Course syllabus

 

SEMESTER 2, 2018

15 points

LECTURES  M 12-1 T 2-3 OGGB Case Room 2/260-057

TUTORIALS 211: W 12-1 Pacific Studies Rm 104; 311: TH 9-10 Old Choral Hall Rm 124

 

Course Convenor:   

Dr. Lisa Uperesa

Phone: 373 3577 extn 84291

Email: l.uperesa@auckland.ac.nz

Office: Room 102J Centre for Pacific Studies, Building 273

Office Hours: Mondays 2-3pm and by appointment

 

Course Tutor:          

Caleb Marsters

Email:   Cmar502@aucklanduni.ac.nz

Office: Pacific Studies Office, Building 273

 

Course Delivery:      2 hrs lectures, 1 hr tutorial

(Timetable and room details can be viewed on Student Services Online)

 

Course Description

Sport has profoundly impacted Pacific peoples and cultures, playing critical roles in everything from colonialism and education in the past, to migration and commercialization in the present. Sport has changed and has been changed by Pacific people.

The course begins with a discussion of histories of sport in the Pacific, including traditional games and the impact of colonization on sporting activities and pathways.  We then examine contemporary youth sports, including the kinds of values and behaviours sports are thought to teach and the role of sport in developing male and female gender identities among young people. We continue with discussion of how sports has become a site for articulating different kinds of cultural, racial, ethnic, and gender identities across New Zealand and the Pacific.  In the last segments of the course we analyse media representations of Pacific people in sport, including the use of Polynesian cultural practices like haka, initiatives that use sport for development in the Pacific region, and sports injuries and mental health and wellbeing.

Selected weekly topics include:

• Changes in Sport Culture: From Traditional Pacific ‘Games’ to Modern Sport
• Pacific Islanders, Sport and Colonialism
• Muscular Christianity: Pacific Sport, Religion and Missionaries
• Youth Sport Development
• Mediated Images of Pacific Sports: Showing Culture
• Women and New Zealand Sport
• Sport and Indigenous Masculinities
• Nafanua’s Rebirth: Pacific Women in Sport
• Pacific Sport and Racialization
• Marketing Sex/Marketing Sexualities
• Sport for Development

Course Outcomes

Upon completing this course, students will be able to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of and appreciation for the contemporary role of sport in Pacific communities.
2. Analyze connections between sport (as a social institution and practice) and other important aspects of social life in the Pacific including economics, politics, gender relations, and culture.
3. Demonstrate critical analysis skills through the study of sport and Pacific communities.
4. Demonstrate clear and effective verbal and written communication skills.
5. Carry out small-scale independent research.

 

ASSESSMENT

Pacific 211 Assessment

• Final Exam: 40% (2 hours)
• Coursework: 60%
  • Autobiographical Essay: 5% (500-700 words)
  • In-Class Test: 20%
  • Media Analysis Write Up: 5% (500-700 words)
  • Sport/Community Critical Analysis Essay: 20% (1,500 words)
  • Tutorial Assignments and Participation: 10%

Pacific 311 Assessment

Pacific 311 will have additional readings, will meet separately in a tutorial, and has different assessments.The Sport/Community Research Essay is a required assignment to pass the class.

• Coursework: 100%
  • Autobiographical Essay: 5% (500-700 words)
  • In-Class Test: 20%
  • Media Analysis Write Up: 10% (1,000 words)
  • Sport/Community Research Essay: 40% 
    • Proposal and Annotated Bibliography: 10% (750-1,000 words)
    • Final Project: 30% (2,500-3,000 words)
  • Film Analysis: 15% (1,500 words)
  • Tutorial Assignments and Participation: 10%

Further details will be distributed in class and made available via CANVAS. Test dates are indicated on the class schedule.

