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Unit of study_

ANTH2627: Medical Anthropology

Semester 1, 2021 [Normal day] - Remote

Medical anthropology is a comparative and ethnographic response to the global influence of biomedicine within diverse cultural worlds. This unit will examine major theoretical approaches, their respective critiques, and the methods that underpin them. Concepts such as 'health/illness', 'disease', 'well-being', 'life-death', and 'body/mind' will be located in a variety of cultural contexts and their implications for different approaches to diagnosis and treatment considered. The unit will include culturally located case studies of major contemporary health concerns, such as AIDS.

Unit details and rules

Unit code ANTH2627
Academic unit Anthropology
Credit points 6
Prohibitions
? 
ANTH2027
Prerequisites
? 
12 credit points at 1000 level in Anthropology or 12 credit points at 1000 level in Gender Studies
Corequisites
? 
None
Assumed knowledge
? 

None

Available to study abroad and exchange students

Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator Anjalee Cohen, anjalee.cohen@sydney.edu.au
Tutor(s) Paul-David Lutz, paul-david.lutz@sydney.edu.au
Type Description Weight Due Length
Assignment Short essay
Take-home essay. Question posted on Canvas in Week one.
30% Week 06
Due date: 14 Apr 2021 at 23:59
1500 words
Outcomes assessed: LO1 LO5 LO4 LO2
Assignment Final Essay
Take-home essay in Week 12 with choice of ONE of four questions
50% Week 13
Due date: 04 Jun 2021 at 23:59
2000 words
Outcomes assessed: LO1 LO5 LO4 LO3 LO2
Assignment Weekly reading responses
Reading response to one tutorial question on Canvas
20% Weekly 10 weeks x 100 words
Outcomes assessed: LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO5

Assessment summary

  • Reading responses: From Week 3 – Week 12 students are required to submit a response to ONE of the set tutorial questions on Canvas of no more than 100 words (mark out of 2). Students must submit their response online through Canvas by 11.59pm (before midnight) every Tuesday prior to Wednesday classes. Everyone should have read the two set required readings for each week, considered ALL the set questions and be prepared to discuss them in the tutorial.

 

  • Short essay: A take-home essay question will be posted on Canvas in Week 1. The aim of this 1500 word essay is for you to demonstrate that you have understood and critically reflected on the unit readings from Weeks 2-5. Students must draw primarily from the required readings in E-Reserve on Canvas to answer the question and may use additional readings listed on Canvas in support of the required readings.

 

  • Final Essay: In Week 12 you will be given a choice of three questions for a final take-home essay. In this 2000 word essay you will be given the opportunity to focus on one particular topic of interest from weeks 6-12.  In order to perform well in this assessment, students will need to keep up with the unit readings and regularly attend lectures and tutorials. Students should primarily draw on both the required and additional readings listed on Canvas to answer the question. You may use a limited number of external sources if relevant.

 

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a high distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name

Mark range

Description

High distinction

85 - 100

 

Distinction

75 - 84

 

Credit

65 - 74

 

Pass

50 - 64

 

Fail

0 - 49

When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

  • Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
  • After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website  provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.  

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

WK Topic Learning activity Learning outcomes
Week 01 Introduction to medical anthropology Online class (2 hr) LO1 LO2
Week 02 The social construction of illness Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO4 LO5
Week 03 Madness across cultures Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO4 LO5
Week 04 Cosmology, well-being and dis-ease Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO4 LO5
Week 05 Spirit healing and biomedicine Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO4 LO5
Week 06 Symbolism and healing Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO4 LO5
Week 07 Health promotion Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO5
Week 08 Poverty, illness and structural violence Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO5
Week 09 The symbolic politics of illegal drugs Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO5
Week 10 Breastfeeding and infant health Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO5
Week 11 The medicalisation of the female body Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO5
Week 12 Infectious diseases and COVID-19 Online class (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO5
Week 13 Reading/essay prep week Individual study (3 hr) LO1 LO2 LO3 LO4 LO5

Attendance and class requirements

  • Attendance: According to Faculty Board Resolutions, students in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences are expected to attend 90% of their classes. If you attend less than 50% of classes, regardless of the reasons, you may be referred to the Examiner’s Board. The Examiner’s Board will decide whether you should pass or fail the unit of study if your attendance falls below this threshold.

  • Lecture recording: Most lectures (in recording-equipped venues) will be recorded and may be made available to students on the LMS. However, you should not rely on lecture recording to substitute your classroom learning experience.

  • Preparation: Students should commit to spend approximately three hours’ preparation time (reading, studying, homework, essays, etc.) for every hour of scheduled instruction.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

All readings for this unit can be accessed through the Library eReserve, available on Canvas.

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

  • LO1. understand the key concepts anthropologists use to describe and analyze the social and cultural meanings of health and illness
  • LO2. know and understand the interrelationships between social forces, cultural values, the environment and a person's health and wellbeing
  • LO3. know and understand how social, political and economic forces contribute to human suffering, sickness and disease
  • LO4. read ethnographies in medical anthropology critically, identify a scholar's theoretical perspective, and appreciate the relative strengths and limitations of different analytic and interpretive approaches for the specific questions asked in medical anthropology
  • LO5. synthesize qualitative observations of people's thinking, behaviour, and their experience of health and illness with similar cases and with theoretical frameworks to make generalizations about the nature, causes and consequences of health and illness.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1 Depth of disciplinary expertise

Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.

GQ2 Critical thinking and problem solving

Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.

GQ3 Oral and written communication

Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.

GQ4 Information and digital literacy

Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.

GQ5 Inventiveness

Generating novel ideas and solutions.

GQ6 Cultural competence

Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.

GQ7 Interdisciplinary effectiveness

Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.

GQ8 Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity

An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.

GQ9 Influence

Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes Graduate qualities
GQ1 GQ2 GQ3 GQ4 GQ5 GQ6 GQ7 GQ8 GQ9

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

Reading responses have replaced tutorial participation to stimulate greater engagement with required readings and to better guide tutorial discussion.

More information on this unit will be provided in class.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.