Students
ACOM1003 – Academic Communication in Business
2020 – Session 2, Special circumstance
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
Luke Thompson
Susan Hoadley
|
|---|---|
| Credit points |
Credit points
10
|
| Prerequisites |
Prerequisites
|
| Corequisites |
Corequisites
|
| Co-badged status |
Co-badged status
|
| Unit description |
Unit description
This unit is designed to support students in their transition to university by enabling them to understand and achieve standards of performance required in an academic environment. The unit provides a three-level focus which is initiated by facilitating the development of academic practices, behaviours and values. Secondly, it fosters a level of familiarity with the disciplinary language, texts and conventions used when studying in programs offered by the Macquarie Business School. Finally, it raises awareness of the impact of business principles when they are applied to solving problems and addressing issues in contemporary society. Learning and assessment activities are designed to build the capacity for independent and collaborative approaches to learning. Students are guided to develop their capacity for reading, thinking and expressing ideas effectively and critically. |
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: Demonstrate acceptable academic practices, behaviours and values (academic integrity) in the completion of assessment tasks and other learning activities.
- ULO2: Critically gather, read, interpret, evaluate and synthesise information and ideas from appropriate sources.
- ULO3: Produce written, oral and multimodal texts appropriate to the purpose and audience in accordance with academic, disciplinary and professional communication conventions.
- ULO4: Reflect on learning experience to inform future academic, disciplinary and professional practice.
General Assessment Information
Late assessment task submissions
- Late submissions without an extension will receive a penalty of 3% of the total mark available for the assessment task per day including weekend days (i.e. this is 3% of the total marks possible for the task – NOT 3% of the marks the student received. For example, if the assessment task is worth 100 marks and the student is two days late their mark for the task is reduced by 6 marks.)
- Late submission of an assessment task without an extension will not be accepted at all:
- after the date on which marked assessment tasks have been released to the rest of the class at the unit convenor's discretion
- more than one week after the end of the teaching session at the unit convenor's discretion.
- Extensions will only be given in special circumstances, and can be requested by completing the Special Consideration request at ask.mq.edu.au and providing the requisite supporting documentation.
- Extensions that will result in submissions after the assessment task has been returned to the class will require a separate assessment task to be completed at the unit convenor's discretion.
- For more information on Special Consideration, see the university website https://students.mq.edu.au/study/my-study-program/special-consideration
- If a student fails the unit due to non-submission of an assessment task or nonattendance at an exam, an FA grade will be applied in accordance with the University's Assessment Policy.
- Unit convenors have the discretion to determine whether or not students should fail a unit on the basis of lateness penalties alone if other learning outcomes of the unit have been met.
Assessment Tasks
| Name | Weighting | Hurdle | Due |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reflection and ePortfolio | 20% | No | Weeks 2-13 |
| Information Summary | 20% | No | Week 6 (Draft Week 5) |
| Business Report | 40% | No | Week 10 (Draft Week 9) |
| Persuasive Presentation | 20% | No | Week 13 (Draft Week 12) |
Reflection and ePortfolio
Assessment Type 1: Reflective Writing
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: Weeks 2-13
Weighting: 20%
Reflections (typically 3 x 250 words) and creation of eportfolio throughout the session.
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate acceptable academic practices, behaviours and values (academic integrity) in the completion of assessment tasks and other learning activities.
- Reflect on learning experience to inform future academic, disciplinary and professional practice.
Information Summary
Assessment Type 1: Summary
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 6 (Draft Week 5)
Weighting: 20%
Structured, integrated and synthesised summary of 2-3 texts (typically 700 words) A draft of the summary is due in tutorials in the week before the week of the final submission.
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate acceptable academic practices, behaviours and values (academic integrity) in the completion of assessment tasks and other learning activities.
- Critically gather, read, interpret, evaluate and synthesise information and ideas from appropriate sources.
- Produce written, oral and multimodal texts appropriate to the purpose and audience in accordance with academic, disciplinary and professional communication conventions.
Business Report
Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: Week 10 (Draft Week 9)
Weighting: 40%
Business report (typically 1,200 words). A draft of the report is due in tutorials in the week before the week of the final submission.
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate acceptable academic practices, behaviours and values (academic integrity) in the completion of assessment tasks and other learning activities.
- Critically gather, read, interpret, evaluate and synthesise information and ideas from appropriate sources.
- Produce written, oral and multimodal texts appropriate to the purpose and audience in accordance with academic, disciplinary and professional communication conventions.
Persuasive Presentation
Assessment Type 1: Presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: Week 13 (Draft Week 12)
Weighting: 20%
In-class (face-to-face or online) presentation of a pre-prepared, persuasive and multi-modal presentation (typically 5-10 minutes followed by 3-5 minute QA/discussion). A draft of the presentation is due in tutorials 1 or 2 weeks before the presentation. (Students may choose to work in groups to complete this task.)
On successful completion you will be able to:
- Demonstrate acceptable academic practices, behaviours and values (academic integrity) in the completion of assessment tasks and other learning activities.
- Produce written, oral and multimodal texts appropriate to the purpose and audience in accordance with academic, disciplinary and professional communication conventions.
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
Online lectures and other activities are provided via iLearn (the Macquarie University Learning Management System) each week.
Two hour, weekly tutorials are delivered face-to-face and/or online. In these tutorials, students will learn through discussions as well as independent and collaborative tasks.
In order to participate in and learn from tutorials, students must watch the online lectures and complete the other online activities before the tutorial each week.
All learning activities directly support students in completing the assessment tasks and developing their communication skills.
Students must take responsibility for their own learning, prepare for tutorials and make a positive contribution to the unit learning community.
The prescribed text book is Brick, J, Herke, M & Wong, D 2016, Academic culture: A student’s guide to studying at university, 3rd edn., Palgrave Macmillan.
Students can buy the textbook via Booktopia.
Recommended texts and apps that may be useful:
- Butt, D, Fahey, R, Feez, S & Spinks, S 2012, Using functional grammar: An explorer’s guide, 3rd edn, Palgrave Macmillan.
- iGE Grammar App for iPhone, iPad and Android (available from the App store).
- Collins COBUILD English Grammar, 2011, HarperCollins.
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:
- Academic Appeals Policy
- Academic Integrity Policy
- Academic Progression Policy
- Assessment Policy
- Fitness to Practice Procedure
- Grade Appeal Policy
- Complaint Management Procedure for Students and Members of the Public
- Special Consideration Policy (Note: The Special Consideration Policy is effective from 4 December 2017 and replaces the Disruption to Studies Policy.)
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 |
|---|---|
| 07/09/2020 | Due dates for the Business Report and Persuasive Presentation assessment tasks have been made one week later in line with the iLearn site. |
| 31/07/2020 | Additional staff member added to Unit convenor and teaching staff section. |