Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 2, 2024 (22/07/2024 - 18/11/2024)
- Study level
- Postgraduate Coursework
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Communication & Arts School
The course provides students with knowledge of the principles and practice of risk communication focusing on the areas of environment and health. The course will provide an understanding of risk communication including approaches, challenges, and ethics. It will also provide guidance on how to plan risk communication and how to put the risk communication plan into action. There will be consideration of different communication contexts (e.g., face-to-face, media, and social media) and different risk contexts (e.g., crises). Students will gain practical skills that will be valuable to a wide range of professions that have to deal with risk.
Course requirements
Assumed background
No prerequisites or previous background in risk communication is necessary for this course.ﾠ
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Additional timetable information
The course involves a 2 hour weekly seminar that is a mixture of content and exercises.
Whilst every effort is made to place students in their preferred activity, it is not always possible for a student to be enrolled in their tutorial of choice. If you require assistance, please ensure that you email timetabling.commarts@enquire.uq.edu.au from your UQ student email with:
- Your name
- Your student ID
- The course code
- A list of three tutorial preferences (in order of preference)
- Reason for the change – e.g. timetable clash, elite athlete status, SAP
Teaching staff do not have access to change tutorials or help with timetables; all timetabling changes must be processed through the Timetabling Team.
Aims and outcomes
The aims of the course are to introduce you to the principles and practice of risk communication. From the course you will gain an understanding of relevant theories and key issues and challenges to consider when communicating about environmental and health risks.You will also gain knowledge about the practice of risk communication and how to go about planning risk communication. Overall the course aims to equip anyone who has to talk to people about risk with insights and skills to undertake this type of communication. ﾠﾠ
Learning outcomes
After successfully completing this course you should be able to:
LO1.
Understand theories, challenges and principles of risk communication
LO2.
Identify the steps required to plan risk communication
LO3.
Demonstrate good written risk communication and the principles that underpin it
LO4.
Understand key issues related to different risk communication formats
LO5.
Evaluate risk communication practice
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation | Short answer assignment | 20% |
23/08/2024 4:00 pm |
| Practical/ Demonstration | Written risk communication | 30% 1600-2000 words |
4/10/2024 4:00 pm |
| Paper/ Report/ Annotation | Risk communication case study analysis | 50% 3000 words |
25/10/2024 4:00 pm |
Assessment details
Short answer assignment
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 20%
- Due date
23/08/2024 4:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L04, L05
Task description
This will be a short answer assignment that assesses content presented in Weeks 1 to 4. It will be comprised of short answer questions that require students to apply the knowledge and principles presented in Weeks 1 to 4. The short answer assignment questions will be released at 9am on the Monday of Week 5.
This assessment task evaluates students' abilities, skills and knowledge without the aid of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or Machine Translation (MT). Students are advised that the use of AI or MT technologies to develop responses is strictly prohibited and may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
Submit via TurnItIn through the Course site.
TurnItIn Receipts:
Assignments for this course will be submitted electronically via Blackboard and using TurnItIn. Before submitting any assignments for this course you must ensure you have completed UQ's compulsory online Academic Integrity Tutorial.
When you successfully submit your assessment to TurnItIn you will see text confirming your submission is complete, before being redirected to your Assignment inbox. On this page you can:
- View the name of the submitted file
- View date and time of the upload
- Resubmit your paper (if necessary)
- Download your submitted paper
- Download digital receipt.
If you cannot see your submission in your Assignment inbox you should regard your submission as unsuccessful. Students are responsible for retaining evidence of submission by the due date for all assessment items, in the required form (e.g. screenshot, email, photo, and an unaltered copy of submitted work).
If the submission was not successful:
- Note the error message (preferably take a screenshot).
- Go to your assignment page and see if it is possible to submit again.
- If you cannot submit again email your course coordinator immediately with the assignment attached.
