KZB360 Community Arts Practice

Unit Outline: Semester 1 2027, Kelvin Grove, Internal

Overview

This unit explores how creative practices such as visual art, screen content production, media, music, storytelling and dance can spark change in people’s lives and in society. In this unit you’ll dive into the powerful role the arts can play in shaping more inclusive, connected, and sustainable communities. Focusing on creative work that goes beyond traditional institutions, you’ll learn how artists and creatives collaborate with communities to amplify voices, share experiences, and push for the futures they want to create. Whether it’s through visual, screen, performance, or cross-disciplinary projects, you’ll see how creativity becomes a tool for advocacy, wellbeing, and social impact. You’ll also build hands-on skills in designing and communicating the value of community arts. 

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

1. Identify, analyse, and discuss the purpose of community arts for a range of different stakeholder groups
2. Collaborate respectfully with community, government, NGO, and corporate supporters, volunteers, student collaborators, and other stakeholders to co-design, produce, and exhibit/distribute an arts-based project, program, or engagement
3. Empower individuals and communities to employ existing and new creative knowledges, skills, and capabilities to implement a community arts project
4. Identify and evaluate the personal, social, educational, economic, and political impact of community arts projects

Content

Learning Approaches

This unit features a series of lectures and workshops. The lectures will introduce you to a range of historical and contemporary practice, debates, and issues in the field. The workshops offer the opportunity to examine methodologies practitioners use to collaborate respectfully with communities, and empower communities as the producers and presenters of community arts projects, programs, exhibitions, and media. This will include engagement with protocols for producing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander art works, and other protocols as appropriate.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

Throughout the unit, teaching staff will provide feedback to you which will inform assessment items. Feedback in this unit is provided to you through comments on summative assessment work in addition to criteria sheets.

Assessment

Overview

There are three assessment items in this unit: one is a live presentation, one is a practical assessment with a creative outcome, as well as your professional engagement. These will give you the opportunity to synthesis the theoretical components that you have learned in the lectures with the practical skills that you have learned in the workshops.

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Analysis and Professional Briefing

You will work individually to undertake a needs analysis, in which you identify, analyse, and articulate the relevance of a proposed community arts for a specific community. You will communicate your findings and respond to questions live in an authentic simulated stakeholder context, support by a concise set of evidence artefacts.

The ethical and responsible use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools is authorised in this assessment. See the relevant assessment details in Canvas for specific guidelines.

Assessment: Community Arts Project

You will work in a small group to develop and present a community arts project, program, exhibition, or engagement with personally, socially, educationally, economically, environmentally, and/or politically transformative outcomes for an identified community.

The ethical and responsible use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools is authorised in this assessment. See the relevant assessment details in Canvas for specific guidelines.

Assessment: Professional Engagement

You will be assessed on self, peer, and tutor assessment of preparation, communication, contribution, collaboration, and respect for others in the development of your community arts project.

The ethical and responsible use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) tools is authorised in this assessment. See the relevant assessment details in Canvas for specific guidelines.

This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.

The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Requirements to Study

Requirements

All students are requested to visit and review the Health and Safety information on the HiQ web pages (CIESJ Tier 1 HSE requirement). 

For some students, this unit may also require a Tier 2 CIESJ Health and Safety Induction which is provided by the technician on site in the theatre, workshop or studio. 

Resources

Risk Assessment Statement

For risks associated with using campus buildings or QUT facilities, refer to the HiQ Health and Safety information. 

Where substantial computer-based work is required, particularly in the case of fully online students, you are recommended to take regular rest breaks when engaging in prolonged computer-based work, and ensure that your workstation is set up for optimal comfort to prevent strain or injury.

For CIESJ Tiers 2 and 3 Health and Safety requirements, you will be instructed on safe procedures and the required safety gear for all studio and workshop processes that are demonstrated. Health and Safety files are readily available for all materials and machinery in all studio areas. Technical supervision is provided for workshops and available on a regular basis during the week. Technical supervision is mandatory in 3D workshop and printmaking studios.

Other required safety inductions will be conducted as required.

Creative practice often explores a wide range of topics and themes, some of which may touch upon sensitive or triggering subjects. While we believe in the power of storytelling and self-expression, we also want to prioritize your emotional well-being. Please be aware that this course may contain content that could potentially trigger or upset individuals. These triggering topics may include, but are not limited to:

1. Sexual assault or violence
2. Self-harm or suicide
3. Substance abuse or addiction
4. Eating disorders or body dysmorphia
5. Mental health conditions or trauma
6. Racism, discrimination, or hate speech
7. Religious or political extremism
8. Domestic or child abuse
9. Loss or grief
10. War or conflict

Please be advised that this unit may include the presentation and scholarly analysis of material and subject matters that may be considered confronting, such as certain representations of race, class, gender and violence. QUT counselling support is available should you feel the need to avail yourself of these services.

Course Learning Outcomes

BA01 Bachelor of Arts

1. Recognise, develop and apply disciplinary and interdisciplinary knowledge through critical and creative processes.
   Relates to: ULO1, Analysis and Professional Briefing
2. Critically analyse, evaluate and synthesise information and evidence to inform decision-making, problem solving and argumentation.
   Relates to: ULO1, Analysis and Professional Briefing
3. Independently formulate questions, and apply foundational research methods and analysis to investigate relationships between society, culture and technology.
   Relates to: ULO3, ULO4, Analysis and Professional Briefing , Community Arts Project
4. Communicate to diverse audiences using a range of modes and technologies to share and disseminate knowledge, skills and ideas.
   Relates to: ULO3, Analysis and Professional Briefing , Community Arts Project
5. Work productively as a reflective learner, team member and collaborator to achieve goals and to build personal and professional networks and develop entrepreneurial thinking in community and workplace contexts.
   Relates to: ULO2, Community Arts Project, Professional Engagement

KK43 Bachelor of Creative Industries

1. Demonstrate broad and coherent theoretical and practical knowledge required for creative enterprise, career development and interdisciplinary collaborations, supported by depth in at least one creative disciplinary area.
   Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, ULO3, ULO4, Analysis and Professional Briefing , Community Arts Project, Professional Engagement
2. Demonstrate well-developed cognitive and ideation skills to identify, analyse and evaluate opportunities to address authentic complex problems.
   Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, ULO4, Analysis and Professional Briefing , Community Arts Project, Professional Engagement
3. Communicate effectively in a range of forms across multiple media modes, for sharing and disseminating knowledge, skills and ideas, and collaborative practice and navigation of social networks.
   Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, Analysis and Professional Briefing , Community Arts Project, Professional Engagement
4. Apply and adapt creative disciplinary knowledge and skills with agility in a range of industry, community and intercultural contexts.
   Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, ULO3, Analysis and Professional Briefing , Community Arts Project, Professional Engagement
5. Embody social and ethical responsibilities and exhibit well-developed judgement with resilience, integrity, curiosity and responsibility.
   Relates to: ULO2, Community Arts Project, Professional Engagement
6. Practise self-management of career and learning with enterprise and an entrepreneurial outlook, including the building of personal and professional relationships and partnerships.
   Relates to: ULO1, ULO2, Analysis and Professional Briefing , Community Arts Project, Professional Engagement