Course search
2020 unit information
Classes and seminars in Trimester 2/Semester 2, 2020 will be online. Physical distancing for coronavirus (COVID-19) will affect delivery of other learning experiences in this unit. Please check your unit sites for announcements and updates one week prior to the start of your trimester or semester.
Last updated: 2 June 2020
Trimester 2: Burwood (Melbourne), Waurn Ponds (Geelong), Cloud (online), CBD*
Human Possibilities in the Age of Digital Communication
Nil
Students will on average spend 150 hours over the teaching period undertaking the teaching, learning and assessment activities for this unit.
1 x 1-hour class per week, 1 x 1-hour seminar per week
1 x 1-hour class per week (recordings provided), 1 x 1-hour online seminar per week
*CBD refers to the National Indigenous Knowledges, Education, Research and Innovation (NIKERI) Institute; Community Based Delivery
The contemporary revolution in digital information and communication technologies has transformed the worlds of human experience and interaction. Recent social movements and popular uprisings are also increasingly mediated through digital technologies and this has led to ongoing debates concerning the regulation and governance of the Internet.
In this unit, students will be introduced to anthropological perspectives that engage these issues. What do new technological discoveries and the interaction of embedded technologies tell us about human beings of today? How are human beings imagined and how is human potential being reconceived in the digital age? What will human beings look like and how will they behave in the future? This course will open up new and exciting ways of thinking about the nature of human being in the context of rapid technological and cultural change, as well asking how human experiences of love, death, culture, gender, identity, community, the body, mind, work and leisure are being transformed in the context of new technologies.
Cyborg anthropology is about the world-transforming event of modern technological development - it is about the new beings that human beings are becoming.
These are the Learning Outcomes (ULO) for this unit
At the completion of this unit, successful students can:
Deakin Graduate Learning Outcomes
ULO1
Manage your time effectively and organise your study related activities
GLO6: Self-management
ULO2
Comprehend and critically evaluate a range of information and informational sources (focused through both essay and examination assessments)
GLO4: Critical thinking
ULO3
Communicate clearly in written and oral arguments, and debate on issues of both theory and practice (through essays, seminars and online discussions)
GLO2: Communication
ULO4
Utilise bibliographic and other databases, primarily through the library and associated internet resources
GLO3: Digital literacy
ULO5
Utilise online teaching resources through CloudDeakin
ULO6
Evaluate theory and the relations between abstract and concrete processes and practices (which are key skills that we expect students to demonstrate through their assignments)
GLO1: Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities
These Unit Learning Outcomes are applicable for all teaching periods throughout the year
The assessment due weeks provided may change. The Unit Chair will clarify the exact assessment requirements, including the due date, at the start of the teaching period.
The texts and reading list for the unit can be found on the University Library via the link below: ASS330 Note: Select the relevant trimester reading list. Please note that a future teaching period's reading list may not be available until a month prior to the start of that teaching period so you may wish to use the relevant trimester's prior year reading list as a guide only.
Click on the fee link below which describes you: