Students

ANTH3021 – Globalisation, Conflict, and Religion

2022 – Session 1, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Course Coordinator
Chris Houston
chris.houston@mq.edu.au
Contact via 9850 8471
B513
By appointment
Tutor
Roberto Costa
roberto.costa@mq.edu.au
Contact via na
By appointment
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
130cp at 1000 level or above
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

Mass communications, technological advances, and the transnational mobility of individuals are powerful forces for cultural change in the contemporary world. For anthropology, the globalisation thesis raises important questions about culture, religion and about the question of how violence and its control has changed in a global world. How are we to understand cultures, religious movements and ideologies, previously understood as bounded entities? How might we theorise the relationship between local and global events, such as conflicts, terrorism and violence? This course will introduce students to the field of anthropology and its sub-disciplines through the discussion of these questions that anthropologists investigate in contemporary and past societies. Some of the issues explored in this course include; religion and worldview, religion in relation to globalisation, power and inequality, violence and conflict, and the formation of new religious movements. We will look at the 'speeding-up' of the world in terms of our experience of time and space, and we will consider the possibility of alternative or parallel modernities.

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:

  • ULO1: Critically analyse and debate complex social-political issues.
  • ULO2: Conduct comparative research on the role of social settings and norms in shaping culture and politics in a globalised context.
  • ULO3: Actively reflect on debates about anthropology of religion and globalisation.
  • ULO4: Investigate from an anthropological viewpoint the complex dynamics that affect religious conflicts and violence within global contexts.
  • ULO5: Improve writing and critical reading skills.

General Assessment Information

Late Penalty Information:

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – 10 marks out of 100 credit 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
Participation 20% No Weekly
Essay Plan 10% No April 8th
Final Essay 40% No May 20th
Take-home exam 30% No May 27-June 3rd

Participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: Weekly
Weighting: 20%

Student’s participation in the tutorial discussions
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Critically analyse and debate complex social-political issues.
  • Actively reflect on debates about anthropology of religion and globalisation.
  • Improve writing and critical reading skills.

Essay Plan

Assessment Type 1: Plan
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: April 8th
Weighting: 10%

Essay plan sketching out the themes of the Final essay
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Investigate from an anthropological viewpoint the complex dynamics that affect religious conflicts and violence within global contexts.
  • Improve writing and critical reading skills.

Final Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 25 hours
Due: May 20th
Weighting: 40%

Students will write an essay of approximately 2000 words on a self-select topic.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Critically analyse and debate complex social-political issues.
  • Conduct comparative research on the role of social settings and norms in shaping culture and politics in a globalised context.
  • Actively reflect on debates about anthropology of religion and globalisation.
  • Investigate from an anthropological viewpoint the complex dynamics that affect religious conflicts and violence within global contexts.
  • Improve writing and critical reading skills.

Take-home exam

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: May 27-June 3rd
Weighting: 30%

Take-home exam testing understanding of the unit material. Students will be given 4-6 questions and asked to provide 200-250 word responses to each question.
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Conduct comparative research on the role of social settings and norms in shaping culture and politics in a globalised context.
  • Investigate from an anthropological viewpoint the complex dynamics that affect religious conflicts and violence within global contexts.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Anth3021 operates with a two-hour lecture, and a one-hour tutorial each week. The lectures are recorded on Echo. Tutorial readings are found on the unit iLearn page

Attendance at both lectures and tutorial is strongly encouraged. 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

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

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/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

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

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

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

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.

Unit information based on version 2022.02 of the Handbook