Students

SOCI2030 – Introduction to Social Policy

2024 – Session 2, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor
A/Prof Shaun Wilson
shaun.wilson@mq.edu.au
Contact via email
B250, Level 2, Building B, 25 Wally's Walk
Friday morning Zoom catch up at 9am
Tutor
Antonina Gentile
antonina.gentile@mq.edu.au
Contact via email
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
40cp at 1000 level or above
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description
Few areas in sociology generate as many questions and as much debate as the role of social policy and the welfare state. Can we afford generous social policies or is the 'age of entitlement' over? What role should governments, families, the community and individuals play in providing welfare? Does tighter scrutiny of welfare benefits improve efficiency and independence or is it intrusive and unfair? And, how is social policy developed in a world of competing interests and power? This unit addresses these questions as it introduces students to the history, design and institutions of social policy. We look particularly at current Australian social policy and consider how policymakers deal with problems such an ageing population, precarious work and housing, the provision of care, and the targeting and financing of a welfare state. We also explore the role that power, ideas and institutions play in shaping policy debates. The unit is especially useful for students interested in policy practice and analysis, care and human services, social inequality, and political economy.

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 an understanding of the conceptual problems in measuring and evaluating social and economic inequality
  • ULO2: Demonstrate an understanding of the different types of social and economic inequality and society’s response to it.
  • ULO3: Apply basic concepts of social policy to a range of contemporary welfare debates, dilemmas and problems
  • ULO4: Assess and analyse the characteristics and potential future problems in relation to welfare states and their design of social policies.
  • ULO5: Demonstrate an understanding of key components and connections between work (labour market), families and social security systems.

General Assessment Information

Academic Integrity

Academic Integrity is an intergral part of the core values and principles contained in the Macquarie University Ethics Statement. Its fundamental principle is that all staff and students act with integrity in the creation, development, application and use of ideas and information. This means that:

  • All academic work claimed as original is the work of the author making the claim
  • All academic collaborations are acknowledged
  • Academic work is not falsified in any way
  • When the ideas of others are used, these ideas are acknowledged appropriately
  • Self-plagiarism (resubmitting your own work - including past assignments for this or other units - without attribution) is an unacceptable academic activity

 

University Grading Policy

The grade that a student receives will signify their overall performance in meeting the learning outcomes of the unit of study. Graded units will use the following grades

HD    High Distinction        85-100

D      Distinction                 75-84

Cr     Credit                        65-74

P      Pass                          50-64

F      Fail                              0-49

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.

 

Special Consideration (Extensions)

The University recognises that students may experience events or conditions that adversely affect their academic performance. If you experience serious and unavoidable difficulties at exam time or when assessment tasks are due, you can consider applying for Special Consideration.

You need to show that the circumstances:

  1. were serious, unexpected and unavoidable
  2. were beyond your control
  3. caused substantial disruption to your academic work
  4. substantially interfered with your otherwise satisfactory fulfilment of the unit requirements
  5. lasted at least three consecutive days or a total of 5 days within the teaching period and prevented completion of an assessment task scheduled for a specific date.

More information about Special Consideration is available in the Policies and Procedures section of the unit guide. You can apply for Special Consideration via ask.mq.edu.au

 

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. A Special Consideration outcome may result in a new question or topic. 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Short answer assignment 1 45% No Friday September 6 at 9pm
Short answer assignment 2 45% No Friday November 1 at 9pm
Class Participation 10% No weekly

Short answer assignment 1

Assessment Type 1: Problem set
Indicative Time on Task 2: 45 hours
Due: Friday September 6 at 9pm
Weighting: 45%

 

An assignment task consisting of 5 questions on topical questions in social policy and based on readings. 1250 words

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the conceptual problems in measuring and evaluating social and economic inequality
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the different types of social and economic inequality and society’s response to it.
  • Apply basic concepts of social policy to a range of contemporary welfare debates, dilemmas and problems
  • Assess and analyse the characteristics and potential future problems in relation to welfare states and their design of social policies.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of key components and connections between work (labour market), families and social security systems.

Short answer assignment 2

Assessment Type 1: Problem set
Indicative Time on Task 2: 45 hours
Due: Friday November 1 at 9pm
Weighting: 45%

 

An assignment task consisting of 5 questions on topical questions in social policy and based on readings. 1250 words

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the conceptual problems in measuring and evaluating social and economic inequality
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the different types of social and economic inequality and society’s response to it.
  • Apply basic concepts of social policy to a range of contemporary welfare debates, dilemmas and problems
  • Assess and analyse the characteristics and potential future problems in relation to welfare states and their design of social policies.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of key components and connections between work (labour market), families and social security systems.

