Problem Solving Exercises consist of a series of practical problems. The problems presented are typically scenario based and require the practical application of principles and knowledge addressed in the unit. The assessment may involve the presentation of text-based scenarios.
Many questions will be similar in format to the problem solving activities presented during topic seminars, on the discussion forums and during problem solving review seminars for the unit. These will provide excellent preparation for Problem Solving. For example, students may be required to select measurement or monitoring strategies for a particular behaviour and scenario, write instructional objectives, identify assessment or intervention strategies from given examples and describe how to apply intervention strategies, design, comment on, analyse or interpret assessment and/or monitoring data; describe, outline, analyse, justify and/or comment on support or intervention strategies; or suggest, analyse or justify strategies for collaborating. in a given scenario.
The first Problem Solving Exercise will cover Modules 1 and 2 and Topic 1 and 2 from Module 3 and the second will cover the whole Unit but will have a focus on Module 3 Topic 3, Module 4 and Module 5.
A Problem Solving Exercise is an open book assessment of three hours duration. The Problem Solving Exercises will be completed in class (or with a supervisor for distance students). They may use both video segments and text-based scenarios or questions. You may bring any paper-based materials to the assessment including textbooks and your own notes. PLEASE NOTE THAT SHARING OF MATERIALS WILL NOT BE ALLOWED IN PROBLEM SOLVING EXERCISES UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. You may not use electronic devices such as computers, iPads or other tablets, or phones. In some cases, a calculator may be allowed, but this must be a stand alone calculator, and not part of a phone or other electronic device.
Problem Solving Exercises are designed to assess your competency with the material covered in the unit and, consequently, a high pass mark is typically set.
The specific instructions for each Problem Solving Exercise will be on the first page of the question paper. You may only write on the question paper provided. Any breaches of the instructions (for example, using your own paper to make notes about questions, taking any notes out of the room where the Problem Solving is held) may result in zero marks being awarded for that exercise, or zero marks being awarded for some questions.
NOTE: You must bring your student ID or Campus Card with you to the Problem Solving Exercise and display it on your desk.
Information about Campus Cards is at
http://students.mq.edu.au/services_and_facilities/services_facilities_a-z/campus_card/
When are Problem Solving Exercises held?
For students completing the exercises on-campus, Problem Solving Exercises are held:
13th April 2017
15th June 2017
There will be two sessions each day, one at 10am and one at 5.30pm. Students are required to indicate which session they will attend via the Choice activity on the iLearn site. The Choice activity will be open for 48 hours following notice in the Announcements section. Students must respond in this timeframe or they will be allocated to a session.
Problem Solving Exercises need to be completed by distance students with a supervisor as follows:
Should be completed between
Problem Solving 1
Monday 10th April
and
Sunday 16th April
Problem Solving 2
Monday 12th June
and
Sunday 18th June
If a Problem Solving Exercise is completed outside these dates without a serious reason and without the approval of your unit convenor and Dr Toni Hopper, you may be awarded an F grade.
Where are they held?
Compulsory Problem Solving Exercises will be held at MUSEC (Building X5A) to supervise internal students and external students who live in the Sydney metropolitan area. The Sydney metropolitan area is considered to be the area bounded by Engadine in the south, Campbelltown in the southwest, Penrith in the west, North Richmond in the northwest and Brooklyn in the North. Final decisions about boundaries are at the discretion of the External Student Supervision Coordinator (Dr Toni Hopper). Under all but exceptional circumstances (e.g., documented medical problems) it is expected that students residing in the Sydney metropolitan area will attend the on-campus assessment session.
Distance students living outside the Sydney metropolitan area will need to make arrangements for an appropriate, approved supervisor before the end of the second week of the semester(10th March 2017.)
Students who normally live within the Sydney area, but who will be out of Sydney at the time of a Problem Solving Exercise MAY NOT ARRANGE external supervision.
Requests for supervisor changes may be considered for students permanently changing location but WILL NOT be considered for students travelling during the semester.
Students are required to be available for the entirity of the official examination period.
What are the special arrangements for distance students?
