Students

GMBA8103 – Improve Yourself, Always

2020 – Coursera term 5, Fully online/virtual

Notice

As part of Phase 3 of our return to campus plan, most units will now run tutorials, seminars and other small group learning activities on campus for the second half-year, while keeping an online version available for those students unable to return or those who choose to continue their studies online.

To check the availability of face to face activities for your unit, please go to timetable viewer. To check detailed information on unit assessments visit your unit's iLearn space or consult your unit convenor.

General Information

Download as PDF
Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor
Paul Nesbit
Teaching Assistant
Linden Misselbrook
Contact via globalmba.support@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
5
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to GMBA
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

The world of work is characterised by rapid ongoing change. In this dynamic environment, one of the most critical skills for leaders is their capacity to learn and to adapt; to engage in the continuous development of their skills in managing and leading others. This unit is designed to assist you in your efforts for the ongoing development of your skills and abilities by focusing on the nature of the self-development process. The unit will assist students to reflect on and develop self-awareness of their current leadership style, to understand their current and needed strengths and challenges as a leader. The unit also examines the change process and explores the processes of self-regulation that underpin personal skill development.

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:

  • ULO1: Critically evaluate the nature of the self-development process.
  • ULO2: Apply skills of self-reflection to enhance self-awareness of development insights about their leadership styles.
  • ULO3: Apply skills of self-reflection to enhance self-awareness of development insights about their abilities and challenges as leaders
  • ULO4: Apply the self-development process to an area of a personal leadership skill challenge.

General Assessment Information

Submission

You will submit your assessment tasks via your online unit on Coursera.

For individual submissions, please use the following naming convention for your file:

lastname-firstname-GMBAxxx-A1.* 

lastname-firstname-GMBAxxx-A2.*

For group submissions, please use the following naming convention for your file:

team-number-GMBAxxx-A1.* 

team-number-GMBAxxx-A2.* 

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Extensions 

Please note that no extensions will be granted. There will be a deduction of 10% of the total available marks made from the total awarded mark for each 24 hour period or part thereof that the submission is late (for example, 25 hours late in submission = 20% penalty). This penalty does not apply for cases in which an application for special consideration is made and approved. 

For any questions regarding your assignment submission or to apply for special consideration, please send an email to globalmba.support@mq.edu.au.

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Formatting instructions

These instructions pertain only to written assignments. In the case of other formats (e.g., slide decks) specific formatting instructions may apply. Written assignments should be in 11 point Arial font with 1.5 line spacing. Each page of the report should be numbered and have at minimum 2.5 cm margins from the left and right edges and top and bottom of the page. The word count is strictly enforced. The actual word length of the document, not including references or appendices, should be clearly stated on the title page of the report. Written assignments should have the following structure:

  1. A title page with the question, your student name and student number, word count of the text

  2. ​The body of the report structured with paragraphs and with appropriate headings and citations, with page numbers.

  3. Complete reference list of material cited in the text.

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Referencing

Please use the American Psychological Association (APA) 6th edition reference style. This means that when referring to an article or book etc, you indicate the author’s name followed by the year of publication (Jones, 1989). For multiple authors include all names (Jones, Smith, & Wilson, 1990). If you use a direct quote put the quoted words in “quotation marks” and include the page number with the reference (Jones, 1989, p. 76). A reference list should be presented in alphabetical order at the end of the paper. Further information on APA style is available at http://libguides.mq.edu.au/content.php?pid=85232&sid=634282

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Commercial in Confidence

Please note that you must not disclose any information marked ‘Commercial in Confidence’ without permission from the party who supplied it (e.g., your current or previous employer, customers, etc.). 

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Leadership Style Analysis 40% No 17 September 2020, 11:59pm (AEST)
Skill Development Action Plan 60% No 8 October 2020, 11:59pm (AEDT)

Leadership Style Analysis

Assessment Type 1: Reflective Writing
Indicative Time on Task 2: 9 hours
Due: 17 September 2020, 11:59pm (AEST)
Weighting: 40%

 

Length: max 1,500 words (excl. references) Task type: Reflective Analysis Groupwork: No Task: In this assignment, you will critically evaluate your leadership style and the strengths and weaknesses of that style. You need to utilise your understanding of the self-understanding phase of the self-development model and apply the skills of self-reflection to work (or social) experiences to support your analysis. Please refer to the section Resources - Assessment Information in your online unit for detailed information on this assignment as well as the marking criteria.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Critically evaluate the nature of the self-development process.
  • Apply skills of self-reflection to enhance self-awareness of development insights about their leadership styles.

Skill Development Action Plan

Assessment Type 1: Reflective Writing
Indicative Time on Task 2: 13 hours
Due: 8 October 2020, 11:59pm (AEDT)
Weighting: 60%

 

Length: max 3,000 words (excl. references) Task type: Reflective writing Groupwork: No Task: In this assignment, you will present a self-development action plan to address no more than two (2) development aspects related to weaknesses identified in your leadership style. (Note: This should ideally relate to areas identified in Assignment 1 although you can address any two (2) skill areas you wish to improve). The plan must show an understanding of a social cognitive perspective of behaviour and an understanding of self-regulation theory in its design. Please refer to the section Resources - Assessment Information in your online unit for detailed information on this assignment as well as the marking criteria.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Apply skills of self-reflection to enhance self-awareness of development insights about their abilities and challenges as leaders
  • Apply the self-development process to an area of a personal leadership skill challenge.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Required text

There is no required textbook for this unit.  Please refer to the weekly required  readings in your online unit. All readings are available via the Macquarie University library and do not need to be purchased separately.

Delivery method

This unit will be delivered entirely online via the Coursera Learning Management System. Access to a personal computer is required to access the resources and learning materials on Coursera.

Unit Schedule

For this unit, Live Events (via the web conferencing software Zoom) will take place once a week starting in Week 1 and ending in Week 6. The links to the events are available via Live Events in the online unit. Students are strongly advised to attend the Live Events. Recordings of the live events will be made available within 24 hours of the event and can be accessed via Resources in the online unit.

Attending the Live Event each week is an opportunity to engage with the unit content, your Unit Convenor and classmates. Students are encouraged to complete specified Live Event preparation learning activities prior to each scheduled Live Event in order to get the most value out of these sessions.

Please note: The teaching schedule is subject to change. Please refer to your online unit for the latest schedule.

Week Live Events Assessments
1 Webinar: Wednesday 2 September 2020, 6-7pm (AEST)  
2 Webinar: Wednesday 9 September 2020, 6-7pm (AEST)  
3 Webinar: Wednesday 16 September 2020, 6-7pm (AEST) A1 due: 17 September 2020, 11:59pm (AEST)
4 Webinar: Wednesday 23 September 2020, 6-7pm (AEST)  
5 Webinar: Wednesday 30 September 2020, 6-7pm (AEST)  
6 Webinar: Wednesday 7 October 2020, 6-7pm (AEDT) A2 due: 8 October 2020, 11:59pm (AEDT)

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/getting-started/student-conduct​

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to help you improve your marks and take control of your study.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

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

Student Enquiries

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

If you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Changes since First Published

Date Description
14/08/2020 Change of first assignment due date from 15 Sep to 17 Sep.