University of Sydney Handbooks - 2019 Archive

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Indigenous Studies Descriptions

Indigenous Studies

Major

A major in Indigenous Studies requires 48 credit points from this table including:
(i) 12 credit points of 1000-level core units
(ii) 6 credit points of 2000-level core unit
(iii) 6 credit points of 2000-level selective unit
(iv) 6 credit points of 3000-level core unit
(v) 12 credit points of 3000-level selective units
(vi) 6 credit points of 3000-level Interdisciplinary Project unit

Minor

A minor in in Indigenous Studies requires 36 credit points from this table including:
(i) 12 credit points of 1000-level core units
(ii) 6 credit points of 2000-level core unit
(iii) 6 credit points of 2000-level selective unit
(iv) 6 credit points of 3000-level core unit
(v) 6 credit points of 3000-level selective unit

1000 level units of study

Core

INDG1001 Introduction to Indigenous Cultures

Credit points: 6 Session: Intensive July,Semester 1 Classes: 2x1hr lecture/week, 1x1hr tutorial/week Assessment: 1x500wd equivalent seminar presentation (10%), 1x1000wd presentation paper (20%), 1x1000wd equivalent online contribution (30%), 1x2000wd research essay (40%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This unit introduces students to Indigenous Australia in a stimulating, in-depth study of traditional and contemporary forms of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural expression. Ranging from the Dreaming and ancient knowledges, ceremony and lore, to the lives and societies of Indigenous peoples today, students learn in areas such Aboriginal kinship, language, story and art, Indigenous agriculture, aquaculture and astronomy, and contemporary Indigenous cultures and cultural currents.
INDG1002 Introduction to Indigenous History

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: 2x1hr lecture/week, 1x1hr tutorial/week Assessment: 1x500wd equivalent seminar presentation (10%), 1x1000wd presentation paper (20%), 1x1000wd equivalent online contribution (30%), 1x2000wd research essay (40%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This unit of study focuses on the history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples since colonisation, exploring key social, political and legal events, issues and debates, and the people behind them. Students will learn about important historical events and social issues in areas such as civil and political rights, land rights, self-determination and reconciliation, developing an understanding of how these events and issues have shaped the shared history of Australia. The unit introduces a decolonising methodology that will underpin further work in the major.

2000 level units of study

Core
INDG2001 Indigenous Land and Culture

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1 Classes: 1x1hr lecture/week, 1x2hr tutorial/week Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 1000 level in Indigenous Studies Assessment: 1x1800wd essay (40%), 1x1800wd case study (40%), 1 x case study presentation (900wd equiv)(20%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This unit explores the centrality of the connection between land and culture to the continuity and well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Students learn about Country and Indigenous relationships with, responsibilities to and care of place, and the maintenance of land, language and culture. A rights based perspective is used to explore Indigenous political history and activism in maintaining and protecting Country and culture. Students survey local and international case studies to illuminate the links between land, cultural rights and human rights.
Selective
INDG2005 Learning an Australian Language

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1 Classes: 1x3hr seminar/week Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 1000 level in Indigenous Studies Prohibitions: KOCR2605 Assessment: 5x 180wd Written Assignments (20%), 5x 180wd Recordings (20%), 2x 225wd Class Test (10%), 2x 675wd Conversation (30%), 1x 450wd Final Writing Task (10%), 1x 450wd Learning Resource (10%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
Gamilaraay is an Indigenous Australian language from the mid-northwest of NSW that is currently undergoing revitalisation. This unit of study will provide students with a basic competence in speaking, understanding, reading and writing Gamilaraay sufficient to recognise and construct simple utterances in the language, and to understand its relationships with other languages. Classes will progressively develop each student's abilities in the language.
ANTH2605 Aboriginal Australia: Cultural Journeys

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: 1x2hr lecture/week, 1x1hr tutorial/week Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 1000 level in Anthropology or 12 credit points at 1000 level in Indigenous Studies Prohibitions: ANTH2010 or ANTH2025 Assessment: 1x500wd tutorial writing task (15%), 1x1500wd unit reading task (30%), 1x2500wd major essay (40%), tutorial participation (15%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This unit introduces students to the diversity of cultural practice and worldviews of Aboriginal societies across Australia. It will in particular explore critically how Aboriginal people and practices have been understood, debated and represented in the discipline of anthropology since colonisation.
ANTH2630 Indigenous Australians Today

