Assignment guidelines for assignments 1 and 2
General
-Assignments 1 and 2 are designed to encourage you to develop skills in research, critical analysis, problem solving, decision-making, communication and ethical behaviour.
-They require you to select a project (or projects) of your choice (so your studies are contextuaIized for your needs) and to analyse aspects of that project in a clinical and objective manner.
-Viewing the videos on critical analysis (accessed from the StudyDesk) will help you to understand the expectations and how to go about critical analysis.
-They require you to find relevant information (as it is not always provided in the study materials) and to compare theory with practice. This is not simple nor easy but reflects what is expected of you in the real world of practice.
- Assignment 1 is an essay_ Assignment 2 is a Case study.
- An essay is a simpler format than a case study but can be difficult to write well. It provides insights into an issue relating to your project.
- A case study is an analytical report that examines a specific issue and provides conclusions and clear recommendations.
- The word count is indicative. Past experience indicates that it is difficult to discuss the issues in less than the nominated word count but try to stay close to the word count if possible. Marks are gained for conciseness and marks are lost for unnecessary material.
- A high standard of presentation is expected at postgraduate level. There is no excuse for poor spelling, bad grammar, nor lack of formatting. Use one and a half line spacing with 12-point font, and pages must be numbered.
- Do not use 'I, we, you, our, etc. Reports and assignments should not be written in the 'first person'.
Introduction (for assignments 1 and 2)
- An Introduction should be provided at the beginning to summarise the structure of the following sections of the essay/report/assignment.
- The introduction does not contain theory, nor does it contain any conclusions nor recommendations.
- Do not assume that the reader has read any Executive Summary (if one is provided), as it is a totally separate document, Include any relevant information in the Introduction
Referencing:
- Referencing is NOT just inserting a list of publications at the end of the report and this is not acceptable.
- Referencing is NOT just inserting a citation at the end of each paragraph and this is not acceptable.
- At postgraduate level, you are expected to cite a wide range of different sources of reference material at least 10-15], and to make multiple references to such material. This is where e-Books and e-Journals are valuable - they are accessed through the Library website. You are recommended to explore the following databases to find relevant information easily and quickly:
- Books 24x7 - http://resguide.usq.edu.au/index.php?type=eresources&letter=All&subject=suts&ID=147
- eBrary - http://resguide.usq.edu.au/index.php?type-eresources&letter=All&subject=su- You can also explore all of the professional journals to which the USQ library subscribes through http://site.ebrany.com.ezproxy.usq.edu.
Selection of suitable project-
You should identify a project or projects suitable for carrying out assignments 1 arid 2. You may have to read ahead to understand the requirements of those assignments. The project's should be from your workplace, personal experience, or from some source where you can obtain appropriate and sufficient information. Although it is recommended that you use the same project for assignments 1 and 2, it is acceptable to use different projects for the respective assignments. Your project should be complex enough so that you are able to examine the issues related to the issues covered by these assignments_ Read the assignment requirements immediately so that you understand what you will need.
For the purposes of these assignments, a 'project is any significant endeavour undertaken by an organisation, ft may be internal or external, but should be of sufficient size or complexity to warrant detailed analysis. For example, it could be:
- an organisational restructure or company merger
- development of a capital asset (building, structure, etc,)
- development of intellectual property (software, website)
- development of some capability (Defence projects, information system)
- organisation of a conference or large event, or
- marketing/development of a new product range.