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The information below is relevant from 01/03/2010 to 30/06/2013
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LAWS12055 - Constitutional Law

General Information

Unit Synopsis

In this course students will be exposed to the Australian federal constitutional system. Students will explore the details of Commonwealth/State legal arrangements. Students will gain an appreciation of the notion of "unitary" as opposed to "federal" constitutions. In terms of Australian federalism, students will gain an awareness of what is meant by "coordinate"; "cooperative"; and "competitive" federalism. The course will expose students to the view that constitutional law is not merely a conceptual/theoretical subject but also has a practical value that impinges on daily life.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 2
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 4
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites There are no pre-requisites for the 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).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2010

There are no availabilities for this unit on or after Term 1 - 2010

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).

Assessment Overview

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.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Examination 60%
2. Written Assessment 40%

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

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

No previous feedback available

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.

Source: Student evaluations, emails, and survey.
Feedback
There may have been too many assessment items in the course, including a highly complex Digital Flashcard assignment that required having to learn a new and possibly complex software.
Recommendation
Attempts will be made to ensure that students are not over-assessed and that, if need be, having to use one specific software is avoided.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Explain and discuss the nature of federalism in the context of Australia
  2. Describe the notion of the separation of powers in the context of the Australian Constitution
  3. Articulate the case law relevant to the interpretation of the Australian Constitution
  4. Investigate and report on legal issues arising out of encountered fact situations
  5. Use legal material consistent with the content covered in the course
  6. Develop and defend an argument appropriately to the comments and opinions expressed by others in the process of discussing contemporary Constitutional law issues content covered in the course with peers/academics
  7. Use appropriate style and terminology to communicate effectively in the discipline
  8. Justify a apposition taken by applying the relevant law and principles to Constitutional law problems

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
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Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
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Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
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