General  Information

Grading procedures

Results for assessments will be reported as Grades (i.e., HD, D, Cr, P, F) consistent with University grade descriptors. Where the grades are used to report results for assessment components with significant weighting, convenors may also optionally add the suffixes of + (plus) or - (minus) to the generic descriptor in order to provide additional detail. For example:

     Pass +

     Pass

     Pass -

In this case, a 'Pass +' would indicate performance in the upper end of the pass range, a grade of 'Pass' would indicate a mid range pass and a 'Pass -' would indicate performance at the lower end of the pass range. This principle is applied to all grade descriptors ( i.e., HD, D, CR, P, F )

Raw scores for all assessments will be moderated according to the University guidelines so that work judged to be of a given standard is awarded a moderated score within the following distribution: High Distinction 85 - 100; Distinction 75 - 84; Credit 65 - 74; Pass 50 - 64; Fail 0 - 49.

For example, if it is judged that the HD standard for a particular assessment is met by work scoring 90 - 100, raw scores will be adjusted so that students received moderated scores between 85 and 100. This moderation takes into account both the stated performance standards for the assessment component and the degree of difficulty of the specific task.

Assessment weighting

All assessment tasks must be attempted for students to be eligible for an overall passing grade in the unit.

Students are required to gain an overall pass on the unit, but do not have to pass all assessment components. If you perform poorly on one component, you may compensate for this with a better performance in the other component.

Consistent with the University Assessment Policy, moderated scores will be used in the calculation of final grades. The final unit score will be the weighted average of the moderated scores for the unit.

Resubmission

Students are required to gain an overall pass on the unit, but do not have to pass all assessment components. If you perform poorly on one component, you may compensate for this with an improved performance in the other component. Resubmission is not permitted.

Appeals against grades for individual assessment components

If any student has concern about the marking of an assessment, they must:

• Consult the member of staff who marked the work.

• If there is no satisfactory resolution, an appeal should be made in writing to the unit convenor within one week of the marked assessment being returned or of results being made available. The student should explicitly state the basis of the appeal.

The Unit convenor will review the marking and may, at their discretion, ask for a re-marking by a second marker. If re-marking by a second marker is judged appropriate, the final mark will normally be the average of the two marks awarded for the assessment task. Students should note that the revised mark for the task may be higher, the same, or lower than the original mark.

Please note that it is policy to double mark all failing assessments. The decision of the unit convenor is final.

Appeals against final unit grades

See the Policies and Procedures section for details on appeals against Unit Grades.

Academic honesty and plagiarism

You must read the Academic Integrity Policy that is linked in the Policies and Procedures section of this guide.

Important points:

• Close paraphrasing of another persons’ writing is considered to be plagiarism. You must express ideas using your own words.

• Claim of ignorance of the University policy on plagiarism is NOT a defence. If you do not understand the Academic Integrity policy, please seek advice from a member of the academic staff.

Detailed  Information on Assessments

Assignment

The assignment will be available from the website approximately at the end of week 3 of the semester. In general, good presentation, correct grammar, spelling and appropriate word choice will be expected. Express your ideas concisely and clearly. Please use single spacing.  

The assignment rubric will be available from the web site when the assignment is released. 

How do I submit my assignment?

A link for assignment submission will be provided on the web site in the Assessment section.

How do I know my assignment submission was successful? 

Staff will NOT respond to requests to confirm that assignments have been correctly submitted. You will receive an email receipt on successful submission of your assignment in your student email account. Make sure that this has been received and retain this receipt. No claims will be considered regarding missing assignments without this receipt. You can also re-download your assignment to double-check it was submitted. 

Can I get an extension and what are the late penalties? 

Applications for extensions must be made via AskMQ at https://ask.mq.edu.au as a “Special Consideration" request before the submission date. Students who experience a disruption to their studies through ill-health or misadventure are able to apply for this request. Extensions can only be granted if they meet the Special Consideration policy and are submitted via ask.mq.edu.au. This will ensure consistency in the consideration of such requests is maintained.

In general, there should be no need for extensions except through illness or misadventure that would be categorised as unavoidable disruption according to the University definition of same, and currently available at: https://students.mq.edu.au/study/my-study-program/special-consideration

Assignments received after the due date will be accepted provided they are received no later than 10 calendar days late. Note that this is a period of grace, not a new deadline, and extension requests for events after the original due date will not be considered. No assignment will be accepted after 10 days, except when an extension has been approved. Note that the 10 day period of grace applies only to the original due date. No period of grace applies when an extension has been granted. When an extension has been granted, the work must be submitted by the revised due date or a mark of zero will be awarded. 