Off-campus completion of Problem Solving Exercises is also available as an additional support to students who enrol in external mode and reside outside the Sydney metropolitan area. The Sydney metropolitan area is considered to be the area bounded by Engadine in the south, Campbelltown in the southwest, Penrith in the west, North Richmond in the northwest and Brooklyn in the North. Final decisions about boundaries are at the discretion of the External Student Supervision Coordinator (Dr Toni Hopper). You need to nominate a supervisor to receive the materials and supervise Problem Solving Exercises and feedback sessions. You must also complete a Statutory Declaration stating that you will not have any unsupervised access to problem Solving Exercises and Feedback materials. Under normal circumstances, supervisors would have a working relationship with you but must not be personally related to you or in a subordinate role. Appropriate supervisors could include a head/executive teacher, school principal or school counsellor. Friends or acquaintances will not be accepted as supervisors. It is your responsibility to locate an appropriate supervisor who is acceptable to the External Student Supervision Coordinator (Dr Toni Hopper). The acceptance of nominated supervisors is entirely at the discretion of the External Student Supervision Coordinator. Under normal circumstances, materials will only be sent to the supervisor at a work postal address. If you wish to discuss the suitability of a potential supervisor, please contact Dr Hopper by email (toni.hopper@mq.edu.au) or phone (02) 9850 9698 Thursdays only.
You must also complete a Statutory Declaration stating that you will not have any unsupervised access to Problem Solving Exercises or Feedback materials.
A SUPERVISOR NOMINATION FORM IS PROVIDED FOR DOWNLOAD IN THE ILEARN SITE FOR EACH UNIT.
A STATUTORY DECLARATION FORM IS PROVIDED FOR DOWNLOAD IN THE ILEARN SITE FOR EACH UNIT.
Completing the Statutory Declaration Form
You must complete ONE Statutory Declaration to cover all units you are attempting. It is your responsibility to ensure that you read and understand the requirements of the statutory Declaration, and that you supply all required information. Your Statutory Declaration must be witnessed and signed by a suitable person (see the list on the form). For most students, the preferred witness would be your school principal. The form must be returned with your supervisor nomination form(s) to Dr Toni Hopper.
If there is a violation of the Statutory Declaration you must contact Dr Toni Hopper and the unit convenor as a matter of urgency.
The supervisor nomination form and Statutory Declaration must be returned to Dr Toni Hopper by the end of the second week of the semester (10th March, 2017). Nomination forms will not be accepted after this date and you will have to complete Problem Solving Exercises on-campus or withdraw from the unit. This deadline is ABSOLUTELY NOT negotiable. You will receive an acknowledgement of your supervisor nomination through Dialogue. If you do not receive an acknowledgement, your nomination has not been received and you must contact the External Student Supervision Coordinator urgently.
***Please note that you need to provide a separate supervisor nomination form for EACH unit you are enrolled in. You should receive an acknowledgement for EACH unit you are enrolled in. You need only return one Statutory Declaration, but indicate which units you are completing.
Supervisors should be aware that they would be required to supervise you for two Problem Solving Exercises of 3 hours each. They will also need to supervise you for two feedback sessions lasting up to 1 hour each.
Further, they will be required to certify that appropriate conditions have been in place. Supervisors may do other work while you are completing the assessment/feedback sessions but they must remain with you. Note that if there is any anticipated variation to supervision arrangements, for example, a fire drill or if the supervisor is called away urgently, the student and/or supervisor should notify the External Student Supervision Coordinator (Dr Toni Hopper) as soon as possible after the Problem Solving Exercise has been completed. Acting as a supervisor is voluntary but supervisors do receive a formal letter of appreciation.
Problem Solving Exercises will be posted to your supervisor approximately one week before the due date and you will have a one-week window in which they must be completed and returned.
It is critical that the assessments are completed in the date range specified.
It is essential that a correct WORK address is provided for your supervisor, and that other information on the Supervisor Nomination Form is accurate.
The provision of a non-work address (for example, your supervisor's home address) for your supervisor's workplace, or the provision of other misleading information, may be treated as academic misconduct.
Please ask your supervisor to carefully check the dates before signing the nomination form to ensure they will be available.
Please note that you will need access to a computer or DVD player in order to complete the Problem Solving Exercises and/or feedback sessions.
Before EACH Problem Solving Exercise and EACH Feedback Session you will be sent, through Dialogue on the iLearn website, a copy of the letter, instructions and certification form to be send to your supervisor. You must respond to this message within 48 hours to indicate that you have read and understood the conditions of the Problem Solving Exercise or Feedback Session and to confirm that the supervisor’s name and mailing address are correct. Problem Solving and Feedback packages will not be mailed out until this confirmation is received.
If you provide a late response, and your assessment package is sent out late, NO ADDITIONAL TIME WILL BE ALLOWED FOR COMPLETION. You must still complete the Problem Solving Exercise before the 16th April (first Problem Solving exercise) or 18th June (second Problem Solving Exercise)
What happens if my Problem Solving Exercise does not arrive?
