Seminar in Ethnic Music: Africa – ETHM 543

Course Description

Concentrated study of a selected ethnic music culture. In scheduling each seminar, consideration will be given to student interest and the availability of appropriate guest musicians.

Rationale

The Seminar in Ethnic Music are intended to provide the student with a more culture specific study than other general ethnomusicology courses. Special attention is given to the contrast between the context, use, and function of music within that culture as a means of identifying cultural insight for the use of indigenous music in worship, discipleship, and evangelism.

Course Assignment

Textbook readings, journal readings, and presentations

In addition to the textbooks listed above, a collection of articles are listed on Canvas under each course module. Links to these articles will be posted in the course modules and may also be found on Liberty’s Research Portal. The student will be expected to complete the readings early in the week so that all discussion threads can be added by the proper time. (CLO: A, B, C, D)

Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview.

Discussions (7)

The student will complete 7 Discussions in this course. The student will post one thread of at least 350 words. The student must then post 2 replies of at least 150 words. (CLO: A, B, C, D)

Reading Reflection Paper Assignments (2)

The student will write two Reading Reflection Papers, which should be 5-6 pages (about 1,500 words) excluding title page and bibliography, and double-spaced. These papers should be written as Word documents. Other programs such as “Works” do not allow the instructor to give appropriate feedback, if needed. In addition, they should contain correct, consistent citations. The paper should be written in an academic, formal style, following the Turabian format. Students should review the Reading Reflection Paper Grading Rubric before writing these papers. (CLO: A, C)

Book Review Assignment

The student will complete a 2-3 page book review, written in a formal style that would be suitable for publishing in an academic journal. 

The student is encouraged to look at examples of book reviews in Ethnomusicology and other academic journals before attempting this specialized style of writing, however, it may hinder the student's creativity and originality to look at other reviews for the book that he/she will be reviewing. (CLO: A, C, D)

Notes Assignment

The student will submit the written notes that were taken on all reading assignments for the assigned Module: Week. This is to ensure that everyone is on the same page at the beginning of this intensive course. There is no page requirement for this, but the notes should cover all of the readings for that week. (CLO: A)

Final Project: Abstract Assignment

The student will submit a 150-250 word abstract for his/her Final Project: Presentation Assignment. The Final Project: Presentation Assignment does not need to be complete at the time the abstract is written, instead the abstract will be used to focus the intent of the paper to inform readers of what it will discuss. (CLO: D)

Final Project: Presentation Assignment

The Final Project: Presentation Assignment for this course will be in the form of a narrated PowerPoint. It is important in our field that the student is able to not only write about what he/she has learned, but present the information to an audience in a manner that is clear, accessible, and informed. The typical conference presentation is about 20 minutes. This usually allows for the presentation of a 10 page (double spaced) paper. 

For your Final Project: Presentation Assignment, you will submit a 10-12 page research paper, complete with bibliography and citations in current Turabian format along with a narrated PowerPoint presentation that you can use as a visual tool during your presentation. (Typically, conference papers are read directly from the page [as opposed to ad-lib] though this is not mandatory.) This Final Project: Presentation Assignment should include the abstract that you submitted in your Final Project: Abstract Assignment.

There is no set number of slides, but typically, the student will not need more than 10-15. Each slide should be visually appealing, but clear and uncrowded. The student will use his/her presenter notes tool to copy in the sections of his/her paper that will accompany each slide. These presenter notes should be in paragraph form, written exactly as the student will read them to his/her audience. The student may also utilize audio/visual examples as well, but keep in mind that those examples should fit within the time limit of twenty-five minutes.

The student will be expected to use in-text citations (no footnotes in PowerPoint) to document the presentation. Please submit the final presentation via the assignments link in Canvas. Students are encouraged to review the Final Project: Presentation Grading Rubric before beginning the Final Project: Presentation Assignment. It is highly recommended that the student consult with the instructor regarding his/her topic choice for the Final Project: Presentation Assignment prior to beginning the Final Project: Abstract Assignment. (CLO: A, B, C, D)