part-time LecturerResearch interests: Community studies, Hong Kong studies, Gender, Family, MigrationSee full profile