Unit Guide

General Information

Unit convenor and teaching staff	Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor Stephen Collins stephen.collins@mq.edu.au Contact via stephen.collins@mq.edu.au
Credit points	Credit points 3
Prerequisites	Prerequisites (MAS308 or MAS340) and (admission to BA-Media or BA-MediaLLB or BA in Media or BMedia)
Corequisites	Corequisites
Co-badged status	Co-badged status
Unit description	Unit description This unit presents an opportunity for small groups of students to design, plan and create a major digital production. Students design their own projects and are supervised and assisted by academic and technical support staff. Productions extend skills (theoretical and practical) learnt in earlier production units. Whilst students may choose to continue working within a particular production stream (for example, MAS340 Advanced Interactivity students could continue to focus on screen based interactive multimedia), this unit is intended to facilitate convergent production across the range of multimedia, writing, screen production, radio, audio, music, performance and dance.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

Plan and manage a large scale digital production and adhere to production deadlines
Communicate a project's goals and how they are to be achieved
Design a project specification that encompasses the desired outcomes
Evaluate available skills and work in groups to make best use of those skills
Negotiate project management issue as they arise
Critically evaluate digital media projects
Reflect on the learning and communicate that reflection with a view to improving professional practice

Assessment Tasks

Name	Weighting	Due
Client Meetings	20%	Weeks 1, 2, 3, 9 and 11
Rubric Exercise	10%	Week 4
User Testing Report	10%	Week 9
Major Project	40%	Week 13
Self-Reflection Journal	20%	Week 14

Client Meetings

Due: Weeks 1, 2, 3, 9 and 11
Weighting: 20%

There are five client meetings as detailed below (additional details are availabe in iLearn). Each meeting will consist of a 15 minute appointment with the unit convenor and support staff. Client meeting times will be organised in week 1. At client meetings, project groups will discuss the milestone requirements for that particular meeting.

Client meetings are worth 20% overall and will be assessed on the following criteria:

Professionalism: Did the meeting commence promptly and was the group well prepared? Was the meeting conducted in an appropriate manner?

Communication: Did the group/individuals communicate well with the client? Was there an appropriate use of visual aids/ demonstrations and other documentation?

Achievement: Did the meeting achieve its desired outcome? Was it clear from the meeting that the group/individuals were making suitable progress with their projects? Was there a clear sense that project milestones were properly defined and were being achieved? Were client requests made at any previous meetings fulfilled?

Client meeting marks will be allocated to individuals.

The five individual client meetings are as follows:

Client Meeting 1: Aims and Specifications - Week 2

Client Meeting 2: Timeline and Team - Week 3

Client Meeting 3: Interface Presentation - Week 6

Client Meeting 4: User Testing - Week 9

Client Meeting 5: Project Beta Presentation - Week 11

On successful completion you will be able to:

Plan and manage a large scale digital production and adhere to production deadlines
Communicate a project's goals and how they are to be achieved
Design a project specification that encompasses the desired outcomes
Evaluate available skills and work in groups to make best use of those skills
Negotiate project management issue as they arise

Rubric Exercise

Due: Week 4
Weighting: 10%

A key learning outcome is the development of critical appraisal skills. This will be achieved in a compulsory in-class activity in week 4. Students will be required to participate in the development of a critical rubric for assessing digital projects. Students will be awarded an individual grade for this task determined by the quality of their participation and contributon to the final rubric. This rubric will be used to assess the major project.

On successful completion you will be able to:

Critically evaluate digital media projects

User Testing Report

Due: Week 9
Weighting: 10%

User-Testing Report: Each group must submit a 500-1000 word report summarising the user-testing process that occured in week 8. The user-testing report is designed to communicate the goals, process and outcomes of your user-testing procedure. It should include:

a definition of the goals of your testing process. (Relate this to your project aims and goals with respect to users, audiences, scenarios of usage etc.)
A specific description of what you are testing.
A description of the testing process.
Outcomes/conclusions of the test.
Next steps.
Appendices - attach organised copies of questionnaire sheets or notes that you may have taken.