 

Link to detailed class schedule with readings: CLASS SCHEDULE 2018 updated.docx

CLASS SCHEDULE

Wk 1	Mon 16 July	0.1 Introduction: Critical Pacific Studies, Critical Sport
	Tues 17 July	0.2 Changes in Sport Culture: From Traditional Pacific ‘Games’ to Modern Sport
Wk 2	Mon 23 July	1.1 Playing the Game: Pacific Islanders, Sport and Colonialism
	Tues 24 July	1.2 Muscular Christianity: Pacific Sport, Religion and Missionaries (Salesa)
Wk 3	Mon 30 July	1.3 Youth Sports
	Tues 31 July	1.4 Youth Sports in New Zealand (Marsters) *Bring in youth sports program selection and paragraph write up
	Fri 2 Aug	***PAC 311 Sport/Community Essay Topic Proposals Due
	Sun 4 Aug	***PAC 211 & 311 Autobiographical Essays Due
Wk 4	Mon 6 Aug	1.5 Youth Sports and Gender I
	Tues 7 Aug	1.6 Youth Sports and Gender II
	Sun 12 Aug	***PAC 211 Sport/Community Essay Proposal &       PAC 311 Revised Proposal and Bibliography Due
Wk 5	Mon 13 Aug	1.7 The Banana Kick: Sports and Identity I
	Tues 14 Aug	1.8 Nafanua’s Rebirth: Pacific Women in Sport (Guest Lecture)
Wk 6	Mon 20 Aug	1.9 TBA
	Tues 21 Aug	In-Class Test
		MID-SEMESTER BREAK
Wk 9	Mon 10 Sep	2.1 Football and Fa’asamoa: Sports and Identity II
	Tues 11 Sep	2.2 Physical Condition: Sport, Diaspora, and Pacific Bodies
Wk 10	Mon 17 Sep	2.3 Mediated Images of Pacific Sports I: Showing Culture
	Tues 18 Sep	2.4 Mediated Images of Pacific Sports II: Performing Polynesian Masculinities
	Fri 21 Sep	***PAC 211 & 311 Sport/Community Essays Due
Wk 11	Mon 24 Sep	2.5 Marketing Sex
	Tues 25 Sep	2.6 In-Class Film *Bring in media selection (tutorial)
Wk 12	Mon 1 Oct	2.7 Marketing Sexualities
	Tues 2 Oct	2.8 Sport and Racial Imaginaries
	Fri 5 Oct	***PAC 211/311 Media Analyses Due***
Wk 13	Mon 8 Oct	2.9 Game, Set, Match: The Impact of Sports Injuries
	Tues 9 Oct	2.10 Sport, Risk, and Injury in Pacific Communities
Wk 14	Mon 15 Oct	2.11 Sport for Development
	Tues 16 Oct	Class Conclusion
	Fri 19 Oct	***PAC 311 Film Analysis Due***

Teaching approach

The course will be led by the course convenor, but will have guest lecturers to enhance the course content. The course delivery will include lectures, tutorials, films and online interactive elements. Tutorials are compulsory and students are expected to attend lectures. Lecture recordings will not be available.

 Course Readings & Canvas

A series of introductory readings will be provided along with additional material as is required, all accessible here on the Reading Lists tab (linked to the course Talis list held by the library) or in the Files tab. 

The course makes extensive use of Canvas, the University of Auckland’s own web-based information system.  The URL is: https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz. You should be able to log into Canvas for all your classes: if you cannot, please contact your tutor immediately for course information.  Be sure you can log onto Canvas.  This will be necessary for successful completion of this course.   Be sure to set your Canvas settings so that you receive announcements and communications from the course convenor.

Help with Canvas can be obtained from the Canvas Support Hotline (phone: 0800 001 469).  You can also visit https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/about/learning-and-teaching/CanvasHomepage/canvas-help---support.html for more information.

 

Course Policies and Expectations

Attendance. The number one predictor of success in this course (and many others) is class attendance.  While tutorials are mandatory, it is also expected that you will attend all lectures.  Occasional absences for illness or emergency are acceptable, but chronic absence will make it difficult for you to do well in or even pass this class.

Fa’aaloalo/Respect. Respect each other.  Respect the instructor, and the institution.  Respect the knowledge we are developing and learning.  Respect other cultures and ways of being and doing.  Honour the work of your colleagues, support them in their learning, and contribute to the learning of others and yourself. (This includes refraining from using cellphones, tablets, and laptops in ways that distract your instructor, your colleagues or get in the way of your own learning.)

