Study Abroad

Four January Term study abroad courses are offered by the Communication & Journalism Department: 

Culture and Communication in Post-Apartheid South Africa (UMAIE) -- January 2008

This course will explore the cultural dimensions of several of the prominent ethnic groups in South Africa , and examine the role that communication strategies and practices play in maintaining civic stability and enhancing interpersonal relationships. Students will consider how verbal, non-verbal, mediated messages and other communication strategies have helped to achieve a peaceful transition in a rebellious political state.  The course will travel to Johannesburg , Durban , Cape Town and the Hluhluwe-Umfolozi game park.  It will study the cultural background of Zulu, Africaaner, Indian, British, Xosha and “colored” people. Students will also explore the shortcomings of communication in overcoming cultural fissures, and develop a more sophisticated cultural sense for evaluating culture and communication.

The course enrolls 16 students and is taught by Dr. Kevin Sauter.

Hawaii : Multi-cultural Communication in Organizational Settings (UMAIE) -- January 2008

Hawaii provides an ideal multicultural classroom.  The Islands abound in a rich blend of diverse ethnic-cultural groups from East and West.  The intercultural landscape provides both a warm and rich cultural context for students to observe, experience, and learn about the successful integration of multiple cultural groups.   Students are introduced to the theories and concepts of intercultural communication from an organizational perspective.  Contemporary issues and topics are examined via readings, lectures, and small-group experiences.  On-site learning at local corporations, arts organizations, human-services providers, and healthcare and educational institutions provides students the opportunity to witness the way cultural communication impacts all interaction.  Throughout the course students study and observe multicultural work environments, the impact of culture on personal life and  organizational performance, the influence of culture on team-building, decision-making, and leadership, and conflict management.  Following two weeks on Oahu, we travel to Kauai , to study Hawaiian culture in-depth, led by an extensive community-based learning experience with students at a unique immersion school where native Hawaiian students and teachers teach and learn in the Hawaiian language.

The course enrolls 26 students and is taught by Dr. Debra Petersen and Dr. Ellen Riordan.

Gender, Race and Mass Media in London (UMAIE) -- January 2008

This course explores the crucial roles journalistic, advertising and entertainment media play in creating, reinforcing and disseminating cultural values about gender, race and ethnicity. Students can observe in the media how racial and ethnic groups are treated in a society that is struggling with shifts in its traditional identity. A broad array of advertising messages allows students to document how gender roles and sexual identities are portrayed.

Specifically, in this offering of the course, we use the city of London as a kind of living laboratory to examine how the tensions of heritage and diversity are exacerbated or addressed by mass media content and public expressions of culture in an increasingly multicultural city.  We systematically compare our own experiences with US media content and public culture to our newfound observations of media content and public culture in London .  New cultural identities are being formed in London , one of the world's great media capitals, and students investigate this firsthand.

The course enrolls 26 students and is taught by Dr. Kris Bunton and Dr. Wendy Wyatt.

Visual Communication in Europe (UST) -- January 2008 and 2009

This course introduces students to the vocabulary, theory and principles of visual communication by examining their application in painting, architecture, illustration, photography, graphic design, typography, video, film and other media.  The goal of the course is to teach students to identify and analyze the predominant styles of imagery we encounter in the media and the world around us.  In doing so, students will observe and study how visual images communicate within their historical, social, cultural, religious and political contexts.  The course also considers how and why these images are appropriated and reappear in new communication contexts today.

While in Europe, students make extensive use of galleries, exhibitions and museums in various cities, including Florence , Rome , Venice  and Pompeii . The course is an intensive version of the course required for Journalism majors.

The course enrolls 12 students and is taught by Dr. Robert Craig.