Students
ANTH3022 – Gender, Sexuality and Global Health
2025 – Session 2, Online-flexible
General Information
Download as PDF
| Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Conveno
Lisa Wynn
Contact via e-mail
Online, by appointment
Lecturer
Greg Downey
Lecturer and Tutor
Rodrigo Perez Toledo
Contact via e-mail
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
Anthropologists understand gender as the meanings that a particular society gives to the physical or biological traits that differentiate males and females. This unit will explore how cultural norms around gender and sexuality have defined, constructed, constrained, or expanded people's notions of self, their bodies, and their health in specific sociocultural contexts. The anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality, as well as health, provides a fresh lens on what appears, when viewed in terms of international politics, as 'global imperatives' - the imperative to control female sexuality and population, for example, or to categorise male and femaleness, or to control disease epidemics such as AIDS. Every one of these imperatives in fact is mediated and refracted through understandings and meanings that cling to what is most immediate and local to each of us, namely, our bodies. Anthropology understands these meanings as simultaneously symbolic, biological and existential, but the meanings are also historically and culturally specific. Gender, sexuality, and health are always mediated by the local, even as people absorb and adapt new global discourses about their sexual identity and wellbeing.
|
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 anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality as sociocultural constructs.
- ULO2: Articulate the ways that sociocultural norms around gender and sexuality shape health outcomes.
- ULO3: Demonstrate a critical understanding of how the intersection of culture, health and sexuality can underpin vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health problems as well as shape the implementation of government and donor policies and interventions.
- ULO4: Critically and reflexively analyse the role of global markets, rise of human capital, increased mobility and structural inequalities in creating disparities in sexual and reproductive health conditions.
- ULO5: Analyse the relationship between gender, sexuality and health in global discourses of development and international aid.
General Assessment Information
Submission deadlines and late penalties
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 11.59pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical issue. This late penalty will apply to non-time 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.
Assessment Tasks
Tutorial reading and response
Assessment Type 1: Summary Indicative Time on Task 2: 6 hours Due: Weekly Weighting: 30%.
This is a hurdle assessment task (meaning you have to pass this assessment to pass the unit; failure to pass a hurdle assessment means you will fail the unit)
Weekly summary of assigned readings and active participation in online discussion forum.
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate an anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality as sociocultural constructs.
- Articulate the ways that sociocultural norms around gender and sexuality shape health outcomes.
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of how the intersection of culture, health and sexuality can underpin vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health problems as well as shape the implementation of government and donor policies and interventions.
- Critically and reflexively analyse the role of global markets, rise of human capital, increased mobility and structural inequalities in creating disparities in sexual and reproductive health conditions.
- Analyse the relationship between gender, sexuality and health in global discourses of development and international aid.
Presentation
Assessment Type 1: Presentation Indicative Time on Task 2: 6 hours Due: Week 4 - 12 Weighting: 10%
Short presentation in the online discussion forum. (You will sign up in tutorial to present once, sometime between weeks 4-12.) You will be responsible for an initial posting once per semester, where you will briefly present the weekly readings and topic and then initiate discussion by posing thoughtful questions.
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate an anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality as sociocultural constructs.
- Articulate the ways that sociocultural norms around gender and sexuality shape health outcomes.
- Analyse the relationship between gender, sexuality and health in global discourses of development and international aid.
Research Essay
Assessment Type 1: Essay Indicative Time on Task 2: 40 hours Due: 24/9/23, 11.59pm Weighting: 30%
Students will write an expository essay exploring a topic related to the course material
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate an anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality as sociocultural constructs.
- Articulate the ways that sociocultural norms around gender and sexuality shape health outcomes.
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of how the intersection of culture, health and sexuality can underpin vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health problems as well as shape the implementation of government and donor policies and interventions.
- Critically and reflexively analyse the role of global markets, rise of human capital, increased mobility and structural inequalities in creating disparities in sexual and reproductive health conditions.
- Analyse the relationship between gender, sexuality and health in global discourses of development and international aid.
Take home exam
Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours Due: 2/11/23, 11.59pm Weighting: 30%
Take home exam with short answer questions covering main topics of the unit
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate an anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality as sociocultural constructs.
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of how the intersection of culture, health and sexuality can underpin vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health problems as well as shape the implementation of government and donor policies and interventions.
- Critically and reflexively analyse the role of global markets, rise of human capital, increased mobility and structural inequalities in creating disparities in sexual and reproductive health conditions.
- Analyse the relationship between gender, sexuality and health in global discourses of development and international aid.
