EDRE520 - Special Studies in Religious Education

Year

Credit points

Campus offering

Prerequisites

Unit rationale, description and aim

This unit provides the flexibility in the offering of elective units for students undertaking the Graduate Certificate in Religious Education. It provides the possibility of offering a unit meeting the specific needs of a group of students or reflecting the particular expertise of staff or a visiting scholar. 

The unit will contribute to the development of broad and coherent theoretical and technical knowledge in the field of Religious Education. It will address complex issues in the field and lead to creative and original solutions being provided through flexible methodological approaches that can easily be communicated to others. 

Learning outcomes

To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.

Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.

Explore the graduate capabilities.

On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:

1. This will be based on the selected area under investigation and nature of enquiry.

Graduate attributes

GA1 - demonstrate respect for the dignity of each individual and for human diversity

GA2 - recognise their responsibility to the common good, the environment and society 

GA3 - apply ethical perspectives in informed decision making

GA4 - think critically and reflectively 

GA5 - demonstrate values, knowledge, skills and attitudes appropriate to the discipline and/or profession 

GA6 - solve problems in a variety of settings taking local and international perspectives into account

GA7 - work both autonomously and collaboratively 

GA8 - locate, organise, analyse, synthesise and evaluate information 

GA9 - demonstrate effective communication in oral and written English language and visual media 

GA10 - utilise information and communication and other relevant technologies effectively.

Content

Topics will depend on the area under investigation. These will be identified by the supervisor. 

Learning and teaching strategy and rationale

This unit involves 150 hours of focussed learning which includes formally structured learning activities such as lectures, tutorials and online learning. The remaining hours typically involve reading, research, and the preparation and submission of tasks for assessment. 

The unit is normally offered face to face, although other modes might be appropriate where circumstances would provide it. Students learn through formally structured and scaffolded learning activities that support the achievement of learning outcomes. Students are asked to critically reflect, analyse and integrate new information with existing knowledge, draw meaningful new connections and then apply what they have learnt. Inquiry-based cooperative learning is also the means of achieving the learning outcomes.  

The unit emphasises students as active learners who bring a wealth of experience to their study. It recognises that adult learners are best engaged when what they are learning is relevant to them and gives them the opportunity to be responsible for their own learning. Active participation in engaging in the learning activities is desirable, as this helps students to develop their critical thinking and reflection skills.   

Assessment strategy and rationale

A range of assessment procedures will be used to meet the unit learning outcomes and develop graduate attributes consistent with University assessment requirements. Such procedures may include, but are not limited to: essays, reports, examinations, student presentations, case studies and online interactive student performance tasks. The assessment tasks and their weighting for this unit are designed to demonstrate achievement of each learning outcome. In order to pass the unit, students are required to submit and participate in all assessment tasks. 

The total assessment tasks will amount to the equivalent of 5,000 words.  

Overview of assessments

Representative texts and references

These will depend on the area under investigation.