Please visit this webpage for further advice on how to submit your TurnItIn assignment.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Written risk communication
- Mode
- Activity/ Performance
- Category
- Practical/ Demonstration
- Weight
- 30% 1600-2000 words
- Due date
4/10/2024 4:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L03, L04
Task description
This assessment gets you to apply principles and guidelines that we’ve learned about in the course to a real-world risk communication case with a focus on developing written risk communication to address the case. Hence the content of the Week 8 seminar is critical for guiding the assignment as well as other content covered in the course (e.g., Principles of process and presentation; planning risk communication). Information about the real world case as well as the assessment guidelines and marking criteria will be posted in the Assessment folder on the Course site.
This assessment task evaluates students' abilities, skills and knowledge without the aid of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or Machine Translation (MT). Students are advised that the use of AI or MT technologies to develop responses is strictly prohibited and may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
Submit via TurnItIn through the Course site.
TurnItIn Receipts:
Assignments for this course will be submitted electronically via Blackboard and using TurnItIn. Before submitting any assignments for this course you must ensure you have completed UQ's compulsory online Academic Integrity Tutorial.
When you successfully submit your assessment to TurnItIn you will see text confirming your submission is complete, before being redirected to your Assignment inbox. On this page you can:
- View the name of the submitted file
- View date and time of the upload
- Resubmit your paper (if necessary)
- Download your submitted paper
- Download digital receipt.
If you cannot see your submission in your Assignment inbox you should regard your submission as unsuccessful. Students are responsible for retaining evidence of submission by the due date for all assessment items, in the required form (e.g. screenshot, email, photo, and an unaltered copy of submitted work).
If the submission was not successful:
- Note the error message (preferably take a screenshot).
- Go to your assignment page and see if it is possible to submit again.
- If you cannot submit again email your course coordinator immediately with the assignment attached.
Please visit this webpage for further advice on how to submit your TurnItIn assignment.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Risk communication case study analysis
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Paper/ Report/ Annotation
- Weight
- 50% 3000 words
- Due date
25/10/2024 4:00 pm
- Learning outcomes
- L01, L02, L04, L05
Task description
The final assessment asks you to apply the knowledge and principles covered in the course to analyse and understand a real world example of risk communication. Through the case study analysis you can reflect on what was done well and what could have been done better, taking into account the challenges that are inherent in any risk communication process. The assessment requires you to provide a timeline of the risk communication case, describe the risk communication that was conducted, reflect on the challenges faced, and provide an analysis of the extent to which the risk communication reflected principles and practice of good risk communication. Conclusions and recommendations for how the risk communication might have been improved should also be included.
This assessment task evaluates students' abilities, skills and knowledge without the aid of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or Machine Translation (MT). Students are advised that the use of AI or MT technologies to develop responses is strictly prohibited and may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
Submission guidelines
Submit via TurnItIn through the Course site.
TurnItIn Receipts:
Assignments for this course will be submitted electronically via Blackboard and using TurnItIn. Before submitting any assignments for this course you must ensure you have completed UQ's compulsory online Academic Integrity Tutorial.
When you successfully submit your assessment to TurnItIn you will see text confirming your submission is complete, before being redirected to your Assignment inbox. On this page you can:
- View the name of the submitted file
- View date and time of the upload
- Resubmit your paper (if necessary)
- Download your submitted paper
- Download digital receipt.
If you cannot see your submission in your Assignment inbox you should regard your submission as unsuccessful. Students are responsible for retaining evidence of submission by the due date for all assessment items, in the required form (e.g. screenshot, email, photo, and an unaltered copy of submitted work).
If the submission was not successful:
- Note the error message (preferably take a screenshot).
- Go to your assignment page and see if it is possible to submit again.
- If you cannot submit again email your course coordinator immediately with the assignment attached.
Please visit this webpage for further advice on how to submit your TurnItIn assignment.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 28 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Cut off Percent | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) | 1 - 24 |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 2 (Fail) | 25 - 44 |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) | 45 - 49 |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes |
| 4 (Pass) | 50 - 64 |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 5 (Credit) | 65 - 74 |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 6 (Distinction) | 75 - 84 |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 7 (High Distinction) | 85 - 100 |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
Additional course grading information
- Where fractional marks occur in the calculation of the final grade, a mark of x.5% or greater will be rounded up to (x+1)%. A percentage mark of less than x.5% will be rounded down to x%.
