Unit convenor and teaching staff |
Unit convenor and teaching staff
Unit Convenor
Donna Houston
Contact via Email
W3A-418
Office hours Weds 10am-12pm or by appointment
Tutor
Sara Judge
Contact via Email
Tutor
Ryan Jones
Contact via Email
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Credit points |
Credit points
3
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Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
12cp at 100 level or above
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Corequisites |
Corequisites
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Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
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Unit description |
Unit description
The ecological humanities bring together ways of knowing and interacting with the world from the sciences and the humanities, as well as from Indigenous and other 'non-western' worldviews. This unit introduces the ecological humanities and aims to nourish students' understanding of the connectivities and possibilities that these dialogues produce for people and the more-than-human environment. It gets students outside their comfort zones in thinking about relationships with the planet, other species and other peoples, and provides a vocabulary of key words and concepts to frame the opportunity to think about these relationships and connections. This unit includes short and spicy readings to provoke tutorial discussions and a range of opportunities to rethink the 'environmental' through multiple perspectives from science, social science and the humanities.
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Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
Please consult the folder labeled 'Assessment' on iLearn webpage for more information about marking criteria and rubrics for each of the assessment tasks. You are encouraged to post questions about assignments in the general discussion forum.
Ongoing assessment tasks (such as journals and tutorial presentations) that take place over the course of the 13 weeks can seem a bit confusing at first. We have put together an 'Assessment' folder in iLearn (look for it at the top of the page). We ask you to hand in some of your work separately so you can receive marks and feedback at different stages in the semester. The assessment information in the section above provides a general overview - the information in the Assessment folder will provide a more detailed breakdown of the tasks, what is due and when, and information about how we will mark your assignments (criteria and marking rubrics).
You are required to submit your assignments via Turnitin links on iLearn.
While GEOP262 supports a paperless classroom (it is better for the planet!), we also recognise that this presents a particular challenge for putting together and submitting your 'mate' journals which may include sketches, photographs and handwritten field notes. Our preference is for you to compile your journal notes into an electronic form (scanned images are acceptable) and for you to submit your journal to Turnitin in Word or PDF. Your journal is private and will only be seen by yourself and GEOP262 teaching staff.
If online and electronic journalling absolutely will not work for you, please contact Donna at the beginning of semester to discuss options for keeping and submitting a paper-based journal.
Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – two (2) marks out of 100 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.
Name | Weighting | Hurdle | Due |
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Reflective Journal | 35% | No | 5pm Friday Week 13 |
Sharing the World with Others | 40% | No | 5pm Friday Week 9 |
Tutorial Discussion Leader | 10% | No | Weeks 4-11 |
GEOP262 3M Showcase | 15% | No | Weeks 12 and 13 |
Due: 5pm Friday Week 13
Weighting: 35%
Topic: 'Relationships and Connections Across Species'
The journal is a substantive assessment task that you will carry out throughout the unit. Please note that this is an accumulative task and you will be required to submit some of the journal items for marking and feedback before the final due date. You are asked to document and include critical reflections on the following tasks in your journal:
1. Identify a nonhuman animal 'mate' to observe throughout the semester. Document your encounters and reflect on them in your journal. You will be asked to submit a 500 word 'Introduction' to your mate and what you hope to achieve in this exercise in week 3.
2. Using one or more of the required readings for GEOP262, write a 500-word reflective summary of what you have learned observing and writing about your mate. This summary is different from your daily reflections on your encounters with your mate and should be included in your journal with a clear heading and will include references.
You must complete tasks 1 and 2 for your journal to receive the full range of marks (35%). More information about this assessment task, including: due dates for specific tasks and the marking criteria will be made available on iLearn.
Due: 5pm Friday Week 9
Weighting: 40%
The topic of your major essay will draw its inspiration from one or more of the following: the weekly lecture/tutorial discussions, your investigations with your mate, a story you have come across while collecting media articles. Your task is to write an essay on the theme of 'Sharing the World with Others' - relating this to key concepts and readings covered in GEOP262. The essay should demonstrate your ability to synthesise key ecological humanities concepts and apply them to real world contexts. The essay will demonstrate evidence of independent research on your selected topic.
More information about this assignment, including a marking rubric and criteria will be made available on iLearn.