Class Participation

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 0 hours
Due: weekly
Weighting: 10%

 

Participation in lectures and tutorials.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the conceptual problems in measuring and evaluating social and economic inequality
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the different types of social and economic inequality and society’s response to it.
  • Apply basic concepts of social policy to a range of contemporary welfare debates, dilemmas and problems
  • Assess and analyse the characteristics and potential future problems in relation to welfare states and their design of social policies.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of key components and connections between work (labour market), families and social security systems.

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

Unit Delivery in 2024

This unit is delivered via 'fully online mode' and 'in person weekly scheduled mode'.

For students enrolled in 'In-person, scheduled weekly mode'

  • Live, in-person lectures 12pm to 2pm weekly from Wednesday July 25 (23WW T1 Lecture Theatre) 
  • Tutorials in week 2 (from either Wednesday July 31 or Thursday August 1) - check your timetable or email shaun.wilson@mq.edu.au
  • NEW: Zoom catchups on Friday mornings (9am)

For students enrolled in 'fully online' mode

  • Lecture recordings will be downloadable from iLearn (usually within 24 hours of live lecture)
  • Online discussion forums on iLearn from week 2 (take the place of on-campus tutorials)
  • There are no compulsory on-campus sessions
  • NEW: Zoom catchups on Friday mornings (9am)

 

Student Wellbeing

Macquarie University offers a range of wellbeing services (including [but not limited to]: health, welfare, counselling, disability and student advocacy services) that are available to you at any time during your studies. Student Wellbeing is here to support you and help you succeed, both academically and personally. More information is available in the Policies and Procedures section of the unit guide.

 

Required and recommended resources

There is no required textbook for SOCI2030. Required readings are online available via Leganto (see below).

 

Technology used

The following technologies are used in this unit...

Email

Make sure that you regularly check your student email for correspondence with teaching staff and unit announcements.

iLearn

Important information about the weekly schedule, course readings and assessment are all available on the course iLearn page. If you do not have access, please contact IT help. You are required to check iLearn and your student email regularly for course updates and information.

Turnitin

All written assessments need to be submitted online via Turnitin only. A link to Turnitin is available via the Assessments tab on the iLearn page. Please contact the convenor if you cannot find it (do not leave it until the day of the assessment). There is no need to submit a hard copy of the assessment or to include a cover sheet.

Grademark

Marks will be made available via Grademark. Other feedback will be made available online via iLearn. It will take four forms (in no particular order): specific comments in the text of your paper; overall comments; a score on a qualitative rubric (that cannot be used to calculate your mark numerically); and a numeric score. Once you have received your assignment back, please make sure that you have access to these forms of feedback. 

Leganto

Leganto is the electronic system for accessing unit readings that can be accessed via the iLearn page. Readings are allocated via topic. As well as the required readings for each topic, you will find recommended and optional readings on Leganto. The required readings are available in pdf or electronic format. If you are not able to access the readings, please contact the unit convenor via email.

Zoom

Zoom is an online video conferencing software platform. It will not be used for compulsory unit sessions, but may be used for optional meetings and consultation.

Unit Schedule

Please attend the version of the unit that you are enrolled in. SOCI2030 has 13 topics that are structured into three modules, as the table shows.

Module  Week  Lecture Topic  Tutorial Topic

 1. Introduction and

   concepts

  1 Welcome to social policy  No tutorial in week 1  
 2 The life course and class: how policy addresses social risk Risks over the life-course
 3  Forms of poverty and social policy Why are people poor?
 4  Forms of inequality and social policy The social costs of inequality
 5  Power resources and the welfare state Class, class interests & social policy

 2. Comparing social 

    policies and welfare

    states

  6  Key moments in Australia's welfare state Political parties, governments and the evolution of social policies
 7  The Nordic model versus the United States  The Nordic experiment
                                          Mid Semester Break / Assessment 1 Due
 8 Comparing welfare states: typologies and tools How Australia's welfare state works
3. Problems in Australian social policy  9 Working in Australia and social policy What's wrong with Jobseeker?
 10  Indigenous Australia and social policy After the Voice: Closing the Gap and Indigenous futures
 11  Gender foundations of welfare states Care workforces and the future
 12  Social policy in an ageing society Can we improve Australia's aged care system?
 13  Health policy and inequality + revision What's wrong with Medicare? + Unit wrap

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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 connect.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 the Service Connect Portal, 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.

Changes from Previous Offering

Weekly topics and readings list revised.

Unit information based on version 2024.02 of the Handbook