Students

POL 392 – United States Politics: Money, Culture, Power

2019 – S2 External

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor, Lecturer and tutor
Lloyd Cox
lloyd.cox@mq.edu.au
Contact via Email
Hearing Hub South, Level 2, W 63
Thursday 12-2
Tutor
Conor Keane
conor.keane@mq.edu.au
Contact via Email
Hearing Hub South, Level 2, W 63
TBA
Credit points Credit points
3
Prerequisites Prerequisites
39cp or (6cp in HIST or MHIS or POL units at 200 level including 3cp in POL)
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Co-badged with OUA unit POIX 392
Unit description Unit description
US politics is today, as in much of its past, dominated by money and the power that money can buy. US cultural life is also preoccupied with money, in ways that profoundly affect the distribution of political power. Proceeding from these premises, this unit explores the relationship between money, culture and power in contemporary US politics. Topics covered include campaign financing, interest groups and the media; the impact of social inequalities of class, race, gender and sexual preference on US politics; the role of religion and political parties in the formulation of dominant political ideas; and the politics surrounding the global financial crisis and its aftermath.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

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

  • By the end of this unit you will be able to analyse and interpret primary and secondary US political sources and present the information in a written form
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to plausibly explain how and why Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election
  • You will be able to articulate your knowledge of US politics in group discussions
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

General Assessment Information

Late Submissions

Late Submission Penalty: “Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – two (2) marks out of 100 will be deducted per day for assignments submitted after the due date – and (b) no assignment will be accepted more than seven (7) days (incl. weekends) after the original submission deadline. No late submissions will be accepted for timed assessments – e.g. quizzes, online tests.”

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Assessment One 20% Yes Friday, 30/8/2019
Assessment Two 40% Yes Tuesday, 1/10/2019
Assessment Three 10% No All year
Assessment four 30% Yes Sunday, 10/11/2019, midnight

Assessment One

Due: Friday, 30/8/2019
Weighting: 20%
This is a hurdle assessment task (see assessment policy for more information on hurdle assessment tasks)

This is a 1000 word essay +/- 10%, which will cover topics from the first month of the unit. Essay topics will be put on ilearn in week one, with more detailed instructions. Students must submit their essays through turnitin. Extensions will only be granted under the most exceptional of circumstances. All late work will be subject to the Arts Faculty's late submissions policy (see below).
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to plausibly explain how and why Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment Two

Due: Tuesday, 1/10/2019
Weighting: 40%
This is a hurdle assessment task (see assessment policy for more information on hurdle assessment tasks)

This is a 2000 word essay +/- 10%, with topics drawn from across the unit. To give students plenty of time to think about and prepare their essays, the list of topics will be handed out in week two of the unit. Extensions will only be granted under the most exceptional of circumstances. All late work will be subject to the Arts Faculty's late submissions policy (see below). Students should submit their essays through Turnitin.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • By the end of this unit you will be able to analyse and interpret primary and secondary US political sources and present the information in a written form
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to plausibly explain how and why Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment Three

Due: All year
Weighting: 10%

These marks are for regular participation on the discussion board. Students should regularly contribute, and will be assessed on the quality of their contributions. A grading rubric will be placed on ilearn so that students are clearer about the critieria on which they are being assessed.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to articulate your knowledge of US politics in group discussions
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment four

Due: Sunday, 10/11/2019, midnight
Weighting: 30%
This is a hurdle assessment task (see assessment policy for more information on hurdle assessment tasks)

The final exam for external students will be conducted over the weekend from 8-10 November. Students will write three short essays, drawn from topics across the entire unit. The emphasis will be on testing your knowledge in particular areas, though clear and concise writing will also be very helpful in demonstrating what you do know. The topics will be placed on ilearn by midday on Friday, 8 November, and should be submitted on Turnitin by midnight on Sunday, 10 November.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • By the end of this unit you will be able to analyse and interpret primary and secondary US political sources and present the information in a written form
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Delivery and Resources

