Here’s where it get’s really interesting for me!  You are spending a lot of time hearing about drugs from my brain-based perspective. I want to hear how what you are learning in this class interacts with your unique perspective to meet the higher-order learning objectives.

The term project is 10% of your grade.  Enough to matter, but hopefully not so much that you are afraid to stretch or experiment with your ideas.

You can work in small groups with a shared interest or by yourself.  We will work in class and outside of class on your ideas and if it’s natural to form groups of 2-4 (no larger) then go for it. You can also post your idea to the forum to fish for potential group members.  My overarching goal is for you to apply what you are learning to your own life, or to your own academic or social interests.

Here’s how that is going to happen:

Choose one of the three prompts below.

1) Evidence-based position paper: Take a clear position on whether and/or how the legal or social status of a certain psychoactive drug or class of psychoactive drugs should or should not be changed. Support this position with a clearly written and well-organized article that references original published sources/studies. At least 3 sources need to be original research studies; books and review articles can be additional sources. All writing needs to be your own and in APA style. ~5 pages + 4 original sources. 2 additional pages and 2 additional sources per group member.

2) Journalistic — Oral-history or interview about psychoactive drug experiences.

This can be in written form or a radio style interview. Edit your interview down to your best ~5 minutes (or pages) or less. Your own voice/commentary/questions should be part of the piece but you should not be the main subject. Focus on the individual person or people you are interviewing. Your goal as a journalist here is NOT to do scientific research that is generalizable (e.g. women like cocktails more than men). Your goal is to document a single person’s experiences, be a storyteller, and comment on how their experiences fit into a larger social context. Draw out relationships.  A clear and compelling thesis is necessary!  The thesis should be written as a half-page introduction to your piece. E.g. “John Doe’s pattern of drug use demonstrates that he has his own standards of what is safe or a worthwhile risk, standards that may not be based on evidence.” There needs to be at least one interviewee per group member, with two additional minutes/pages of airtime are allowed per group member.

3)  Journalistic “media” essay— Photo, video, audio.  The role of drugs in our culture.

The goal here is to make a commentary, take a stance, and make a point using the visual, auditory, or multimedia domain. Prompt 2 (above) asks for words/stories/narrative, but this prompt 3 asks for the subjects of your original photos/recordings to be inanimate objects, people, places, etc., rather than narrative stories. You need a clear and compelling thesis statement. The thesis should not be a simple judgment on whether a drug is bad or good. It does need to have a clear purpose to communicate your idea. This idea can be a connection, novel thought, or idea you have thoroughly explored through your imagery. E.g. “The images/sounds/video I have juxtaposed in this collection make the comment that marketing images of alcohol do not accurately reflect the way alcohol is used in my social sphere.” One potential place to start is to draw connections between past and present, or between different social spheres, or between an ideal and reality. The thesis should be one page with additional captions to describe how each item in your “photo-essay” relates to your main thesis.  You may include non-original sources – cited appropriately – to compliment or contrast with your work but you will need least 10 quality original photos/images/recordings (your work) plus 4 additional original items with captions per group member.

Important Notes  For both “journalistic prompts” you will of course need to obtain explicit written permission to use the stories and images of your subjects for this assignment, and for any future-life of this assignment (e.g. if you choose to post your work to the web – not required).  Please change the names of your subjects to protect their privacy. Journalistic photographs of people in a public place are generally ethical, but please read the following background on ethics in photojournalism and use your judgment. Identifiable photographs of people who are in a location where there is an expectation of privacy are not appropriate, unless you secure written permission from the person. Staged photographs or fictional accounts are also not appropriate for the “journalistic” assignments. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photojournalism.

Due DatesWeekly homework assignments (due Wednesdays) will begin to ask you to start and report on pieces of your project and how it is coming together so you can get feedback from instructors and classmates. Final project due dates will be randomly assigned to weeks 8 and 9. This random assignment will occur on Thursday of Week 5.  Staggered due dates will allow your work to get the attention from your instructors that it deserves.

 

Additional Notes:

When you are choosing your project ideas, do try to keep in mind your own comfort level and the comfort level of anyone you will be talking to, taking pictures of, etc.

If you choose a journalistic prompt, remember to carefully protect your subjects privacy. Err on the side of caution here. Change their name. Don’t discuss things that might be used to identify them. Make sure they are aware of precisely how the material they share will be used or shared with others. Make sure they agree to whether something is recorded or whether you will take great notes instead. Don’t pressure anyone! Consider your ethical responsibilities carefully.

Remember, a Psychoactive Drug does not have to be illegal! I can think of a lot of creative ways to explore the role of legal psychoactive drugs as well (coffee, cigarettes, alcohol, or perscription medication used for its intended purpose).

In addition, if your own experiences are coming into play here, make sure you don’t reveal more than you are comfortable with. A journalist does not need to talk much about themselves, and I am most comfortable with you as the student, maintaining some distance from your personal experiences.

I also want to remind you of my role as a mandatory reporter of child abuse and prohibited discrimination, including sexual harrassment and sexual assault. http://around.uoregon.edu/content/mandatory-reporting

 

More great Qs from your classmates:

Q: Can we interview someone about abstinence from psychoactive drugs?

A: Yes!

Q: Can we interview someone about recovery from addiction?

A: Yes!

Q: Can I get feedback about my “thesis” if I don’t wait till the last minute?

A: Definitely!

Q: Do these need to be original or may we use internet sources to obtain them? I would like to use photos as examples but do not forsee anyone that I know being comfortable with their photos being made public.