Due: Weeks 4-11
Weighting: 10%
Each week, 1-2 students will lead the tutorial discussions of the weekly topics and readings. The discussion leaders will provide a brief summary of key ideas or points for discussion and relate this to a real world story - for example - a story you might have read or heard about in the media. This is an individual task - though you may consult with other students leading the discussion in the same week to avoid doubling up on the readings.
In addition to your online presentation, please submit a 500-word written summary of your presentation and how it relates to a key concept from the readings to Turnitin.
Please make sure you sign up to lead a discussion in the two weeks of class - your tutor will post information about how to sign up in iLearn. If you have any questions about this, please ask a question in the student forum.
Due: Weeks 12 and 13
Weighting: 15%
Following a 3M (3 minute) presentation format, using just one picture - you are asked to make a presentation based on your encounters with your nonhuman mate. Your presentation should develop a persuasive argument about what 'thinking with' nonhuman animals can teach us.
External students must 'attend' the showcase in weeks 12 and 13 to receive your mark for this assessment. The showcase for external students will be set up as a special forum. Your are required to post your presentation to the forum in Week 12 and participate in the form by Week 13. This means submitting at least four posts responding to other student's presentations or questions that other students have asked you. More information about this assessment will be made available in iLearn.
Study Modes
This unit is available in both internal and external study modes. The information below is for both internal and external students.
This unit will run as a lecture series (2 x 1hour lectures weekly), and a tutorial program (1 session weekly). Please note that all students can also listen to or download digital audio recordings of lectures on iLearn through Echo360. Copies of lecture slides will also be made available through iLearn. If you are enrolled on-campus please do make an effort to attend guest lectures in person - it keeps our great lecture program going!
Remember to check the MQ 2018 timetable on the day of the first class to make sure that there are no last minute room changes to the lecture venue! Tutorials can also be subject to change - so please check your email or iLearn in Week One to ensure that you are on top of any unanticipated changes.
Lectures | Tutorials | ||||
Thursday | 1pm-3pm | 9 Wally's Walk 133 Tutorial Room | Thursday | 4pm-5pm | 23 Wally's Walk, 203 Tutorial Room |
Thursday | 5pm-6pm |
23 Wally's Walk, 203 Tutorial Room |
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Thursday | 6-7pm | Cancelled |
Attendance in both on-campus and off-campus 'online' tutorials is compulsory and will be recorded by your tutor. In weeks 4-11 students will be leading class discussions. It is therefore essential that all enrolled students are prepared (by having done the readings) and ready to participate in the tutorial program.
Externally enrolled students will be participating weekly in their own online version of the tutorial program. Your weekly attendance in online tutorials will be recorded. Attendance is demonstrated by making one substantive post to each of the weekly online tutorial discussions in iLearn. Prolonged silences will be treated as non-attendance. You are required to submit a disruption to studies to cover any prolonged absences. We do not like to sound 'big-brotherish' - but iLearn does track online activity - so logging in at the end of the semester and doing all your posts in one session will not work.
Listening to different perspectives and actively discussing important and provocative issues and ideas is a key component of GEOP262. It is something we value highly and we think you will get a lot out of it too. Students who miss more than 2 tutorials without approved special consideration are at risk of failing the unit.
It is compulsory for on-campus students to attend and present in the Ecological Humanities 3M showcase in weeks 12 and 13. External students will participate in an online version of this and will 'record' their attendance by commenting on other student's presentations. To make things fair, everyone must be ready to present in week 12. Please be respectful and encouraging of your fellow classmates by being actively engaged with other people's work.
The required readings for GEOP262 are available electronically through Leganto, which can be accessed through iLearn. Please let Donna know if you have trouble accessing the required readings.
Please note that reading is an integral and compulsory part of this unit. The readings will complement and support the lecture program, and will be referred to extensively in tutorials and assignments.
Technology Use
GEOP262 provides all students with significant web-based support using iLearn. The unit website will be maintained regularly, providing you with copies of lecture PowerPoint slides either before, or as soon as possible, after each lecture.
Please make use of the iLearn discussion tools and post questions to GEOP262 students and lecturers. Access should be possible at the University (Library and Computer Labs) as well as remotely via modem. All students should be able to use Public Library facilities to access the site regularly. If you have difficulty with access, let one of the unit convenors know so we can discuss alternative arrangements.
