Course Title: Families in Contemporary Society

Part A: Course Overview

Course Title: Families in Contemporary Society

Credit Points: 12.00

Flexible Terms

Course Code

Campus

Career

School

Learning Mode

Teaching Period(s)

NURS2202

Bundoora Campus

Postgraduate

173H School of Health and Biomed

Face-to-Face

 PGRDFlex23 (All)

NURS2202

Bundoora Campus

Postgraduate

173H School of Health and Biomed

Face-to-Face

 PGRDFlex24 (STEM)

Course Coordinator: Leanne Sheeran

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 9925

Course Coordinator Email: leanne.sheeran@rmit.edu.au


Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

None


Course Description

The Families in Contemporary Society course will enable you to investigate the socio ecological model of health and illustrate how this model can be applied to support families. The course examines concepts of contemporary families and their diversity of structure, function, strength and resilience. Content will include the experience of Indigenous and other culturally diverse families. Parenting tasks and life span challenges will be critically appraised in terms of transition to parenting and key developmental stages with a particular focus on vulnerability and the experience of vulnerable families. Ways in which health and community workers can work with families and communities in a partnership model at both a family and community level will also be addressed. Challenges such as family violence, cultural diversity, mental health issues and substance misuse will be critically appraised and considered.  


Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

This course contributes to the development of the Program Learning Outcomes for GD159 Graduate Diploma in Child and Family Health Nursing in the following way: 

  • PLO1: Communicate in an effective culturally appropriate and sensitive way to a wide audience through a broad range of mediums with individuals and groups of diverse backgrounds and values. 
  • PLO2: Demonstrate responsibility and accountability for professional decisions and resolve challenges through application of critical thinking, reflective practice, and continuous professional development as part of a multidisciplinary team. 
  • PLO 6: Demonstrate the ability to generate and evaluate solutions to all aspects of professional maternal and child health nursing practice while complying with ethical, legal and regulatory standards. 
  • PLO 7: Apply the principles and methods of scientific inquiry and re-search and incorporate this information into your professional evidence-based practice. 

For more information on the program learning outcomes for your program, please see the program guide.  


On successful completion of this course, you should be able to: 

  1. Conceptually map the socio-ecological model of health and apply principles of primary health care and health promotion and consider how these apply to families and communities. 
  2. Explore and critique evidence and current models of practice and family assessment as they apply to contemporary families and raising children in Australian society. 
  3. Analyse and synthesise knowledge of parenting tasks and life span challenges as they relate to the transition to parenting, key developmental stages and early parenting concerns. 
  4. Demonstrate comprehensive knowledge of risk and protective factors that impact children, parents and families and the ability to integrate assessment findings concerning risk. 
  5. Assess contemporary issues that impact families such as cultural diversity, LGBTQI+ families, grief and loss, role of fathers, Indigenous health, psychosocial screening, perinatal mental health, family violence, child abuse, substance misuse and disability. 


Overview of Learning Activities

You will be actively engaged in a range of learning activities such as lectorials, tutorials, practicals, laboratories, seminars, project work, class discussion, individual and group activities. Delivery may be face to face, online or a mix of both.

You are encouraged to be proactive and self-directed in your learning, asking questions of your lecturer and/or peers and seeking out information as required, especially from the numerous sources available through the RMIT library, and through links and material specific to this course that is available through myRMIT Studies Course.


Overview of Learning Resources

RMIT will provide you with resources and tools for learning in this course through myRMIT Studies Course.

There are services available to support your learning through the University Library. The Library provides guides on academic referencing and subject specialist help as well as a range of study support services. For further information, please visit the Library page on the RMIT University website and the myRMIT student portal.


Overview of Assessment

Assessment Tasks 

Assessment Task 1: Clinical Skills Assessment 
Weighting 50% 
This assessment task supports CLOs 2, 4 & 5  

Assessment Task 2: Community Resources + Applied Case Study Assignment 
Weighting 50% 
This assessment task supports CLOs 1, 3 & 5  

If you have a long-term medical condition and/or disability it may be possible to negotiate to vary aspects of the learning or assessment methods. You can contact the program coordinator or Equitable Learning Services if you would like to find out more.