Teen Films

Robin Pruter
pruter@cdnet.cod.edu
(630) 941-1060
Office Hours: By appointment
Mailbox: IC 2070
Teen Films and Teenagers in the Movies: Growing Up in the USA

Course Description: A study of films about and for teenagers focusing on the 1950s to the present. Students will study universal themes about adolescence found in these movies. These will include identity, gender, and sexual development; group behavior and conformity; and generational conflict. Students will also consider these movies from a cultural studies perspective, looking at how selected films reflect their eras of production. Also, students will study teenagers as a distinct audience. Issues such as the marketing of explicit content to teenagers will be discussed.

Course Requirements:	Grading Scale:
Film Journals: 600 points	A=900+ points
Reading Questions: 50 points	B=800-899 points
Research Project: 200 points	C=700-799 points
Class Participation and Attendance: 150 points	D=600-699 points
Total=1000 points	F=599 points and below

Film Journals: Over the course of the quarter, you will be required to write ten 500 word journal entries discussing the movies viewed for this class. The prompts for these writings appear at the end of the course schedule and will require you to synthesize information among films, so be sure to take ample notes. We will discuss taking notes on films in the first week of class.
Reading Questions: You are expected to complete all assigned readings. For each reading, you are required to bring five discussion questions to class.
Research Project: At the end of the course, you will turn in a 5 page research essay, analyzing a film we will not cover in class.
Class Participation: This part of your grade will be determined from attendance and participation in class discussions and activities.

Deadlines: Your assignments are due at the beginning of class on the date due. Late assignments will be marked down one letter grade for each day (not class day) late. No assignments will be accepted more than a week late. Exceptions, at my discretion, will be made for documented emergencies. You must turn in your research paper and your journals in order to pass this course. Because of the limited time I have to grade your final papers, I cannot accept any late research papers.

Academic Integrity: Turning in someone else’s work as your own is a violation of COD’s plagiarism policy and will result in failure of this course. We will discuss how to incorporate source materials into your paper and document them during this course. Should you have a question regarding using sources, I encourage you to visit the writing center and/or see me.

Attendance: I have no set attendance policy. Be aware that excessive absences will negatively affect your class participation grade. I do expect you to attend each screening even if the movie being shown is your favorite and you’ve seen it eight million times. Keep in mind that many of the films we’ll watch in class are rare, and you won’t be able to get them from outside sources.

Withdrawal: I will give my permission to withdraw throughout the quarter for any reason. If you don’t think you can complete the class, I would hope you would drop within the first few weeks, so you don’t waste my time and your money. If you remain in the class until after the last day for automatic withdrawal, I would hope you would have the fortitude to complete the class.

Core Films: In order to conserve class time, you will be required to view four films outside class. I will place these core films on reserve in the library. However, the films are popular enough that you should have no trouble locating them on your own. Halloween Risky Business The Breakfast Club Scream