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Course Outline

DEV705 Governance, Engagement & Capacity Building

Course Coordinator:Kathryn English (kenglish@usc.edu.au) School:School of Law and Society

2023Semester 1

UniSC Sunshine Coast

 Blended learning Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online.

Please go to usc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.

What is this course about?

Description

In developing solutions to sustainability problems, governments are most successful when engaging with their communities. This course focuses on the concepts and principles of sustainability and the role of government in implementing policies and programs to solve sustainability problems. You learn how to identify and defend various methods, tools, and techniques to inform development of strategies to engage communities. You also learn skills that are useful in government and industry, such as developing proposals and work plans, and presenting these to specialist and non-specialist audiences.

How will this course be delivered?

Activity Hours Beginning Week Frequency
Blended learning
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – 3 hour on campus workshop 3hrs Week 1 13 times

Course Topics

  • Governance concepts and definitions
  • Community engagement principles
  • Community engagement theories
  • Sustainable llivelihoods/ sustainable governance
  • Case Studies in engagement 
  • Engagement planning components
  • Stakeholder analysis
  • Engagement Project management:  budgeting
  • Engagement management: activity selection and Timetabling
  • Engagement planning: risk assessment 
  • Engagement planning: implementation and evaluation. 

What level is this course?

700 Level (Specialised)

Demonstrating a specialised body of knowledge and set of skills for professional practice or further learning. Advanced application of knowledge and skills in unfamiliar contexts.

What is the unit value of this course?

12 units

How does this course contribute to my learning?

Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming...
1 Demonstrate and apply knowledge of sustainability principles and the role of government in dealing with sustainability problems through: data analysis about possible causal factors methods, tools and techniques of community engagement Engaged
Sustainability-focussed
2 Develop and defend an implementable community engagement work plan for use by a selected level of government to solve a sustainability problem Engaged
Sustainability-focussed
3 Communicate to specialist and non-specialist audiences orally (presentations) and in writing (work plan Engaged

Am I eligible to enrol in this course?

Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.

Pre-requisites

Enrolled in any PGRD program.

Co-requisites

Not applicable

Anti-requisites

ENS703

Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)

Be competent in use of word processing software, PowerPoint and academic writing; able to interpret tables and graphs; proficient in use of university databases and a recognised referencing convention.

How am I going to be assessed?

Grading Scale

Standard Grading (GRD)

High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL).

Details of early feedback on progress

Early feedback on progress is available in weekly tutorials where students have an opportunity to present and receive feedback on responses to discussion questions.

Assessment tasks

Delivery mode Task No. Assessment Product Individual or Group Weighting % What is the duration / length? When should I submit? Where should I submit it?
All 1 Oral Individual 30% 
20 mins
 Week 4 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All 2 Oral Group 35% 
30 mins
 Week 8 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All 3 Plan Individual 35% 
Up to 4000 words
 Week 12 Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All - Assessment Task 1:Overview of a sustainability problem - oral presentation
Goal: 
To present an overview of your knowledge of a sustainability problem/s within a particular context
Product: Oral
Format: 
Choose a sustainability problem/s under the jurisdiction of a selected local or regional government. Seek your course coordinator's approval of your topic before preparing your oral. You will be preparing an oral presentation. 

Justify your choice of topic in terms of its importance to the government entity and you will need to identify key questions/areas of review or research that need to be addressed to resolve the problem.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Demonstrate and apply knowledge of sustainability principles and the role of government in dealing with a sustainability local or regional problem/s (background, justification, key questions).
 1 2
2 
Communicate to specialist and non-specialist audiences orally (content: structure; delivery: slides- complementing oral, layout and sequencing, clarity; oral – verbal and non-verbal skills, timing, body language & gestures).
 3
All - Assessment Task 2:Overview of community engagement proposal - oral presentation
Goal: 
To co-create and present a proposal for an implementable community engagement plan
Product: Oral
Format: 
Choose a sustainability problem/s under the jurisdiction of a selected government. This problem is to be different from the one in task 1 and seek your course coordinator’s approval of your topic before preparing your oral. You are to follow the format below:
(i)	Executive summary
(ii)	Background (incorporating literature review)
(iii)	Identification of community engagement components (e.g. stakeholders, timeline, staffing & costing, and associated methods, tools and techniques)
Conclusion and recommendations for development and implementation.

