Students

LAWS5005 – Age and the Law

2023 – Session 2, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Holly Doel-Mackaway
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
(130cp in Law or LAWS units) or (130cp including LAWS260 or LAWS2060)
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit examines the intersection of age and law, in particular, the ways in which the law protects, empowers and also negatively impacts on the lives of children and older people. This course equips students to understand the national and international legal frameworks impacting on children and young people and the elderly and the strengths and limitations of these frameworks. This unit is relevant to students interested in human rights and social justice, as well as students who want to gain an advanced understanding of the socio-legal context surrounding children and young people and/or the elderly.

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: Demonstrate awareness and understanding of the legal issues affecting children and older people in various contexts.
  • ULO2: Identify the elements of a rights-based approach to legal issues that affect children and older people.
  • ULO3: Engage in critical analysis of the way in which laws impact on children and older people.
  • ULO4: Evaluate the role of law reform in key areas affecting children and older people.
  • ULO5: Demonstrate awareness and understanding of the way law impacts on diverse communities of children and older people, especially Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

General Assessment Information

Late Assessment Submission Penalty  

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a mark of ‘0’ (zero) will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue.    

This late penalty will apply to non-timed sensitive assessment (incl essays, reports, posters, portfolios, journals, recordings etc). Late submission of time sensitive tasks (such as tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, scheduled practical assessments/labs etc) will only be addressed by the unit convenor in a Special consideration application. Special Consideration outcome may result in a new question or topic. 

 

 

MODERATION

Word limits will be strictly applied and any words above the word limit will not be marked. Students may submit 10% less words than the word limit for an assessment (however, it is strongly recommended to use all the words possible as generally students who adhere to the recommended word limit perform better than students who do not).  All assessments in the unit are to be submitted electronically via the appropriate Turnitin link. Plagiarism detection software is used in this unit. Detailed marking guidelines will be made available on iLearn.

The convenor moderates all assessments. All high distinctions and fails are double marked.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Law reform campaign 30% No Week 6, 1 September @ 11.55pm
Research Essay 50% No Week 13, 3 November @ 11.55pm
Participation 20% No Ongoing; Week 13, 3 November @ 11.55pm

Law reform campaign

Assessment Type 1: Media presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 6, 1 September @ 11.55pm
Weighting: 30%

 

Students will be required to develop a campaign outline on an issue related to law and children or older people. Topic choices and details of the assessment will be outlined on iLearn

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate awareness and understanding of the legal issues affecting children and older people in various contexts.
  • Identify the elements of a rights-based approach to legal issues that affect children and older people.
  • Engage in critical analysis of the way in which laws impact on children and older people.
  • Evaluate the role of law reform in key areas affecting children and older people.
  • Demonstrate awareness and understanding of the way law impacts on diverse communities of children and older people, especially Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Research Essay

Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 35 hours
Due: Week 13, 3 November @ 11.55pm
Weighting: 50%

 

A research essay on a select topic related to child/elder law. Full details of the topic and further instructions will be available on ilearn

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate awareness and understanding of the legal issues affecting children and older people in various contexts.
  • Identify the elements of a rights-based approach to legal issues that affect children and older people.
  • Engage in critical analysis of the way in which laws impact on children and older people.
  • Evaluate the role of law reform in key areas affecting children and older people.
  • Demonstrate awareness and understanding of the way law impacts on diverse communities of children and older people, especially Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Ongoing; Week 13, 3 November @ 11.55pm
Weighting: 20%

 

Students will be assessed on their informed participation in discussions, role plays, debates and/or other activities.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate awareness and understanding of the legal issues affecting children and older people in various contexts.
  • Identify the elements of a rights-based approach to legal issues that affect children and older people.
  • Engage in critical analysis of the way in which laws impact on children and older people.
  • Evaluate the role of law reform in key areas affecting children and older people.
  • Demonstrate awareness and understanding of the way law impacts on diverse communities of children and older people, especially Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

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

Students will have the opportunity to explore complex legal questions and develop practical and theoretical understandings relevant to child and elder law. All students must be aware that this unit predominantly focuses on children and the law and is convened by Dr Holly Doel-Mackaway, whose background is in international children’s rights. The last two weeks of lectures will provide a brief introduction to elder law. However, this course will not provide students with a comprehensive overview of elder law.

In this unit we will also examine the relationship between Indigenous peoples and the law. Please see this resource produced by Walanga Muru, Macquarie University Office of Indigenous Strategy for information about Aboriginal Cultural Protocols

The course content (lectures and other learning materials) will be delivered online, every week during weeks 1-13. Lectures commence in week 1 (till week 12) and the tutorial about that lecture material occurs in the following week (thus, tutorials start in week 2 and go through till week 13).

All students are required to prepare for, attend and actively participate in either weekly face-to-face or online tutorials. 

Each week students will be required to read the required readings and listen to approximately 2 hours of pre-recorded lecture or other course material that will be available on iLearn. The schedule of topics to be covered in the lectures, and required readings, will be available on iLearn and in the unit's Leganto reading list. 

There is no textbook for the course rather a list of readings for each week will be posted on the unit Leganto link. 

Students require access to a computer and a secure and reliable internet provider.

Unit Schedule

Unit Schedule

Child and Elder Law Unit Schedule 

This is subject to change so keep checking this iLearn page.

WEEK

 

LECTURE TOPIC

TUTORIAL

ASSESSMENT

Week 1

 

Children and the Law; Constructions of Childhood

No tutorial

 

Week 2

 

The Development of the International Children’s Rights Framework  

Tutorial: Week 1 Topic

Weekly forum posts–weeks 2-13

Week 3

 

Indigenous Children and the Law

Tutorial: Week 2 Topic

 

Week 4

 

Protecting Children from Abuse and Neglect 

Tutorial: Week 3 Topic

 

Week 5

 

Children, Migration, Conflict and COVID

Tutorial: Week 4 Topic

 

Week 6

 

Juvenile ‘Justice’ and Criminal Responsibility

Tutorial: Week 5 Topic

Law Reform Campaign due 

Week 7

 

Children: E-Safety, Agency and Privacy 

 

 

Tutorial: Week 6 Topic

 

 RECESS

   

 

 

 RECESS

 

 

 

 

Week 8

 

Children’s Participation in Law and Policy Development; Legal Representation of Children 

Tutorial: Week 7 Topic

 

Week 9

 

Legal Capacity and the Medical Treatment of Children

Tutorial: Week 8 Topic

 

Week 10

 

Does the ‘Law’ Uphold Children and Young People’s Rights?  

Tutorial: Week 9 Topic

 

Week 11

 

Overview of Elder Law

Elderly People: Decision Making, Capacity and Discrimination

Tutorial: Week 10 Topic

 

Week 12

 

Elderly People: Financial Abuse and Aged Care 

Tutorial: Week 11 Topic

 

Week 13

 

No Lecture (tutorial only)  

Tutorial: Week 12 Topic

Research Essay & 3 forum posts due 

 

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 2023.02 of the Handbook