Overview
This unit provides knowledge related to the coordination and voluntary control of movement. Throughout this unit, you will explore concepts related to the structure of the neuromuscular and sensory systems, the mechanisms involved in posture, balance, gait and various human movements, and the assessment of motor function in health and exercise contexts. This unit will further explore how concepts of motor control and learning may be applied to rehabilitation of neurological conditions such as stroke, Parkinson's disease, spinal cord injury and Multiple Sclerosis. In addition, you will gain a better understanding of the changes in motor performance that may occur with skill acquisition, aging and injury.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Pre-requisite - ESSC11003 Skill Acquisition and Movement
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 - 2022
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).
Residential Schools
This unit has a Compulsory Residential School for distance mode students and the details are:
Click here to see your Residential School Timetable.
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 In-class discussion and Have Your Say
During informal discussions with students and Have Your Say survey responses, a common request is that pre-recorded lectures are made available at the beginning of term. This is due to student placements in another 3rd year unit, plus allowing greater flexibility in their learning.
It is recommended that lectures for this unit are pre-recorded and made available at the beginning of term.
Feedback from Have Your Say
There was a short turnaround between the Residential School and associated assessment submission date.
It is recommended that students are provided with more time to complete the assessment linked to the Residential School.
Feedback from Have Your Say
The students responded positively regarding the content of the unit and the development of Moodle revision activities.
It is recommended that the content of the unit remain similar and the unit coordinator continue to develop interactive revision modules using H5P.
- Explain fundamental concepts of motor control and describe how motor function changes with learning, aging and injury
- Identify and describe common movement disorders that influence motor function
- Using knowledge from scientific literature, evaluate and design programs for learning motor skills
- Develop and evaluate test protocols used to assess motor function
- Demonstrate professional practice and ethical behaviour expected in exercise and sport science settings
The Learning Outcomes and Assessment tasks are aligned with Graduate Outcomes as outlined by Exercise and Sport Science Australia (ESSA).
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
1 - Literature Review or Systematic Review - 30% | |||||
2 - Presentation - 30% | |||||
3 - Written Assessment - 40% | |||||
4 - On-campus Activity - 0% |
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
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 - Literature Review or Systematic Review - 30% | ||||||||||
2 - Presentation - 30% | ||||||||||
3 - Written Assessment - 40% | ||||||||||
4 - On-campus Activity - 0% |
Textbooks
Motor Control: Translating Research into Clinical Practic
Edition: 5th (2017)
Authors: Shumway-Cook, A. & Woollacott, M.H.
Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins
Philadelphia Philadelphia , USA
ISBN: 9781496345370
Binding: eBook
Motor Learning and Control: Concepts and Applications
Edition: 11th (2016)
Authors: Magill, R.A.
McGraw Hill Book Co
New York New York , NY , USA
ISBN: 9781308928777
Binding: eBook
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Computer - ability to access study materials, including instructional videos and scan and upload assessment.
- Microsoft Office or equivalent software
- Zoom Capacity (microphone required, webcam preferred if possible)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 7th Edition (APA 7th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
n.elsworthy@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Structure of the nervous system
Structure and basic function of the brain and brain regions
Chapter
Shumway-Cook and Woollacott: Chapter 1
Magill Chapter 5
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Neural communication
Sensory, perceptual and action systems - their role in motor control
Reflexes
Principles of EMG
Chapter
Shumway-Cook and Woollacott: Chapter 3
Magill Chapter 4, 6
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Motor learning and recovery of function
Neural plasticity
Overview of neurologic conditions
Chapter
Shumway-Cook and Woollacott: Chapter 2, 4, 5
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Development, assessment and management of postural control
Chapter
Shumway-Cook and Woollacott: Chapter 7-10
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Development, assessment and management of mobility
Chapter
Shumway-Cook and Woollacott: Chapter 12-15
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
No lecture
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Review of motor learning theories
Impairments of brain and peripheral injury
Designing motor learning protocols
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Mackay on-campus practical session:
Week 6 Tuesday and Wednesday (19-20 April, 2022), 9:00am - 6:00pm.
Mackay City Campus (Building 4/G.21, Sydney St, Mackay)
Module/Topic
No lecture
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
No Lecture
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Cairns on-campus practical session:
Week 8 Wednesday and Thursday (3-4 May, 2022), 9:00am - 6:00pm.
Exercise and Sport Science Laboratory (Cairns Basketball, 289 Aumuller St, Manunda, QLD, 4870)
Module/Topic
No lecture
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Presentation Due: Week 9, Tuesday to Friday (10-13 May, 2022).
Specific seminar times for presentations will be made available on Moodle by Week 6 of Term following consultation with the student cohort.
