Overview
The Foundations of Indigenous learning unit aims to facilitate an Indigenous Australian perspective to assist students in work and community contexts. Through an exploration of the cultures, history and lifestyles of Australia's Indigenous peoples prior to European invasion through to the present time, students will gain an awareness and understanding of the diversity of cultural identity and lived experiences for Indigenous Australians today. As a result, students will develop an appreciation of the related social, cultural and educational contexts.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2017
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Personal email to Course Coordinator.
I would like to thank you for your great course. I thoroughly enjoyed my learning last term. Having worked on a remote community in the early 70's I thought I knew something of the Australian Aboriginal culture. I knew nothing!. I am looking forward to continuing my learning and hope to major in the subject. I think the most enjoyable video was the one where Uncle Bob Randall imparted his wisdom. I could have listened to him for hours. Now when I read newspaper articles or see the injustices that are still happening today, I have a greater understanding of the struggles that Indigenous Australians have to endure. Thank you again. I am looking forward to learning more from you in future courses.
This course is currently being reviewed and when offered in 2017 Term 2 will have seen changes to the assessment dates and weightings.
Feedback from Personal email to Course Coordinator.
Thank you for the opportunity to learn more about the culture and history of the First Peoples of this country. I admit to being intimidated by the amount of material you supplied during the course, I hope that one day I may get to read it all instead of the bits and pieces that particularly caught my eye! I appreciate the time you have taken to put the material together, it is heartening to see the volume of material that is available on this topic - that people have taken the time to reflect and write about the past, despite the uncomfortable reading it may be at times. I agree that all this helps in the process towards a reconciled future - one where we are all together, happily looking forward to the future.
This course is currently being reviewed and when offered in 2017 Term 2 will have seen changes to the assessment dates and weightings.
- Show an awareness of aspects of Indigenous cultures and lifestyles.
- Demonstrate an understanding of how the past may influence the lived experience of Indigenous peoples in contemporary Australian society.
- Critically reflect on the representation of Indigenous Australians today.
- Appreciate the diversity of Indigenous identity and culture.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 20% | ||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 40% | ||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 40% | ||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Communication | ||||
| 2 - Problem Solving | ||||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | ||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | ||||
| 5 - Team Work | ||||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | ||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | ||||
| 8 - Ethical practice | ||||
| 9 - Social Innovation | ||||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | ||||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 20% | ||||||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 40% | ||||||||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 40% | ||||||||||
Textbooks
Listening to Country
Edition: second 2011 (2010 )
Authors: Ros Moriarty
Allen & Unwin
Sydney Sydney , NSW , Australia
ISBN: 978 1 74237 8152
Binding: Paperback
Additional Textbook Information
Textbook required is Listening to Country written by Ros Moriarty.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Microsoft Office
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
p.croft@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Module 1: An overview: Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander societies before the First Fleet 1788.
- Aboriginal Countries and cultures: Land-centred worldview and society;
- Torres Strait Islander culture, languages and society;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module 2: Early days of European occupation - behind the frontier
- Early history of British colonisation;
- The impacts of government policies on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples since colonisation;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module 3: Storytelling
- Passing on knowledge to future generations: oral history and the written word;
- Exploring Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander oral and written stories;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module 4: After Federation
- The Frontier Wars and Massacres;
- Assimilation or Separation 1930’s - 1960’s;
- Integration to Reconciliation: 1970’s onwards;
- Australia's education system;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module: 5 Construction of identities
- Personal Identity: Who do you think you are?;
- Genealogy and power: Impacts on identity by colonialism;
- Identities and stereotypes;
- Learning about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander identity;
- The politics of claiming an Aboriginal identity in Australia;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module 6: Culture clash and the classroom
- What is culture?;
- Social and cultural reproduction;
- Oppositional culture in school and community;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module 7: Aboriginal learning styles
- What is a learning style?;
- Stereotypes of cultural and learning differences;
- Bothways philosophy;
- What works and other approaches;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module 8: Learning race and racism
- What is race and racism?;
- The concept and historical impacts of whiteness;
- Addressing racism or the racist?;
- The making of a racist;
- Beyond identity;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module 9: Aboriginal learning in rural/remote, urban/metropolitan contexts
- What constitutes rural and remote; urban and metropolitan?;
- The rural child in school - Cherbourg and Woorabinda;
- Remote schooling;
- Education Queensland, Distance Education and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students;
- Church involvement in Aboriginal education
- The Aboriginal school in a metropolitan context: Brisbane Murri School and The Pemulwey School Sydney;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module 10: Learning reconciliation
- A brief history of reconciliation;
- Being Sorry;
- Reconciliation…to what end?;
- When truth, justice, mercy and peace embrace;
- Learning reconciliation in the classroom;
- School playgrounds, workplaces and homes as sites for active reconciliation;
- A time to Speak-up!
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Module 11: Sharing place
- Looking after Country and other creatures;
- General Blog discussion.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Unit review
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Contact Details -
Course Coordinator and lecturer: Dr Pamela Croft
Phone: 4150 7703 or 4930 6952
Email: p.croft@cqu.edu.au
1 Written Assessment
The purpose of this assessment is to provide you with the opportunity to reflect on the knowledge you have already gained and to explore an Aboriginal perspective through the experiences of Australian First Nations people. You will read the text book 'Listening to Country-A journey to the heart of what it means to belong' an intimate diary by Ros Moriarty and make notes about the lives of Borroloola Law women who are her husband, John's mothers'. You are to write a book review. This task is a piece of informal writing. Reflection will focus on who is John and Ros Moriarty? What cultural challenges and lived experiences are identified by the Aboriginal characters in the book, your Summary should include your responses and understandings of the issues faced by Aboriginal Australian's in this contemporary time that the books' story identifies. The word count for the Book Review is 1000 words.
