Assessment 1 PROJECT PROPOSAL

Due: 18th August

Weighting: 25%  

The Project Proposal is developed in response to the client's project brief. A group meeting is held with the client which will enable each group to define and scope the consultancy project. Your team then prepares a project proposal to the client and for submission to the unit convenor. Each team member will provide a peer assessment of their fellow group members using SparkPlus and a weighted scale will influence the final assessment score. The project proposal must have at least the following features included within the page limit of 2000 words or approximately 5 pages.

• Cover page/ or introductory letter

• Introduction on the context for the project review by group members.

• Objectives: A clear statement of the project objectives.

• Methods: A clear statement of the way in which the group intends to carry out the project; with a method to achieve each objective.

• Milestones: A work plan showing the milestones to be achieved during the project.

• Deliverables: A summary of the outputs to be delivered to the client.

• Budget: A notional business plan and schedule of putative progress payments. These should be linked to the milestones. 

• Summary of the team members' expertise.

An assessment rubric will be provided on the Unit's iLearn site.

Each group will also be required to give a 15-minute presentation of its Project Proposal to the class. The purposes of this are to: a) provide initial practice in presentation skills to prepare for the final presentations to each group's client at the end of the unit, and b) to receive feedback from other groups on the communication and feasibility of the project. This presentation will not receive marks, though feedback will be given by mentors and students in class.

Students will also create a logbook. The logbook is a detailed list of what you have done on the project and the time spent doing it. The logbook enables you to assess the real-time each section of the work took so that when preparing future budgets you have a more realistic appreciation of where time is spent. You use the logbook to assist in your reflections on practice. 

Assessment 2 FINAL REPORT

Due: 27th October

Weighting: 60%

A draft Final Report is submitted two weeks prior to the Final due date for the unit convenor to review. Note your marks are based on the final submission. This Final Report should be of the quality that you intend to send to the client. The convenor reviews and advices on the clarity of the report and its relevance to the client's expectations. You will likely have to undertake further work based on feedback, as only reports of the highest standard are to be released to the client. More information on the expectations for the final report is on the ilearn site. NOTE: The report must be spell checked, well laid out, edited and in final form.

Assessment 3 PRESENTATION

Due: Week ending 3rd November

Weighting: 15%

Each group will be required to give a professional presentation of their main findings to the client at a time to be arranged. The format for the session to present the final report will be:

• a 20-minute presentation by the group

• 10 minutes for questions and discussion with the client.

However, the client might choose to ask questions during the presentation. The presentation may be extended to discuss the findings, recommendations and their implications.  Guidelines for the presentation are provided on the ilearn site.

The log book and a final peer assessment using SparkPlus will also be completed.

On successful completion of these tasks you will be able to:

• Demonstrate an ability to work cooperatively in a team to organise an environmental/ sustainability reporting project including 1) allocating tasks among team members; 2) setting an appropriate work program to meet deadlines; 3) Identifying the resources necessary for completion.

• Professionally and responsibly carry out allocated tasks at all stages to develop the environmental/ sustainability reports (proposal, context report and final report) so that the individual contributions can be integrated into the final project report and presentation for the client.

• Prepare a professional-quality written environmental/sustainability consultancy report relevant to the client's situation and specifications.

 •Prepare and present a professional quality oral and visual presentation to the client and respond effectively to the client's questions

• Track "chargeable time" through the maintenance of a logbook

Requirements to pass this unit

• Achieve a total mark equal to or greater than 50%

Submission of assessments

All students are required to keep a backup of the submitted version of their proposal and final report. Students are not permitted to email their assignments or submit them in a softcopy format. Assignments are to be submitted via the Turnitin link provided in iLearn by the date and time specified.

Late Assessment Submission Penalty 

From 1 July 2022, Students enrolled in Session-based units with written assessments will have the following late penalty applied. Please see https://students.mq.edu.au/study/assessment-exams/assessments for more information. 

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a grade of '0' will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11:55 pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical concern. 

For any late submission of time-sensitive tasks, such as scheduled tests, exams, performance assessments/presentations, and/or scheduled practical assessments/labs, students need to submit an application for Special Consideration.  

Assessments where Late Submissions will be accepted 

In this unit, late submissions will be accepted as follows: 

• Project proposal - YES, Standard Late Penalty applies

• Final report - YES, Standard Late Penalty applies

• Presentation - YES, Standard Late Penalty applies

Students with a pre-existing disability/health condition or prolonged adverse circumstances are advised to seek support from Student Wellbeing and should also refer to the Student Disability Support Policy.

Special Consideration

The Special Consideration Policy aims to support students who have been impacted by short-term circumstances or events that are serious, unavoidable and significantly disruptive, and which may affect their performance in assessment. If you experience circumstances or events that affect your ability to complete the assessments in this unit on time, please inform the convenor and submit a Special Consideration request through ask.mq.edu.au.