United States Politics: Money, Culture, Power - POL392

Welcome to United States Politics: Money, Culture, Power. US politics is today, as in much of its past, dominated by money and the power that money can buy. US cultural life is also preoccupied with money, in ways that profoundly affect the distribution of political power. Proceeding from these premises, this unit explores the relationship between money, culture and power in contemporary US politics, paying particular attention to the 2016 Presidential election and its subsequent repercussions. Topics covered include elections, campaigns and campaign financing; political parties in US politics; social inequalities of race, class, gender and sexual preference; political emotions, the media and post-truth politics; religion and the formulation of dominant political ideas; and the politics of the Alt-Right. These topics will be covered in a weekly two hour lecture, and a weekly one hour tutorial, which all students must attend. Although recordings of each lecture will be available on ilearn, students are strongly encouraged to attend lectures in person. It has been my experience that students who do not attend the lectures often also neglect to listen to the recordings. So please come along, ask questions in the lectures and tutorials, and make friends with your fellow students.

You will enhance your prospects of doing well in this unit by:

  • attending all lectures, listening attentively and asking questions
  • attending all tutorials and making regular verbal contributions
  • doing all the required reading and at least some of the supplementary reading (while also taking notes from these readings)
  • regularly reading US news and media sources
  • Conscientiously preparing for each assessment task

 

Lecture Outlines and Required Reading

Week One: Introduction: Money, Culture, Power and US Exceptionalism

An enduring feature of American political life is the belief in US exceptionalism – the idea that the United Stated is a unique polity that embodies liberty and democracy in a way that is or should be a beacon for the rest of the world. In this week, we explore the origins of American exceptionalism, and discuss the ways in which it relates to the organizing themes of this unit - money, culture, power.

Readings: No required reading for this week, though students are encouraged to start reading for the following week.

 

Week Two: Explaining the 2016 US Election

The 2016 Presidential election stunned the World with the unexpected election of Donald Trump. This was despite polling that consistently predicted a Clinton victory, and despite Trump receiving nearly 3 million fewer votes than Clinton. This lecture explains how and why this occurred. We discuss the reasons the polls were so wrong, before analysing the electoral college system that enabled the candidate with fewer votes to win. This is followed by a detailed examination of Trump's winning electoral coalition and path to victory. All of this is linked to a broader discussion of continuity and change in US party politics and political culture, which anticipates content explored in subsequent lectures.  

Readings:

Rob Griffin, Ruy Teixeira and John Halpin, ‘Voter Trends in 2016: A Final Examination,’ Center for American Progress (2017), No pagination.

John Sides, Michael Tesler and Lynn Vavreck, ‘The 2016 U.S. Election: How Trump Lost and Won,’ Journal of Democracy Vol. 28, 2 (2017), Pp. 34-44.

The Pew Research Center, ‘An Examination of the 2016 Electorate, Based on Validated Voters (2018) https://www.people-press.org/2018/08/09/an-examination-of-the-2016-electorate-based-on-validated-voters/ 

Emily Ekins, 'Five Types of Trump Voters: Who They Are and What The Believe,' Center for American Progress (2017) No Pagination.      

 

Week Three: Elections, Campaigns and Campaign Financing

This lecture demystifies the US electoral system and key campaigning issues with which it is entwined. As well as outlining the mechanics of electoral processes for Congress and for the Presidency, we discuss the main techniques of voter identification and mobilization. We conclude by focusing on the vexed question of money in US politics and electoral funding. Can elections and political office be bought?

Readings:

Denis W. Johnson, Campaigning in the Twenty-First Century: Activism, Big Data, and Dark Money (New York: Routledge, 2016) pp. 77-92.

Thomas Stratman, 'Campaign Finance: A Review and an Assessment of the State of the Literature' in Roger D. Congleton, Bernard N. Grofman, and Stefan Voigt (eds), Oxford Handbook of Public Choice (New York: Oxford University Press, 2019), pp. 1-28.   

 

Week Four: The Republican Party

The American two Party system emerged in the nineteenth century, and endures to this day, though in a very different form. We here discuss the emergence of the modern Republican Party and the subsequent changes  in its politics and its key constituencies. How did the party of Lincoln become the Party of Trump? To answer this question, we pay particular attention to the transformations of the GOP since 1964, and the shift in its power base from the Mid-West and North East to the South and South West, as it has become more politically conservative.