Week 5 Friday (11 Aug 2017) 11:45 pm AEST
Week 8 Friday (8 Sept 2017)
Your book review for your assignment should include Cover and Criteria sheet found in Assessment block of the Moodle site.
Content – 15%: Presentation and Development: of main points, experiences and reflections relevant to book. Use of key concepts: from the unit relevant to the book review. Introduction: state aims, purpose, structure, background and reactions to the book. Analysis of major findings: use of appropriate terminology and exerts, supporting evidence, points or arguments presented in the book review. Conclusion: Coming to a final position on the book with an overview and summary of the review. Presentation – 5% Attention to Grammar and Spelling: including paragraph structure and clarity of expression. Legibility and Format: line spacing, font, margins, style, etc. Word length: (within 10% of word limit)
- Show an awareness of aspects of Indigenous cultures and lifestyles.
- Demonstrate an understanding of how the past may influence the lived experience of Indigenous peoples in contemporary Australian society.
- Critically reflect on the representation of Indigenous Australians today.
- Appreciate the diversity of Indigenous identity and culture.
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
2 Written Assessment
The purpose for this assessment is to heighten awareness of the representation of Aboriginal and/ or Torres Strait Islander Australians in contemporary media. Through a content analysis report exercise, you will investigate the portrayal of Australia's First Nations people in the Australian media. You should write 1400 words in total, which will be assessed on selection of articles, content analysis, presentation and organisation. More details on this assessment can be found on the unit Moodle site.
Collect SIX newspaper articles: 3 local, state and national articles from Indigenous Australian Newspapers and 3 local, state and national articles from Mainstream Australian Newspapers. The articles topics selected must be about Aboriginal and/ or Torres Strait Islander Australians, events or issues. You are to provide a critical analysis report that includes an overview and summary of your findings.
- You are welcome to source your articles on-line or in hard copy.
- A bibliography is required along with the website address at the beginning of each article analysis or a copy of your article as an appendix.
- You might like to display your findings in a table format or design your own template for this report.
The questions you choose must be the same for each article analysis. Some suggestions might include (for example):
- Does the article portray a negative or positive image?
- How much space is devoted to the article?
- Where in the paper does the article appear?
- Is the article implying a hidden message or image?
- Does the article reinforce any stereotypes?
- What does the article want people to believe?
- Anything else about the article you think is important.
Week 8 Friday (8 Sept 2017) 11:45 pm AEST
Week 10 Friday (22 Sept 2017)
Content – 35% Presentation and Development: of main points, arguments/ approach, experiences and reflections relevant to the content analysis. Use of key concepts: from the unit relevant to the analysis. Introduction: state aims, purpose, structure, background and reactions to the content analysis. Analysis of major findings: use of appropriate examples, supporting evidence, points or arguments presented in the content analysis. Conclusion: Coming to a final position on the content analysis with an overview and summary of main points/ arguments of analysis. Presentation – 5% Attention to Grammar and Spelling: including paragraph structure and clarity of expression. Legibility and Format: line spacing, font, margins, style, etc. Word length: (within 10% of word limit).
- Show an awareness of aspects of Indigenous cultures and lifestyles.
- Demonstrate an understanding of how the past may influence the lived experience of Indigenous peoples in contemporary Australian society.
- Appreciate the diversity of Indigenous identity and culture.
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
3 Written Assessment
To gain awareness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians and their cultures, it is important to understand how the past may influence the lived experience of First Nations people in contemporary Australian society. Write a 2000 word academic essay on ONE of the following topics:
- Most of the first colonisers believed that the Aboriginal cultures they observed had no laws or religion. Discuss this.
- Identify the major 'native' government policies since colonisation and critically analyse the impact on Australia’s Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people?
- Explain some of the differences between the structures of the Aboriginal and /or Torres Strait Islander domain and the Western domain.
- Aboriginal and /or Torres Strait Islander Australians talk about connections and relationships to the land and how this impacts on and relates to their identity. Explain this statement and provide an analysis of why Land Rights, Reconciliation and Constitutional Recognition as the First Nations people is so vital to their continued existence today.
Students need to research the literature with at least five sources to use in their assignment. All resources used must be accurately referenced. Weight: 40%.
Week 11 Friday (29 Sept 2017) 11:45 pm AEST
Review/Exam Week Friday (13 Oct 2017)
Content – 35% Presentation and Development: of main points and arguments/ approach relevant to topic. Use of key concepts: from the unit relevant to the topics. Introduction: state aims, purpose, structure and background of the paper. Breadth of reading: a minimum of FIVE books, journals, websites. Analysis of major findings: use of appropriate examples and supporting evidence points or arguments presented. Conclusion: Coming to a final position on the topic with overview and summary of main points/ arguments of paper. Presentation – 5% Attention to Grammar and Spelling: including paragraph structure and clarity of expression. Legibility and Format: line spacing, font, margins, style, etc. Word length: (within 10% of word limit)
- Demonstrate an understanding of how the past may influence the lived experience of Indigenous peoples in contemporary Australian society.
- Critically reflect on the representation of Indigenous Australians today.
- Appreciate the diversity of Indigenous identity and culture.
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
