PUQ453 Disaster Response and Recovery


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Unit Outline: Session 2 2024, QUT Online, Online

Unit code:PUQ453
Credit points:12
Equivalent:PUN453
Equivalent:PUZ453
Assumed Knowledge:

Core concepts, definitions and underpinning principles that guide the effective management of local, national and international man-made, technological, weather-related disasters, and emergencies and their impact on communities.

Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of the teaching period.

Overview

This unit addresses the key concepts and skills related to inclusive disaster response and recovery in local, national and international contexts. It examines and provides students practice in the real-world processes of responding to, and providing inclusive relief to communities due to disasters. The unit covers ways to provide an enabling environment for affected individuals, communities and broader society, to recover from, and strengthen, inclusive and sustainable resilience to the impacts of future emergency and disaster events. Upon completion of this unit you will have a greater understanding of how to implement a disaster inclusive response and develop recovery proposals.

Learning Outcomes

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

  1. Identify and analyse issues that may be encountered during response and recovery to a major incident or disaster.
  2. Present information about unfolding emergencies and disasters to local, national and international stakeholders who may not be on the ground.
  3. Create situation reports drawing on scholarly literature, data and reports on emergencies and disasters.
  4. Design evidence-based response and recovery plans for emergencies and disasters to drive recovery, build awareness and resilience.
  5. Apply commonly used tools in project planning for recovery.

Content

This unit will cover the following:

  • Systems, structures and processes
  • System continuity and recovery
  • Community recovery
  • Human and social considerations
  • Preparing situation reports and recovery proposals, including project planning tools
  • Communicating with local, national and international stakeholders about unfolding emergencies and disaters

Learning Approaches

In this unit, you will learn by engaging in an active learning environment, undertaking regular online activities, guided through the learning process by expert teaching staff who provide regular feedback. On average, you will need to dedicate 12-15 hours each week for your learning that includes readings, discussions with peers and assignments.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

You will receive feedback on your learning in a variety of ways, including:

  • Informal formative feedback will be provided online quizzes, self-check exercises, peer feedback and through individual or whole of class feedback in online discussions or via comments in online communities.

  • Formal written or recorded feedback will be received on both formative and summative assessment tasks via Canvas Assignment tool, in addition to the grade on the Criterion Reference Assessment sheet.

  • Feedback on your assessment task/s will be received prior to the submission of your subsequent assessment task/s.

Assessment

Overview

There are three assessments in this unit.

1. Critical Analysis of Study Material - This will consolidate the concepts about disaster response and recovery.

2. Situation Report - This task connects communication and analysis skills to present about an unfolding disaster and emergency situation to a range of stakeholders who may not be on the ground.

3. Disaster Management Recovery Proposal - This brings together the concepts and strategies presented in the unit materials to plan for mid to long-term recovery from an emergency or disaster using evidence, literature and project planning tools such as logframes and needs assessment.

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Critical Analysis of Study Material

You will make a series of contributions to the online discussion forum. To inform your contributions, you will critically read study materials and reflect on current or recent disasters or emergency events, and respond to/provide feedback on fellow students’ comments.

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Weight: 20
Length: 1000 words
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Throughout the teaching period
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1

Assessment: Situation Report

You will be allocated a specific role within a disaster management team that is responding to an emerging emergency/disaster. You are working on the ground and must deliver a situation report to your organisation to update them on the emerging issues and challenges. You will include a brief rationale and justification for proposed actions, drawing upon scholarly literature, available data and reports.

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Weight: 30
Length: 1200 words
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Mid teaching period
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3

Assessment: Disaster Management Recovery Proposal

This task builds upon Assessment Task 2, where the emergency/disaster has moved onto the recovery phase. You will write a justified and evidence-based proposal to the relevant organisation detailing a project to be implemented to drive recovery, build awareness and resilience within the disaster affected area and exit strategy.

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Weight: 50
Length: 2500 word report
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): End of teaching period
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 4, 5

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to engage in learning and assessment at QUT with honesty, transparency and fairness. Maintaining academic integrity means upholding these principles and demonstrating valuable professional capabilities based on ethical foundations.

Failure to maintain academic integrity can take many forms. It includes cheating in examinations, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, and submitting an assessment item completed by another person (e.g. contract cheating). It can also include providing your assessment to another entity, such as to a person or website.

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.

Further details of QUT’s approach to academic integrity are outlined in the Academic integrity policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Breaching QUT’s Academic integrity policy is regarded as student misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Requirements to Study

Requirements

Nil

Costs

There are no additional costs associated with this unit.

Resources

Resource Materials

Prescribed text(s)

FitzGerald, G., Tarrant, M., Aitken, P. and Fredriksen, M. (2016). Disaster Health Management: A Primer for Students and Practitioners (1PstP ed.). London & NY: Routledge.

Recommended text(s)

Ali, S. F. (2016). Governing disasters: Engaging local populations in humanitarian relief. NY: Cambridge University Press.

Risk Assessment Statement

You are advised to back-up your digital files on a regular basis to ensure work is not lost if there is a hardware failure. Information about the free file storage provided by QUT for students is available on the Storing your files page.

There are no out of the ordinary risks associated with this unit.