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
Assessment Tasks
| Name | Weighting | Hurdle | Due |
|---|---|---|---|
| Presentation | 10% | No | Week 4-12 (sign up to present, lead online discussion) |
| Take home exam | 30% | No | 2 November 2025 at 23:59 |
| Research Essay | 30% | No | 24 September 2025 at 23:59 |
| Reading and response | 30% | Yes | Weekly from week 2 |
Presentation
Assessment Type 1: Presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 6 hours
Due: Week 4-12 (sign up to present, lead online discussion)
Weighting: 10%
Short presentation in online discussion forum.
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate an anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality as sociocultural constructs.
- Articulate the ways that sociocultural norms around gender and sexuality shape health outcomes.
- Analyse the relationship between gender, sexuality and health in global discourses of development and international aid.
Take home exam
Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: 2 November 2025 at 23:59
Weighting: 30%
Take home exam with short answer questions covering main topics of the unit
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate an anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality as sociocultural constructs.
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of how the intersection of culture, health and sexuality can underpin vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health problems as well as shape the implementation of government and donor policies and interventions.
- Critically and reflexively analyse the role of global markets, rise of human capital, increased mobility and structural inequalities in creating disparities in sexual and reproductive health conditions.
- Analyse the relationship between gender, sexuality and health in global discourses of development and international aid.
Research Essay
Assessment Type 1: Essay
Indicative Time on Task 2: 40 hours
Due: 24 September 2025 at 23:59
Weighting: 30%
Students will write an expository essay exploring a topic related to the course material
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate an anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality as sociocultural constructs.
- Articulate the ways that sociocultural norms around gender and sexuality shape health outcomes.
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of how the intersection of culture, health and sexuality can underpin vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health problems as well as shape the implementation of government and donor policies and interventions.
- Critically and reflexively analyse the role of global markets, rise of human capital, increased mobility and structural inequalities in creating disparities in sexual and reproductive health conditions.
- Analyse the relationship between gender, sexuality and health in global discourses of development and international aid.
Reading and response
Assessment Type 1: Summary
Indicative Time on Task 2: 6 hours
Due: Weekly from week 2
Weighting: 30%
This is a hurdle assessment task (see assessment policy for more information on hurdle assessment tasks)
Weekly summary of assigned readings and active participation in online discussion forum.
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate an anthropological understanding of gender and sexuality as sociocultural constructs.
- Articulate the ways that sociocultural norms around gender and sexuality shape health outcomes.
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of how the intersection of culture, health and sexuality can underpin vulnerability to sexual and reproductive health problems as well as shape the implementation of government and donor policies and interventions.
- Critically and reflexively analyse the role of global markets, rise of human capital, increased mobility and structural inequalities in creating disparities in sexual and reproductive health conditions.
- Analyse the relationship between gender, sexuality and health in global discourses of development and international aid.
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
Lectures: Every week, the lecture will be delivered live on campus, and recorded for later listening if you cannot watch the lecture synchronously. Lectures are always interactive with student participation, so please feel free to join us in-person if you can, even if you are not enrolled for in-person classes!
Tutorials: Make the most of iLearn for discussions about the weekly readings with your classmates. It’s a fantastic platform to share your ideas, deepen your understanding of key concepts, and expand your knowledge of medical anthropology. Engage actively and make iLearn your go-to resource for collaborative learning.
Readings: Starting from Week 2, immerse yourself in the weekly readings and share your insights with a short summary that must be submitted before each lecture. These readings will enrich our discussions and deepen your understanding. Access all lecture readings via Leganto on iLearn or through the library website. If you can’t find a reading, email the library at lib.reserve@mq.edu.au or contact the convenor, Lisa Wynn, at lisa.wynn@mq.edu.au. We're here to ensure you have all the resources you need!
Assessment submission: Submit all written assessments online via iLearn. Check iLearn for all the details.
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:
- Academic Appeals Policy
- Academic Integrity Policy
- Academic Progression Policy
- Assessment Policy
- Fitness to Practice Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Complaints Resolution Procedure for Students and Members of the Public
- Special Consideration Policy
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/
Academic Success
Academic Success provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.
- Workshops
- Chat with a WriteWISE peer writing leader
- Access StudyWISE
- Upload an assignment to Studiosity
- Complete the Academic Integrity Module
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:
- IT Support
- Accessibility and disability support with study
- Mental health support
- Safety support to respond to bullying, harassment, sexual harassment and sexual assault
- Social support including information about finances, tenancy and legal issues
- Student Advocacy provides independent advice on MQ policies, procedures, and processes
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.
Unit information based on version 2025.01R of the Handbook