Week 1 Classes

The first workshop will be held face-to-face with online streaming on 01CC 103 (Central Courtyard). See iLearn page for more details. 

Methods of Communication

We will communicate with you via your university email and through announcements on iLearn. Queries to convenors can either be placed on the iLearn discussion board or sent to the unit convenor via the contact email on iLearn.

Teaching and Learning Strategy

Each student group is responsible for the delivery of a Consultancy Report on an environmental/ planning or sustainability project for a client. The client may be either inside or outside the University.

The projects prepared by each client are an example of work practice - they are real projects that the client wants done to advance their environmental or sustainability practice in one way or another.

Each student group will act like a real consultant in all of their relations with the client and in all activities undertaken on their behalf. The teaching and learning strategy includes:

• three skills workshops (1.Information session on the unit expectations and key considerations in undertaking a consultancy; 2.Successfully managing a consultancy project; 3. Report writing for clients and ethical behaviour in the commercial world) ;

• self learning resources on handling group work and consultancies;

• regular group mentoring meetings on managing team processes, project management, and substantive components of the task with the convenor/ mentor;

• group interaction, dialogue and problem solving in a participative way;

• through class interaction, practice of presentations;

• learning to give and receive professional feedback from peers and mentors;

• reflection on your own professional practice;

• feedback from clients.

As students are involved in a real life situation it is valuable to keep an individual log of hours and task completed. Also there is an expectation of self reflection to assess own performance in client and team interaction and to assist in writing the final professional reflection on experience. Some guidelines are set out below to help student groups in their relations with, and activities for their client organisation.

Relations with the client

Whenever the group meets with the client, each member should be appropriately dressed (smart casual) as becomes professional consultants; the client management team who meet with you will be similarly attired.

In order to manage the client-consultant relation it is advised to schedule at least four formal contacts between the group and the client representative or representatives. These should be planned and agreed upon with the client at the first meeting.

1. Client Briefing: An initial meeting to define and scope the project. The unit staff will have already met with all clients to do preliminary work towards this and will accompany each group at the first meeting to give advice as necessary.

2. A progress meeting (or report without meeting) in about the sixth week of semester. At this point the group should indicate clearly to the client whether all planned outputs will be achieved and any necessary modifications to the contract put forward for agreement by both parties.

3. A findings meeting (draft report) to the client before the presentation and formal submission of the final report to foreshadow the key findings.

4. A final reporting meeting at the end of semester for the group to present their final report to the client.

Some clients will only be prepared to commit to these four meetings, but others will welcome additional contact.

One of the first tasks for each group after the first meeting with the client will be to determine exactly what information they, as the consultants, will require from the client. A consolidated list should be prepared and communicated to the client representative by the nominated group leader. This sort of contact with the client should be limited to ONE group member whose responsibility it is to keep the rest of the group informed.

The group should not treat the client organisation, or their representative(s), like teaching staff or another member of the university teaching staff. The client has 'contracted' the group to do the work and research necessary to complete the project. Your feedback sessions with the client are to see that you are on track to deliver what the client wants.

In between the agreed formal meetings the group representative should provide a monthly or fortnightly email update on progress - this too should be agreed at the first meeting. In the course of their work the group may be made privy to commercially, or otherwise sensitive material, and there may be a requirement to sign a confidentiality clause. In any case all members of every group are to respect the confidentiality of information or knowledge they acquire from the client in the course of completing their contract with them.

SOME PROJECTS MAY REQUIRE ETHICS APPROVAL. The time involved in achieving these approvals may restrict what activities can be undertaken.

Activities on behalf of the client

Group members must remember that when doing anything on behalf of the client, the reputation of the client will be affected by their behaviour and actions. So any survey or similar actions must also be cleared by the client.

Technology

There is an ilearn site associated with this unit. This will be the main form of communication for detailed information and updates. Students must be able to access the internet to research background for these projects.

COVID Information

For the latest information on the University’s response to COVID-19, please refer to the Coronavirus infection page on the Macquarie website: https://www.mq.edu.au/about/coronavirus-faqs. Remember to check this page regularly in case the information and requirements change during semester. If there are any changes to this unit in relation to COVID, these will be communicated via iLearn.

Changes to this unit

The projects proposed for each semester are original projects negotiated each semester. 

We value student feedback to be able to continually improve the way we offer our units. As such we encourage students to provide constructive feedback via student surveys, to the teaching staff directly, or via the FSE Student Experience & Feedback link in the iLearn page.

Student feedback from the previous offering of this unit was very positive overall, with students pleased with the clarity around assessment requirements and the level of support from teaching staff. As such, no change to the delivery of the unit is planned, however we will continue to strive to improve the level of support and the level of student engagement.

*dates and times to be determined depending on client availability