The user-testing report is a procedural milestone and designed to focus your attention away from the developer and onto the user. As such, you will be assessed on usefulness and relevance of the testing goals, testing process and your conclusions. The report will be assessed based on the quality of the content and its presentation

On successful completion you will be able to:

Negotiate project management issue as they arise
Reflect on the learning and communicate that reflection with a view to improving professional practice

Major Project

Due: Week 13
Weighting: 40%

The major project is worth 40% overall, but this figure is derived from the following components:

Peer Evaluation of Major Project (10%): Major projects will be evaluated by peers using the rubric generated in week 4. A grading sheet for each project will be circulated during class and the peer assessment collated - the average mark attributed to the assignment will be used as the peer evaluation mark.

Staff Evaluation of Major Project (20%): Major projects will be evaluated by a panel of academic and support staff using the rubric developed in week 4.

Staff Evaluation of Individual Contributions to Major Project (10%): Individual contributions to the major projects will be assessed by academic staff according to observed contributions and those reflected in the self-evaluation journal (see week 14 assessment).

On successful completion you will be able to:

Plan and manage a large scale digital production and adhere to production deadlines
Design a project specification that encompasses the desired outcomes
Evaluate available skills and work in groups to make best use of those skills
Negotiate project management issue as they arise

Self-Reflection Journal

Due: Week 14
Weighting: 20%

Self-Evaluation Journal: Students should keep a weekly journal of the project's devleopment that should be submitted electronically in week 14 to stephen.collins@mq.edu.au. The journal should be 1500 words in length.

This journal should include:

A reflection of the project's progress throughout the semester.
A reflection of their own contribution to the project.
Criteria for success and a measurement of the project against those criteria. (This should demonstrate an understanding of the goals for the project.)
Suggestions for improving both the project and the process of production.

You will be assessed on the following criteria:

Your ability to objectively critique your work and your own contribution.
Suggested improvement to the process of the project.
Clear and precise communication.

On successful completion you will be able to:

Communicate a project's goals and how they are to be achieved
Evaluate available skills and work in groups to make best use of those skills
Critically evaluate digital media projects
Reflect on the learning and communicate that reflection with a view to improving professional practice

Delivery and Resources

Details of client meetings will be arranged with individual groups.

All production work will occur in Y3A 006.

Unit Schedule

Please see MAS341's iLearn for the unit schedule.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central. Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Academic Honesty Policy http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/policy.html

Assessment Policy http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/assessment/policy.html

Grade Appeal Policy http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/gradeappeal/policy.html

Special Consideration Policy http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/special_consideration/policy.html

In addition, a number of other policies can be found in the Learning and Teaching Category of Policy Central.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of Academic Student Support Services. Details of these services can be accessed at: http://students.mq.edu.au/support/.

UniWISE provides:

Online learning resources and academic skills workshops http://www.mq.edu.au/learning_skills/
Personal assistance with your learning & study related questions.
The Learning Help Desk is located in the Library foyer (level 2).
Online and on-campus orientation events run by Mentors@Macquarie.

Student Services and Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Support Unit who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

Student Enquiries

Details of these services can be accessed at http://www.student.mq.edu.au/ses/.

IT Help

If you wish to receive IT help, we would be glad to assist you at http://informatics.mq.edu.au/help/.

When using the university's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students and it outlines what can be done.

