Full instructions for each assignment, including the assessment criteria can be found in the assignment guide attached to the ECHP3250 iLearn site.

Assessment Presentation and Submission Guidelines

Please follow these guidelines when you submit each assignment:

• Allow a left and right-hand margin of at least 2cm in all assignments.
• Please type all assignments using 12-point font and 1.5 spacing.
• All assessments must be submitted through Turnitin in .doc or .pdf format
• It is the responsibility of the student to ensure that all assessments are successfully submitted through Turnitin.
• Faculty assignment cover sheets are NOT required.

Submissions of Family & Children’s Records

Some assessment tasks require students to submit records about families and about children and their learning. It is expected that the records submitted are original, authentic, adhere to ethical practices and are the work of the student. Issues with the authenticity of such records will be investigated for possible forgery. Please note that submitted records can only be used once for assessment purposes.

 Confidentiality

Students must respect the need for sensitivity and confidentiality, and ensure that privacy obligations are met. There should be nothing in assessment submissions that identifies a centre or school. Use pseudonyms for any children or adults referred to in the assignment. Do not record details that enable identification of a site, or of children or adults.

Draft Submissions & Turnitin Originality Reports

• Students may use Turnitin’s Originality Report as a learning tool to improve their academic writing if this option is made available in the unit.
• Students are strongly encouraged to upload a draft copy of each assessment to Turnitin at least one week prior to the due date to obtain an Originality Report.
• The Originality Report provides students with a similarity index that may indicate if plagiarism has occurred. Students will be able to make amendments to their drafts prior to their final submission on the due date.
• Generally, one Originality Report is generated every 24 hours up to the due date.

Please note:

• Students should regularly save a copy of all assignments before submission,
• Students are responsible for checking that their submission has been successful and has been submitted by the due date and time.

Assignment extensions and late penalties

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

• Applications for extensions must be made via AskMQ according to the Special Consideration policy. Extensions can only be granted if they meet the Special Considerations policy and are submitted via https://ask.mq.edu.au/. This will ensure consistency in the consideration of such requests is maintained.

• Late submissions: Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, (a) a penalty for lateness will apply – two (2) marks out of 100 will be deducted per day for assignments submitted after the due date – and (b) no assignment will be accepted more than seven (7) days (incl. weekends) after the original submission deadline. No late submissions will be accepted for timed assessments – e.g. quizzes, online tests. Late penalties are applied by unit convenors or their delegates after tasks are assessed.

• If a student is still permitted to submit on the basis of unavoidable disruption, 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.

Requesting a re-assessment of an assignment

If you have evidence that your task has been incorrectly assessed against the grade descriptors you can request a re-mark. To request a re-mark you need to contact the unit convenor within 7 days of the date of return of the assignment and provide a detailed assessment of your script against the task criteria. Evidence from your assignment must be provided to support your judgements.

Note: Failed assessments cannot be re-marked as they are all double-marked as a part of the moderation process.

Please note: The outcome of a re-mark may be a higher/lower or unchanged grade. Grades are standards referenced and effort is NOT a criterion.

University policy on grading

Criteria for awarding grades for assessment tasks

Assignments will be awarded grades ranging from HD to F according to guidelines set out in the University's Grading Policy. The following descriptive criteria are included for your information.

Descriptive Criteria for awarding grades in the unit

In order to meet the unit outcomes and successfully pass this unit, students must make a genuine attempt at all assessment tasks. Where any submitted assessment task is considered to be unsatisfactory in this regard, the highest possible final grade that can be awarded for the unit will be 45.

Students will be awarded grades ranging from HD to F according to guidelines set out in the policy: https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/assessment-in-effect-from-session-2-2016

The following generic grade descriptors provide university-wide standards for awarding final grades.

Note: If you fail a unit with a professional experience component the fail grade will be on your transcript irrespective of the timing of  the placement.

Results

Results shown in iLearn, 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.

Withdrawing from this UG Unit

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

Required Textbooks

These texts can be purchased from Booktopia.

* Arthur, L., Beecher, B., Death, E., Dockett, S. & Farmer, S. (2018). Programming and planning in early childhood settings (7th ed.).Victoria: Thomson

Crowther, I. (2016). Creating effective learning environments (4th ed.). Ontario: Nelson Education.

* Note this text is required in ECHP1220, ECHP2220 and ECHP3250

School of Education  Relevant Documents The information in this Unit Guide must be read in conjunction with the information on iLearn and the ECHP1220 Professional Experience Requirements

Unit Structure

The unit comprises pre-recorded lectures and online tutorials. In the tutorial students will discuss issues and questions arising from the lectures and prescribed readings. They are expected to base their arguments/discussions on evidence from published research and other relevant material. Attendance at all tutorials is expected. Please refer to iLearn for further information. The weekly program for the course with the accompanying readings/ preparation is available on the following pages or on the unit ILearn site.

Electronic Communication During semester time, staff may contact students using the following ways:

• Dialogue function on iLearn

• Official MQ Student Email Address

• It is the student’s responsibility to check all electronic communication on a regular weekly basis.

Professional Experience Unit Placement Expectations

• Students are required to complete 10 days of Professional Experience at an early childhood centre for children aged birth-5

• To be eligible to commence the block placement component of this unit, students

• Must have submitted all written assessment tasks and/or associated unit component requirements prior to the commencement of the block
• Must meet the attendance and participation requirements for the unit
• A Working with Children Check or State/ Territory equivalent
  • A Working with Children Check or State/Territory equivalent is required by the end of Week 3 to be eligible for a placement. Students may need to withdraw from this unit if this has not been obtained in time.
• Students who are completing a unit offered by another department are expected to inform and negotiate with that unit convener about their professional experience block dates and to discuss how that unit's requirements can be met. For some situations, it may mean that you are enrolled externally for that unit so that your attendance for tutorials for that unit is not impacted.
• Feedback from Tertiary Supervisors and/or Supervising Teachers is of a general nature. It is incumbent on the student to check the requirements of assessments against the marking criteria and unit outcomes prior to submission.
• Students may not be able to commence their placement until all alleged academic integrity breaches have been investigated and concluded.
• In order to meet the Professional Experience placement expectations of this unit, students must:
  • attain a ‘Satisfactory’ grade for their Professional Experience Practical Work in their Evaluation Report, AND 
  •  attain a ‘Satisfactory’ grade for their Professional Experience Folder in their Evaluation Report

Twice Fail Rule for Professional Experience Units General Coursework Rule 10(7) stipulates that if a student fails a required unit twice in an undergraduate professional program listed on Schedule 2, they may be permanently excluded from further enrolment in that program.Students completing a double degree will be able to continue with their other degree program provided they meet the academic progression requirements of the Academic Progression Policy.Students completing a single Education degree (such as the BEd) are advised to seek academic advice.