- Where no assessable work is received, a Grade of X will apply.
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Additional assessment information
- Further information regarding the assessment, including marking criteria and/or marking rubrics are available in the ‘Assessment’ folder in Blackboard for this course.
- Marks Cannot Be Changed After Being Released: Marks are not open to negotiation with course staff. If you wish to discuss the feedback you have received, you should make an appointment to speak with the Course Coordinator.
- Assessment Re-mark: If you are considering an Assessment Re-mark, please follow the link to important information you should consider before submitting a request.
- Integrity Pledge: Assignments for this course will be submitted electronically via Blackboard and using Turnitin. Before submitting any assignments for this course, you must ensure you have completed UQ's compulsory online Academic Integrity Modules.ﾠIn uploading an assignment via Turnitin you are certifying that it is your original work, that it has not been copied in whole or part from another person or source except where this is properly acknowledged, and that it has not in whole or part been previously submitted for assessment in any other course at this or any other university.
- Withholding marks prior to finalisation of grades: Per UQ Assessment Procedures – Release of Assessment Item Marks and Grades: The final assessment item and the marks for the assessment item are to be released only after the final grade for the course has been released.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.
Additional learning resources information
Resources needed to complete class exercises will be provided via Blackboard.
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Week 1 (22 Jul - 28 Jul) |
Seminar |
Week 1 - Introduction The first seminar provides an introduction to the course and to risk communication theories. Learning outcomes: L01 |
Week 2 (29 Jul - 04 Aug) |
Seminar |
Week 2 - Risk perceptions In Week 2 we talk about and engage in activities that relate to theories and factors that influence people's risk perceptions. Learning outcomes: L01 |
Week 3 (05 Aug - 11 Aug) |
Seminar |
Week 3 - Risk communication challenges Risk communicators face a range of challenges when it comes to their task. This week we discuss the different types of challenges that are faced when communicating about risk. Learning outcomes: L01 |
Week 4 (12 Aug - 18 Aug) |
Seminar |
Week 4 - Principles In Week 4 you will be presented with core principles that guide effective risk communication. Learning outcomes: L01 |
Week 5 (19 Aug - 25 Aug) |
Not Timetabled |
Week 5 - NO CLASS No class this week - time to complete the short answer assignment. |
Week 6 (26 Aug - 01 Sep) |
Seminar |
Week 6 - Planning risk commication (1) This is the first of two seminars focused on planning the process of risk communication. Learning outcomes: L02 |
Week 7 (02 Sep - 08 Sep) |
Seminar |
Week 7 - Planning Risk Communication (2) This is the second of two seminars focused on planning the process of risk communication. Learning outcomes: L02 |
Week 8 (09 Sep - 15 Sep) |
Seminar |
Week 8 - Information and visuals Week 8 focuses on putting risk communication into practice and, in particular, developing written and visual risk communication. Learning outcomes: L03, L04 |
Week 9 (16 Sep - 22 Sep) |
Seminar |
Week 9 - Face-to-face risk communication In the Week 9 seminar we discuss key principles relating to undertaking risk communication in a face-to-face setting. Learning outcomes: L04 |
Mid Sem break (23 Sep - 29 Sep) |
No student involvement (Breaks, information) |
Mid-Semester Break |
Week 10 (30 Sep - 06 Oct) |
Seminar |
Week 10 - Stakeholder participation The Week 10 seminar moves on to talk about the importance of stakeholder participation for the risk communication process. Learning outcomes: L04 |
Week 11 (07 Oct - 13 Oct) |
Seminar |
Week 11 - Social and traditional media and Risk communication The Week 11 seminar discusses the role of social and traditional media in relation to risk communication. Learning outcomes: L04 |
Week 12 (14 Oct - 20 Oct) |
Seminar |
Week 12 - Risk communication evaluation The final seminar will touch on evaluating risk communication as well as providing time to consult about the final assessment. Learning outcomes: L05 |
Week 13 (21 Oct - 27 Oct) |
Not Timetabled |
Week 13 - NO CLASS |
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments - Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.