Grading                                                             

Students will receive a Standardised Numerical Grade (SNG) reflects the extent to which student attainment matches the descriptors as per the Macquarie University Grading Policy.. This unit will use the following grades which will be aligned  with the listed numerical range:

• HD - High Distinction (85-100)
• D  - Distinction (75-84)
• Cr - Credit (65-74)
• P - Pass (50-64)
• F - Fail (0-49)

Requirements to Pass 

In order to pass this unit a student must: 

• Pass the final examination or final assessment task
• Achieve a Standard Numerical Grade (SNG) of 50 or more in the unit
• Attend at least 80% of scheduled classes

For further details about grading, please refer to the Grading Policy. 

Submission of Assessment Tasks 

Assessments must be submitted following instructions provided in class. Assessment tasks which have not been submitted as required will not be marked. They will be considered a non-submission and zero marks will be awarded.

Turnitin

Turnitin compares electronically submitted papers to a database of academic publications, internet sources and other papers that have been submitted into the system to identify matching text. It then produces an Originality Report which identifies text taken from other sources,and generates a similarity percentage to judge whether plagiarism has occurred (see Academic Honesty section below). 

All assessment tasks are to be submitted through Turnitin; it is the student’s responsibility to ensure that work is submitted correctly prior to the due date.  Hard copies are also required in addition to the electronic Turnitin submission as part of the formal submission guidelines. Records in Turnitin will be taken as records of submission. For assistance submitting through Turnitin, you may approach your teacher, lodge a OneHelp Ticket, refer to the IT help page or seek assistance from Student Connect. 

Multiple submissions may be possible via Turnitin prior to the final due date and time of an assessment and originality reports will be made available to students. In such cases they should be used to check work for plagiarism prior to a final submission due date.  As a general guideline, students should edit and resubmit any work that is above 8% similar. Students are able to override and resubmit their assignments; however, the system will not immediately produce the similarity score on a second or subsequent submission - it may take 24 hours or longer for the  report to be generated. This may be after the due date so students should plan their submission carefully. 

Assessment Submission

On the designated “Draft Submission” due date, students are expected to bring hard copies of completed assignments to their class. These assignments will be peer-reviewed and annotated for specific language features.  The annotated (“marked up”) copy will be submitted as part 4 of the formal hard copy submission.

On the “Formal” submission due date, students are expected to submit their revised electronic version of the assignment to the iLearn “Turnitin” site.  

Students are also required to make a final hard copy submission. This will include printing the “Originality Report” and submit it as part 3 of the formal hard copy Submission.  Students will then complete the “Summary of Personal Development”, identifying one area of weakness revealed in a previous assignment and explaining how he/she has remediated this skill-set for the given assignment (Formal Submission Part 2). The hard copy of the final revised draft with the corresponding submission components are due in tutorials immediately following the “Formal Submission” due date. 

Complete submissions require all five (5) of the following components and should be collated using a bull clip:

1. Signed cover sheet (details will be provided in class)
2. Summary of Personal Development Worksheet
3. Printed Originality Report
4. Annotated Soft Submission draft
5. Revised Final Draft

A penalty of 10% per missing component will apply to all portfolio assessments.  In other words, if the Cover Sheet is not attached, the assignment will incur a 10% penalty.  If the Originality Report and Annotated Soft Submission draft are excluded, a 20% penalty will apply, etc.

All hard copy “formal” submissions must include a customised coversheet (details will be provided in class) and be submitted in the designated class.  Any assignment received after this tutorial will be considered late and the appropriate penalties apply.  

Missed Assessments

The University recognises that students may experience unexpected events and circumstances that adversely affect their academic performance in assessment activities, for example illness. In order to support students who have experienced a serious and unavoidable disruption, the University will provide affected students with an additional opportunity to demonstrate that they have met the learning outcomes of a unit. An additional opportunity provided under such circumstances is referred to as special consideration. 

The Disruption to Studies Policy applies only to serious and unavoidable disruptions that arise after a study period has commenced. Students with a pre-existing disability/health condition or prolonged adverse circumstances may be eligible for ongoing assistance and support. Such support may be sought through Campus Wellbeing and Support Services.

Serious and Unavoidable Disruption The University classifies a disruption as serious and unavoidable if it:

• could not have reasonably been anticipated, avoided or guarded against by the student; and
• was beyond the student's control; and
• caused substantial disruption to the student’s capacity for effective study and/or completion of required work; and
• occurred during an event critical study period and was at least three (3) consecutive days duration, and / or
• prevented completion of a final examination.

To be eligible for Special Consideration, a student must notify the University of a serious and unavoidable disruption within five (5) working days of the commencement of the disruption (Disruption to Studies notification).   All Disruption to Studies notifications are to be made online via the University’s Ask MQ system. A Disruption to Studies notification must be supported by documentary evidence. 

In submitting a Disruption to Studies notification, a student is acknowledging that they may be required to undertake additional work.  The time and date, deadline or format of any required extra assessible work as a result of a disruption to studies notification is not negotiable and in submitting a disruption to studies notification, a student is agreeing to make themselves available to complete any extra work as required.

Please refer to the Disruption to Studies Policy for further details.

Extensions & Late Submissions

To apply for an extension of time for submission of an assessment item, students must submit a Disruptions to Studies notification via ask.mq.edu.au.

