IHR/Assessmentcomponentone
This component of the assessment will comprise four tasks, each weighted at 10% of the final grade. Students may select any four tasks from the list of tasks below.
In this way, students have the opportunity to explore the topics of greatest interest to them. Many of tasks below are also designed to resemble tasks that researchers, advocates or journalists in the field of human rights might be asked to complete in the workplace.
Tasks can be completed either as a blog (approx 500 words) or a video (2-4 mins). To learn more about these formats, click here:Assessment Task Options
Human Rights in the News Choose a recent newspaper article relevant to human rights (recent can be defined as the story having appeared in the news during the period since the commencement of this course). Explain this story for your peers. Provide appropriate background, highlight the main issue of the news article and locate it within a broader human rights context. How is this issue being managed as a human rights issue at a national/international level? What are the future prospects for this issue being resolved?
Human Rights Hero Identify a human rights hero. This will be a person that has championed human rights in some way. Write a blog / post a video designed as a feature article about this person. (If you are writing a blog, you may envisage it to be a newspaper feature article or similar; if you are making a video you may imagine it as being posted on youtube for an audience interested in human rights.) Who is this person and what did they achieve to further the cause of human rights?
The human rights hero you select may be someone famous, or someone not famous; perhaps even someone you know personally. If you are unsure who to select, you could consider examining winners of the Nobel Peace Prize for a potential choice, or exploring heroes from among The Righteous Among the Nations (people who rescued others from the Holocaust).
Analyse This Select an official document relating to human rights. It may be a document published by a country, intergovernmental organisation (eg. UN, European Union, African Union) or human rights organisation (eg. Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International). It may be contemporary or historical. (If you are unsure if your chosen document is appropriate, please consult with the Subject Coordinator.) Conduct a document analysis of your document. It should include the following information:
- Author, title, type of document, date of publication, link if available
- What is the purpose of the document?
- Who is the intended audience?
- What perspective does it take?
- What can be learned about human rights from this document?
- Are there any selective omissions?
- How reliable would you consider this document?
- Should this document be considered in conjunction with other documents/sources on this issue?
- Use quotes to highlight your points
Ideally, the document analysis will be a cohesive analysis of the document, not simply sequential answers to these dot points (which are provided to give broad guidance rather than a strict structure).
Potential sources for documents: Documentation relating to UPRs (search by country): http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/UPR/Pages/Documentation.aspx Human Rights Watch reports: https://www.hrw.org/publications (searchable by topic and country)
Human Rights Philosophers Select one of the following philosophers and introduce them to your peers. When and where did they live and how did their surroundings influence the development of their ideas? What theories did they propose/critique? How influential were they? Do you agree or disagree with their philosophical perspective?
- Hugo Grotius
- Karl Marx
- Jean-Jacques Rosseau
- John Stuart Mill
- Mary Wollstonecraft
- Immanuel Kant
- Richard Rorty
UDHR Imagine you are on the committee drafting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Identify one right that you think is critical to be included in the UDHR. Make your case to the committee as to why this right is paramount.
Human Rights Treaties Select one of the following human rights treaties and introduce it to your peers. What rights does it confer, and on whom? What is the background/context that led to the creation of this treaty? When did it come into force, and how many states have become party to the treaty? Has it proven effective thus far?
- The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
- The Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
- The Convention on the Rights of the Child
- The International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families
- The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
- The International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.
Human Rights Declarations The General Assembly has adopted numerous human rights declarations. Select a declaration from the list below, and introduce it to your peers. What rights does it discuss and confer? When was it adopted, and what was the context that led to the declaration? Is it an effective mechanism to protect and/or promote human rights?
- Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief; adopted by GAResolution 36/55 of 25 November 1981.
- Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women; adopted by GA Resolution 48/104 of 20 December 1993.
- Declaration on the Right to Development; adopted by GA Resolution 41/128 of 4 December 1986.
- Declaration on the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance; adopted by GA Resolution 47/133 of 18 December 1992.
- Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities; adopted by GA Resolution 47/135 of 18 December 1992.
- Declaration on Human Rights Defenders; adopted by GA Resolution 53/144 of 10 December 1998.
Regional Human Rights Bodies There are a number of regional human rights bodies that complement the UN and national human rights systems. Select a regional human rights body from the list below and introduce it to your peers. What region does the body cover, and how does it monitor, promote and protect human rights?
- African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights
- African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights
- Arab Human Rights Committee
- ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights
- European Court of Human Rights
- European Committee of Social Rights
- Inter-American Court of Human Rights
- Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
UN High Commissioners for Human Rights Choose a past or the present UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and introduce them to your peers. When did they serve in the role? What is their background in human rights? What were some of their greatest achievements and hardest challenges while in the role?
Prove It! Prepare an annotated bibliography on the issue of minority rights in the country of your choice. Select 5-8 potential sources of information. For each, provide the full reference (including link if available). Provide a brief summary of each source, including a concise evaluation of its reliability and relevance.
Gender Equality In Module Ten we examine the issue of gender equality in Japan as a case study. Select a country other than Japan, and analyse the current status of gender (in)equality in your chosen country. How do male and female education levels, employment participation levels and income levels compare? Are there satisfactory options for childcare for women who have children and want to return to the workforce? Are there particular areas of strength in your country with respect to gender equality, or particular issues that need addressing?
