EDAC107 Understanding Behaviour

10 cp

Understanding how behaviour develops will assist in promoting functional learning of effective behaviours for individuals. It enhances perception and feedback skills in learning relationships, acknowledging each individual’s behavioural repertoire as an organised system. The unit aims to provide a broad understanding of concepts and strategies in behaviour theory. The primary goal of the unit is to develop an understanding of behaviour which will enable students to make informed decisions about appropriate approaches that they will use in behaviour intervention. The unit also aims to promote the capability in students to provide a rationale for their actions in behaviour intervention, and an understanding of strategies used to support positive alternative behaviour.

EDAC110 Introduction to Habilitation

10 cp

This unit acts as a point of reference throughout the course, providing students with a broad understanding of the experience of disability. Protection of the rights of people with a disability in Australia was recognised when the 1986 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Disabled Persons was appended to the Human Rights Commission Act, 1981. Basic principles, such as the principle of normalisation, the least restrictive alternative and the developmental principle, emerged from the declared rights. These principles underpin the delivery of services and continue to influence community attitudes. The development of personal, professional and legislative responses to assist people with disabilities, both in Australia and overseas will be viewed from this perspective.

EDAC111 Leisure and Lifestyle

10 cp

This unit will build on key theoretical and philosophical concepts of recreation and leisure related to lifestyle, in particular the impact on health and wellness for people with disabilities. Students will critically analyse the factors that influence participation in leisure and how they can facilitate individual and group access to leisure and recreation in the community. Social and environmental factors that influence lifestyle, health and wellness will be investigated and linked to the identification of individual recreational needs and interests. Design, implementation and evaluation of recreation and leisure programs as part of an overall process of working with individuals and organisations to meet leisure and recreation goals will be investigated, as well as seeing how leisure and recreation integrate with other roles for people with disabilities.

EDAC112 Management in Community Settings

10 cp

This unit focuses on the management of people; the ‘human resources’ aspect of community services. Managing people involves effective use of communication, decision-making, change, conflict and evaluation skills (Donovan and Jackson, 1991). Professionalism also entails the development and application of self-management skills to carry out organisation, supervision and implementation responsibilities. Hence the unit examines both the management of others and the self, within the context of legislative requirements, community expectations and current human resource practice in Australia.

EDAC116 Interpersonal Communication Skills

10 cp

This unit is designed to help students build a sound knowledge of basic interpersonal and communication theories and skills and their application in personal and professional settings. Students will demonstrate their understanding of the ways in which experiences, feelings, values, abilities, gender and cultural background influence human relationships; identify their strengths and weaknesses as communicators; analyse and critically appraise interpersonal interactions, and acquire knowledge of methods and resources to continuously monitor and improve their communication.

EDAC117 Social Justice and Legal Issues

10 cp

This unit gives students a greater understanding of the philosophy and practice of social justice particularly as it applies to the rights of people with disabilities. It also examines the way in which the human rights movement has led to both social and legislative changes. Responses of service providers, community organisations and individuals working in the area of community education are also examined.

EDAC127 Planning Learning with Individuals

10 cp

A major underpinning of contemporary service delivery to people with a disability is a developmental model. This model has the development and maintenance of competencies and skills as a major strategy for assisting individuals to lead a full and valued life as a part of the community. This unit examines the context in which learning and skill development takes place and the specific skills required by professionals to assist people with disabilities learn new skills through planning and development of learning programs.

EDAC128 Education for Professional Reflection and Mentoring

10 cp

This unit orients students to aspects of professional interaction in community settings. The unit will provide opportunities for students to familiarise themselves with observation techniques, formats for collection of data relevant in case work, data analysis, and competencies and ethics in professional practice. Students will participate in mentoring activities with various professionals to further develop reflection skills in their professional practice within human service environments. The unit combines content delivery, on site-visits and individual and group reflections.

EDAC133 Attitudes and Inclusive Education

10 cp

This unit is designed to give students a broad understanding of the impact that attitudes to disability have on the Inclusive Education of people with disabilities in a range of social settings. Emphasis is given to identifying and examining societal attitudes to people with disabilities, their influence on our service structures (such as accommodation services, workplaces and schools), and the ways in which people are excluded from full participation in society. This unit encourages students to actively confront the barriers to Inclusive Education that are faced by people with disabilities and to develop strategies to address those barriers.

