Overview
This unit is a foundation level unit to help you develop the academic study and research skills necessary for success in tertiary level education. During this unit you will learn how to use bibliographical software, search scientific research databases, and appraise the quality of evidence presented in scientific and other literature. You will also learn about research ethics and integrity, and develop a foundational understanding of the use of statistics in research. Finally, you will learn fundamental concepts of scientific writing to ensure you can articulate the information you retrieve and appraise, in a clear and concise manner.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2020
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from 'Have your say' survey.
Further details on APA referencing are needed by students.
It is recommended that written examples in lectures and on Moodle to support students' understanding of correct APA referencing.
Feedback from Self-reflection and 'Have your say' survey
More information regarding scientific communication is needed.
It is recommended to revise the communication lecture to include more content on academic writing relevant to assessment tasks.
Feedback from Peer discussion and self-reflection.
Advocate for greater use of the online Moodle forums for students to seek answers to questions.
It is recommended to provide more information to students regarding use of the forums including how to search for answers to previously asked questions.
Feedback from 'Have your say' survey and student emails.
More assessment feedback is needed by students.
It is recommended that further instruction on how to access assignment feedback within Feedback Studio and via the Echo360 assignment feedback video be offered to students.
- Source and critically evaluate scholarly research information
- Demonstrate effective scientific research writing skills
- Identify appropriate study designs and statistical tests to answer various research questions
- Distinguish between ethical and unethical practices in research.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
1 - Online Test - 30% | ||||
2 - Written Assessment - 70% |
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
1 - Communication | ||||
2 - Problem Solving | ||||
3 - Critical Thinking | ||||
4 - Information Literacy | ||||
5 - Team Work | ||||
6 - Information Technology Competence | ||||
7 - Cross Cultural Competence | ||||
8 - Ethical practice | ||||
9 - Social Innovation | ||||
10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures |
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
1 - Online Test - 30% | ||||||||||
2 - Written Assessment - 70% |
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Endnote bibliographic software. This is optional for formatting references. Some training will be provided on its use but it is NOT mandatory.
- Adobe Acrobat Reader (or similar) software for viewing PDF documents.
- ZOOM Videoconferencing software. A ZOOM account is available with your student credentials. We will use this software for any relevant meetings.
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 6th Edition (APA 6th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
n.elsworthy@cqu.edu.au
a.plumb@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
You want me to do what? Unit overview and introduction to critical thinking.
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Oyler, D. R., & Romanelli, F. (2014). The fact of ignorance: revisiting the Socratic method as a tool for teaching critical thinking. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 78(7), 144. doi: 10.5688/ajpe787144
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
If it hasn't been done yet, why is it called 'research'?
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Thomas, D. R., & Hodges, I. D. (2010). Developing Research Aims and Objectives Designing and Managing Your Research Project: Core Skills for Social and Health Research. London, UK: SAGE Publications.
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
The good, the bad, and the ugly: Finding the research you need.
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Hendrick, P. A., Ahmed, O. H., Bankier, S. S., Chan, T. J., Crawford, S. A., Ryder, C. R., . . . Schneiders, A. G. (2012). Acute low back pain information online: an evaluation of quality, content accuracy and readability of related websites. Manual Therapy, 17(4), 318-324. doi: 10.1016/j.math.2012.02.019
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
So you have your papers, now what? Dissecting a research paper.
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Pettis, J. S., Lichtenberg, E. M., Andree, M., Stitzinger, J., Rose, R., & vanEngelsdorp, D. (2013). Crop pollination exposes honey bees to pesticides which alters their susceptibility to the gut pathogen Nosema ceranae. PLOS ONE, 8(7), e70182. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0070182
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Evaluating the evidence.
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Katrak, P., Bialocerkowski, A. E., Massy-Westropp, N., Kumar, S., & Grimmer, K. A. (2004). A systematic review of the content of critical appraisal tools. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 4, 22. doi: 10.1186/1471-2288-4-22
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Online Test 1 will be available from Week 5 Monday (6 April 2020) 9:00 am AEST until Break Week Monday (13 April 2020) 9:00 am AEST.
Module/Topic
No lectures this week.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Strategies for effective scientific writing and communication.
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Bhardwaj, P., Sinha, S., & Yadav, R. K. (2017). Medical and scientific writing: Time to go lean and mean. Perspectives in Clinical Research, 8(3), 113-117. doi: 10.4103/picr.PICR_11_17
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Written Assessment Part A is due Week 6 Monday (20 April 2020) 9:00 am AEST.
Module/Topic
What do science and Hollywood have in common? Telling a good story.
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Owen, N., Healy, G. N., Matthews, C. E., & Dunstan, D. W. (2010). Too much sitting: the population health science of sedentary behavior. Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews, 38(3), 105-113. doi: 10.1097/JES.0b013e3181e373a2
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Avoiding the fatal 4: Plagiarism, fake research, outdated research, and not following the guidelines.
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Jha, K. N. (2014). How to write articles that get published. Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research, 8(9), XG01-XG03. doi: 10.7860/JCDR/2014/8107.4855
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Doing it right, doing it safe: Risk management and ethical concepts in research.
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Bryden, D., & Storey, I. (2011). Duty of care and medical negligence. Continuing Education in Anaesthesia Critical Care & Pain, 11(4), 124-127. doi: 10.1093/bjaceaccp/mkr016
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Online Test 2 will be available from Week 9 Monday (11 May 2020) at 9:00 am AEST until Week 10 Monday (18 April 2020) at 9:00 am AEST.
Module/Topic
Lies, more lies, and statistics.
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Main, M. E., & Oqaz, V. L. (2016). Common statistical tests and interpretation in nursing research. International Journal of Faith Community Nursing, 2(3), 2.
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
All these statistical tests! How do I know what test to use?
Chapter
Compulsory Reading:
Ali, Z., & Bhaskar, S. B. (2016). Basic statistical tools in research and data analysis. Indian Journal of Anaesthesia, 60(9), 662-669. doi: 10.4103/0019-5049.190623
Supplementary readings available on Moodle.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Going backward - moving forward: How to apply all this to your future studies.
Chapter
No readings this week.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Online Test 3 will be available from Week 12 Monday (1 June 2020) at 9:00 am AEST until Review/Exam Week Monday (8 June 2020) at 9:00 am AEST.
Written Assessment Part B is due Week 12 Friday (5 June 2020) 9.00 am AEST.
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Online Test
The Online Test will comprise three (3) separate Online Tests made up of multiple choice and fill-in-the-blank questions.
Each Online Test is to be completed on your own using multiple resources to help you answer the questions. It is your responsibility to log on to Moodle and complete each Online Test during the time the test is available. In the absence of an approved extension there will be no late submissions allowed for any of the Online Tests that make up this assessment item.
Online Test 1 (10% of final grade)
Online Test 1 will be held in Week 5 and will assess content from Weeks 1 – 4 (inclusive). Online Test 1 questions will be related to lectures, tutorials, and compulsory readings associated with Weeks 1 – 4 (inclusive). Online Test 1 will contain 20 questions and you will have 40 minutes to complete this Online Test.
You can only attempt Online Test 1 once and it must be completed in a single session. You cannot save your answers and return to this Online Test at a later time.
Online Test 1 will be available from Week 5 Monday (6 April 2020) at 9:00 am AEST until Break Week Monday (13 April 2020) at 9:00 am AEST. You must log into Moodle during this time period to complete Online Test 1.
Online Test 2 (10% of final grade)
Online Test 2 will be held in Week 9 and will assess content from Weeks 5 – 8 (inclusive). Online Test 2 questions will be related to lectures, tutorials, and compulsory readings associated with Weeks 5 – 8 (inclusive). Online Test 2 will contain 20 questions and you will have 40 minutes to complete this Online Test.
You can only attempt Online Test 2 once and it must be completed in a single session. You cannot save your answers and return to this Online Test at a later time.
Online Test 2 will be available from Week 9 Monday (11 May 2020) at 9:00 am AEST until Week 10 Monday (18 May 2020) at 9:00 am AEST. You must log into Moodle during this time period to complete Online Test 2.
Online Test 3 (10% of final grade)
Online Test 3 will be held in Week 12 and will assess content from Weeks 9 – 11 (inclusive). Online Test 3 questions will be related to lectures, tutorials, and compulsory readings associated with Weeks 9 – 11 (inclusive). Online Test 3 will contain 20 questions and you will have 40 minutes to complete this Online Test.
You can only attempt Online Test 3 once and it must be completed in a single session. You cannot save your answers and return to this Online Test at a later time.
Online Test 3 will be available from Week 12 Monday (1 June 2020) at 9:00 am AEST until Review/Exam Week Monday (18 June 2020) at 9:00 am AEST. You must log into Moodle during this time period to complete Online Test 3.