Readings:

Alan Ware, 'Donald Trump's Hyjacking of the Republican Party in Historical Perspective,' The Political Quarterly, Vol. 87: 3 (2016), pp. 406-414.

Charles J. Sykes, How the Right Lost Its Mind (London: Biteback Publishing, 2017), pp. 3-18.

Matthew C. MacWilliams, 'Who Decides When the Party Doesn't? Authoritarian Voters and the Rise of Trump' Political Science and Politics, Vol 49:4 (2016) pp. 716-721.

 

Week Five: The Democratic Party

The Democratic Party was once the champion of white supremacy, slavery and segregation in the South. In the 1930s it emerged as the party of the New Deal for American workers and, in the 1960s, the party advancing civil rights and the 'Great Society'. Today, it is unclear what the Democratic Party stands for and for whom it stands. In this lecture we examine how the party of Roosevelt became the Party of Clinton(s), and explore the contradictions between its centrist and left factions.

Readings:

Lance Selfa, The Democrats: A Critical History (2nd edn) (Chicago: Haymarket Books, 2012), pp. 63-85.

Thomas Frank, Listen, Liberal: or What Ever Happened to the Party of the People? (Melbourne: Scribe, 2016), pp. 217-245.

Timothy Shenk, 'The Next Democratic Party,' Dissent, Vol 64: 1 (2017), pp. 12-15

 

Week Six: Post Racial or Most Racial?

After Barack Obama won the Presidency in 2008, many pundits declared the dawn of a post racial America. This proved to be a false dawn. People of colour continue to be disadvantaged in many areas of social and political life, and structural racism persists in an era of supposed colour blindness. In the first of three weeks that focus on the centrality of race in US politics, we begin exploring the origins and contemporary manifestations of these inequities. 

Readings:

Brian F. Schaffner, Mathew Macwilliams and Tatishe Nteta, ‘Understanding White Polarization in the 2016 Vote for the President: The Sobering Role of Racism and Sexism’, Political Science Quarterly, Vol. 133: 1 (2018), pp. 9-34.  

Carol Anderson, White Rage: The Unspoken Truth of Our Racial Divide (New York: Bloomsbury, 2016), pp. 138-160.

Carol Anderson, One Person, No Vote: How Voter Suppression is Destroying Our Democracy (New York: Bloomsbury, 2018), pp. 72-95.

 

Week Seven: The New Jim Crow: Race, Incarceration and (in)Justice

Since the early 1970s, the politics of law and order has become a pervasive US preoccupation. This has been manifested in spiraling rates of incarceration, and a militarization of US policing. The weight of this shift has fallen disproportionately on African Americans males, who are now imprisoned in record numbers. This week we examine why.

Readings:

Michelle Alexander, The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness (New York: The New York Press, 2012), pp. 97-139.

Loic Wacqant, 'Class, Race and Hyperincarceration in Revanchist America,' Socialism and Democracy, 28:3 (2014), pp. 35-56,

 

Week Eight: Race, Class and the Destruction of the Welfare State

Continuing where we left off last week, we deepen our exploration of the connection between race inequality, class inequality, and the destruction of the welfare state since the 1970s. The US never had the developed welfare states that prevailed in Northern Europe, Scandinavia and Australasia, but it did nonetheless develop welfare systems that gave a modicum of social security to the less fortunate. These have been systematically dismantled by both Republican and Democratic administrations, over a period of several decades, with disastrous consequences for disadvantaged people regardless of ethnic background. We examine why.

Readings:

Christopher Faricy, 'Partisanship, Class, and Attitudes towards the Divided Welfare State,' The Forum, Vol. 15: 1: (2017), pp. 111–126.

Hana E. Brown, 'Racialized Conflict and Policy Spillover Effects: The Role of Race in the Contemporary U.S. Welfare State,' American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 119: 2 (2013), pp. pp. 394-443.