Late submissions without extension will receive a penalty of 5% reduction of the total possible mark for each day late (including weekends and public holidays). You are reminded that submitting even just 1 day late could be the difference between passing and failing a unit. Late penalties are applied by unit convenors or their delegates after tasks are assessed.

No assessable work will be accepted after the return/release of marked work on the same topic. If a student is still permitted to submit on the basis of special consideration, an alternative topic may be set.

Students should keep an electronic file of all assessments. Claims regarding "lost" assessments cannot be made if the file cannot be produced. It is also advisable to keep an electronic file of all drafts and the final submission on a USB untouched/unopened after submission. This can be used to demonstrate easily that the assessment has not been amended after the submission date.

What if my hard disk crashed, my pet hippopotamus ate my computer, etc? 

Computer problems will not be accepted as reasons for extensions. You are responsible for making sure your work is adequately backed up. Make sure your work is regularly backed up on a USB drive or to a cloud-based backup and don't leave your submission to the last minute. Always keep your hippopotamus and computer in separate rooms.

When is the deadline for submission? 

The deadline is 11:55 pm on the due date. Note that this means you must submit BEFORE 11:55 pm. Note that it takes time to upload your assignment to Turnitin. This is normally quite quick but will depend on the speed of your internet connection at the time. The submission time is the time that assignment is recorded as received by Turnitin as we can not verify the time you started uploading. You need to allow time for the upload. Do not leave submission of your assignment to the last hours (or minutes).

What if my assignment is only 11 seconds late? 

Late is late. Any submission after the deadline will be considered late. Do not leave submission of your assignment to the last hours (or minutes).

What if I accidentally submit a blank assignment, the wrong document, etc? 

We can only mark what you submit. Make sure you re-download your assignment from the location that it was submitted and verify the correct document has been submitted. No consideration will be offered if you submit the incorrect document. You may submit your assignment as many times as you wish before the due date and only the last submitted version will be marked.

When preparing your assignments, it is essential that:

• Students regularly save a copy of all assignments before submission.

• Unless there are exceptional circumstances, no assessment will be accepted after the date that the assessment has been returned to other students.

Final Submissions:

• Students are responsible for checking that their submission has been successful and has been submitted by the due date and time.

• Late submissions due to last minute technical difficulties will incur a lateness penalty.

What if I exceed the word limits?

Components of answers beyond any stated work limit will not be marked. That is, answers will only be marked up to the stated word limit.

How will I get feedback on my assignment?

Your marked assessment task, along with feedback information, will be returned electronically.

Final Examination

THIS UNIT INCLUDES A FINAL EXAMINATION THAT MUST BE COMPLETED IN AUSTRALIA IN THE NOMINATED EXAMINATION PERIOD. 

Distance students will be required to attend a nominated external examination centre in Australia. If you are not able to meet these requirements, ensure you withdraw from the unit before the HECS cut-off date. 

A three-hour examination will be held during the University examination period. It will be comprised typically of questions that require short answer and will include questions addressing conceptual understanding and practical application of unit content. All unit content is examinable.

Students will be allowed to bring one A4 sheet of notes (single-sided) into  the final examination. These notes may be typed or hand written and your name must be placed in the top right-hand corner. These notes must be submitted with your examination. 

A sample examination paper will be provided at the end of the unit.

Please note that exams are scheduled Monday to Saturday. University rules specify that students must ensure that they are available for the full duration of the final examination period. Distance students will be required to attend a nominated external examination centre.

Final Examination Rubric

In general, markers will be looking for the following qualities in your responses in the examination:

• Depth and breadth of knowledge of key concepts and principles related to communication addressed in the unit.

• Integration of concepts and principles from relevant content across the unit.

• Evidence of generalisation of the concepts and principles addressed in the unit to new examples.

• Synthesis of relevant content to address practical problems.

• Quality and originality of critical analysis.

• Ability to effectively apply conceptual understanding to novel examples.

Examinations will be graded according to the University grade descriptors. 

