SWB105 Contemporary Human Rights

Unit Outline: Semester 1 2025, Kelvin Grove, Internal

Overview

This unit provides an introduction to human rights and ethics across global, regional and national contexts as essential knowledge toward building a critically oriented practice approach. It strategically positions knowledge and skills in a broad political, legal, social, cultural and economic framework. The unit examines the relationship between human rights and thematic global and national challenges including climate change, poverty, and oppressive forms of intolerance and discrimination. It offers the opportunities to investigate present day concerns relating to the human rights of women, Indigenous peoples and minority groups as well as considering specific topics such as human trafficking, harmful cultural practices, workers' rights and child soldiers. It includes a range of Australian human rights, ethical and social justice issues.

Learning Outcomes

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

1. Describe the different categories of human rights and the fundamental principles underlying the contemporary human rights regime.
2. Articulate the major sources of international and national human rights law and the systems designed to protect and promote human rights.
3. Describe and critically analyse selected human rights and ethical issues at the national, regional and international level, while considering cross-cultural differences and cultural safety.
4. Collaborate and cooperate as a member of a team on a human rights/ethical project.
5. Apply communication, presentation and advocacy knowledge and skills for social, ethical and human rights activism.

Content

Learning Approaches

This unit focuses on an inquiry-based approach to the critical analysis of current affairs and news programmes, exploring all media coverage and extending to open discussion in lectures and tutorials, supported by collaborative exercises where opportunities to express your perspective and listen to the diverse perspectives of others supports deeper learning and integrates the values of social justice, respect, ethics and professional integrity.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

You will be provided with formative and summative feedback on the various items of assessment. You will be able to incorporate constructive feedback into your assessment as the semester progresses. Forms of feedback include:

• informal: worked examples, such as verbal feedback in class, personal consultation, group discussions, experiential activities
• formal: in writing, e.g. criteria sheets, written commentary in lectures, unit materials or communication, peer interaction 
• direct: to students, either in written form or in consultation
• indirect: to the whole class.

Feedback will directly and indirectly relate to and inform your assessment pieces as well as the development of your critically oriented approach for practice. Further details on feedback will be provided at the commencement of the semester.

Assessment

Overview

This unit contains assessment items which link knowledge, theory and collaborative work with a range of very contemporary human rights and ethical issues. There is a particular emphasis on ensuring the relevance of assessment to authentic learning, professional practice, real world challenges and contemporary issues. The individual items of assessment are detailed below.

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Advocacy PowerPoint Presentation and Peer Review

Assume the role of human rights advocates from an NGO Human Rights organisation. You will work collaboratively and cooperatively with members of your team in order to critically analyse a selected human rights topic at either national, regional or international level for presentation at a mock conference.

Part A – Draft Plan (15%)

Your group will develop a draft plan of your presentation to help the development of your presentation and PPT with references. The plan will contain these elements:

• A contemporary human rights topic with a defined problem statement.
• Background information, relevant UN conventions, recommendations and initial references.
• Group roles and processes (including timeframes), employed to produce the PPT presentation.

The draft plan will be presented by the group in tutorial sessions Weeks 5 and 6. 

Part B – Group presentation (25%)

Your advocacy group will formulate a PPT with reference list and present the topic analysis to your peers and leaders in a mock conference held in Weeks 9 and 10 tutorials. Each member of the group is required to present.

Assessment: Report

In this individual assessment, you will focus on a contemporary human right issue (this must be a different topic to your poster presentation). Assuming the role of human rights activist, you will write a report for the United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights on a human rights issue that is of concern to the United Nations. You will use evidence from reputable Human Rights groups, peer reviewed academic sources and relevant UN Conventions to support your case. You need to include the following: background context to the human rights violation and why it happens, the Conventions it contravenes, and 4 key recommendations for change. Additional details published on LMS Canvas and discussed in tutorials.

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension. 

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.

Resources

Risk Assessment Statement

The unit deals with a number of confronting issues and includes videos of some situations depicting human rights violations.

Course Learning Outcomes

SW04 Bachelor of Social Work

1. Critique and apply coherent theoretical, practical and contextually relevant social work knowledge, skills and values, and cultivate a commitment toward meeting diverse clients and community needs. [Knowledge, Practice, Values and Disposition]
   Relates to: Report
2. Construct and implement strategies for engaging in critical thinking and decision-making, utilising advanced research knowledge and skills to inform culturally safe practice, and promote social justice from diverse perspectives. [Practice, Knowledge, Values and Disposition]
   Relates to: Advocacy PowerPoint Presentation and Peer Review
3. Access, evaluate, and utilise relevant social work information that informs and assists in intra- and inter-professional communication in a range of contexts, through effective oral, written and digital interactions. [Practice, Knowledge]
   Relates to: Advocacy PowerPoint Presentation and Peer Review
4. Design a plan of action for working within socially progressive, anti-oppressive, culturally safe and ethical practice, that embody an autonomous and collaborative evidence-based orientation to social work, integral to the standards of professional social work practice. [Values and Disposition, Practice]
   Relates to: Advocacy PowerPoint Presentation and Peer Review, Report
5. Critically examine tenets of diversity and diverse perspectives in social work, and advocate for a socially just society and the promotion of human dignity that reflect different social, political, cultural and historical circumstances, on the beliefs, values and aspirations of various groups, including Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations. [Values and Disposition, Knowledge, Practice]
   Relates to: Report

SW05 Bachelor of Social Work (Honours)

1. Critically evaluate theoretical, practical and contextually relevant social work knowledge, skills and values and, as a change facilitator, meet diverse client and community needs that promote social justice
   Relates to: Advocacy PowerPoint Presentation and Peer Review, Report
2. Formulate and implement strategies using advanced knowledge and research skills to analyse, consolidate and synthesise social and practice evidence to generate solutions and to inform professional practice and decision-making
   Relates to: Report
3. Develop advanced knowledge, skills and values, to inform culturally safe communication and effective intra- and inter-professional collaboration and with a wide range of audiences and contexts, including accessing, evaluating and utlising digital health information.
   Relates to: Advocacy PowerPoint Presentation and Peer Review
4. Access, evaluate and utilise social work information to advocate for a socially just society and the promotion of human dignity and worth that reflect different social, political, cultural and historical circumstances, on the beliefs, values and aspirations of various groups, including Indigenous and non-Indigenous populations
   Relates to: Advocacy PowerPoint Presentation and Peer Review, Report