Workload and Preparation. Be prepared.  Being prepared for class is an essential part of research, learning and teaching.  Being unprepared prevents you from learning; it also inhibits the work of others, and the class, and prevents your full development as a student in the course.  The University of Auckland's expectation is that students spend 10 hours per week on a 15-point course, including time in class and personal study. Students should manage their academic workload and other commitments accordingly. 

Knowledge. Universities exist to teach, and to research.  In Pacific Studies we teach and research Pacific peoples, communities and places, knowledge that has at times been neglected or maligned, or which in many cases has only recently been recognized by academic scholars.  Our communities and people hold this knowledge dear, value it deeply, and we expect our students to do the same.

Coursework. Deadlines for coursework are set by course convenors and will be advertised in course material. You should submit your work on time. In extreme circumstances, such as illness, you may seek an extension but you may be required to provide supporting information before the assignment is due. Late assignments without a pre-approved extension may be penalised by loss of marks.

Late Submissions and Extensions. Deadlines for essays and assignments, and set times for test taking and presentations, are strictly observed in Pacific Studies.  This policy is to ensure fairness amongst students, and to promote key learning skills such as preparation, planning and timeliness. All late work and missed tests will be subject to a penalty.  An extension of time will be given only for illness or compassionate grounds. You must supply documentation (eg, doctor’s certificate or letter from the counsellor). Criteria for approval of late submission reflect the criteria for aegrotat and compassionate pass consideration in final examinations. You must apply for an extension of time before the due date either by emailing your request and reasons to your tutor.  Retrospective approval will be given only in exceptional circumstances. You can apply for an aegrotat or compassionate consideration in coursework by completing and submitting an AS-46. (Please note that there are funds available to help with the filing fee.)

Support. Student Health and Counselling Services is able to certify both compassionate and medical issues.  These services are confidential and also provide support and expertise that your lecturers and tutors are unable to. They can be found at Kate Edger Information Commons and are open from 8.30am to 6pm (Monday to Thursday), 8.30am to 5pm (Friday).  Phone: 923-7681.  Doctor’s visits are $12. Visits to the counsellor are free.

The Pasifika Counsellor is:

Sarah Va’afusuaga McRobie

Level 3, Kate Edger Information Commons

2 Alfred Street

City Campus

Standard hours: 8.30am to 6pm (Monday to Thursday), 8.30am to 5pm (Friday)

Penalties. All late essays, assessments or missed tests that do not have certificates of the appropriate medical or compassionate grounds, will be subject to penalty. In Pacific Studies courses, the following schedule of penalties will apply:

1. Work handed in after the due time, but not more than 24 hours late, will incur a penalty of one-third of a full letter grade. (For example, an essay graded as an A- will become a B+; a C+ essay will be graded as a C)
2. Work handed in more than 24 hours late, but not more than 7 days late, will be penalized an additionalone-third of a full letter grade. (For example, an A- essay will be graded as a B; a B essay will be graded as a C+)
3. Essays handed in between 7 and 14 days late will be penalized by a furtherone-third of a full letter grade. (For example, an A- essay will be graded as B-; a C+ essay will be graded as a D+).
4. No essays will be accepted more than two weeks after the assigned date unless an extension has been granted for medical or compassionate grounds.
5. All late work should be submitted through Canvas.

Academic Misconduct and Plagiarism. The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence.   The work that a student submits for grading must be the student’s work, reflecting his or her learning.  Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the world-wide web.  A student’s assessed work may be reviewed against electronic source material using computerised detection mechanisms (Turnitin.com).  Upon reasonable request, students may be required to provide an electronic version of their work for computerised review. Any work previously submitted for a different course cannot be re-used for credit in another course. For more detailed information, see the University’s guidelines at http://www.auckland.ac.nz/uoa/home/about/teaching-learning/policies-procedures.

