Monash University Handbook 2010 Undergraduate - Unit

Synopsis

This unit provides students with Australian historical and cross-cultural knowledge which will develop their understandings of the range of cultural experiences within the Australian community. Emphasis will be placed on the ways culture is shaped by the physical environment from which it emanated; how physical and historical events have helped shape culture; how Aboriginal culture and Torres Strait Islander culture have changed in response to the arrival of foreign cultures and people; and how imported cultures have been changed with transportation to Australia. Contemporary cultures in source countries will be compared with current cultural patterns in Australia.

Objectives

Upon successful completion of this unit, students are expected to

1. have developed understandings about the way in which historical, social, political, and economic events shape culture;
2. have developed knowledge and understanding about the complexity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander societies;
3. appreciate the impact and consequences of the European invasion on the lives of indigenous people in the past and present;
4. appreciate the ways in which other cultures have changed with immigration to Australia;
5. appreciate the complexity and diversity of various cultural groups represented in Australian society;
6. be able to identify the contemporary issues faced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and multi-cultural Australia and initiatives developed by them and government to address these; and
7. value the cultural heritage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and the multicultural communities and their historic and continuing contribution to Australian society.

Assessment

Assessment task 1: Research & Fieldwork Report (2,000 words, 50%)
Assessment task 2: Individual Project (2,000 words or equivalent, 50%)

Chief examiner(s)

Dr David Zyngier

Contact hours

3 contact hours per week, 9 hours private study including readings, completion of set tasks and self-directed learning.