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Unit Summary

Unit type

UG Coursework Unit

Credit points

12

AQF level

7

Level of learning

Intermediate

Former School/College

Former School of Arts and Social Sciences

Unit aim

Completes students' introduction to journalism as a contemporary cultural and media practice. Students consolidate their skills in news gathering and writing, and are introduced to feature writing techniques through applied theory and practical activities and assessment. Students learn further research and interviewing skills, and develop a critical understanding of key professional, legal and ethics issues relevant to journalism.

Unit content

  • The nature of features
  • Story ideas and planning
  • Advanced interviewing
  • Feature writing techniques
  • Narrative and description
  • Legal issues and ethics
  • Rhetoric and persuasion
  • Data and verification
  • Marketing your work
  • Investigative journalism
  • Wordcraft and editing
  • Book-length features

Learning outcomes

Unit Learning Outcomes express learning achievement in terms of what a student should know, understand and be able to do on completion of a unit. These outcomes are aligned with the graduate attributes. The unit learning outcomes and graduate attributes are also the basis of evaluating prior learning.

GA1: , GA2: , GA3: , GA4: , GA5: , GA6: , GA7:
On completion of this unit, students should be able to: GA1 GA2 GA3 GA4 GA5 GA6 GA7
1 discuss the characteristics of feature writing, including the role of argument, narrative, persuasion and description
2 apply skills in planning, researching and interviewing for feature-form journalism writing projects
3 access, critically evaluate and document information sources, including reports, databases and specialist publications
4 write a newspaper/magazine feature article
5 identify and discuss professional, legal and ethical issues in feature journalism practice.

On completion of this unit, students should be able to:

  1. discuss the characteristics of feature writing, including the role of argument, narrative, persuasion and description
    • GA2:
    • GA4:
    • GA5:
  2. apply skills in planning, researching and interviewing for feature-form journalism writing projects
    • GA2:
    • GA4:
    • GA5:
  3. access, critically evaluate and document information sources, including reports, databases and specialist publications
    • GA2:
    • GA4:
    • GA5:
  4. write a newspaper/magazine feature article
    • GA2:
    • GA4:
    • GA5:
  5. identify and discuss professional, legal and ethical issues in feature journalism practice.
    • GA2:
    • GA4:
    • GA5: