Session 6: 15th February Room 822

The expression of fan allegiance on the Internet (fan art, fanfiction, community formations etc) has been increasingly recruited into academic discussions of literacy and learning in the “new media age.”  In this session we will consider this recruitment, and examine online fan practices in terms of both literacy and competence/performance.

Ahmed Elzobier's presentation for this session is here.

To explore literacy in the context of online fan activity.
To consider the nature of competence/performance in such settings.

Essential Preliminary Reading

Chung, S-y, Dowling, P.C. & Whiteman, N. (2004) '(Dis)possessing Literacy and Literature: Gourmandising in Gibsonbarlowville.' The World Yearbook of Education 2004: Digital Technology, Communities and Education. AJ Brown and N Davis (Eds). London: Routledge.

 

Black, R. (2005). Access and Affiliation: The New Literacy Practices of English Language Learners in an Online Animé-based Fanfiction Community.'

Additional Reading

Brooker, W. (1999). 'Filling In Spaces: Internet Fandom and the Continuing Narratives of Star Wars, Blade Runner, and Alien” in Alien Zones II: The Spaces of Science Fiction Cinema. Kuhn, A. (Ed) London/Verso. pp 50-72.

 Jones, S.G. (2000). 'Histories, Fictions, and Xena: Warrior Princess.' Television and New Media Vol.1, No.4, November 2000. 403-418.

 Kellner, D. (2002). 'New Media and New Literacies: Reconstructing Education for the New Millennium.' http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/courses/ed253a/kellner/newmedia.html

 Wakefield, S. R. (2001). '“YOUR SISTER IN ST. SCULLY": An Electronic Community of Female Fans of the X-Files.' Journal of Popular Film and Television. Fall, 2001 http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0412/is_3_29/ai_79350861

Coursework Title

What issues for literacy education are raised by the increasing presence of fanfiction and associated practices on the internet?