Degree
Bachelor of Arts
Overview
Our online Bachelor of Arts degree lets you forge your own path. Tailor your studies & gain specialisations by choosing from 4 majors & minors offered on FutureLearn: Film, Media and Cultural studies; English and Writing; History; Sociology and Anthropology.
Learn to analyse & deconstruct the world around you by exploring ideas & theories, and studying society, culture, history, media & more.
Syllabus
What are the learning outcomes?
- Knowledge: The capacity to research, analyse, and apply knowledge from disciplinary and multidisciplinary perspectives within the Bachelor of Arts.
- Communication: The developed capacity to communicate effectively across written, oral, visual, and digital forms.
- Critical thinking and research skills: The ability to identify high-quality information and critically analyse it as a user, researcher and producer, with a focus on well-reasoned argumentation.
- Intercultural competence: The ability to engage with a range of diverse perspectives from which knowledge, beliefs, and values are developed and maintained from the local to the global, regional, and global levels.
- Work readiness: A demonstrated capacity to engage in teamwork, initiative, problem solving, ethical decision-making, and to manage projects.
Courses
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Develop your media literacy skills and explore our relationship with media
So many of the defining moments in our lives are connected in some way to media. Media are a central part of how we live, work and play.
Through this course you will develop your media literacy, learning a range of analytical approaches you can use to understand and interpret media. You will explore the relationship between media and culture including a case study of LGBT representation in the media. You will develop your critical thinking and research skills leaving you better equipped to understand the role of media in the modern world.
This course is for anyone interested in media and film. It’s ideal for people looking to start or develop a career in film or television production, radio, journalism or marketing.
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Travel back in time to discover Australian history.
On this course you will take a journey through Australian history. You will examine a range of periods and topics including Aboriginal deep time history, transportation and convictism and colonialism.
This course will also introduce you to the skills and approaches used in the academic study of history – especially the study of Australian history – and help you to understand issues in contemporary Australia in context
This course is for anyone looking to improve their knowledge of Australian history or their historical skills.
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Discover the fascinating field of sociology
How can society be analysed? And what are some of the contemporary cultural issues in society? Get answers to these questions and more with this introduction to sociology course.
On the course, you’ll learn about the basics of sociology and discover sociological theories. You’ll explore topics including class, social inequality, globalisation and the media. You will also learn how to do your own sociological research, and present your findings.
This course is for anyone interested in sociology, cultural issues in society, or the workings of society more broadly. It would also suit those looking to develop their critical thinking or research skills.
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Discover key moments in American history after the Civil War
American history is vast and complex. Through this course you will explore some of its key moments - examining domestic history and foreign relations.
You will investigate the background to the modern history of the United States, including the Civil War, Reconstruction, segregation and the black experience, and US expansion and foreign policy into the 19th century.
This course is for anyone interested in American history. You don’t need any previous experience.
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Explore what it means to be human and how we make sense of the world
What does it mean to be human? How do we acquire knowledge? How do we make sense of the world around us?
Through this course you’ll develop the skills and knowledge to start answering these big questions. You will consider the complexity of today’s world and engage in debates on the big ideas underpinning humanities subjects.
You will also develop the foundational skills required in the study of the humanities, including evidence-based problem solving, and intercultural awareness.
This course is for anyone interested in the humanities, or answering questions about being human. You don’t need any previous experience.
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Explore, understand and critique poetry
What are the different ways you can understand a poem? How do different elements of a poem work together? What difference does context make to literature?
Get answers to these questions and more with this course introducing poetry analysis and literary analysis.
You will examine a variety of texts written in different genres in order to develop an understanding of how writers deploy language to convey their ideas. You will develop fundamental skills in literary analysis, preparing your for further study of literature and creative writing.
This course is for anyone interested in poetry, English, literature, or literary analysis. You don’t need any previous experience.
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Discover the fascinating circumstances and meanings behind fairy tales
On this course, you will look deeper into the enchanting and surprisingly dark themes of several well-known European fairy tales.
What were the authors thinking? What were the cultural and personal concerns that have shaped these stories? What are the readers being asked to believe?
By considering the historical context of fairy tales and examining the characters, styles, and plots, you will discover that the intended morals of the original stories may not be exactly what you first thought.
Recommended for learners age 15+
This course is for anyone interested in fairy tales and literary analysis, including reading enthusiasts, storytellers, and creative writers.
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Learn more about society, cultural issues and practices
You are invited on a journey to different places and different times. On this course, you will learn about diverse ways of living and explore cultural differences and similarities.
You will be introduced to a number of anthropological theories and gain insights into how the study of other cultures and societies can help us deal with urgent problems confronting our own societies and the modern world.
Through your new knowledge about other cultures, you will reflect on your own cultural home, society and world views.
Recommended for learners age 15+
This course is for anyone interested in anthropology, cultural issues in society, or the workings of society and cultural practices. It would also suit those looking to develop their critical thinking or research skills. No prior experience is required.
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Learn about European empires and Europe’s history of expansion
It’s the encounters that occurred beyond European borders that shaped Europe itself.
You will become familiar with the origins and nature of European interactions with the lands and people beyond its borders. This includes investigating the discovery of a westward route to the Americas and the building of states, nations and empires.
This online course will focus on primary sources and introduce you to some of the key events, issues and themes of European history that still resonate today.
This course is for anyone looking to improve their knowledge of European history or their historical skills.
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Delve beyond true crime podcasts, books and television series
Crime holds a special place in Australian history, having facilitated colonisation, provided its most celebrated anti-hero in Ned Kelly and been used to sell millions of newspapers, books and movie tickets. Drawing upon a rich array of digital history resources, this course offers you a guided tour of the origins of Australian underworlds and of the study of the history of crime and punishment.
This course will allow you to develop deeper understanding of the underworlds you will encounter in podcasts, televisions series and books. You will develop a sense of the processes which occur when someone becomes entangled with the legal system, and you will know where you can go to find out more about an offender and a crime for yourself.
Recommended for learners age 15+
This course is for anyone interested in history, criminal law, true crime and crime fiction. It would also suit those who are interested in researching crimes and criminal offenders.
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