| Effective Term: | 2024/20 |
| Institute / School : | Institute of Education, Arts & Community |
| Unit Title: | Faking It? Truth in Contemporary Society |
| Unit ID: | BAXDC1001 |
| Credit Points: | 15.00 |
| Prerequisite(s): | Nil |
| Co-requisite(s): | Nil |
| Exclusion(s): | Nil |
| ASCED: | 099999 |
| Other Change: | |
| Brief description of the Unit |
| This Introductory unit provides skills and knowledge for critically engaging with digital information in the public and academic spheres. Drawing approaches from the humanities and social sciences, the unit is designed for students in any study area to gain essential analytical and critical thinking skills. Students learn to analyse forms of persuasion and discourse in non-fiction media content, to approach assumptions about truth in critical ways, and to examine alternative stances and points of view. The role of critical thinking in the digital era is explored in various contexts, including AI-generated content. Topics include how visual and verbal language shape our understanding of the world, the public sphere in the digital era, human collaboration with technology, and the reliability of digital content. Examples studied include photos, documentaries and user-generated content. |
| Grade Scheme: | Graded (HD, D, C, P, MF, F, XF) |
| Work Experience Indicator: |
| No work experience |
| Placement Component: | No |
| Supplementary Assessment:No |
| Supplementary assessment is not available to students who gain a fail in this Unit. |
| Course Level: |
| Level of Unit in Course | AQF Level(s) of Course | | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | | Introductory | | |  | | | | | Intermediate | | | | | | | | Advanced | | | | | | |
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| Learning Outcomes: |
| Knowledge: |
| K1. | Identify forms, sources and public forums of information in the contemporary world. |
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| K2. | Identify visual and verbal elements and discourses in information. |
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| K3. | Identify and discuss persuasion, arguments and alternative perspectives in digital information. |
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| K4. | Identify characteristics of critical thinking and its roles in contemporary digital environments. |
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| Skills: |
| S1. | Produce written and/or oral assessment tasks that apply principles of academic rigour. |
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| S2. | Analyse a variety of texts, images and discourses in relation to persuasion, argument, stance, source and alternative points of view. |
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| S3. | Develop skills in information literacy, including evaluating academic and non-academic sources. |
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| S4. | Develop critical thinking skills in relation to contemporary information from various sources. |
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| Application of knowledge and skills: |
| A1. | Apply analytical skills and critical thinking to assess the stance, reliability and source of information. |
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| A2. | Apply understanding of visual and/or verbal information and discourse to analyse a variety of texts and discourses. |
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| A3. | Apply critical thinking to information that has been digitally altered and/or generated by artificial intelligence. |
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| Unit Content: |
Topics may include:
1. How language shapes our understanding of the world
2. Images’ relationship to reality
3. Semiotic analysis of written and/or visual non-fiction texts
4. Discourse and its functions in society and institutions
5. Visual, spoken and written media: why mediums matter
6. Official or professionally-produced information versus unorthodox information sources
7. Social media and/as the public sphere
8. User-generated content
9. Characteristics of critical thinking
10. Why critical thinking matters in the era of artificial intelligence (AI)
11. Human relationships with technology
12. Human abilities vs machines’ abliities
13. Technological human enhancement
14. Conspiracy theories, urban myths
15. Contested truths and the concept of a post-truth society |
| Graduate Attributes: |
| Federation University recognises that students require key transferable employability skills to prepare them for their future workplace and society. FEDTASKS (Transferable Attributes Skills and Knowledge) provide a targeted focus on five key transferable Attributes, Skills, and Knowledge that are be embedded within curriculum, developed gradually towards successful measures and interlinked with cross-discipline and Co-operative Learning opportunities. One or more FEDTASK, transferable Attributes, Skills or Knowledge must be evident in the specified learning outcomes and assessment for each FedUni Unit, and all must be directly assessed in each Course.
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| FED TASK and descriptor | Development and acquisition of FEDTASKS in the Unit | Learning outcomes
(KSA) | Assessment task
(AT#) | FEDTASK 1
Interpersonal | Students will demonstrate the ability to effectively communicate, inter-act and work with others both individually and in groups. Students will be required to display skills in-person and/or online in: • Using effective verbal and non-verbal communication • Listening for meaning and influencing via active listening • Showing empathy for others • Negotiating and demonstrating conflict resolution skills • Working respectfully in cross-cultural and diverse teams. | K3, S1, S2, S3 | AT1, AT2, AT3 | FEDTASK 2
Leadership | Students will demonstrate the ability to apply professional skills and behaviours in leading others. Students will be required to display skills in: • Creating a collegial environment • Showing self -awareness and the ability to self-reflect • Inspiring and convincing others • Making informed decisions • Displaying initiative | K3, S3, S4, A1, A2,
A3 | AT2, AT3 | FEDTASK 3
Critical Thinking and Creativity | Students will demonstrate an ability to work in complexity and ambiguity using the imagination to create new ideas. Students will be required to display skills in: • Reflecting critically • Evaluating ideas, concepts and information • Considering alternative perspectives to refine ideas • Challenging conventional thinking to clarify concepts • Forming creative solutions in problem solving. | K1, K2, K3, S2, A1 | AT1, AT2, AT3 | FEDTASK 4
Digital Literacy | Students will demonstrate the ability to work fluently across a range of tools, platforms and applications to achieve a range of tasks. Students will be required to display skills in: • Finding, evaluating, managing, curating, organising and sharing digital information • Collating, managing, accessing and using digital data securely • Receiving and responding to messages in a range of digital media • Contributing actively to digital teams and working groups • Participating in and benefiting from digital learning opportunities. | K1, K3, K4, S2, S3,
S4, A1, A2, A3 | AT1, AT2, AT3 | FEDTASK 5
Sustainable and Ethical Mindset | Students will demonstrate the ability to consider and assess the consequences and impact of ideas and actions in enacting ethical and sustainable decisions. Students will be required to display skills in: • Making informed judgments that consider the impact of devising solutions in global economic environmental and societal contexts • Committing to social responsibility as a professional and a citizen • Evaluating ethical, socially responsible and/or sustainable challenges and generating and articulating responses • Embracing lifelong, life-wide and life-deep learning to be open to diverse others • Implementing required actions to foster sustainability in their professional and personal life. | S2, S3, A1, A2, A3 | AT2, AT3 |
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| | Learning Outcomes Assessed | Assessment Tasks | Assessment Type | Weighting | | 1. | K2, K3, S1, S2, S4, A1,
A2 | Analyse use of images and/or language in a media text | Short written exercise | 10-30% | | 2. | K1, K2, K3, S1, S2, S3 | Provide responses to weekly exercises. Tasks may include commentary on written texts and/or images, with examples to be provided or found by the student, and including a range of categories (such as news, social media content, academic sources, websites, videos), with details to be provided in the semester | Folio exercises and class/forum participation | 30-50% | | 3. | K1, K2, K3, K4, S1, S3, S4, A1, A3 | Answer set questions about a case study, with an example or specific instructions to be provided in the unit description for the specific semester | Case study analysis | 40-60% |
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