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Course and Unit Catalogue 2013

Armidale, New South Wales, AUSTRALIA

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2007200820092010201120122013

PAIS570 Contemporary Issues in Australian Politics

Updated: 13 March 2012

Unit Information
Additional Information

Credit Points	6
Offering	Not offered in 2013
Intensive School(s)	None
Supervised Exam	There is no UNE Supervised Examination.
Pre-requisites	candidature in a postgraduate award
Co-requisites	None
Restrictions	PAIS370 or PAIS470
Notes	offered in even numbered years
Combined Units	PAIS370 - Contemporary Issues in Australian Politics
Coordinator(s)	Tim Battin (tbattin@une.edu.au)
Unit Description	This unit will critically examine a number of political issues facing Australia including health policy, environmentalism, indigenous issues and federalism, to name a few. It will enable students to explore topics more deeply, enabling them to specialise according to their interests. Students wishing to undertake further study will find this unit helps prepare them for higher level research and writing.
Materials	Textbook information will be displayed approximately 8 weeks prior to the commencement of the teaching period. Please note that textbook requirements may vary from one teaching period to the next.
Disclaimer	Unit information may be subject to change prior to commencement of the teaching period.

Assessment

Assessment information will be published prior to commencement of the teaching period.

Learning Outcomes (LO)

Upon completion of this unit, students will be able to:

present sophisticated written arguments based upon evidence;
recognise different perspectives in contemporary political debates;
develop and identify the political agenda;
analyse public policy, its background, formulation and effects;
exhibit an enhanced capacity to research political issues in Australia; and
develop postgraduate level research and analytical skills.

Graduate Attributes (GA)

	Attribute	Taught	Assessed	Practised
1	Knowledge of a Discipline Students will deepen their knowledge of advanced concepts and skills underpinning the political and international studies discipline, which will be taught through lectures and tutorials. It will be assessed through one written essay and an examination.
2	Communication Skills Students will be assessed on the style of writing, clarity of writing, expression and development of ideas, and referencing. Students will practise their communication skills through completing the assessment tasks.
3	Global Perspectives Students will demonstrate an awareness of the global context of the subject area and they will develop an awareness of the need for tolerance and inter-cultural understanding.
4	Information Literacy Students are encouraged to develop research skills in collecting and evaluating data, including the skills to assess the utility of information, identify the most useful sources of information and critically analyse and examine those sources.
5	Life-Long Learning By completing the assessments, students will be provided with the necessary lifelong skills to be able to research, write and discuss social issues. These skills can be transferred to any discipline, and will be useful in any research positions. These attributes will be assessed in all of the assessments (written skills; analytical skills).
6	Problem Solving Students will be assessed on their ability to conceptualise the questions and formulate a range of solutions to both research and presentation. They will be required to collect, collate and analyse relevant information to assist problem solving.
7	Social Responsibility Students will be taught about their professional responsibilities as a researcher to provide balanced and accurate research. In addition, students will be taught that they have a social responsibility to question and challenge some 'facts'. This will be assessed and taught through their responses to the assignment questions and discussions in online postings.
8	Team Work Students will practise working collaboratively and network effectively to solve problems on the online discussion board, taking initiative and leading others in this environment. They will also negotiate and assert their own values and respect the values and contributions of others on the discussion board.