Teaching "the good stuff"

This paper will discuss the method and content of the teaching of industrial relations (in the words of a local politician, 'the good stuff) and employment relations courses at Central Queensland University. The paper will discuss how the teaching and the content of these courses have changed over time, in response to the changing nature of the labour market and the public policy debate in Australia and overseas. It will provide a rationale for the teaching of courses that are underpinned by a liberal pluralist view of the world. Furthermore, it will provide a rationale for the teaching ofcourses that analyse the public policy issues that dominate the development of systems of employment relations in a number of European, Asian, Pacific and North American countries. The paper will discuss the challenges that arise from the teaching of such courses to students who have a limited understanding and experience of the intricacies of a system ofemployment relations in Australia, as well as in other countries. Finally, the paper will consider the lessons that can be learned with respect to the teaching of such courses. These lessons will be evaluated within the context of the challenges presented by the diversity of the student population, and the necessity to service contemporary cohorts with complementary and diverse teaching and learning practices.