Dear Student:

This course provides an introduction to the diversity of Aboriginal Australia, Aboriginal philosophy and knowledges
and examines some of the core principles of Aboriginal worldviews, social and political organisation, and
relationships to country. The centering of Aboriginal philosophy and knowledges enables students to engage
critically with a diverse range of perspectives beyond Anglo-Australian (or other) views of the world and includes a
wide range of information from a variety of sources. While some of the accounts given of Aboriginal Australia are
sourced from anthropological studies, more recent writings by Aboriginal authors also provide new and critical
reviews of past readings of philosophy, culture and law.

While this is a challenging course, and for many students it will be your first introduction to Aboriginal peoples and
their culture, you will have the opportunity to engage in forums which are specifically designed to provide students
with the opportunity to initiate discussions and assist in a collaborative approach. Feel free to use this to introduce
yourselves, provide information that may be relevant to the course, ask any questions that you may have, and
promote discussions with other students about any aspects of the course.

We trust that you will find your journey interesting, relevant, and rewarding and look forward to working with you.

Best wishes!

Ron Nicholls
Unit Coordinator

Ron Nicholls
Location: City West, Yungondi Building (Y2-48)
Email: ronald.nicholls@unisa.edu.au
Telephone: (08) 8302 7392
Fax: (08) +61 8 8302 7034

Unit Coordinator home page: http://www.unisanet.unisa.edu.au/staff/homepage.asp?Name=ron.nicholls  

Information regarding this unit is available through myUniSA: http://www.unisa.edu.au/myUniSA

The David Unaipon College of Indigenous Education and Research
University of South Australia
City West Campus
Level 2, Yungondi Building
70 North Terrace
ADELAIDE SA 5000
Telephone: (08) 8302 0802 
Fax: (08) 8302 7034
Email: ICER@unisa.edu.au

OUA Student Advisers
Tel: +61 8 8647 6145
Fax: +61 8 8647 6082
Tel: 1300 361 450 (local call cost - mobile and payphone extra)
Email: ouainfo@unisa.edu.au
Website: www.unisa.edu.au/oua

In addition to the Unit Outline you will receive a letter which contains your unique UniSA student log in details. You will need these details to access your unit homepage via your UniSA student portal https://my.unisa.edu.au. If you do not receive your login letter prior to the commencement of the study period please contact OUA Student Advisers.

Please also check the OUA @ UniSA website for frequently asked questions and information on administrative processes for OUA students studying with UniSA. www.unisa.edu.au/oua

OUA students enrolled in UniSA units are eligible to use the Library to support their study. Regardless of where you live UniSA’s Off Campus Library Service can help you. Services include phone and online assistance, electronic document delivery to your desktop and postal delivery of loan items and documents. www.library.unisa.edu.au/services/oua/

Unibooks is UniSA’s preferred textbook supplier and textbooks can be purchased online at www.unibooks.com.au.

There are no prerequisite Subjects to be completed before this subject can be undertaken.

There are no corequisite Subjects to be completed in conjunction with this Subject.

To provide students with knowledge of traditional Aboriginal cultures as they developed over time in a variety of ecological situations.

On completion of this Subject, students should be able to:

CO1. Identify basic structures, values and features of a variety of Aboriginal societies.

CO2. Identify and explain a variety of ecological and historical factors in shaping the diversity of Aboriginal cultures in Australia.

CO3. Demonstrate an understanding of Aboriginal concepts related to land, law, relationships, language, art, stories and song.

CO4. Critically evaluate approaches to the study of Aboriginal societies and relevant literature.

Upon completion of this Subject, students will have achieved the following combination of Graduate Qualities and Subject Objectives:

The Dreaming, Indigenous Australian social systems, land and boundaries, social groups, kinship, economic organisation, political systems, spiritual construct, art forms, concepts of culture, ethnocentrism and race.

4.5 unit points

Nil

A table outlining the unit structure and study schedule is printed at the back of this guide. Please refer to it for important information regarding due dates for assignments.

You will need continual access to the following text(s) to complete this course. Where possible the Library will make the book available for student use. Please check the Library catalogue before purchasing the book(s). The Library will always seek to purchase resources that allow an unlimited number of concurrent users, however availability is dependent on license arrangements with book publishers and platforms. http://www.library.unisa.edu.au

Edwards, W H (2005). An introduction to Aboriginal societies (2nd edition). Cengage Learning Australia Pty Ltd.

*Edwards, W H (ed.) 1998, Traditional Aboriginal society, second edition, Macmillan, Australia.