 

Week Nine: Political Emotions in the Age of Post-Truth Politics

Political science has historically been wedded to a rational actor view of political preferences, behaviour and voting. This approach is being increasingly discredited, as social scientists begin to appreciate that reason and rationality are frequently trumped by passions and emotions in politics, as contemporary developments in the US so clearly demonstrate. In the first of two lectures, we begin exploring the ways in which human emotions are collectivized and deployed for political purposes. We will be paying particular attention to the ways that emotions like fear, anger, humiliation, hate and love are used instrumentally by politicians to mobilize supporters, as Trump so successfully did in the Republican primaries and Presidential election.

Readings:

Lloyd Cox and Steve Wood, '"Got Him" Revenge, Emotions and the Killing of Osama Bin Laden', Review of International Studies, Vol. 43: 1 (2017), pp. 112–129.

Paula Ionide, The Emotional Politics of Racism: How Feelings Trump Facts in an Era of Colorblindness (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2015), pp. 1-26.

Karin Wahl-Jorgensen, 'Public Displays of Disaffection: The Emotional Politics of Donald Trump', in Pablo J. Boczkowski and Zizi Papacharissi (eds) Trump and the Media (Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 2018), pp. 79-86.

 

Week Ten: Political Emotions, Media and Social Media

Emotional contagion, which is discussed in the previous lecture, is today transmitted via traditional and social media. Without necessarily knowing it, significant constituencies take their emotional cues from what they see, hear and read in mass and social media. This week we examine the changing role of media and social media in US politics. The emphasis will be on the broader relationship between politics and social media, money and the cult of celebrity that seems to now pervade so many aspects of US cultural and political life. We examine the deeper structural and cultural forces that shape these developments, and discuss the growing political polarization that they encourage.

Reading:

Michael Kimmel, Angry White Men: American Masculinity at the End of an Era (New York: Nation Books, 2017), pp. 31-68.

Cass R. Sunstein, #Republic: Divided Democracy in the Age of Social Media (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2017), pp. 59-97.

 

Week Eleven: The Religious Right

Despite the formal, constitutional separation between church and state in the US, religion plays a more important role in US politics than in any other comparable western state. We explore why this is and analyse how it is manifested. We pay particular attention to the influence that the Religious Right has exercised over the contemporary Republican Party, and ask how their values can be reconciled with a Trump Presidency.

Reading:

Travis Gettys, 'Former Evangelical Republican warns the religious right's support of Trump will harm Christianity' Salon.com (2019) https://www.salon.com/2019/07/08/former-evangelical-republican-warns-the-religious-rights-support-of-trump-will-harm-christianity_partner/

Angelia R. Wilson & Cynthia Burack, '"Where Liberty Reigns and God isSupreme”: The Christian Right and the Tea Party Movement,' New Political Science, Vol 34:2 (2012), pp. 172-190,

Kimberly Conger, 'A Matter of Context: Christian Right Influence in US State Republican Parties,' State Politics and Policy Quarterly, Vol 10: 3 (2010), pp. 248-269.

 

Week Twelve: The Alt-Right and Authoritarianism in the Age of Trump

In recent years, US politics has seen the growth of what many commentators have labelled the Alt-Right. This broad label encompasses various political tendencies and organizations that are to the right of the Republican Party and traditional conservatives. Such groups include a rogues' gallery of white supremacists, Neo-Confederates, conspiracy theorists, Anti-Semites, Neo-Nazis, militia organizations and men's rights groups. Worryingly, their resentments and hatreds are being increasingly mainstreamed and tolerated, if not encouraged, by establishment Conservatives. In this lecture we examine the sources of this renewed vigor on the Far-Right, and discuss its relationship to Trump and the Republican Party more generally. 

Reading:

George Hawley, The Alt-Right: What Everyone Needs to Know (New York: Oxford University Press, 2019), pp. 4-30.

Karen Stenner and Jonathon Haidt, 'Authoritarianism is Not a Momentary Madness, But an Eternal Dynamic Within Liberal Democracies' in Cass R. Sunstein (ed) Can it Happen Here: Authoritarianism in America (New York: Harper Collins, 2018), pp. 175-220.