Online Participation

What does online participation involve? Online participation involves making posts on the Topic Discussion Forums of the unit website. Once a post is made in a topic Discussion Forum, anybody in the unit can read or respond to it. Online participation allows you to give feedback and receive feedback from other students and staff, to explore issues in discussion with other students and staff. 

When can I contribute? You may contribute up until 11:55pm on the due date. The content of each forum will remain accessible, but no further posts will count toward participation after the closing date.

Closing dates for discussion forums

Topic     Closing Date

1                  1/3

2                  8/3

3                  15/3

4                  22/3

5                  29/3

6                  3/5

7                  10/5

8                 17/5

9                 24/5

10                31/5

How much do I have to contribute?

Each student is expected to make a minimum of ten (10) contributions to the topic discussions over the course of the semester. You must post in at least eight (8) of the ten (10) topics. Only posts to Topic Forums (i.e., Topic 1 to Topic 10) will be counted and posts must be a minimum of 50 words. Posts of less than 50 words will not could toward participation. Social posts and general administrative questions and comments do not count towards your assessment. ​

Can I just post answers to study guide questions?

Posting answers to study guide questions is permissible but more meaningful and thoughtful contributions are preferred. The unit convenor will not routinely respond to or comment on study guide answers, unless they are egregiously in error or you specifically request a response. 

How are the posts marked? 

Only eligible contributions to Topic Forums are counted. The convenor will mark each eligible post and the total of eligible posts will appear progressively in the Grades section. If you make fewer than ten posts to topic forums, your maximum possible mark will be reduced by half a mark for each missing post. Similarly, if you post in less than 8 forums, your maximum possible mark will reduced by half a mark for each forum missed.

General Organisation of the Unit

The unit is organised in external mode only, and in a flexible delivery format.

Delivery is designed such that students may seek as much or as little assistance as required in completing the unit. In flexible delivery units, it is critical that students are organised and disciplined. If you get significantly behind in your topic coverage, it may be impossible to catch up. Please start your study as soon as possible.

Unit Delivery: Teaching and Learning Strategy

• Study guides provide an overview of topics and guide learning.

• Readings are designed to prepare students for the seminars as well as broaden their

understanding of topics.

• Online presentations provide information and highlight key concepts.

• Review quizzes enable you to monitor your own learning. The review quizzes will

remain open throughout the semester.

• Forums provide students with the opportunity to ask question and discuss issues relevant to the unit. Contributions to the online discussion forum are not compulsory but can be a beneficial way of exchanging ideas and discussing unit content with other students. Although unit convenors typically check the Discussion Forums daily (on weekdays), they will not respond to all posts, as discussion between students may be more appropriate. Forums should be checked every 48 hours for important announcements.

• Dialog allows students to communicate privately with the unit staff. Dialog should be checked every 48 hours for important information.

• Zoom Meetings allow students to meet online with unit staff to seek clarification or discuss relevant issues.

• Assessments allow students to refine and demonstrate achievement of unit learning outcomes.

Technologies Used and Required

The unit uses an iLearn web site. You may access the site from:

           https://ilearn.mq.edu.au

Zoom Meetings will be used for consultation. You can sign up to use the service for free (https://www.zoom.us) and download clients for computers and mobile devices here:

         https://www.zoom.us/download#client_4meeting

Topics

The following table gives an overview of topics covered in the unit. The suggested completion dates for each topic can be found in Online Participation in the General Assessment section of this Unit Guide.

Zoom Meetings

Zoom Meetings will be scheduled if students have questions or wish to discuss issues with the unit convenor. Meetings will be terminated after 10 minutes if no students are in attendance.

To join from a PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone or Android device, please click this URL: https://macquarie.zoom.us/j/523684189​

The following meetings are scheduled:

• 25/2 at 5 pm
• 3/3 at 5 pm
• 10/3 at 5 pm
• 17/3 at 5 pm
• 24/3 at 5 pm
• 31/3 at 5 pm
• 7/4 at 5 pm
• 5/5 at 5 pm
• 12/5 at 5 pm
• 19/5 at 5 pm
• 26/5 at 5 pm
• 2/6 at 5 pm (sample examination review - recorded)

Text

There is no required text for this unit.

Required reading

Compulsory readings may be downloaded from the Leganto link on the unit web site 

If you are considering withdrawing from this unit, please seek academic advice by writing to https://ask.mq.edu.au before doing so as this unit may be a co-requisite or prerequisite for units in the following semesters and may impact on your progression through the degree.