How does Australia engage with the world? Is the country motivated by a constant “fear of abandonment”? This course provides students with a comprehensive overview of the main concepts, issues, themes and debates in Australian foreign policy. It covers Australia’s alliances (its relationship with great and powerful friends, especially the United States), participation in a range of global and regional institutions, and engagement with the Asia-Pacific region. It offers both an historical perspective on the evolution of Australian foreign policy approach as well as an understanding of the key challenges facing Australia policymakers today. As key concern for the course is the question of how Australia’s foreign policy thinking is translated into policy practice.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. Detect and trace over time enduring themes that have influenced Australia’s global engagement
2. Understand the nature of the challenges Australia is facing in responding to the shifting global order
3. Develop their own views as to the impact of global change on the direction of Australia foreign policy
4. Communicate their views about the choices Australia should make in response to these changes in a range of formats and settings

Recommended Resources

Fear of Abandonment: Australia in the World Since 1942
Author: Allan Gyngell
Publisher: La Trobe University Press
Edition:
ISBN: 9781863959186
Availability: Online
Price: $16.99 (ebook)
Notes:

A copy of this book is also available in the Department's Library on Level 2.  

Should you wish, you can purchase an eBook version from Black Inc's website here.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• Written comments
• Verbal comments
• Feedback to the whole class, to groups, to individuals, focus groups

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	Fear of Abandonment: Three Dimensions of Australian Foreign Policy
2	Global citizenship? Australia as leader, captive, follower, liar.
3	Australian Foreign Policy in the American Century
4	Australian Foreign Policy after the American Century
5	Friends and enemies in the 2020s
6	Australia at the UN. Rules based order or national interest?
7	Australia, human rights and global humanitarianism
8	Australia and International Economic Governance
9	Australia and Foreign Aid
10	Australia in the Indo-Asian Pacific. What does it need? What does it want?
11	Australia and Southeast Asia. Forgotten opportunity?
12	Australian Foreign Policy in the wake of COVID19

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Learning Outcomes
Research Brief - 1500 words	30 %	23/08/2021	I, II, III
Op-ed - 800-1000 words	20 %	27/09/2021	II, IV, V
Research Essay - 2,500 words	40 %	01/11/2021	I, II, IV, V
Class participation	10 %	03/12/2021	III, IV, V

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website Students may choose not to submit assessment items through Turnitin. In this instance you will be required to submit, alongside the assessment item itself, hard copies of all references included in the assessment item.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Assessment Task 1

Research Brief - 1500 words

You are required to prepare a brief on Australia’s 2017 Foreign Policy White Paper for the political leadership of an imaginary country in the Asia Pacific region. Your brief is part of a suite of briefs being prepared for a seminar where a number of presenters have been asked to update the political leadership on the current status of Australia’s Foreign Policy. 

Your brief has been requested by your ‘supervisor’, the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who will open the seminar. As other speakers invited to the seminar will focus on describing the potential implications of the White Paper for their country, the purpose of your brief (maximum 1500 words) is to provide a focused overview of:  

1)     The reason for the Australian Government’s publication of a White Paper;

2)     The key message/s of the White Paper;

3)     What you think this means for Australia’s role in the world.

Assessment Task 2

Op-ed - 800-1000 words

This piece of assessment requires you to write an opinion column suitable for publication on the Lowy Interpreter blog. Your op-ed should communicate a clear position on one of the discussion questions covered in the course. Rather than including citations, your piece should include hyperlinks to relevant news reports, speeches and articles, as per the blog style. 

You should also give your op-ed a suggested title. It is important, as this is an op-ed, to write an opinionated piece on the topic

Assessment Task 3

Research Essay - 2,500 words

The research essay provides students with the opportunity to examine a relevant topic of their choosing in more depth. Students must choose to write their research essay on either:

·       A specific country in the region, or;

·       A specific foreign policy issue area (including, if you wish, an issue that has not been addressed in detail during the course.)

Your research essay will examine the challenges and opportunities for Australia in its relationship with your chosen country or issue area. 

Assessment Task 4

Class participation

This course is designed to be interactive and to stimulate debate. For it to work best for everybody, the seminar-based format is most effective when all participants are engaged and a variety of voices are heard. To encourage active engagement, students will receive a grade for participation.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of our culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically. This means that all members of the community commit to honest and responsible scholarly practice and to upholding these values with respect and fairness. The Australian National University commits to embedding the values of academic integrity in our teaching and learning. We ensure that all members of our community understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with. The University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Visit the following Academic honesty & plagiarism website for more information about academic integrity and what the ANU considers academic misconduct. The ANU offers a number of services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. The Academic Skills and Learning Centre offers a number of workshops and seminars that you may find useful for your studies.

Online Submission

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (hand written assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

No submission of assessment tasks without an extension after the due date will be permitted. If an assessment task is not submitted by the due date, a mark of 0 will be awarded. OR Late submission of assessment tasks without an extension are penalised at the rate of 5% of the possible marks available per working day or part thereof. Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item. Late submission is not accepted for take-home examinations.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure The Course Convener may grant extensions for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information. In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service — including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy. If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes. Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Diversity and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students