Detailed assessment information and rubrics Detailed information about each of the assessments, including rubrics and submission instructions will be available in the Assessment block in iLearn. Please make sure you read the assessment information carefully.  

Special Consideration Requests for extensions must be submitted via a Special Consideration request, which is available in the http://ask.mq.edu.au portal. Your request should be submitted no later than five days after the due date and will need to be accompanied by appropriate supporting documentation. Please see the Special Consideration policy in the list of policies at the end of this document for further details. Read the policy closely as your request may be turned down if you have not followed procedure, or if you have not submitted a request in a timely manner.

Late Submission Policy 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.

Academic Integrity In Philosophy, academic honesty is taken very seriously, and a range of methods, including but not restricted to the use of Turnitin, are used to detect plagiarism. Misrepresenting someone else's work as your own may be grounds for referral to the Faculty Disciplinary Committee. If you have questions about how to properly cite work or how to credit sources, please ask the convenor for help and see also the  Academic Integrity Policy https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/academic-integrity

Note: All assignments in this unit are individual assignments. Collusion (unauthorised collaboration on individual assignments) is a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy. If in doubt, contact a member of teaching staff. 

A helpful resource if you would like to know more about referencing and avoiding plagiarism is  Macquarie's Academic Integrity Module, available here: https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/skills-development. You will need to complete this Module before accessing the unit content, if you have not already done so. More information is available in iLearn. 

AI/ChatGPT Policy in PHIL7000: In this unit, assessment content that has been generated by AI will be regarded as not being a student’s own work. Students who submit AI-generated outputs for their assessments – even if they are paraphrased and adapted – will be regarded as being in breach of Academic Integrity. This applies to all assessments, including quizzes. In submitting their written assessments all students confirm their agreement with the following: 

This assessment has not been written in part or full by AI and is not an AIgenerated output. It is based on my own research and my own thinking. I understand that if I am suspected of submitting AI-generated work, I may be found to be in breach of the MQ Academic Integrity Policy and may be required to attend a live interview with the Unit Convenor/lecturers/Integrity Officer to verify my own deep understanding of the content of my assessment, my research methods, and all sources I have quoted.

Academic Writing and Study Support Macquarie University offers a number of services to help with academic writing, referencing and study skills. For details, see: https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/skills/assignments

For information about policies related to Assessment, see Policies and Procedures section below.

DETAILED ASSESSMENT INFORMATION

Note that for this unit you will be required to select one part (of the two parts) of the unit to be your 'minor' topic of focus, and the other part to be your 'major' topic of focus. The following 'rules' then apply:

• Your essay Literature review, Plan, and the Essay itself must be on your designated 'major' topic;
• Your Recorded Presentation must be on your designated 'minor' topic;
• Your (two) Reading Presentations must be on at least one reading from your designated 'minor' topic, though you can do both of your Reading Presentations from your 'minor' topic if you wish.

Readings All required readings are available in Leganto on the unit iLearn site. Additional reading will be required and expected for all assessments. Some suggestions for Supplementary Reading will be provided in seminars, iLearn, and Leganto, but these are suggestions only, and you are expected to use your research skills to identify some literature yourself for your written assessments.

Seminars  Unless notified otherwise, seminars in 2024 will be in-person (on-campus) and available online at the Echo360 block on the unit iLearn site. Seminars will be participatory and interactive, rather than lecture-style. At 8000-level all students are expected to have read the assigned readings for every seminar, and to come prepared to contribute to all discussions.

There are no tutorials, only the weekly 2hr seminar to attend.

PART ONE: PHILOSOPHY OF PROCREATION (A/Prof Mianna Lotz)

Week 1 (week beginning 19 Feb): The nature of the child

Week 2 (week beginning 26 Feb): The value of childhood (NB: Zoom-only seminar this week. Please use the zoom link under 'Week 2' in the unit iLearn.)

Week 3 (week beginning 4 March): Parents, the State, and the child's 'right to an open future'

Week 4 (week beginning 11 March): The alleged goods of parenthood (and ought we even to have children?)

Week 5 (week beginning 18 March): Ethics of Assisted Reproduction I: Rights, autonomy, and justice in uterus transplantation

Week 6 (week beginning 25 March): Ethics of Assisted Reproduction II: Can ART be a tool for women's liberation?

PART TWO: PHILOSOPHY OF SURGERY (Dr Katrina Hutchison)

Week 7 (week beginning 1 April): Innovative surgery and the philosophy of definitions

Week 8 (week beginning 8 April): Justice and innovative surgery - who wins, who loses, and who pays?

MID-SESSION BREAK (APRIL 15–26)

Week 9 (week beginning 29 April): Surgical devices and the ethics of complex technologies

Week 10 (week beginning 6 May): Surgery, knowledge and power I - surgeons in clinical hierarchies

Week 11 (week beginning 13 May): Surgery, knowledge and power II - prejudice and pay gaps in Australia's highest paid profession

Week 12 (week beginning 20 May): Doing interdisciplinary and applied philosophy - lessons from philosophy of surgery

Week 13 (week beginning 27 May): Writing Week – no seminar