You are awarded a group grade with a peer assessment component using an algorithm (see Canvas).
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Demonstrate and apply knowledge of sustainability principles and the role of government in dealing with a sustainability problem/s relevant to a selected level of government through data analysis about possible causal factors.
 1
2 
Demonstrate and apply knowledge of sustainability principles and the role of government in dealing with a sustainability problem/s relevant to a selected level of government through methods, tools and techniques of community engagement.
 2
3 
Develop and defend a proposal for an implementable community engagement work plan to solve the identified sustainability problem/s.
 2
4 
Communicate to specialist and non-specialist audiences orally: Content - structure as per format.
 3
5 
Communicate to specialist and non-specialist audiences orally: delivery: slides- complementing oral, layout and sequencing, clarity; oral - verbal and non-verbal skills, timing, body language & gestures.
 3
6 
Communicate to specialist and non-specialist audiences orally: Collaboration in a team to plan and deliver.
 3
All - Assessment Task 3:Community engagement work plan
Goal: 
To develop and defend an implementable work plan for use by a government entity
Product: Plan
Format: 
Choose a sustainability problem/s under the jurisdiction of a selected government. This problem is to be different from the ones in tasks 1 and 2 and seek your course coordinator’s approval of your topic before preparing your work plan. You are to follow the format which below:
(i)	Executive summary
(ii)	Background (incorporating literature review)
(iii)	Identification community engagement components (e.g. stakeholders, timeline, staffing & costing, and associated methods, tools and techniques) and develop the strategies for the work plan. Defend your choice and sequencing of strategies in terms of capacity for the government entity to successfully implement. Define any specialist terminology as your audience may be non-specialist in terms of the sustainability problem/s.
Conclusion and recommendations for implementation and evaluation.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1 
Demonstrate and apply knowledge of sustainability principles and the role of government in dealing with a sustainability problem/s relevant to a selected level of government through data analysis about possible causal factors.
 1
2 
Demonstrate and apply knowledge of sustainability principles and the role of government in dealing with a sustainability problem/s relevant to a selected level of government through	methods, tools and techniques of community engagement.
 1
3 
Develop and defend an implementable community engagement work plan to solve the identified sustainability problem/s.
 2
4 
Communicate to specialist and non-specialist audiences in writing (structure as per format, English expression, referencing, terminology, presentation of data).
 3

Directed study hours

A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.

What resources do I need to undertake this course?

Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.

Prescribed text(s) or course reader

There are no required/recommended resources for this course.

Specific requirements

Nil

How are risks managed in this course?

Health and safety risks for this course have been assessed as low. It is your responsibility to review course material, search online, discuss with lecturers and peers and understand the health and safety risks associated with your specific course of study and to familiarise yourself with the University’s general health and safety principles by reviewing the online induction training for students, and following the instructions of the University staff.

What administrative information is relevant to this course?

Assessment: Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation.  It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline.  This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.

Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person.  You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.

In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin.  This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.

Assessment: Additional Requirements

Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying:

The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4%
The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale
You have not failed an assessment task in the course due to academic misconduct.

Assessment: Submission penalties

Late submission of assessment tasks may be penalised at the following maximum rate: 
- 5% (of the assessment task's identified value) per day for the first two days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. 
- 10% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the third day - 20% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the fourth day and subsequent days up to and including seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. 
- A result of zero is awarded for an assessment task submitted after seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. Weekdays and weekends are included in the calculation of days late. To request an extension you must contact your course coordinator to negotiate an outcome.

SafeUniSC

UniSC is committed to a culture of respect and providing a safe and supportive environment for all members of our community. For immediate assistance on campus contact SafeUniSC by phone: 07 5430 1168 or using the SafeZone app. For general enquires contact the SafeUniSC team by phone 07 5456 3864 or email safe@usc.edu.au.

The SafeUniSC Specialist Service is a Student Wellbeing service that provides free and confidential support to students who may have experienced or observed behaviour that could cause fear, offence or trauma. To contact the service call 07 5430 1226 or email studentwellbeing@usc.edu.au.

Study help

For help with course-specific advice, for example what information to include in your assessment, you should first contact your tutor, then your course coordinator, if needed.

If you require additional assistance, the Learning Advisers are trained professionals who are ready to help you develop a wide range of academic skills. Visit the Learning Advisers web page for more information, or contact Student Central for further assistance: +61 7 5430 2890 or studentcentral@usc.edu.au.

Wellbeing Services

Student Wellbeing provide free and confidential counselling on a wide range of personal, academic, social and psychological matters, to foster positive mental health and wellbeing for your academic success.

To book a confidential appointment go to Student Hub, email studentwellbeing@usc.edu.au or call 07 5430 1226.

AccessAbility Services

Ability Advisers ensure equal access to all aspects of university life. If your studies are affected by a disability, learning disorder mental health issue, injury or illness, or you are a primary carer for someone with a disability or who is considered frail and aged, AccessAbility Services can provide access to appropriate reasonable adjustments and practical advice about the support and facilities available to you throughout the University.

To book a confidential appointment go to Student Hub, email AccessAbility@usc.edu.au or call 07 5430 2890.

Links to relevant University policy and procedures

For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:

  • Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs
  • Review of Assessment and Final Grades
  • Supplementary Assessment
  • Central Examinations
  • Deferred Examinations
  • Student Conduct
  • Students with a Disability

For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching

Student Charter

UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.

General Enquiries

  • In person:
    • UniSC Sunshine Coast - Student Central, Ground Floor, Building C, 90 Sippy Downs Drive, Sippy Downs
    • UniSC Moreton Bay - Service Centre, Ground Floor, Foundation Building, Gympie Road, Petrie
    • UniSC SouthBank - Student Central, Building A4 (SW1), 52 Merivale Street, South Brisbane
    • UniSC Gympie - Student Central, 71 Cartwright Road, Gympie
    • UniSC Fraser Coast - Student Central, Student Central, Building A, 161 Old Maryborough Rd, Hervey Bay
    • UniSC Caboolture - Student Central, Level 1 Building J, Cnr Manley and Tallon Street, Caboolture
  • Tel:+61 7 5430 2890
  • Email:studentcentral@usc.edu.au
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