 

Week Thirteen

This final week will be devoted to an in the class exam for internal students. External students will take a similar exam, but it will be conducted over the weekend. See the external student guide for details. 

 

Students will also find the following resources useful.

Useful Journals

  • Political Science Quarterly
  • The Nation
  • Presidential Studies Quarterly
  • American Historical Review
  • American Political Science Review
  • American Journal of Political Science
  • Diplomatic History
  • Foreign Affairs
  • Foreign Policy
  • International Organization
  • International Security
  • International Studies Quarterly
  • International Studies Review
  • Journal of Cold War History
  • Journal of Conflict Resolution
  • Journal of Politics
  • Millennium
  • Security Studies
  • Survival
  • The National Interest
  • World Politics

Useful Websites

 

 

Unit Schedule

 

Week

Date

Lecture

Tutorial

Assessment

1

2 Aug

Introduction: Money, Culture, Power and US Exceptionalism

American exceptionalism, liberalism, capitalism, religion

None

2

9 Aug

Explaining the 2016 US Election

The Electoral College, Federalism and Congress; the election results; explaining the results

None

3

16 Aug

Elections, Campaigns and Campaign Financing

Assembling winning electoral coalitions; segmenting the electorate; the science of successful campaigning; Campaign Finance - can money predict winners?

None

4

23 Aug

The Republican Party

The Party of Lincoln to the Party of Trump: How did we get here?

None

5

30 Aug

The Democratic Party

The Party of Roosevelt to the Party of Clinton: How did we get here?

First Essay Due

6

6 Sept

Post Racial or Most Racial?

The long shadow of slavery and white supremacy; Civil Rights and White Backlash; the politics of changing ethnic demographics; the Obama Presidency and the foundations of Trumpism; coloured disenfranchisement

None

7

13 Sept

The New Jim Crow: Race, Incarceration and (in)Justice

The colour of mass incarceration; the War on Drugs; 'Broken windows' and zero tolerance; the New Jim Crow; Militarizing Police; Black Lives Matter

None

8

4 Oct

Race, Class and the Destruction of the Welfare State

New Deal/Great Society and its Dismantling; Reagan and welfare retrenchment; (Bill) Clinton and welfare retrenchment; Bush and welfare retrenchment; Consequences for Race and Class

Major Essay due, 1 Oct

9

11 Oct

Political Emotions in the Age of Post-Truth Politics

Transcending the rational actor view of politics; Emotions trump facts; Collectivizing emotions and making them public and political; the political emotions of masculine, white nationalism - fear, humiliation, rage and hatred

None

10

18 Oct

Political Emotions, Media and Social Media

Mechanisms of mediated emotional contagion; Talk radio, Fox News and the politics of outrage; political polarization and social media; the emotional politics of Donald Trump

None

11

25 Oct

The Religious Right

The emotional and political power of organized religion; Protestant Nation?; the 'Born Again' Republican Party; the politics of pro-life and pro-choice; why did evangelicals support Trump in record numbers?

None

12

1 Nov

The Alt Right

What is the Alt Right and where did it come from? White nationalism and the politics of extremism; Traditional Conservatives and the Alt Right; Trump and the Alt Right

None

13

8 Nov

In class test for internal students

This two hour test will be held in class time for internal students, and will involve writing three short essays on topics drawn from across the entire unit.

None

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Undergraduate students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/student-conduct​

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to improve your marks and take control of your study.

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

If you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Graduate Capabilities

Creative and Innovative

Our graduates will also be capable of creative thinking and of creating knowledge. They will be imaginative and open to experience and capable of innovation at work and in the community. We want them to be engaged in applying their critical, creative thinking.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • By the end of this unit you will be able to analyse and interpret primary and secondary US political sources and present the information in a written form
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to plausibly explain how and why Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment tasks

  • Assessment Two
  • Assessment Three
  • Assessment four

Capable of Professional and Personal Judgement and Initiative

We want our graduates to have emotional intelligence and sound interpersonal skills and to demonstrate discernment and common sense in their professional and personal judgement. They will exercise initiative as needed. They will be capable of risk assessment, and be able to handle ambiguity and complexity, enabling them to be adaptable in diverse and changing environments.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • You will be able to articulate your knowledge of US politics in group discussions
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment task

