Yousman, Gender, Race, and Class in Media 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
Class Activities
Part I: A Cultural Studies Approach to Media: Theory
Activity 1
Question of the Day
The question of the day is a fun and easy way to draw students into the topic of the
day’s class, get to know one another, take roll, or use as a discussion question for
an online class. Here are the questions for use in Part I.
1. How do you consume most of your media? How much media do you consume on
an average day?
2. What does it mean to be feminine, as opposed to masculine? How would you
define femininity?
Activity 2
The Ad Files
This activity is designed to be done on the first or second day of class as a means of
introducing the focus of the class: an examination of gender, race, and class in
mediated contexts. Explain to students that we will be focusing on the stories we are
told about our various identities in a media landscape. In other words, we will be
looking at and critiquing the representations and symbolic meanings of the images
we consume.
Prior to class, the instructor should put together 5–6 files (depending on class size)
of 3–5 recent print ads. Each file should be labeled with their own topic such as
Activity 3
Star Trek Fans
Prior to this activity, assign students to read the articles by Jenkins.
Yousman, Gender, Race, and Class in Media 6e
SAGE Publishing, 2021