Public Service

Public Service Announcement Assignment

Purpose:  The purpose of this assignment is to give students an opportunity to apply what they’ve learned about social inequality, to create a public service announcement (PSA).  A PSA is a way to create awareness about an issue about which you think the public should care. 
Instructions:  Choose a topic of social inequality we’ve covered in the class (readings, lectures, discussions), and create a PSA in the form of a poster, a video, a comic strip, or another form of creative design you choose.  Consider the audience to whom you want to display your PSA.  Your PSA should draw the audience’s attention, and be visually creative and attractive.  In your PSA, you MUST cite at least THREE social science data points to support your topic.  For example, if you choose homelessness, you must highlight three key facts about homelessness in your city, supported by social science data.  Then, you must reference those data on your PSA (so, the public could see your sources when they view your PSA).  To reference your data, put the source in parentheses next to the data point e.g., (ACLU.org).  You may get your data from the Conley text, films we’ve watched, or you may go to a reputable data source (the census, local government websites, Pew Research Center, or other sources that collect social science data).  
With your PSA, write a 1-2 page (250 – 500 words) discussion of the purpose of your PSA, and the importance of your topic.  Briefly discuss the research about your topic, and how you used the data to convey the message you chose to illustrate.  At the end of your discussion, add a reference section, listing your references in full (MLA or APA format). This write-up of your assignment should be uploaded as a separate document from your PSA. 
Rubric:  Your PSA will be graded on the following:
Presentation and Creativity (20 points):  Is the presentation of the PSA clear, and without typos?  Does the student show care and creativity in creating a piece of work that is visually pleasing to view?
Application of Sociological Data (40 points):  Does the student’s project utilize social science data to raise awareness of an issue of social inequality in our society, and apply that data in a way that is clear for the audience?
Use of References (20 points): Does the student reference the sources, on their PSA, from which they retrieved data, and do they use sources that demonstrate sound social science data collection methods (ethical research, valid research, etc.)?  Does the student have a reference section at the end of their project discussion section, listing each reference cited in their PSA?
Description/Discussion of your PSA (20 points):  Does the student describe the message they hoped to convey in the PSA, and discuss the topic they chose, and the data they used to convey the message? 
*Note:  If you are having trouble uploading a video, or large document, you may need to upload it to a Google Drive, and post the link. 
This assignment is worth 15% of your final grade in the course.
Book: Please read chapter 7