Grade descriptors and other information concerning grading are contained in the Macquarie University Assessment Policy.

All final grades are determined by a grading committee, in accordance with the Macquarie University Assessment Policy, and are not the sole responsibility of the Unit Convenor.

Students will be awarded a final grade and a mark which must correspond to the grade descriptors specified in the Assessment Procedure (clause 128).

To pass this unit, you must demonstrate sufficient evidence of achievement of the learning outcomes, meet any ungraded requirements, and achieve a final mark of 50 or better.

Further details for each assessment task will be available on iLearn.

Grading of Assessments

You will receive a grade for each assessment within this unit. The grades awarded will reflect a holistic evaluation of the work against the criteria outlined within the corresponding assessment rubric. Course grading will be used for the HAWC assignment and Viva examination with the calculation of numerical marks for these assessment tasks based on the following percentages, and rounded to the nearest full mark:

• High distinction (HD) – 95%
• Distinction (D) – 80%
• Credit (C) – 70%
• Pass (P) – 60%
• Pass threshold (P-) – 50%
• Fail (F) – 40%

Submission of an incomplete assessment task may result in the Fail (F) grade to be awarded a numerical grade below 40%.

Hurdle Assessment

Assessment task 4, the Clinical Placement Logbook, is a hurdle assessment. A hurdle assessment is defined as an assessment task mandating a minimum level of performance as a condition of passing the unit in which it occurs. You must obtain a pass grade in this assessment as a minimum requirement for passing the unit. Should you fail to obtain a pass grade upon your initial attempt, one supplementary opportunity will be provided to demonstrate that you meet the minimum requirements for this assessment. This supplementary opportunity may be in the form of additional time to complete the task. Should you still not meet a pass standard a Fail (Hurdle) grade will be awarded, as indicated by a FH grade upon your transcript.

Late Submissions

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 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical concern.

For example:

For any late submissions 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.

Assumed Knowledge

This unit assumes that you have a good understanding of all content delivered in Semesters A-C. This unit draws on knowledge related to musculoskeletal, cardiorespiratory and neurological physiotherapy, and then extends that knowledge to cover specific paediatric populations.

Unit Organisation

This is a ten credit point unit run over a 13 week session. Overall, it is anticipated that you will spend approximately 150 hours across the session on this unit. Within this session there will be approximately 24 hours of campus-based tutorials/workshops/seminars, 20 hours of clinical placement and 39 hours of online activities, including preparation for campus-based tutorials/workshops. You will also need to allow approximately 67 hours for assessment based work.

The clinical placement hours will involve you participating in the Health and Well-being Collaboration (HAWC) clinical program where you will follow the health care experience of a paediatric volunteer from the community, and their family. This will enable you to gain a much deeper understanding of the paediatric health care system and of the interactions with other sectors or organisations distinct to the paediatric population, such as the education sector. The assessments in this unit involve integration of experience gained during the HAWC clinical program.

Teaching and Learning strategy

This unit encompasses an active learning approach where you will be expected to actively engage in enhancing your own learning experience. A blended learning and teaching strategy is implemented within this unit with online resources providing content and interactive activities such as lectures, quizzes and forums, which is further built upon in campus-based tutorials and workshops. The teaching approach will be based on you developing a deep understanding of the principles and the ability to independently think critically and solve problems. The expectation is therefore that you can translate this knowledge to different scenarios eg. children with slightly different presentations, ages or family conditions.

Recommended Readings

The following textbook is recommended but not essential. An electronic copy of this textbook is available through the library. 

Palisano, R. J., Campbell, S. K., & Orlin, M. (2014). Physical Therapy for Children. Philadelphia: Elsevier.

Recommendations about specific readings from these and other resources (such as research papers, books, websites and videos) will be listed on iLearn.

Technology Used

Active participation in the learning activities throughout the unit will require students to have access to a tablet, laptop or similar device. Students who do not own their own laptop computer may borrow one from the university library.

Consultation with staff 

All staff will be available for individual consultation. See iLearn for contact details.

Across the semester you will engage in the following modules:

• Typical development 
• Kids are not little adults
• Birth and the early years
• Standardised assessments
• Normal variance
• Paediatric cardiorespiratory physiotherapy
• Paediatric neurological physiotherapy
• Paediatric musculoskeletal and orthopaedic physiotherapy
• Adolescent medicine

Detailed information pertaining to the unit schedule can be found on iLearn.

Changes have been made to assessment tasks and weightings compared to previous offerings. These changes have been made based on student and staff feedback and to ensure a better spread of assessment for students within HWLA and across all units in Semester D. The Objective Structured Clinical Observation (OSCE) has been changed to a case study analysis with a weighting of 30%. The HAWC assignment has been reduced to just a report, rather than a report and a video component. As a result, the weighting of the HAWC report has been reduced from 40% to 30%. The Viva examination remains but with an increased weighting to 40% rather than 30%. Finally, the Clinical placement logbook remains unchanged and continues to be a hurdles assessment.

Social inclusion at Macquarie University is about giving everyone who has the potential to benefit from higher education the opportunity to study at university, participate in campus life and flourish in their chosen field. The University has made significant moves to promote an equitable, diverse and exciting campus community for the benefit of staff and students. It is your responsibility to contribute towards the development of an inclusive culture and practice in the areas of learning and teaching, research, and service orientation and delivery. As a member of the Macquarie University community, you must not discriminate against or harass others based on their sex, gender, race, marital status, carers' responsibilities, disability, sexual orientation, age, political conviction or religious belief. All staff and students are expected to display appropriate behaviour that is conducive to a healthy learning environment for everyone. 

In the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, professionalism is a key capability embedded in all our courses.

As part of developing professionalism, students are expected to attend all small group interactive sessions including clinical, practical, laboratory, work-integrated learning (e.g., PACE placements), and team-based learning activities. Some learning activities are recorded (e.g., face-to-face lectures), however you are encouraged to avoid relying upon such material as they do not recreate the whole learning experience and technical issues can and do occur. As an adult learner, we respect your decision to choose how you engage with your learning, but we would remind you that the learning opportunities we create for you have been done so to enable your success, and that by not engaging you may impact your ability to successfully complete this unit. We equally expect that you show respect for the academic staff who have worked hard to develop meaningful activities and prioritise your learning by communicating with them in advance if you are unable to attend a small group interactive session.

Another dimension of professionalism is having respect for your peers. It is the right of every student to learn in an environment that is free of disruption and distraction. Please arrive to all learning activities on time, and if you are unavoidably detained, please join activity as quietly as possible to minimise disruption. Phones and other electronic devices that produce noise and other distractions must be turned off prior to entering class. Where your own device (e.g., laptop) is being used for class-related activities, you are asked to close down all other applications to avoid distraction to you and others. Please treat your fellow students with the utmost respect. If you are uncomfortable participating in any specific activity, please let the relevant academic know.