We recommend that you check with your supervisor before the day you plan to complete the Problem Solving Exercise that he/she has received the package. If your supervisor has not received the package, we recommend double-checking the internal mail handling within your school or organisation before contacting X5A Reception. If the materials cannot be found after a search, contact X5A Reception (phone (02) 9850 8708 or email musec.reception@mq.edu.au
What if I need to change my supervision arrangements?
If your circumstances change and you no longer need to complete a Problem Solving Exercise externally, or if you are able to travel to MUSEC for a feedback session or if there are any other changes to your supervision arrangements, you must notify the convenors of each unit you are completing AND the External Student Supervisor Co-ordinator.
If you complete a Problem Solving Exercise or a Feedback Session with a person who is not an approved supervisor, you may be awarded a Fail grade.
How do I get feedback if I attended the on-campus session?
Two feedback sessions are held after Problem Solving Exercises. Students who attend campus to complete the Problem Solving Exercises are normally expected to attend one of these sessions for feedback. The answers to Problem Solving Exercises will be presented. Lecturers will overview the general principles, marking key, sample answers and discuss common problems or misconceptions. Students will be able to view their marked Problem Solving Exercises during the feedback sessions, but notes may not be made. Problem Solving Exercises will be returned for this session but they may not be retained. You will be provided with an individual feedback summary sheet.
If you have concerns about Problem Solving Exercises, please make an individual appointment after the feedback session. Individual appointments will not be made to give individual feedback unless students have attended a scheduled session or can provide evidence of unavoidable disruption to study, such as a medical certificate.
How do I get feedback if I completed the Problem Solving Exercise with an external supervisor?
Feedback seminars will be audio or video-recorded and sent to external students on DVD, along with the marked Problem Solving Exercise and an individual feedback summary sheet. Materials for the feedback session will be posted to your supervisor approximately 2 weeks after receipt of the exercise. Please note that your final results will not be released until all feedback materials have been returned to the University. Please note if you plan to attend a feedback session at Macquarie University, you should inform the unit convenor that you do not require the feedback materials.
It is critical for students and supervisors to understand that students may only have access to materials in the presence of their supervisor. This means that the supervisor must post these items back to your convenor, Building X5A at Macquarie University. You may, however, keep your individual feedback sheet. If a student has any unsupervised access to either the Problem Solving Exercises or feedback materials (including posting them to back to your convenor), they will automatically be failed on the Problem Solving Exercise, resulting in a failure on the unit. If a student decides to withdraw from the unit, materials must still be returned directly to your convenor.
How do I get feedback if I am an out-of-Sydney student and choose to travel to Macquarie University for the Problem Solving Exercises?
If you are a distance student, and choose to travel to the University for the Problem Solving Exercises, but do not want to travel to the feedback seminars, you will need to have a supervisor for the feedback sessions. This should be arranged by the end of the second week of semester. If there are any changes to this arrangement, you should notify your unit convenor.
Is there anything else I should know about Problem Solving Exercises?
Students sometimes think that they do not need to be thoroughly familiar with the material in the unit as the exercises are open book. This is most definitely not the case. You need to be sufficiently familiar with the material to know where to look for material that will enable you to solve a given problem. Also, while you will have time in the Problem Solving Exercises to check a detail or look at an example, you will NOT have time to read chapters or review topics that have not been adequately covered in the first instance.
What if I am unable to complete a Problem Soving Exercise?
If you are unable to attend a Problem Solving Exercise, an application for extension or an alternate date should submit a disruption to studies form through ask@mq.edu.au. You must contact your unit convenor prior to submitting the request.
Reasons for the extension need to be documented through the disruption to study process accessible through ask@mq.edu.au and supported with documentation (e.g. a Professional Authority Form).
Extension will only be granted in receipt of the completed form submitted through askMQ, plus documentation. Further information about disruption to study is in the General Assessment Information section.
Requests that are made after the date of the Problem Solving Exercise will only be considered if the student can provide documented evidence that is was not possible to contact the unit convenor and submit a special consideration request before the due date.
You are advised that it is Macquarie University policy not to set early examinations for individuals or groups of students. All students are expected to ensure that they are available until the end of the teaching semester, that is the final day of the official examination period.
How do I get the results of Problem Solving Exercises?
Marked Problem Solving Exercises will be available for reviewing at the following Feedback Seminars.
Grades for the Problem Solving Exercises will be posted on the unit website, in GRADES under the TOOLS tab.
Please note that it is Centre policy that results will not be given over the phone or by email. Please visit the unit website for information.