Responding to Disability and Ageing
Undergraduate
UNE-HSSW168 2025Course information for 2025 intake View information for 2024 course intake
Challenge what you know about people who are ageing or have a disability. Pick apart traditional concepts and seek alternative perspectives. Think about what disability and ageing mean to the individual and community and reflect on your experiences.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- 100% online
- Enrol by
- 15 June 2025
- Entry requirements
- Part of a degree
- Duration
- 16 weeks
- Price from
- $2,351
- Upfront cost
- $0
- Loan available
- FEE-HELP available
Responding to Disability and Ageing
About this subject
Upon completion of this unit, students will be able to:
- identify the traditional concepts of disability and ageing and consider alternative theoretical perspectives;
- comprehend and reflect on the personal experience of disability and ageing;
- demonstrate an understanding of person centred care of people who are ageing and/or have a disability;
- demonstrate an understanding of the organisational context that informs practice with people who are ageing and/or have a disability; and
- describe the divergence and convergence that occur between the concepts of ageing and disability.
- Topics will be available to enrolled students in the subjects Learning Management System site approximately one week prior to the commencement of the teaching period.
As Australia’s population ages and awareness of the types and impacts of disability increases, the ability to analyse and critique commonly held assumptions and perceptions about disability and ageing is of critical importance, particularly for people working in community services and social work settings. In this subject you will explore the foundational theoretical frameworks that underpin our understanding of traditional concepts of disability and ageing, and consider alternative perspectives. Reflecting on your personal experiences and examining the divergence and convergence of concepts of ageing and disability, you will have opportunities to enhance your reflective skills and ability to comprehend what disability and/or ageing might mean for individuals, groups and communities. Applying a social lens and person-centered framework to your practice, the subject will help you to understand social worker roles within different organisational contexts.
Assessment 1: 2000 words; Essay; Relates to Learning Outcomes: 1, 3, 4;
Assessment 2: 2000 words; Essay; Relates to Learning Outcomes: 1-5.- Assessment 1 - Essay (50%)
- Assessment 2 - Essay (50%)
For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).
The University of New England is the only Australian public university to be awarded the maximum 5 stars for Overall Experience by the Good Universities Guide, 13 years in a row. UNE has delivered distance education since 1955—that’s longer than any other Australian university. Perhaps that’s why students continue to rate UNE so highly for student satisfaction and teaching quality. With over 170 degrees offered online, and more than 22,000 students, UNE is an expert in online education.
Learn more about UNE.
Explore UNE courses.
- QS Ranking 2024:
- 36
Entry requirements
To enrol in this subject, you must be admitted into a degree.
Additional requirements
- Equipment requirements - Headphones or speakers (required to listen to lectures and other media). Headset, including microphone (highly recommended). Webcam (may be required for participation in virtual classrooms and/or media presentations).
- Software requirements - It is essential for students to have reliable internet access in order to participate in and complete your units, regardless of whether they contain an on campus attendance or intensive school component. Please refer students to link for requirements: For additional information please visit UNE Hardware Requirements: https://www.une.edu.au/current-students/support/it-services/hardware
- Other requirements -
Textbook requirements:
Textbook information is not available until approximately 8 weeks prior to the commencement of the Teaching period.
Students are expected to purchase prescribed material.
Textbook requirements may vary from one teaching period to the next.
Study load
- 0.125 EFTSL
- This is in the range of 10 to 12 hours of study each week.
Equivalent full time study load (EFTSL) is one way to calculate your study load. One (1.0) EFTSL is equivalent to a full-time study load for one year.
Find out more information on Commonwealth Loans to understand what this means to your eligibility for financial support.