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Unit Summary
Unit type
UG Coursework Unit
Credit points
12
AQF level
Level of learning
Intermediate
Former School/College
Pre-requisites
[[SOC00118 Introduction to Sociology] AND 36 credit points in any SCU units
Unit aim
Introduces students to key theoretical approaches to the sociological study of religion. Particularly the unit focuses on the relationships between religious and political worldviews underlying contemporary social issues such as terrorism, abortion and homosexuality. Students will explore the history, main social teachings and beliefs of Judaism, Christianity or Islam as a basis for examining contemporary religious fundamentalisms.
Unit content
Module 1 Understanding religion
Topic 1 Religion as a social phenomenon
Topic 2 Types of religion
Topic 3 Types of monotheistic religion
Module 2 Religion in society
Topic 4 Secularisation theory
Topic 5 Religion in the public sphere
Topic 6 Theories of religious affiliation
Topic 7 Fundamentalism and conservative politics
Module 3 Religion and politics
Topic 8 Violence and the social construction of evil
Topic 9 Gender and sexuality
Topic 10 Migration
Topic 11 Sociology and religious faith
Learning outcomes
Unit Learning Outcomes express learning achievement in terms of what a student should know, understand and be able to do on completion of a unit. These outcomes are aligned with the graduate attributes. The unit learning outcomes and graduate attributes are also the basis of evaluating prior learning.
| On completion of this unit, students should be able to: | GA1 | GA2 | GA3 | GA4 | GA5 | GA6 | GA7 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | describe the history, key teachings and beliefs of Judaism, Christianity and Islam | |||||||
| 2 | explain the social dimensions of religions and religious belief | |||||||
| 3 | discuss the historical relationships between religious and secular laws | |||||||
| 4 | analyse relationships between religious and political worldviews | |||||||
| 5 | critically examine the role of religion in violence and gender issues. | |||||||
On completion of this unit, students should be able to:
-
describe the history, key teachings and beliefs of Judaism, Christianity and Islam
- GA2:
- GA7:
-
explain the social dimensions of religions and religious belief
- GA2:
- GA7:
-
discuss the historical relationships between religious and secular laws
- GA3:
-
analyse relationships between religious and political worldviews
- GA3:
-
critically examine the role of religion in violence and gender issues.
- GA3:
Prescribed texts
- Emerson, MO, Mirola, WA & Monahan, SC, 2011, Religion matters: what sociology teaches us about religion in our world, Allyn & Bacon, Boston.
- Possamai, A, 2009, Sociology of religion for generations x and y, Equinox, London.