ASNS1200: Semester 1, 2021

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Units ASNS1200 Semester 1 2021 [Normal day]

Unit outline_

ASNS1200: Tibet and Central Asia: Nomads and Myths

Semester 1, 2021 [Normal day] - Remote

Overview

The Tibetan cultural sphere extends from the Himalayas to the tribal planes of Mongolia. This unit explores the civilisations of that region by examining shared cultural histories from the 8th century onwards, including religions, languages and customs. You will also learn how Tibetan myths shape today's perceptions of the orient.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	None
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Jim Rheingans, jim.rheingans@sydney.edu.au
Lecturer(s)	Jim Rheingans, jim.rheingans@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Presentation (prepared digitally) Uploading a digital presentation about a topic of choice (individual dates)	19%	Multiple weeks	1000 words
Outcomes assessed:
Participation	Participation Active participation (criteria are outlined in Canvas)	10%	Ongoing	n/a
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Reflective learning journal Reflection about your experience of essential learning points up to wk 7	20%	Week 07 Due date: 25 Apr 2021 at 23:59	1000 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Written critical response Short essay on a topic of choice raised in a tutorial or live session	30%	Week 11 Due date: 23 May 2021 at 23:59	1600 words
Outcomes assessed:
Tutorial quiz	Online quizzes area 1: Buddhism Short, simple and fact-based quizzes covering the material for each week	7%	Weekly	300 words
Outcomes assessed:
Tutorial quiz	Online quizzes area 2: Tibetan cultures Short, simple and fact-based quizzes covering the material for each week	7%	Weekly	300 words
Outcomes assessed:
Tutorial quiz	Online quizzes area 3: Central Asia Short, simple and fact-based quizzes covering the material for each week	7%	Weekly	300 words
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Detailed information for each assessment can be found on the Canvas site for this unit.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a High distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a Distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100	Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at an exceptional standard.
Distinction	75 - 84	Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at a very high standard.
Credit	65 - 74	Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at a good standard.
Pass	50 - 64	Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at an acceptable standard.
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Central Asia and the Tibetan plateau: geographies, lifestyles, languages (note: tutorials start in wk 01)	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 02	Buddhism from India to Tibet and Mongolia	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 03	The Tibetan cultural sphere: what and where is it?	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 04	The discovery of Central Asia	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 05	Missionaries and travelers in the “forbidden land”	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 06	Tibetan cultural history: Buddhist kingship	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 06	Calendar Systems in Tibet and Central Asia	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 08	During the wk 08 class important questions about content taught up to then and the learning journal are discussed (note: no tutorial in wk 08)	Workshop (1 hr)
Week 09	Tibetan Medicine: A unique blend of South and Central Asian Traditions	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 10	Mongolians and Tibetans: histories, wars, Buddhism	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 11	The Silk Road(s): Exchange of commodities, people, and knowledge	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 12	Contemporary Tibetan Buddhism: experiences from a nunnery in eastern Tibet	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Week 13	Mythical Tibet: Orientalism and Buddhist modernism	Lecture and tutorial (2 hr)
Weekly	For each week's topic, a one hour online module will be released on Canvas to study prior to the live session (called here: lecture).	Online class (13 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: students are expected to attend 90% of their classes. If you attend less than 50% of classes, regardless of the reasons, you may be referred to the Examiner’s Board which will decide whether you should pass or fail the unit of study if your attendance falls below this threshold.
Lecture recording: Most lectures (in recording-equipped venues) will be recorded and may be made available to students on the LMS. However, you should not rely on lecture recording to substitute your classroom learning experience.
Preparation: students should commit to spend approximately three hours’ preparation time (reading, studying, homework, essays, etc.) for every hour of scheduled instruction.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

All weekly readings for this unit can be accessed on the Reading List available via the Canvas site for this unit.

On top of that, there are three works that will serve as general references on three important areas and for preparing your presentations and tutorials:

Silk Road/Central Asia: Beckwith, Christopher. 2009. Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present. Princeton: Princeton University Press.[e-book in Fisher]
Buddhism: Gethin, Rupert. 1998. The Foundations of Buddhism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.[e-book in Fisher]
Tibetan history and culture: Kapstein, Mathew T. 2006. The Tibetans. Malden, MA: Blackwell. OR: van Schaik, Sam. 2011. Tibet: A History. New Haven and London: Yale University Press. [e-book in Fisher]

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. demonstrate a foundational understanding of how Central Asia and Tibet are constructed as a region by historical and cultural forces, and how knowledge of this area is created through texts, artwork, and further sources
LO2. gain a basic proficiency in comparative analysis by understanding the cultural and philosophical currents that tie Central Asian and Himalayan societies together, including religious systems, shared cultural practices, and economic interactions
LO3. demonstrate understanding of Tibetan civilizations in a global perspective, including contemporary issues and myths
LO4. demonstrate familiarity with a range of disciplinary approaches to Asian Studies, such as cultural and intellectual history and an ability to apply them in the effective and ethical communication of their knowledge.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

Some changes to the structure and topics have been made based on student feedback

Additional information

The unit’s contact classes (live sessions and tutorials) are taught via zoom. Detailed information and further features of our class are found on Canvas.

This unit also has a blended learning component (online module) for each week to engage with before the live sessions and tutorials.

A brief pre-semester Orientation Module will be released on the Canvas site on 22 February: It will help you to gain a more detailed overview of this unit and the principles of teaching, assessments, and resources.

The online module for week 1 will be released on Canvas on the 25 February. This serves as preparation and should be completed before our first live session on 1 March. Thanks for your interest in this course and looking forward to meeting you in class.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

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