| Semester 1, 2020 On-campus Toowoomba | |
| Short Description: | Community Consult & Developm't |
| Units : | 1 |
| Faculty or Section : | Faculty of Business, Education, Law and Arts |
| School or Department : | School of Humanities & Communication |
| Student contribution band : | Band 1 |
| ASCED code : | 100700 - Communication & Media Studies |
| Grading basis : | Graded |
Staffing
Examiner:
Other requisites
Students will require access to e-mail and have internet access to UConnect for this course.
Rationale
Community consultation and development has rapidly become the principal approach by which organisations are strategically and responsively managing and coordinating their operations. Increasingly, organisations are seeking public input on matters affecting them, improving the organisation’s decision-making process. Public involvement also helps to build mutual understanding between organisations and publics, establishes organisational transparency, and builds reputational capital. While community consultation is more embedded in democratic countries – such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom – this approach is spreading globally. International organisations such as the UN and OECD, also use well-developed consultation practices. The demand for expertise in this area is high at present and this is predicted to continue into the future with the ongoing expansion of democratisation in modern communities, and particularly in Australia with the growth of large-scale infrastructure projects.
Synopsis
This course introduces students preparing to enter professional contexts to contemporary communication management strategies and techniques used in community relations, consultation and participation. Students will develop practical and conceptual skills in relation to the trends, issues and processes involved in consultation project planning and implementation, and the inclusion of publics in decision-making processes of organisations.
Objectives
On successful completion of this course students should be able to:
- explain the broad context in which community relations and community consultation practices have developed in organisations;
- demonstrate academic and professional literacy skills by identifying, analysing, and applying core theoretical perspectives; underpinning organisational-public relationships;
- comprehend the role of community relations and community consultation in the contemporary organisation;
- demonstrate oral and written communication skills by preparing an assignment task;
- demonstrate academic and professional literacy skills by reflecting on their own learning;
- describe the core communicative skills and competences required for facilitating organisation-community communication (including conducting community communication);
- demonstrate management, planning and organisation skills by outlining processes to plan, implement and evaluate a process of community communication (and/or consultation);
- demonstrate problem-solving skills by identifying issues and complexities involved in organisation-community communication, and developing strategies to manage them.
Topics
| Description | Weighting(%) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | An introduction to perspectives of organisations, and the nature of organisation - community communication | 15.00 |
| 2. | The contribution of public relations to the development of organisation-community relationships - a historical context | 15.00 |
| 3. | Modern developments in organisation-community relationships | 15.00 |
| 4. | The core communicative skills and competences required for facilitating organisation-community relationships | 10.00 |
| 5. | Planning and implementing organisation-community processes, including community consultation | 30.00 |
| 6. | Challenges, issues and complexities in organisation-community relationships | 15.00 |
Text and materials required to be purchased or accessed
ALL textbooks and materials available to be purchased can be sourced from (unless otherwise stated). (https://omnia.usq.edu.au/textbooks/?year=2020&sem=01&subject1=PRL2002)
Please for alternative purchase options from USQ Bookshop. (https://omnia.usq.edu.au/info/contact/)
Reference materials
Student workload expectations
| Activity | Hours |
|---|---|
| Directed ¾«¶«´«Ã½app | 39.00 |
| Independent ¾«¶«´«Ã½app | 126.00 |
Assessment details
| Description | Marks out of | Wtg (%) | Due Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| QUIZ | 100 | 10 | 20 Mar 2020 | |
| ASSIGNMENT 1 | 100 | 40 | 22 May 2020 | |
| ASSIGNMENT 2 | 100 | 50 | 15 Jun 2020 | (see note 1) |
Notes
- Students will be provided further instruction regarding the assignment by their examiner via ¾«¶«´«Ã½appDesk.
Important assessment information
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Attendance requirements:
Students must attend and complete the requirements of the Workplace Health and Safety training program for this course where required.
External and Online:
There are no attendance requirements for this course. However, it is the students’ responsibility to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration.
On-campus
It is the students’ responsibility to attend and participate appropriately in all activities (such as lectures, tutorials, laboratories and practical work) scheduled for them, and to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration -
Requirements for students to complete each assessment item satisfactorily:
Due to COVID-19 the requirements for S1 2020 are: To satisfactorily complete an individual assessment item a student must achieve at least 50% of the marks for that item.
Requirements after S1 2020:
To satisfactorily complete an individual assessment item a student must achieve at least 50% of the marks. -
Penalties for late submission of required work:
Students should refer to the Assessment Procedure (point 4.2.4) -
Requirements for student to be awarded a passing grade in the course:
Due to COVID-19 the requirements for S1 2020 are: To be assured of receiving a passing grade a student must achieve at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course.
Requirements after S1 2020:
To be assured of receiving a passing grade a student must achieve at least 50% of the total weighted marks available for the course. -
Method used to combine assessment results to attain final grade:
The final grades for students will be assigned on the basis of the aggregate of the weighted marks obtained for each of the summative assessment items in the course. -
Examination information:
Due to COVID-19 the requirements for S1 2020 are: There is no examination in this course.
Requirements after S1 2020:
Candidates are allowed access only to specific materials during a Restricted Examination. The only materials that candidates may use in the restricted examination for this course are:- writing materials (non-electronic and free from material which could give the student an unfair advantage in the examination);
- Students whose first language is not English, may, take an appropriate unmarked nonelectronic translation dictionary (but not technical dictionary) into the examination.
- Dictionaries with any handwritten notes will not be permitted. Translation dictionaries will be subject to perusal and may be removed from the candidate's possession until appropriate disciplinary action is completed if found to contain material that could give the candidate an unfair advantage.
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Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
Due to COVID-19 the requirements for S1 2020 are: There is no examination in this course, there will be no deferred or supplementary examinations.
Requirements after S1 2020:
Any Deferred or Supplementary examinations for this course will be held during the next examination period. -
¾«¶«´«Ã½app Student Policies:
Students should read the USQ policies: Definitions, Assessment and Student Academic Misconduct to avoid actions which might contravene ¾«¶«´«Ã½app policies and practices. These policies can be found at .
Other requirements
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Students can expect that questions in assessment items in this course may draw upon knowledge and skills that they can reasonably be expected to have acquired before enrolling in the course. This includes knowledge contained in pre-requisite courses and appropriate communication, information literacy, analytical, critical thinking, problem solving or numeracy skills. Students who do not possess such knowledge and skills should not expect to achieve the same grades as those students who do possess them.
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This public relations course maintains high standards of spelling, grammar, syntax and style. Faults in any of these could render a project or proposal unacceptable.