This unit of study is not available in 2019

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1 Classes: 1x2hr lecture/week, 1x1hr tutorial/week Prerequisites: 12 Junior credit points in Anthropology Assessment: 3x500wd reading analyses (30%), 1x500wd essay outline (15%), 1x2500wd major essay (45%), Tutorial participation (10%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
The unit examines how Indigenous Australians have long engaged with the 'modern world', despite dominant ideas that juxtapose Western modernity with Indigenous tradition/static past. The unit uses an anthropological lens to investigate changing Indigenous lifeworlds since colonisation with a focus on state policy and Indigenous rights politics.
ARHT2636 Contemporary Aboriginal Art

This unit of study is not available in 2019

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1 Classes: 1x2hr lecture/week, 1x1hr tutorial/week Prerequisites: (ARHT1001 and ARHT1002) or 12 Junior credit points in GCST, SCLG, ANTH, ENGL1008, ENGL1026, PHIL1011 or PHIL1013 Prohibitions: ARHT2036 Assessment: 1x3000wd Essay (60%), 1x1500wd Exhibition review (40%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
Aboriginal and Torres Strait art is the major Australian movement of the last 50 years. Surveying its development from Papunya Tula to the present, the unit focuses on critical issues like appropriation and copyright, art and native title, women artists, the market and curatorial practices.
HSTY2693 Frontier Violence in Modern Memory

This unit of study is not available in 2019

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: "2x1hr lecture/week, 1x1hr tutorial/week Prerequisites: 12 Junior credit points of History or Ancient History Assessment: 1x500wd proposal and bibliography (10%), 1x1500wd exam (30%), 1x2500wd research essay (50%), in-class participation (10%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
The myth of the frontier is a foundation stone of national identity in the United States, where it gave birth to a global film genre, the Western. In Australia, where 'history wars' are waged over the level of violence and the legality of colonial expansion, the very existence of a frontier is disputed rather than romanticised. This unit compares the significance of the frontier in each country's history and popular memory from the perspective of both settlers and indigenous peoples.
HSTY2696 The Empire Strikes Back

This unit of study is not available in 2019

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: 2x1hr lecture/week and 1x1hr tutorial/week Prerequisites: 12 Junior credit points of History or Ancient History Assessment: 1x500wd Film/Book Review (10%), 1x1000wd Reflective Essay (20%), 1x2000wd Research Essay (40%), 1x1hr Final Exam (20%), Tutorial Participation (10%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
In the 20th century, millions of people fought to overthrow oppressive colonial regimes. In this unit we will study the global history of decolonisation, mainly from the perspective of formerly colonised and indigenous peoples. We will examine case studies from Asia, Africa and the Pacific, and end by asking: what would decolonisation in Australia look like?
LNGS2611 Language in Indigenous Australia

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1 Classes: 2x1hr lecture/week Prerequisites: 24 credit points Assessment: 2x1500wd project (50%), 1x3000wd essay (50%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This unit of study examines language in Indigenous Australia. It is said that of the 250 distinct Aboriginal languages spoken in 1788, just 20 languages are expected to survive another few generations. This unit of study will challenge this grim and oft-quoted statistic. We will see that new Aboriginal languages have emerged, apparently moribund languages have been gaining strength and distinctive Aboriginal ways of talking have survived. We consider why some languages have prospered while others have declined. We explore how Indigenous languages have responded to the challenges of non-Indigenous settlement, in such arenas as education, land rights and health.
SPAN2615 Indigenous Movements in Latin America

This unit of study is not available in 2019

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1 Classes: 1x1hr lecture/week, 1x2hr seminar/week Prerequisites: 12 Junior credit points in Spanish and Latin American Studies or Anthropology or Sociology, American Studies or Indigenous Studies Assessment: 1x2500wd Essay (45%), 1x700wd group Seminar presentation (20%), 1x1200wd annotated bibliography (35%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This course provides an introduction to Latin American politics through an interdisciplinary approach to studying indigenous movements, pivotal actors in the shaping of contemporary conceptions of democracy, citizenship and statecraft in the continent. Students will examine these social movements from anthropological, historical and political science perspectives. They will gain an insight into cultural diversity of Latin American societies and acquire analytical tools for studying and understanding a wide variety of topics associated with political structure and agency in the continent.

