Unit rationale, description and aim
Humanitarian and development workers work with refugees and displaced communities in a range of capacities, from complex humanitarian emergencies to ongoing settlement support. A knowledge of the issues surrounding forced migration is therefore needed by humanitarian and development workers to support effective and ethical professional practice. In the community more generally, the faces, stories and experiences of refugees and forced migration are a gripping part of the daily news where politics and policy are debated. This interdisciplinary unit aims to provide students with an understanding of the key issues in forced migration and will introduce students to the major themes and tensions that have affected the international refugee protection regime. In particular, the unit focuses on the reasons, histories and contexts of forced migration, internally displaced populations, protracted refugee settings, climate migration, temporary and durable solutions, and the experience of vulnerable communities where age, gender and abilities impact experiences.
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.
Describe the underlying causes of forced migration...
Learning Outcome 01
Define the rights and entitlements of refugees and...
Learning Outcome 02
Analyse the consequences of being displaced from a...
Learning Outcome 03
Interpret, summarise and analyse durable solutions...
Learning Outcome 04
Content
Topics will include:
- Understanding of the drivers of forced migration
- The experiences of forced migration on vulnerable communities, including women, children, the elderly, protracted refugees and internally displaced populations
- The psychosocial impacts of forced migration
- Encampment
- Statelessness
- Institutional and governmental responses to refugees and other forced migrants
- International protection frameworks
- Durable solutions to refugee displacement – repatriation, integration and resettlement
- Diaspora communities
Assessment strategy and rationale
In order to pass this unit, students are required to achieve all learning outcomes and obtain a final grade of 50% or better as an aggregate of all points from assessment tasks completed in this unit.
A variety of assessment tasks have been designed to meet the learning outcomes of this unit and to ensure the development of graduate attributes. The assessment strategies are the same for all modes of the unit. To assist this, the following assessment tasks have been devised: The case study requires students to develop skills in examining the reasons for forced migration, in a particular time or context, its effect on vulnerable populations and factors that limit or promote durable solutions. The online learning activities allow students to engage with the unit content and scholarship surrounding refugees and forced migration, requiring students to apply knowledge, theories, skills and attitudes appropriate to humanitarian work with displaced populations. The essay requires students to pursue independent research using primary and secondary evidence in order to examine forced migration on a topic relevant to refugees and forced migration. Overview of assessments
Overview of assessments
Assessment Task 1: Online activities This assess...
Assessment Task 1: Online activities
This assessment allows students to build skills and engage with the knowledge and scholarship surrounding refugees and forced migration
30%
Assessment Task 2: Case Study This assessment t...
Assessment Task 2: Case Study
This assessment task develops students’ skills in examining the reasons for forced migration in a case study related to a particular time or regional context.
30%
Assessment Task 3: Research Essay Students use ...
Assessment Task 3: Research Essay
Students use research skills to find, analyse and draw on appropriate sources to provide an evidence-based essay on a topic relevant to refugees and forced migration.
40%
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
This unit engages students in active learning activities, such as reading, writing, discussion and problem-solving to promote analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Lectures will be used to introduce theoretical concepts and illustrate practice. These lectures may be online or face-to-face. Readings and online resources, like videos or podcasts, are made available on the online learning platform or in recommended texts. Ideas from lectures, readings and other resources are explored and discussed in tutorials or through online e-activities. Students use case studies to explore how what they have learned applies to real-world situations.
This unit has been designed to ensure that the time needed to complete the required volume of learning to the requisite standard is approximately 150 hours in total across the semester. To achieve a passing standard in this unit, students will find it helpful to engage in the full range of learning activities and assessments utilised in this unit, as described in the learning and teaching strategy and the assessment strategy. The learning and teaching and assessment strategies include a range of approaches to support your learning such as reading, reflection, discussion, webinars, podcasts, videos etc.