Ellis, C 1989, Aboriginal music: education for living, University of Queensland Press, St Lucia, Queensland.

Kohen, J 1995, Aboriginal environmental impacts, University of New South Wales Press, Sydney.

Magowan, F 2007, ‘Melodies of Mourning: music and emotion in Northern Australia, James, W & Allen, N J (Eds.),
University of Western Australia Press.

Martin, Karen 2008, Please Knock Before You Enter, Post Pressed, Tenerife.

Mattingly, C & Hampton, K (eds.) 1988, Survival in our own land: Aboriginal experiences in South Australia since
1836, Wakefield Press, Adelaide, South Australia.

Rose, D B 1996, Nourishing terrains: Australian Aboriginal views of landscape and wilderness, Australian Heritage
Commission, Canberra.

Rose, D B 1988, ‘Consciousness and Responsibility in an Australian Aboriginal Religion’, in Traditional Aboriginal
Society: A Reader (2nd edition), Edwards, W H (ed.), Macmillan, Australia.

Stockton, E 1995, an aboriginal gift: spirituality for a nation, millennium books, Alexandria, NSW.

Toussaint, S 1999, Phyllis Kaberry and me: anthropology, history and aboriginal Australia, Melbourne University
Press, Carlton, Victoria.

Watson, Irene 2002, Looking At You: Looking At Me, Watson, Adelaide.

Unit Outline

All other subject material can be accessed through your learnonline subject site. Once your Subject Coordinator has published the site, you will be able to access it from the my Courses section in myUniSA.

All study related materials can be accessed through: https://my.unisa.edu.au

The feedback proforma is available on your course site.

While a variety of factors have shaped the diversity of Indigenous Australian philosophy and practices
across the Australian continent, one of the central characteristics of the Aboriginal worldview is the
concept of the ‘Dreaming’. Outline some of the key aspects of this belief system and reflect on this in
comparison to your own worldview

Resources
Resources for these topics are to be accessed in the textbook, online study guide, Course eReader and other
recommended resources.

Harvard referencing format

Due Monday 25 March

All text-based assignments should be submitted electronically using gradebook and will be returned normally
within 10 working day but no longer that 15 working days after the due date.

University policy (C-1.4) states: The University will use inclusive language in all academic and administrative
written and spoken communication. Please follow this policy when preparing your assessments.
http://www.unisa.edu.au/policies/policies/corporate/C01.asp

Re-submissions
Re-submission is at the discretion of the Course Coordinator/Tutor.
Course Coordinators/Tutors may offer, or students may request, the opportunity to re-submit work which has been
graded as Fail.
Where re-submission is agreed, the Course Coordinator/Tutor will indicate what needs to be addressed and the
date by when the assessment is to be resubmitted.
Applications for extensions for resubmissions will not be considered.

Re-marking
Re-marking can be requested by a student but is at the discretion of the Course Coordinator.
Course Coordinators will decide which of the following outcomes is the most appropriate and will notify the student
in writing within five working days:
o Arrange for a second assessor to re-mark the assessment. The second assessor’s mark will be the final mark for 
a re-marked assessment.
o Deny the request.

More information about Re-marking and Re-submission can be found in Section 5 of the Assessment Policies and
Procedures Manual at: http://www.unisa.edu.au/policies/manual/

 * Please note: This assessment is an essay for OUA students but may include headings

Choose one of the following topics:
1. Reciprocity is an underlying principle expressed throughout Aboriginal societies. Outline and illustrate
the importance of this fundamental concept in the economic, social, spiritual and political spheres of Aboriginal life.

2. One of the significant characteristics of Australian Indigenous worldviews is a specific relationship to
land or ‘country’. Aboriginal people say, “The country needs its people. Healthy country means healthy
people”. Discuss in relation to social and emotional wellbeing

3. Senior Lawman David Mowaljarlai and Hannah Rachel Bell contrast two ways of thinking (triangle and
pattern thinking) in reading 8.02 (Bell H 1988). Briefly describe the two kinds of thinking they introduce
and discuss how you think triangle thinking has influenced western ideas about social and economic
organisation, gender relationships and relationships to land in Aboriginal cultures

Resources
Resources for these topics are to be accessed in the Textbook, Online study guide, Course eReader and other
recommended readings. However, you will also be expected to undertake your own independent research and
utilise additional resources for an assignment of this length.

Harvard referencing format

Due Friday 3 May

All text-based assignments should be submitted electronically using gradebook and will be returned normally
within 10 working day but no longer that 15 working days after the due date.

