The N.A.D.A. Assignment

N.A.D.A. is an acronym for "No Alcohol or Drug Abuse."
  1. Why Is This Assignment a Part of This Course?
  2. What Is It?
  3. Where Do I Find the Materials?
  4. When Is It Due?

1. Why?

There are two purposes to the "N.A.D.A. Assignment"
One: Internet/Computer Literacy
Completion of this assignment will prove that you have the computer skills to take a 'computer based' course such as this.
Two: Drug Abuse Literacy
Completion of this assignment will help us understand more about the problem of drug abuse in our society, especially how that problem is manifested on the World Wide Web and how music is used to help companies glorify the use of drugs.

2. What?

The "N.A.D.A. Assignment" is a "module" or "unit" for this course, which you must do at the beginning of the course. To complete the assignment, you may choose one of two options, 1) write a parody or critique of a lyric or 2) write a critique of a web site:
  • Write a parody or critique of a lyric
    • To complete the assignment this way, you must:
    1. find a song lyric, using the World Wide Web,
    2. download (save) the lyric,
    3. rewrite the lyric so that it contains an anti alcohol/drug abuse message OR write a one paragraph critique of how is discusses alchohol/drug abuse,
    4. post the assignment on the Music Concepts Blackboard Discussion Board, in the NADA Forum, or hand it in.
    An example of this would be the following: 
    I WENT THERE TO HAVE SOME FUN

There is a bar in my neighborhood
I went there to have some fun,
That bar has ruined many a poor girl (boy)
And me, oh, God, I'm one

It's just a bar on the corner
Just like in any old town
Where folks like to go for their troubles
And drink their liquor down.

Well, I went there one Friday,
Feelin' mighty low.
Had too many whiskeys that evening,
Then, decided to  go.

Bartender called a taxi,
But I got in my Oldsmobile
Killed an innocent man on the highway
Had no business behind that wheel.

There is a bar in my neighborhood
I went there to have some fun,
That bar has ruined many a poor girl (boy)
And me, oh, God, I'm one

    This is a parody of "The House of the Risin' Sun," which I found in The Digital Tradition Folk Song Database of The Mudcat Cafe. You can find this kind of site at sites like Google or Yahoo.

  • Write a critique of a web site
    • To complete the assignment this way, you must:
    1. find a World Wide Web site which "glorifies" alcohol or drug use,
    2. analyze how the site accomplishes that goal
    3. write a one-paragraph critique of the site, pointing out ways the site encourages alcohol or drug use,
    4. post the assignment on the Music Concepts Blackboard Discussion Board, in the NADA Forum, or hand it in.
    An example of this would be the following:
    BUDWEISER'S WEB SITE
    The Budweiser Web Site uses a number of ways to encourage alcohol use. The site has a "cool" look, and the graphics and links on the page are appealling, especially to a collegiate audience. The page offers free stuff, such as a downloadable screen saver starring the famous "PC Bud Frogs," which are featured in an immensely clever and popular TV commercial. Links called "Thirst for Knowledge," "The Great Outdoors," and "Cool Gear" all lead to entertaining pages which lead the user to an understanding that beer is "a part of the good life." To their credit, there is a link entitled "Know When," which encourages responsible drinking.

    Look at some of the NADA Assignment Examples to get more ideas of how to do this assignment.

    3. Where?

    All of the materials you will need are on the World Wide Web.

    4. When?

    See the Assignment List (or Calendar).








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