Referencing. Ensure APA style referencing is used for assignments. Click on the following link to access an APA guide: https://www.library.auckland.ac.nz/subject-guides/edu/docs/APAbooklet.pdf

 

Pacific 211 Assessment: Autobiographical Essay (5%)

500-750 words

Submit via Canvas/Turnitin.com

Sport has become an important part of social life from youth to adulthood across the globe. Whether you have played sports yourself or not, or consider yourself a “sports fan,” it is likely that it has touched your life in one way or another (whether through youth sports in school or out of school, family members who play or follow sports, church or community activities, etc.). Often our sport experience shapes our socialization in some way, bringing people together or separating them, communicating messages about ability, gender, important social values, and so on. In Pacific communities, sport can play many kinds of roles.

 

This first essay provides an opportunity for you to critically reflect on your own experience with sport, as a basis for engaging some of the themes and debates this semester.  Focusing on an event or series of events, use our early critical readings and lectures/discussions to analyze your most impressionable sports experience(s). 

• Describe: First, describe the event(s). What happened?  Why does it stand out as an important experience? (150-250 words)
• Analyze: What did you learn about yourself, your surroundings, your relationships (with peers, coaches, family members, community members, etc.) and/or sport more generally? Reflecting on the socialization aspect of that memory or experience, how did it shape your attitude toward sport or your understanding of sport in your family or community?  Did it affect the way you viewed other parts of your life?(350-450 words)

Be sure to engage (and cite) one or more of the course readings.

Essays that are thoughtfully written, well-organized, have strong detail, and are proofread and free from grammatical errors will receive the highest marks.

 

Pacific 211 Assessment: In-Class Test (20%)

Students will be assessed on their learning in the first half of the course in an in-class test.

 

Pacific 211 Assessment: Media Analysis (5%)

500-700 words

Submit via Turnitin.com

Media coverage is an increasingly important part of sports in the Pacific.  From news reporting to live coverage to advertising, media messaging is an integral part of the sporting experience.  This assignment is designed to help you develop your critical analysis skills by providing you an opportunity to apply what you have learned about media representations of sport to real world media selections. For this assignment, you are required to provide an analysis that is focused on an aspect of Pacific sport and how it is portrayed in the media.

Assignment details will be posted on Canvas and distributed in class.

 

Pacific 211 Assessment: Sport/Community Critical Analysis Essay (20%)

1,500 words

Submit via Turnitin.com

A core aspect of this course involves thinking critically about the role of sport in Pacific communities and their histories, current dynamics, and impact on individuals and families. This assignment is an opportunity for you to consider some aspect of sport in your own community (however you define it).  Drawing on the critical tools provided by course readings and lectures, identify an aspect of sport and community impact that interests you to research for this critical analysis essay.  For some of you this might be a brand new area of inquiry, while for others, you may have been following these sporting developments for some time.  In either case, use this as an opportunity to either go deeper into a topic that has been introduced in the class, or to explore an interest of yours that has not been covered in our course.  The topic of the essay is your choice, and community can be construed broadly (neighborhood, family, city, nation, ethnic group, etc.).  While this could be just a regular research paper, you are encouraged instead to start with what you have seen in your community and ask critical questions about it.  

Assignment details will be posted on Canvas and distributed in class.

 

Pacific 211 Assessment: Final Exam (40%)

Student learning in the course will be assessed on a final examination.

 

Pacific 211 Assessment: Tutorial Participation and Assignments (10%)

Tutorial gives the opportunity for discussion of lectures and readings, as well as regular workshops aimed at helping students learn course material or approach graded assessments.  Over the course of the semester there will be small assignments that help to guide student learning.  These small assignments, together with tutorial attendance and participation, will comprise this mark.  Tutorial attendance is required for this course.

 

Pacific 311 Assessment: Autobiographical Essay (5%)

500-700 words

Submit via Canvas/Turnitin.com

Sport has become an important part of social life from youth to adulthood across the globe. Whether you have played sports yourself or not, or consider yourself a “sports fan,” it is likely that it has touched your life in one way or another (whether through youth sports in school or out of school, family members who play or follow sports, church or community activities, etc.). Often our sport experience shapes our socialization in some way, bringing people together or separating them, communicating messages about ability, gender, important social values, and so on. In Pacific communities, sport can play many kinds of roles.