3000 level units of study

Core
INDG3001 Indigenous Studies Methodologies

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1 Classes: 1x3hr seminar/week Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 2000 level in Indigenous Studies Assessment: 1x500wd equivalent seminar presentation (10%), 1x1000wd presentation paper (20%), 1x1000wd equivalent online contribution (30%), 1x2000wd research essay (40%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
In Indigenous Research Methods, students will be encouraged to understand and critically evaluate the range of methodologies used in Indigenous Studies. This will serve as preparation for students' independent research project, also undertaken in the third year, providing them with an understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural protocols and ethical approaches to Indigenous Studies research.
Selective
INDG3003 Race, Racism and Indigenous Australia

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: 1x2hr lecture/week, 1x1hr tutorial/week Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 2000 level in Indigenous Studies or 12 credit points at 2000 level in Diversity Studies Assessment: Tutorial Participation (10%), 1x 1000wd equivalent Tutorial presentation (25%), 1x 1500wd Critical Resource Analysis (30%), 1x 2000wd Case Study (35%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
In this unit students critically examine race and racism and their impacts on Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. Students consider theories of structural and cultural violence; how racism is linked to poverty, justice and human rights; critical whiteness theory; and race representation. With an emphasis on Indigenous Australia, students gain an understanding of visible and invisible racism and skills for unmasking racism in a process of constructive individual and social change.
INDG3005 Re-awakening Australian Languages

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: 1x1hr lecture/week, 1x2hr seminar/week. Compulsory field trip (approx 4 days). Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 2000 level in Indigenous Studies Prohibitions: KOCR3607 Assessment: 1x 900wd Presentation Paper (20%), 1x 1800wd Essay (40%), 1x 1800wd Field Report (40%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
Note: Department permission required for enrolment
Australia holds an unenviable record for its loss of Indigenous languages and actively pursues a de facto policy of English monolingualism. This unit examines how Indigenous communities are resisting this trend and reviving so-called extinct languages through examining the roles of language policy and planning, community activism, language centres, education, technology and the linguistic processes involved. Lecture and tutorial content is supplemented by a fieldwork excursion (at additional cost) to a regional language centre and associated school programs.
INDG3006 De/colonising Indigenous Education

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1 Classes: 1x1hr lecture/week, 1x2hr tutorial/week Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 2000 level in Indigenous Studies Assessment: 1x 900wd equivalent Tutorial Presentation (20%), 1x 1575wd Tutorial Paper (35%), 1x 2025wd Essay (45%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This unit explores the history of Indigenous school experience with a specific focus on settler colonial contexts (Australia, Aotearoa/NZ, Nth America). Diverse schooling experiences and institutions are examined both as instruments of colonial power and a means through which Indigenous peoples have negotiated their own goals and sought self-determination. Critical studies, emergent trans-Indigenous and decolonising approaches inform the exploration of concepts and practices of assimilation, race, and the contemporary legacies of past practice.
AGEN3008 Indigenous Land and Food Knowledge

Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: Dr Peter Ampt (Coordinator), A/Prof Tina Bell Session: Semester 2 Classes: Application process, pre-trip orientation - 1 day, field trip - 10 days + travel time = 70 hours, post-trip workshop - 1 day. (Student financial contribution $2000-$2500) Assessment: Assessment during field trip: field trip activities recorded,in booklet (20%), journal - personal/reflective (20%), participation peer and self-assessment (10%); assessment post-field trip: one 3000wd feasibility study, funding application and essay due week 7 Semester 2 (50%); Out of class prescribed student workload: application process - Kinship module 1-hour, written application 2-hours. Prepare report - five hours for seven weeks Mode of delivery: Field experience
Note: Department permission required for enrolment
Note: Students must attend pre-trip briefing session (one day in S1 exam period), field trip (approximately two weeks in mid-year break) and post-trip workshop (one day in S2).
This unit of study aims to promote understanding of Indigenous knowledge of land and food both past and present, and develop skills in identifying and developing opportunities for Indigenous engagement in land management and food production. It is an elective unit of study for undergraduate degree students in Science, Business and Arts; and for Honours and Masters degree students in Science and Arts.
This unit of study will explore the importance of the Indigenous estate (the 20-25% of Australia which is under some form of Indigenous land tenure) and will examine Indigenous knowledge to engage with contemporary realities of land management and food production for the sustainability of communities living on country. Emphasis will be on identifying opportunities for economic activities based on land and food management for the communities visited on the field trip.
Students will describe traditional land and food knowledge and understand the complex situation around living on country and the long term trends that are impacting on Indigenous communities. They will participate in activities with community members to identify opportunities for the development of enterprises based on land and food knowledge, then design and develop a plan for an activity that could contribute to the sustainability of the community.
Students will develop cultural competency through engagement with indigenous communities and recognition of the influence of their personal and cultural background through self-reflection. They will develop social research skills in collection and interpretation of qualitative data and the ability to describe a complex social/cultural ecological system and design interventions to improve problem situations. It will also provide students with skills and ideas for future research projects that will engage Indigenous communities and improve partnerships and dialogue.
Textbooks
No prescribed textbook but recommended reading includes: Gammage B (2011) The Biggest Estate on Earth: How Aborigines made Australia, Allen and Unwin, Crows Nest, Sydney, Australia; Svieby K, Skuthorpe T (2006) Treading Lightly: The Hidden Wisdom of the World's Oldest People, Allen and Unwin, Crows nest, Sydney, Australia; Bird Rose D (2000) Dingo Makes us Human: Life and Land in an Australian Aboriginal Culture, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK
ARHT3636 Issues in Indigenous Art

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: 1x2hr lecture/week, 1x1hr tutorial/week Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 2000 level in Art History or 12 credit points at 2000 level in Indigenous Studies or 12 credit points at 2000 level in Critical Studies Prohibitions: ARHT2636 Assessment: 1x3500wd Essay (70%), 1x1000wd Exhibition Review (30%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This unit focuses on critical and theoretical issues affecting Indigenous art practice today. The parameters of cross-cultural understanding will be addressed. Key ideas derived from Indigenous cultures, language and identity will be debated.
ENGL3705 Writing Country: Indigenous Ecopoetics

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: 1x2hr seminar/week Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 2000 level in Australian literature or 12 credit points at 2000 level in English or 12 credit points at 2000 level in Indigenous Studies Assessment: 1x1000wd seminar presentation and paper (20%), 1x1000wd online writing task (30%), 1x4000wd essay (50%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This unit surveys Australian Indigenous representations of Country in poetry, fiction, art and film. We consider Indigenous expressions of Country through comparative ecocritical, transnational and trans-Indigenous frameworks, and examine how Indigenous philosophies of Country can contribute to thinking about issues such as environmental crisis and climate change.
GOVT3998 Aboriginal and TSI Politics and Policy

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: 1x2hr lecture, 1x1hr tutorial Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 2000 level in Politics or 12 credit points at 2000 level in Diversity Studies or 12 credit points at 2000 level in Indigenous Studies or 12 senior credit points from Government and International Relations Assessment: 1x1500wd Case Analysis Essay (30%), 1x800wd Policy Case Presentation (10%), 1x2200wd Final Summative Essay (60%) Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
Builds on students' knowledge of Australian politics to examine the background, context, conduct and implications of politics relevant to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, and policy affecting indigenous Australians. Explores aspects of inclusion and exclusion of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from the formal political system; internal power relations within and between communities, social movements and representative bodies; compare Australian indigenous politics with those of other nations, and; look at a range of policy areas.

Interdisciplinary project

INDG3998 Industry and Community Project

Credit points: 6 Session: Intensive December,Intensive February,Intensive January,Intensive July,Semester 1,Semester 2 Prerequisites: Interdisciplinary Impact in any major Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
This unit is designed for third year students to undertake a project that allows them to work with one of the University's industry and community partners. Students will work in teams on a real-world problem provided by the partner. This experience will allow students to apply their academic skills and disciplinary knowledge to a real-world issue in an authentic and meaningful way.
INDG3999 Interdisciplinary Impact

Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1,Semester 2 Prerequisites: 12 credit points at 2000 level in Indigenous Studies Prohibitions: Interdisciplinary Impact in another major Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) day
Interdisciplinarity is a key skill in fostering agility in life and work. This unit provides learning experiences that build students' skills, knowledge and understanding of the application of their disciplinary background to interdisciplinary contexts. In this unit, students will work in teams and develop interdisciplinarity skills through problem-based learning projects responding to 'real world problems'.