EDAC134 Technology and Independence

10 cp

This unit will investigate the use of a range of technologies and their application for people with disabilities as a tool to pursue varied lifestyles. Students will be exposed to how technology has and will continue to change our environments. Issues and benefits will be discussed in relation to the acquisition and use of technology in various environments and for varied activities. Students will look at what technology is available and evaluate a range of technological devices, as well as accessing resources available in the local and international environment. They will also build on individual experiences with technology in various settings.

EDAC 135 Person-Centred Planning and Inclusive Learning

10 cp

Contemporary views of disability describe disability as a social construct shaped by the interaction of an individual’s characteristics and needs and the social and environmental structures of society. People with disabilities have the right to the same opportunities and experiences as their peers who do not experience disability. This right includes living, working and learning in the same environments and experiencing the same patterns of life as other members of society.

Whilst people with disabilities have the same rights as other members of society, they may have additional needs which need to be accommodated to attain the same conditions that other people experience. A cornerstone to facilitating the full participation of people with disabilities in society is inclusive learning across the lifespan. Inclusive Education “recognises every individual's right to be treated equally, and to be accorded the same services and opportunities as everyone else. In a school setting, full inclusive education involves educating all children in regular classrooms all of the time, regardless of the degree or severity of a disability.” (www.disabilityresources.org/drmincl-terminology.html)

This unit will examine the impact of disability on learning and explore principles, learning methodologies and specific strategies for attaining full inclusive education in a range of life domains such as school, work, home and community life.

The attainment of full inclusive education requires careful planning and supports tailored to the specific needs of the individual. This may include assessment of current functioning and participation and planning for steps and supports that will be required for the individual to achieve his or her dreams and aspirations. This unit will examine approaches to person-centred planning that foster the achievement of individualised goals.

EDAC136 Adaptive Communication Supports

10 cp

Communication forms the basis of our social interactions with one another. Communication skills are necessary to interact, express needs and wants, exchange ideas and fulfil social etiquette. Many people with disabilities have communication and language difficulties and thus their social interactions are impoverished and their capacity to engage with others and be self-determining is severally diminished.

This unit aims to assist students to understand the importance of communication and language in our social and personal lives. The unit explores language development and many types of communication impairment.

It asks students to develop sensitivity to the particular communication needs of people with disabilities. Importantly, it assists students to appraise their own communication skills and deficits, in understanding the importance of the ‘communication partner’. Students will learn to make preliminary assessments regarding a person’s communication difficulties and needs.

They will be introduced to the deaf community and deaf culture and learn some introductory Auslan sign language. They will also learn to use a variety of augmented and alternative communication modes to assist people to communicate effectively.

EDAC137 Disability Studies

10 cp

This unit will provide an introduction to understanding the history of how disability is understood, contemporary definitions and theoretical frameworks for understanding issues related to disability.

Understanding of the nature of disability and responses to disability has varied throughout history. The traditional understanding of disability has been to view disability as an individual's deficiency. More contemporary approaches view disability as a social construct dependent on the interaction of impairment, the degree to which the impairment impacts on what individuals can do, personal attributes and social/environmental responses to disability.

Attempts in Australia to respond to disability have largely been pursued through the provision of specialist service delivery. The Commonwealth Disability Services act 1986 signalled an end to the acceptability of large, residential, “institutional” service provision, and heralded the onset of community based supports.

A major underpinning of moves to community based services in Australia and across the world has been the principle of normalisation and social role valorisation. Another major influence has been the rise of the human rights movement during the 1960s and the social model.

EDAC138 Implementing Disability Competencies

10 cp
Co-requisite EDAC137 Disability Studies

This unit orients students to aspects of professional interaction in community settings. It is field-based learning which gives students opportunities to familiarise themselves with observation techniques, formats for collection of data relevant in case work, data analysis, and competencies and ethics in professional practice will be offered. Students will participate in mentoring activities with various professionals to further develop reflection skills in their professional practice within human service environments.