Assessment Criteria Assessment at Macquarie University is standards-based, as outlined in the Assessment Policy. This means that your work will be assessed against clear criteria, and these criteria (e.g. in a rubric) will be made available when the assessment tasks and instructions are released to you on iLearn.

Submission of Assessments All assessments must be submitted online through Turnitin unless otherwise indicated. Links for the submission of each assessment will be available on iLearn. You should always check that you have uploaded the correct file. If you have a problem, please email the Unit Convenor with your correct file. You must also keep a copy of your assessments until the end of semester in case there is a problem with your submission. It is your responsibility to ensure that you can provide a copy of your assessment if requested.

Marking of Assessments Assessments will usually be marked through Turnitin with grades provided through Gradebook on iLearn. Please do not submit your assessments via email or in hard copy unless requested. We aim to return your assessment grades and feedback within two weeks of the date that you submitted it. We appreciate your patience and will advise you through iLearn when your marked assessments and feedback are available for viewing.

Group Assessments For Group assessments, all members of the group will initially receive the same mark, but the group mark will be converted to an individual mark based on the outcomes of peer review. This means that your mark may be moderated up or down depending on your contribution to the group assessment.

Penalties for Late Assessments

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 7^th day (including weekends). After the 7^th day, a grade of '0' will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. A 1-hour grace period is provided for online submissions of non-timed assessments for those 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 accepted for the Annotated Mind Map as per the Standard Late Penalty Policy. The Field Participation assessment is mandatory. Students should withdraw from the unit if they can not participate on the field trip. All other assessments do not take late submissions unless Special Consideration is granted. Please see https://students.mq.edu.au/study/assessment-exams/assessments for more information. 

Extensions for Assessments To obtain an extension for an assessment task, you will need to follow the formal process as outlined in the Special Consideration Policy, and you must provide appropriate supporting evidence (e.g. medical certificate - see advice for Special Consideration requests). The final decision regarding the granting of an extension lies with the unit convenor. Permission for extensions must be sought before the due date unless there are exceptional circumstances. Please let us know of problems in advance or as soon as possible, not after the event. We are likely to be much more sympathetic and able to accommodate your circumstance if you follow this advice.

Academic Honesty In completing and submitting the Assessments, you must be aware of, and adhere to, the University policy on Academic Honesty, which can be accessed here: http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/policy.html. The University implements the Academic Honesty Policy for all pieces of academic work by using a number of systems and checks, including: • Copy detection software such as Turnitin • Random sampling of assessment items to check for similarities • Comparing student performance across a number of tasks • Requiring students to defend submitted work e.g. oral exams or presentations The penalties, where a person has been proven to have breached the policy (or any of its related procedures), are outlined here: http://www.mq.edu.au/policy/docs/academic_honesty/schedule_penalties.html

Each student is responsible for their own work and for reporting suspected breaches to the convenor or Head of School together with all relevant materials or evidence of the basis of the allegation.

Unit iLearn This unit has an iLearn page that can be accessed through ilearn.mq.edu.au. It contains important information and other materials relating to the unit, including further details on the assessments, links for uploading assessment submissions, details on the field trip, and a discussion page. It will also be used to circulate data and other materials related to the field trip and assessments.

Communication The unit iLearn is the primary way that we communicate with you. Please check it regularly for announcements and posts. You are encouraged to use the Discussion Board on iLearn to post questions and generate discussion with other students. Please only email the convenor with private matters – all other questions should be posted on iLearn.

Classes and Unit Schedule This unit is delivered in intensive mode as a 2 week block. It includes several workshops and a multi-day field trip which are compulsory - the dates for these can be found by searching for ENVS8407 in the Timetable portal. The unit schedule and more detailed information on the unit will be provided through iLearn. This is particularly important especially if changes need to be made due to COVID.

Workload The expected workload for this 10-credit point unit is 150 hours of activity, comprising of workshops, group-based activities, the field trip, and independent study to complete the assessments.

Requirements to complete this unit satisfactorily

In order to successfully complete this unit, you must: 1. Attend and participate in all the workshops and group-based activities; 2. Attend and participate in all days of the field trip; 3. Submit all assessments; 4. Achieve a pass grade or higher.

The descriptions for grades common to all coursework units offered by Macquarie University are outlined in Schedule 1 of the Assessment Policy. Non-attendance at the field trip for any reason other than those outlined in the Disruption to Studies Policy will result in an automatic fail. NOTE: If you cannot attend the field trip for any reason, you should inform the unit convenor and withdraw from the unit.  

Recommended Texts and/or Materials There is no specific textbook for this unit. You will be required to research information independently and consult a wide variety of information sources to aid your learning in this unit.

Referencing In this unit, the preferred style of referencing is Harvard (author, date). For further details on the Harvard style, go to: https://libguides.mq.edu.au/referencing/Harvard

Technology Used and Required This unit will use iLearn. See the Instructions on how to log in to iLearn and the iLearn quick guides for students which will help you: • Getting started - Find out how to navigate and familiarise yourself with the iLearn environment • Activities - Learn how to effectively complete the activities required of you in iLearn • Assignments and Gradebook - Find out how to submit assessments and view your grades using iLearn • Online study tips - Studying online is a unique experience, learn how to navigate it here • Discussion forums - Explore the different types, and features of discussion forums in iLearn