This first essay provides an opportunity for you to critically reflect on your own experience with sport, as a basis for engaging some of the themes and debates this semester.  Focusing on an event or series of events, use our early critical readings and lectures/discussions to analyze your most impressionable sports experience(s). 

• Describe: First, describe the event(s). What happened?  Why does it stand out as an important experience? (150-250 words)
• Analyze: What did you learn about yourself, your surroundings, your relationships (with peers, coaches, family members, community members, etc.) and/or sport more generally? Reflecting on the socialization aspect of that memory or experience, how did it shape your attitude toward sport or your understanding of sport in your family or community?  Did it affect the way you viewed other parts of your life?(350-450 words)

Be sure to engage (and cite) TWO or more of the course readings.

Essays that are thoughtfully written, well-organized, have strong detail, and are proofread and free from grammatical errors will receive the highest marks.

 

Pacific 311 Assessment: In-Class Test (20%)

Students will be assessed on their learning in the first half of the course on an in-class test.

 

Pacific 311 Assessment: Media Analysis (10%)

1,000 words

Submit via Turnitin.com

Media coverage is an increasingly important part of sports in the Pacific.  From news reporting to live coverage to advertising, media messaging is an integral part of the sporting experience.  This assignment is designed to help you develop your critical analysis skills by providing you an opportunity to apply what you have learned about media representations of sport to real world media selections. For this assignment, you are required to provide an analysis that is focused on an aspect of Pacific sport and how it is portrayed in the media.

Assignment details will be posted on Canvas and distributed in class.

 

Pacific 311 Assessment: Sport/Community Research Essay (40%)

Final report (30%)

2,500-3,000 words

Submit via Turnitin.com

A core aspect of this course involves thinking critically about the role of sport in Pacific communities and their histories, current dynamics, and impact on individuals and families. This assignment is an opportunity for you to consider some aspect of sport in your own community (however you define it).  Drawing on the critical tools provided by course readings and lectures, identify an aspect of sport and community impact that interests you to research for this critical analysis essay.  For some of you this might be a brand new area of inquiry, while for others, you may have been following these sporting developments for some time.  In either case, use this as an opportunity to either go deeper into a topic that has been introduced in the class, or to explore an interest of yours that has not been covered in our course.  The topic of the essay is your choice, and community can be construed broadly (neighborhood, family, city, nation, ethnic group, etc.).  While this could be just a regular research paper, you are encouraged instead to start with what you have seen in your community and ask critical questions about it.  Students will select a topic and focus on a research question that asks about an issue in the realm of sport and Pacific communities that they will then research for this project.

Revised Proposal and Bibliography (10%)

750-1,000 words

Submit via Turnitin.com

A main purpose of the Essay Proposal and annotated Bibliography is to allow both you, and the instructor, to identify any particular issues and concerns before you have committed to too much work on your final project, and to ensure that the scope and path of your project is appropriate. Students will submit an initial proposal briefly outlining their topic, why they are interested in it, their question, why it is significant, and plan for approaching the essay (300 words). Then after receiving feedback, they will submit a short annotated bibliography together with a revised proposal. This will act as a road map for their final paper.

Assignment details will be posted on Canvas and distributed in class.

 

Pacific 311 Assessment: Film Analysis (15%)

1,500 words

Submit via Turnitin.com

What are the stories we tell about sports?  What do they tell us about important aspects of social life – from poverty to paths of upward mobility to race relations to commercialization, violence, gender relations, and so on?  As sport scholars, you will analyze themes in a selected film using the critical tools provided by this class. The purpose of this assignment is to use film media to critically analyze 1) mainstream feature film representations of sport and 2) the role of sport in different communities and social/historical contexts, paying close attention to how sport is connected to social issues.

Assignment details will be posted on Canvas and distributed in class.

 

Pacific 311 Assessment: Tutorial Participation and Assignments (10%)

Tutorial gives the opportunity for discussion of lectures and readings, as well as regular workshops aimed at helping students learn course material or approach graded assessments.  Over the course of the semester there will be small assignments that help to guide student learning.  These small assignments, together with tutorial attendance and participation, will comprise this mark.  Tutorial attendance is required for this course.