  • Assessment Two

Commitment to Continuous Learning

Our graduates will have enquiring minds and a literate curiosity which will lead them to pursue knowledge for its own sake. They will continue to pursue learning in their careers and as they participate in the world. They will be capable of reflecting on their experiences and relationships with others and the environment, learning from them, and growing - personally, professionally and socially.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to plausibly explain how and why Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment tasks

  • Assessment Two
  • Assessment four

Discipline Specific Knowledge and Skills

Our graduates will take with them the intellectual development, depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content in their chosen fields to make them competent and confident in their subject or profession. They will be able to demonstrate, where relevant, professional technical competence and meet professional standards. They will be able to articulate the structure of knowledge of their discipline, be able to adapt discipline-specific knowledge to novel situations, and be able to contribute from their discipline to inter-disciplinary solutions to problems.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • By the end of this unit you will be able to analyse and interpret primary and secondary US political sources and present the information in a written form
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to plausibly explain how and why Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment tasks

  • Assessment One
  • Assessment Two
  • Assessment Three
  • Assessment four

Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking

We want our graduates to be capable of reasoning, questioning and analysing, and to integrate and synthesise learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments; to be able to critique constraints, assumptions and limitations; to be able to think independently and systemically in relation to scholarly activity, in the workplace, and in the world. We want them to have a level of scientific and information technology literacy.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • By the end of this unit you will be able to analyse and interpret primary and secondary US political sources and present the information in a written form
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to plausibly explain how and why Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election
  • You will be able to articulate your knowledge of US politics in group discussions
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment tasks

  • Assessment One
  • Assessment Two
  • Assessment Three
  • Assessment four

Problem Solving and Research Capability

Our graduates should be capable of researching; of analysing, and interpreting and assessing data and information in various forms; of drawing connections across fields of knowledge; and they should be able to relate their knowledge to complex situations at work or in the world, in order to diagnose and solve problems. We want them to have the confidence to take the initiative in doing so, within an awareness of their own limitations.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • By the end of this unit you will be able to analyse and interpret primary and secondary US political sources and present the information in a written form
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to plausibly explain how and why Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election
  • You will be able to articulate your knowledge of US politics in group discussions
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment tasks

  • Assessment One
  • Assessment Two
  • Assessment Three
  • Assessment four

Effective Communication

We want to develop in our students the ability to communicate and convey their views in forms effective with different audiences. We want our graduates to take with them the capability to read, listen, question, gather and evaluate information resources in a variety of formats, assess, write clearly, speak effectively, and to use visual communication and communication technologies as appropriate.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

  • By the end of this unit you will be able to analyse and interpret primary and secondary US political sources and present the information in a written form
  • You will be able to distinguish between competing interpretations of key US political issues, and succinctly express the strengths and weaknesses of these interpretations in written and oral form
  • You will be able to plausibly explain how and why Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election
  • You will be able to articulate your knowledge of US politics in group discussions
  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment tasks

  • Assessment One
  • Assessment Two
  • Assessment Three
  • Assessment four

Engaged and Ethical Local and Global citizens

As local citizens our graduates will be aware of indigenous perspectives and of the nation's historical context. They will be engaged with the challenges of contemporary society and with knowledge and ideas. We want our graduates to have respect for diversity, to be open-minded, sensitive to others and inclusive, and to be open to other cultures and perspectives: they should have a level of cultural literacy. Our graduates should be aware of disadvantage and social justice, and be willing to participate to help create a wiser and better society.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment task

  • Assessment Two

Socially and Environmentally Active and Responsible

We want our graduates to be aware of and have respect for self and others; to be able to work with others as a leader and a team player; to have a sense of connectedness with others and country; and to have a sense of mutual obligation. Our graduates should be informed and active participants in moving society towards sustainability.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

  • You will understand the articulation between money, culture and power in US politics

Assessment task

  • Assessment Two