Late submissions without an approved extension are possible but will be penalised at 20% per day up to 4 days (weekend inclusive). If a student submits an assessment task 5 or more days after the due date without grounds for special consideration (See Disruptions to Studies Policy) a record or submission will be made but the student will receive zero marks for the assessment task. 

Final Assessment Tasks

Final assessments will typically take place in Week 6 or Monday of Week 7. All students enrolled in a teaching session are expected to ensure they are available up until and including Monday of Week 7 to undertake examinations and assessment tasks. Passing the final assessment (the Persuasive Texts assessment) is a requirement to pass this unit. 

Details of teaching session dates can be found on the Important Dates calendar. Due dates for assessments will be available in the unit guide. 

Retention of Originals

It is the responsibility of the student to retain a copy of any work submitted and a copy of the Turnitin Receipt; students should be able to produce these documents upon request. Copies should be retained until the end of the grade appeal period each term.

In the event that a student is asked to produce another copy of work submitted and is unable to do so, they may be awarded zero (0) for that particular assessment task.

The University may request and retain the originals of any documentation or evidence submitted to support notifications of disruptions to studies. Requests for original documentation will be sent to the applicant’s student email address within six (6) months of notification by the student. Students must retain all original documentation for the duration of this six (6) month period and must supply original documents to the University within ten (10) working days of such a request being made.

Contacting Teaching Staff  Obtaining Help 

Students may contact teaching staff at any time during the term by using the contact details provided in this guide.Students should expect a response within 1-2 business days and only within business hours.  Teachers will not review assessment drafts via email; if students require specific feedback on an assessment, they should prepare such questions to ask during the tutorial.

For all university related correspondence, students are required to use their official Macquarie University student email account which may be accessed via the Macquarie University Student Portal. Inquiries from personal email accounts will not be attended to.

Feedback

Students will be provided with feedback verbally as well as via Turnitin. If feedback provided is not sufficient, students should approach their teacher and request additional feedback in a timely manner at any time during the term. General feedback about performance in a unit may be sought up to 6 months following results release.

DELIVERY & RESOURCES

Scheduled Class Time & Timetables

Weekly face to face  contact for this unit will be 8 hours (48 hours per term) consisting of two three hour theory lessons and one 2 hour workshop in the computer laboratory. 

Students will be able to enrol in their classes and view their personal timetable via eStudent and may also view general timetable information via Macquarie University's Timetable page. 

If any scheduled class falls on a public holiday a make-up lesson may be scheduled. Where appropriate, the instructor may instead organise an online make-up lesson which would require students to complete additional activities outside of class.  Attendance may be taken taken for any make-up lessons.

Attendance Requirements - All students

All students are required to attend at least 80% of scheduled class time to pass this unit.  

Attendance will be monitored in each lesson & students will be able to see their attendance records for a unit via iLearn.  

Where a student is present for a part of a lesson (for example arrives late, leaves early, leaves the class frequently or for lengthy periods, engages in inappropriate or unrelated activities or does not participate actively in the majority of the lesson) the teacher reserves the right to mark a student absent for that part of the lesson.

Because of the intensive nature of this program, students should be aware that their attendance in this unit may fall below 80% relatively quickly. 

In cases of unavoidable non-attendance due to illness or circumstances beyond control, students should lodge a Disruption to Studies Notification via ask.mq.edu.au within 5 working days and supply relevant supporting documentation, even if they have not missed a formal assessment task. This will ensure that that appropriate records of unavoidable absences can be made. 

For further information on attendance, please refer to the Attendance and Study Load Policy. 

iLearn

iLearn is Macquarie's online learning management system and a principal resource which will be used throughout the term. Students should access iLearn at least 3 times per week as it will contain important information including: 

• Announcements - Teaching staff will communicate to the class using iLearn announcements. 
• A link to the unit guide for the unit and staff contact details
• Lecture notes and recordings where available
• Learning and teaching activities and resources
• Assessment information
• Tutorial questions and solutions
• Assessment submission tools such as Turnitin
• Other relevant material

For any technical or support issues using iLearn, please contact the IT helpdesk (Ph. 02 9850 4357) or lodge a ticket using OneHelp. 

Required and Recommended Texts and Materials

Prescribed Texts(s)

1. Connect Composition 3.0, McGraw Hill This text is an electronic text. Details and a link to purchase and use this text will be provided during the second week. 

2. Gans, J, King, S, Byford, M, & Mankiw, NG, 2014, Principles of microeconomics: Australia and New Zealand edition, 6^th ed, Cengage, Australia.

   Please note: This text is also the required text for WECO111.  

Additional  reading materials will be provided to the students throughout the semester. This will be provided in hard copy or placed on iLearn. 

Technology Used and Required

• Access to internet (Available on Campus using Macquarie OneNet)
• Access to iLearn 
• Access to Macquarie University Library catalogue
• Access to Microsoft Office Word and Excel (available in Labs)

Organisation of the unit is in two parts:

·        The Lessons will explore the aspects of language use and the types of texts integral to developing an academic style of communicating. 

·        The Workshops will allow students to explore the topics covered in lessons, using a variety approaches to familiarise themselves with various aspects of academic literacy. 

A copy of the Unit Outline, along with the relevant lesson materials, assignment instructions, and any notices requiring urgent attention about the unit will be posted on the WACB100  iLearn page.