Q ou have been assigned to a Discussion Group of about 10-15 students with whom you will participate in collaborative activities throughout the semester. Everyone must participate in this practice discussionforum. By Friday at 11:59 p.m., post your initial contribution to this forum by clicking on the "Add a Topic" button below. I suggest you use your name and discipline or a fun fact about yourself in your subject line (e.g., "Hi, I'm Janna Kim from Child and Adolescent Studies"). By Sunday at 11:59 p.m. read through all of your peers' responses and respond to at least one of their posts, furthering the conversation and helping to create a friendly and professional group atmosphere. This week's activity is ungraded, but remember that for all future collaborative activities, both an initial response and a reply to peers is required to earn credit. Question Prompts This week I’d like you to introduce yourself to the members of your group in one brief paragraph. Tell us your name, your year in school, your major and/or professional aspirations, and something personal about yourself that you are comfortable sharing with the group (e.g., a hobby, a summer experience, a pet). Please include a photo of yourself to help us associate a face with your name. (The little profile photo on Titanium tends to be too small to really see.) If you are uncomfortable posting a photo of yourself, you can post a photo of something else meaningful to you (e.g., a pet, a symbol, an album cover, a piece of artwork, etc.). Finally, in preparation for this course, I'd like you to reflect on two media-related questions: 1. In my introductory video, I talked about how my background in developmental psychology shapes the way I view the topic of adolescents and the media. How do you think your disciplinary background (major) will affect how you will interpret topics in this class? What angle or expertise do you bring to this class? 2. This second question asks you to reflect on your personal theories or beliefs about how adolescents may be affected by the media they consume. Adolescents spend about nine hours per day interacting with mass media for leisure purposes. Do you think mass media affect teens' attitudes, beliefs, and/or behaviors, and if so, how or why are media messages influential?