University policy (C-1.4) states: The University will use inclusive language in all academic and administrative
written and spoken communication. Please follow this policy when preparing your assessments.
http://www.unisa.edu.au/policies/policies/corporate/C01.asp
 
Re-submissions
Re-submission is at the discretion of the Course Coordinator/Tutor.
Course Coordinators/Tutors may offer, or students may request, the opportunity to re-submit work which has been
graded as Fail.
Where re-submission is agreed, the Course Coordinator/Tutor will indicate what needs to be addressed and the
date by when the assessment is to be resubmitted.
Applications for extensions for resubmissions will not be considered.

Re-marking
Re-marking can be requested by a student but is at the discretion of the Course Coordinator.
Course Coordinators will decide which of the following outcomes is the most appropriate and will notify the student
in writing within five working days:
o Arrange for a second assessor to re-mark the assessment. The second assessor’s mark will be the final mark for 
a re-marked assessment.
o Deny the request.

More information about Re-marking and Re-submission can be found in Section 5 of the Assessment Policies and
Procedures Manual at: http://www.unisa.edu.au/policies/manual/

 The paper will be emailed to students as a word document on Friday 24 May and is due on Friday 31 May 

Harvard referencing format

Due Friday 31 May 

All text-based assignments should be submitted electronically using gradebook and will be returned normally 
within 10 working day but no longer that 15 working days after the due date. Exams will not be returned
but students will receive a feedback sheet that provides marks for each section of the paper  

University policy (C-1.4) states: The University will use inclusive language in all academic and administrative
written and spoken communication. Please follow this policy when preparing your assessments.
http://www.unisa.edu.au/policies/policies/corporate/C01.asp

There are no penalties for the unit

Supplementary assessment is not available for this unit.

All students must adhere to the University of South Australia's policies about assessment:
http://www.unisa.edu.au/policies/manual/default.asp.

Students with disabilities may be entitled to a variation or modification to standard assessment arrangements.

Policy for students with disabilities is available at:
http://www.unisa.edu.au/policies/policies/corporate/C07.asp.

If you indicated you have a disability when you enrolled through Open Universities Australia, you will be sent a letter about UniSA services for students with disabilities. UniSA encourages you to develop a Disability Access Plan with the Learning and Teaching Unit Disability Service. http://www.unisa.edu.au/disabilityservices/default.asp

Variation to assessment methods, tasks and timelines can be provided in:

1. Unexpected or exceptional circumstances, for example bereavement, unexpected illness (details of unexpected or exceptional circumstances for which variation can be considered are discussed in clauses 7.5 & 7.6 of the Assessment Policy and Procedures Manual). Variation to assessment in unexpected or exceptional circumstances should be discussed with your course coordinator as soon as possible.
2. Special circumstances, for example religious observance grounds, or community services (details of special circumstances for which variation can be considered are discussed in clause 7.8 of the Assessment Policy and Procedures Manual). Variations to assessment in expected circumstances must be requested within the first two weeks of the course (or equivalent for accelerated or intensive teaching).

More information about variation to assessment may be found by consulting the relevant policy: http://www.unisa.edu.au/policies/manual/default.asp (sections 3 and 7).

Your Assessments will be marked by your tutor. A range of strategies have been put in place to ensure
consistency of marking across tutors.
These include;
Using feedback proformas to summarise feedback on your assessments.
Internal moderation – some ‘double-blind’ marking, and comparing marked assessments between tutors to ensure
consistency
Comparing the distribution of grades between tutors.

The University aims to foster and preserve the scholarly values of inquiry, experimentation, critical appraisal and integrity, and to foster these values in its students.

Academic integrity is a term used at university to describe honest behaviour as it relates to all academic work (for example papers written by staff, student assignments, conduct in exams, etc) and is the foundation of university life. One of the main principles is respecting other people's ideas and not claiming them as your own. Anyone found to have used another person's ideas without proper acknowledgement is deemed guilty of Academic Misconduct and the University considers this to be a serious matter.

The University of South Australia wants its students to display academic integrity so that its degrees are earned honestly and are trusted and valued by its students and their employers. To ensure this happens and that students adhere to high standards of academic integrity and honesty at all times, the University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct for all students. Work submitted electronically by students for assessment will be tested using the text comparison software Turnitin.

More information about academic integrity and what constitutes academic misconduct can be found in Section 9 of the Assessment Policies and Procedures Manual (APPM) at: http://www.unisa.edu.au/policies/manual/ or on the Learning and Teaching Unit website at: http://www.unisa.edu.au/ltu/integrity/default.asp

Evaluation of the unit will be undertaken by OUA

Conceded and Terminating passes are not available in this Subject.