The three (3) Online Tests will be administered at various time points as described in the Task Description.
Marks will be available on completion of each Online Test.
Responses to Online Test questions will be marked as correct or incorrect by the Moodle Online Quiz System, and tabulated to give your mark for each Online Test. For questions with text-based responses (e.g. fill in the blank) you should take care with spelling (Australian English) and grammar, as answers are spelling and grammar sensitive.
- Communication
- Information Technology Competence
- Ethical practice
- Source and critically evaluate scholarly research information
- Identify appropriate study designs and statistical tests to answer various research questions
- Distinguish between ethical and unethical practices in research.
2 Written Assessment
This assessment task comprises two (2) parts; Part A, and Part B.
Part A. Due date: Week 6 Monday (20 April 2020) 9:00 am AEST. Part A is worth 30% of your overall grade.
For Part A, you will prepare an annotated bibliography. An annotated bibliography is a brief account of the peer-reviewed literature on a specific topic, where you reflect on, summarise, critique, or otherwise evaluate the literature. For this task, you will select three (3) peer-reviewed original research articles (original studies only, not reviews, editorials, theses, or other types of work) on a specific topic related to your discipline. You will be free to choose a topic which interests you, but all three (3) peer-reviewed original research articles must be on the same topic, and the topic must be related to the discipline area in which your are enrolled. For example, if you are enrolled in the Bachelor of Exercise and Sport Sciences course (CG85), you should choose a topic related to exercise and sport sciences. Your annotated bibliography will comprise the citation for each peer-reviewed original research article, followed by 1-2 sentences on each of the following points:
- The aim or purpose of the study (Why did the researchers do their study?)
- Methods used in the study (How did the researchers undertake the study?)
- Findings of the study (What did the results of the study show?)
- Evaluative comments (How is this study relevant to your discipline or area of study? What does it add to what is already known?)
Marks are also awarded based on referencing in the appropriate style. The page limit for each annotation is one (1) A4 page formatted using the guidelines available on Moodle. Specific examples of annotated bibliographies will be provided on Moodle. In the absence of an approved extension, any submissions received after the due date will incur penalties in accordance with University policy.
Written Assessment Part A must be submitted as a Microsoft Word document (.doc or .docx).
Part B. Due date Week 12 Friday (5 June 2020) 9.00 am AEST. Part B is worth 40% of your overall grade.
Part B is an extension of your annotated bibliography. You will source three (3) additional peer-reviewed original research articles (original studies, not reviews, editorials, theses, or other types of work) on the same topic as that used for Part A and then write a brief summary of between 800 - 1000 words which compares and contrasts all six (6) peer-reviewed original research articles that you have found. The words contained in the title and the references do not count toward the word limit. You must use only the following six (6) headings when preparing Part B of this assignment:
- Title (A name for your summary.)
- Introduction (A brief description of the topic.)
- Methods (What databases did you search and what search terms or key words did you use?)
- Discussion (Compare and contrast the main findings from all six (6) included peer-reviewed manuscripts.)
- Conclusion (What can you conclude from your comparison of the literature?)
- References (A list of the peer-reviewed manuscripts included in this assessment item, formatted according to APA guidelines.)
A sample template with instructions will be available on Moodle as a PDF file, so you can see how Part B of this assessment item should be presented. In the absence of an approved extension, any submissions received after the due date will incur penalties in accordance with University policy.
Written Assessment Part B must be submitted as a Microsoft Word document (.doc or .docx).
Written Assessment Part A is due Week 6 Monday (20 April 2020) 9:00 am AEST. Written Asessment Part B is due Week 12 Friday (5 June 2020) 9.00 am AEST.
Marks for Part A and Part B of this assignment will be available two (2) weeks after the submission due date.
For Part A, marks will be awarded according to whether or not each point has been addressed, and on writing style, presentation, grammar and spelling, and appropriate formatting of citations. Marks will be awarded using a marking rubric which is available on Moodle.
For Part B, marks will be awarded based on adherence to the submission instructions, content for each section of the summary (particularly the comparison of the studies you have found), writing style, and appropriate formatting of in-text citations and accuracy in referencing. Marks will be awarded using a marking rubric which is available on Moodle.
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Source and critically evaluate scholarly research information
- Demonstrate effective scientific research writing skills
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.