Please note that essential information will be made available to ALL STUDENTS via the iLearn website for GEOP262, so all students are expected to regularly check the website for notices.
Week |
Topic |
1 | What is the ecological humanities? |
2 | What is kinship with nature? |
3 | What is the question of the animal? |
4 | How do we get to know diverse others? |
5 | What is playing favourites with species? |
6 | What is environmental philosophy? |
7 | What is environmental history? |
8 | What is political ecology? |
9 | What is life and death? |
10 | What are geographies of containment and proliferation? |
11 | What is a multispecies city? |
12 | 3M student presentations - attendance is compulsory |
13 | 3M student presentations - attendance is compulsory |
Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:
Undergraduate students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.
If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).
Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/student-conduct
Results shown in iLearn, 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.
Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/
Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to improve your marks and take control of your study.
Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.
For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au
For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/.
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Our graduates will also be capable of creative thinking and of creating knowledge. They will be imaginative and open to experience and capable of innovation at work and in the community. We want them to be engaged in applying their critical, creative thinking.
This graduate capability is supported by:
We want our graduates to have emotional intelligence and sound interpersonal skills and to demonstrate discernment and common sense in their professional and personal judgement. They will exercise initiative as needed. They will be capable of risk assessment, and be able to handle ambiguity and complexity, enabling them to be adaptable in diverse and changing environments.
This graduate capability is supported by:
Our graduates will have enquiring minds and a literate curiosity which will lead them to pursue knowledge for its own sake. They will continue to pursue learning in their careers and as they participate in the world. They will be capable of reflecting on their experiences and relationships with others and the environment, learning from them, and growing - personally, professionally and socially.
This graduate capability is supported by:
Our graduates will take with them the intellectual development, depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content in their chosen fields to make them competent and confident in their subject or profession. They will be able to demonstrate, where relevant, professional technical competence and meet professional standards. They will be able to articulate the structure of knowledge of their discipline, be able to adapt discipline-specific knowledge to novel situations, and be able to contribute from their discipline to inter-disciplinary solutions to problems.
This graduate capability is supported by:
We want our graduates to be capable of reasoning, questioning and analysing, and to integrate and synthesise learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments; to be able to critique constraints, assumptions and limitations; to be able to think independently and systemically in relation to scholarly activity, in the workplace, and in the world. We want them to have a level of scientific and information technology literacy.
This graduate capability is supported by:
Our graduates should be capable of researching; of analysing, and interpreting and assessing data and information in various forms; of drawing connections across fields of knowledge; and they should be able to relate their knowledge to complex situations at work or in the world, in order to diagnose and solve problems. We want them to have the confidence to take the initiative in doing so, within an awareness of their own limitations.
This graduate capability is supported by:
We want to develop in our students the ability to communicate and convey their views in forms effective with different audiences. We want our graduates to take with them the capability to read, listen, question, gather and evaluate information resources in a variety of formats, assess, write clearly, speak effectively, and to use visual communication and communication technologies as appropriate.
This graduate capability is supported by:
As local citizens our graduates will be aware of indigenous perspectives and of the nation's historical context. They will be engaged with the challenges of contemporary society and with knowledge and ideas. We want our graduates to have respect for diversity, to be open-minded, sensitive to others and inclusive, and to be open to other cultures and perspectives: they should have a level of cultural literacy. Our graduates should be aware of disadvantage and social justice, and be willing to participate to help create a wiser and better society.
This graduate capability is supported by:
We want our graduates to be aware of and have respect for self and others; to be able to work with others as a leader and a team player; to have a sense of connectedness with others and country; and to have a sense of mutual obligation. Our graduates should be informed and active participants in moving society towards sustainability.
This graduate capability is supported by:
The 2016 unit code for GEOP262 Ecological Humanities reflects the move of Geography and Planning to the Faculty of Arts in 2015. While all units evolve and change over time, GEOP262 is the same as the previously offered ENVG262 Ecological Humanities developed by Prof Deborah Bird Rose and Dr Donna Houston.
Date | Description |
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07/03/2018 | I have added a new tutor to the staff contacts I have made a minor change to the unit schedule to accommodate a guest lecturer |