Graduate Capabilities

Capable of Professional and Personal Judgement and Initiative

We want our graduates to have emotional intelligence and sound interpersonal skills and to demonstrate discernment and common sense in their professional and personal judgement. They will exercise initiative as needed. They will be capable of risk assessment, and be able to handle ambiguity and complexity, enabling them to be adaptable in diverse and changing environments.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

Plan and manage a large scale digital production and adhere to production deadlines
Design a project specification that encompasses the desired outcomes
Evaluate available skills and work in groups to make best use of those skills
Negotiate project management issue as they arise
Critically evaluate digital media projects
Reflect on the learning and communicate that reflection with a view to improving professional practice

Assessment tasks

Client Meetings
Rubric Exercise
Self-Reflection Journal

Commitment to Continuous Learning

Our graduates will have enquiring minds and a literate curiosity which will lead them to pursue knowledge for its own sake. They will continue to pursue learning in their careers and as they participate in the world. They will be capable of reflecting on their experiences and relationships with others and the environment, learning from them, and growing - personally, professionally and socially.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcome

Reflect on the learning and communicate that reflection with a view to improving professional practice

Assessment task

Self-Reflection Journal

Discipline Specific Knowledge and Skills

Our graduates will take with them the intellectual development, depth and breadth of knowledge, scholarly understanding, and specific subject content in their chosen fields to make them competent and confident in their subject or profession. They will be able to demonstrate, where relevant, professional technical competence and meet professional standards. They will be able to articulate the structure of knowledge of their discipline, be able to adapt discipline-specific knowledge to novel situations, and be able to contribute from their discipline to inter-disciplinary solutions to problems.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

Plan and manage a large scale digital production and adhere to production deadlines
Design a project specification that encompasses the desired outcomes
Critically evaluate digital media projects

Assessment tasks

User Testing Report
Major Project

Critical, Analytical and Integrative Thinking

We want our graduates to be capable of reasoning, questioning and analysing, and to integrate and synthesise learning and knowledge from a range of sources and environments; to be able to critique constraints, assumptions and limitations; to be able to think independently and systemically in relation to scholarly activity, in the workplace, and in the world. We want them to have a level of scientific and information technology literacy.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

Plan and manage a large scale digital production and adhere to production deadlines
Design a project specification that encompasses the desired outcomes
Evaluate available skills and work in groups to make best use of those skills
Critically evaluate digital media projects
Reflect on the learning and communicate that reflection with a view to improving professional practice

Assessment tasks

Rubric Exercise
User Testing Report
Self-Reflection Journal

Problem Solving and Research Capability

Our graduates should be capable of researching; of analysing, and interpreting and assessing data and information in various forms; of drawing connections across fields of knowledge; and they should be able to relate their knowledge to complex situations at work or in the world, in order to diagnose and solve problems. We want them to have the confidence to take the initiative in doing so, within an awareness of their own limitations.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

Plan and manage a large scale digital production and adhere to production deadlines
Evaluate available skills and work in groups to make best use of those skills
Negotiate project management issue as they arise

Assessment tasks

User Testing Report
Major Project

Creative and Innovative

Our graduates will also be capable of creative thinking and of creating knowledge. They will be imaginative and open to experience and capable of innovation at work and in the community. We want them to be engaged in applying their critical, creative thinking.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

Plan and manage a large scale digital production and adhere to production deadlines
Communicate a project's goals and how they are to be achieved
Design a project specification that encompasses the desired outcomes

Assessment task

Major Project

Effective Communication

We want to develop in our students the ability to communicate and convey their views in forms effective with different audiences. We want our graduates to take with them the capability to read, listen, question, gather and evaluate information resources in a variety of formats, assess, write clearly, speak effectively, and to use visual communication and communication technologies as appropriate.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

Communicate a project's goals and how they are to be achieved
Design a project specification that encompasses the desired outcomes
Negotiate project management issue as they arise
Critically evaluate digital media projects

Assessment tasks

Client Meetings
Major Project
Self-Reflection Journal

Socially and Environmentally Active and Responsible

We want our graduates to be aware of and have respect for self and others; to be able to work with others as a leader and a team player; to have a sense of connectedness with others and country; and to have a sense of mutual obligation. Our graduates should be informed and active participants in moving society towards sustainability.

This graduate capability is supported by:

Learning outcomes

Plan and manage a large scale digital production and adhere to production deadlines
Evaluate available skills and work in groups to make best use of those skills