Social Impact Assessment and Evaluation

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2008:

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

This subject develops the skills to understand and assess the social impacts of development. The different actors involved in shaping and implementing development projects and programmes (the state, international development agencies, non-government organisations and grass roots institutions) are appraised. Using practical examples from the non-Western and Western world, we develop techniques to monitor and evaluate impacts using interdisciplinary techniques drawn from anthropology, development studies, and the policy sciences that move beyond summative assessments and financial accounting. We consider the social and environmental contexts in which assessment is embedded, and the capacities of different actors and organizations to avert or mitigate negative impacts through learning, negotiation, and citizen participation. At the completion of the subject students will have developed the conceptual skills to understand the relationship between society and development; be familiar with the range of methodologies and techniques used in impact assessment studies; and be able to critically evaluate the impact of assessment projects and programmes.

The LMS system will be used for all readings.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

• be able to understand international development projects and their role in social change;

• be able to understand critical theories of social impact assessment;

• be able to critique Social Impact Statements effectively;

• be able to apply knowledge gained in the subject to new situations.