BACHELOR OF ARTS HONOURS IN VISUAL COMMUNICATION - CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

BACHELOR OF ARTS HONOURS IN VISUAL COMMUNICATION CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

BACHELOR OF ARTS HONOURS IN VISUAL COMMUNICATION

The programme aims to lead students through an inquisitive process of reflection on and engagement with the fusing of discourse and practice in order to yield well-rounded, articulate and highly skilled creative professionals. The degree, following a practice-based methodology, comprises both practical and theoretical components and is intent on providing graduates an opportunity to consolidate and deepen their expertise, advanced knowledge, skills and applied competencies within the scope of a selected area of specialisation. These areas stem from the fields addressed within the registered degrees at OW, namely Bachelor of Arts in Visual Communication Design, Bachelor of Film Arts and Bachelor of Creative Technologies, and the areas of specialisation included those within each degree, but may include any other specialisation that falls within the ambit of the wider field of Visual Communication. Students are afforded the opportunity to partake in research whereby pertinent questions and burning issues of local creative practice may be explored through a combination of theoretical and practical research investigations.

This postgraduate qualification is intent on preparing students for research-based postgraduate study and as such, focuses on foundational research methods, techniques and output most relevant to Visual Communication and encourages students to engage critically, evaluate and review theoretical discourses that highlight contemporary issues relating to the discipline, with particular interest in the South African context. The programme therefore requires students to produce a research study that comprises both a practical and theoretical component and affords students the opportunity to work closely under supervision. As such, the qualification enables students to continue with further postgraduate qualifications in the field and therefore the qualifications scholarly possibilities are broad. This qualification is intended for students aiming to advance their knowledge of, and consolidate and improve his/her portfolio and skills in, the fields related to Visual Communication, Creative Technologies, Film Arts and the areas of specialisation included within those fields. The programme impresses upon its students the crucial role creative professionals and practitioners play in society and serves to instil notions of lifelong learning within its students in order to create local (and global) leaders in the creative field.

Research Methodologies (RM 410)

Term 1

Term 2 HONOURS- RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES

Name (code)

Research Tools And Methods Prerequisites

Writing The Research Proposal -

Overview The Research Methodologies course aims to introduce the fundamentals of research in order to furnish students with the skills, tools and methodologies necessary for conducting independent research. The course is focused on providing a research methodological (above-mentioned) skill-set in order to equip students in writing a research proposal – the final outcome of this course – and ultimately, an academic research response essay – in partial submission of the requirements of the Bachelor of Arts Honours in Visual Communication programme. In addition to this, the course serves as a foundation for further 143

education and, as such, affords graduates the necessary research and writing skills to pursue further research-based degrees, including Master's and Doctoral programmes.

Objectives On completion of the course students should be able to: + Apply and utilise research methodologies and tools with fluency as part of the collecting, organising and articulation of research findings. + Have a fundamental understanding of the nature and purpose of research; + Apply various tools and methods of conducting research; + Identify a research problem; + Synthesise and formulate research findings; + Source, critically analyse and review research information; + Apply the Harvard Method of Referencing successfully; + Present work professionally in the appropriate and required format for evaluation; + Conduct independent research; + Select a choice of subject (research question / problem) relevant to local, contemporary creative industries and/or discourse; + Formulate the research question / problem, the aims of the study and the premise of the research clearly; + Write a research proposal; + Demonstrate the ability to critically read and evaluate published material in a scientifically accountable manner.