Module/Topic
Musculoskeletal and neural changes with aging
Age-related changes in mobility and postural control
Chapter
Reading will be provided on Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Rockhampton on-campus practical session:
Week 10 Wednesday and Thursday (18-19 May, 2022), 9:00am - 6:00pm.
Rockhampton North Campus (Building 81, Community Sports Complex, Bruce Hwy)
Module/Topic
Review
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
On-campus laboratory activity
Please find below, dates for the laboratory activities offered for ESSC13006 this term. You must attend ONE of the sessions listed below, based on your enrolment type. Please see the CQU Timetable for confirmation of dates, times and room allocations.
Mackay based students
This session will be held Week 6 Tuesday and Wednesday 19 - 20 April, 2022 on the Mackay City Campus (Sydney Street), from 9:00 am - 6:00 pm. Attendance at both days of the session is compulsory. All students will be required to meet in the Biomechanics lab (Building 4/G.21) at 8:45 am sharp on 19 April.
Cairns based students
This session will be held Week 8 Wednesday and Thursday 3 - 4 May, 2022 at the Cairns Basketball Centre (289 Aumuller St, Manunda QLD 4870), from 9:00 am - 6:00 pm. Attendance at both days of the session is compulsory. All students will be required to meet in the Biomechanics Lab at 8:45 am sharp on 3 May.
Rockhampton based AND mixed mode students
This session will be held Week 10 Wednesday and Thursday 18 - 19 May, 2022 at the Rockhampton North Campus, from 9:00 am - 6:00 pm, for both ROK and MIX enrolled students. Attendance at both days of the residential school is compulsory. All students will be required to meet inside Building 81 on the basketball court (Rockhampton North Campus) at 8:45 am sharp on 18 May.
Additional information (schedule, activities, accommodation options etc) will be communicated prior to the on-campus laboratory activity sessions via the ESSC13006 Moodle page. Please note that you should not book flights to arrive on the morning of the first day, or to leave in the afternoon of the second day of these sessions.
1 Literature Review or Systematic Review
Reviews of the literature are important contributions to science. They provide a concise summary of what is currently known about a topic, and often identify gaps in the literature which guide future research. Literature reviews, particularly systematic review or meta-analyses are often well cited and there are journals dedicated to this type of research. The purpose of this literature review is for you to summarise the existing scientific literature related to a specific neurological condition, and the affect the condition has upon motor, sensory, and/or cognitive function.
Your review should provide a brief overview of a neurological condition including the incidence, causes, and clinical features of the condition. In your review, you should refer to scientific peer reviewed literature and ensure the information is as up to date as possible. Please refer to the following guidelines to assist in the completion of your literature review (further details and marking rubric are provided on Moodle):
- Word count: Not more than 2500 words (excluding references and title page)
- Formatting guidelines:
- Double spaced and justified text
- Times New Roman, Arial or Calibri font, size 12
- Normal margins (one-inch, 2.54 cm on all sides)
- Page numbers in footer, centered and all pages should be numbered consecutively
- A title page including the title of the review, student name and number, word count, and number of tables/figures. Any tables/figures should be inserted directly into the main text rather than at the end of the document
- The review should be completed in Microsoft Word or similar word processing software.
- Follow American Psychological Association (APA) 7th edition style referencing. A full reference list is required at the end of the review.
- Your document is to be submitted via the specific assignment submissions link on the ESSC13006 Moodle page. Only .DOC, and .DOCX formats will be accepted. Submissions in other formats may not be able to be marked.
In the absence of an approved extension, any submissions received after the due date will incur penalties in accordance with University policy.
Week 5 Friday (8 Apr 2022) 11:59 pm AEST
Week 6 Friday (22 Apr 2022)
Marks and feedback will be returned to students within two weeks of the due date.
The literature review is designed to assess your ability to critically search, evaluate, analyse and summarise the scientific literature related to a specific neurological condition. Specifically, your review will be assessed based upon the following criteria: background of key concepts, critical summary of the neurological condition, incidence, underlying causes and features associated with the condition, and overall writing style. Your literature review will be assessed using a detailed assessment rubric, which can be found on the ESSC13006 Moodle site.
- Explain fundamental concepts of motor control and describe how motor function changes with learning, aging and injury
- Identify and describe common movement disorders that influence motor function
- Using knowledge from scientific literature, evaluate and design programs for learning motor skills
- Communication
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
2 Presentation
Sensory, motor, and/or cognitive impairments caused by neurological impairments can be managed through a variety of intervention strategies. However, many factors must be considered when designing an intervention, depending on the severity and type of condition. For this assessment, you will be required to develop an intervention designed to improve motor function, in relation to a specific neurological condition based upon a case study provided. You will be required to present your intervention to your fellow students (during a Zoom meeting), and justify the design of your intervention using scientific literature. You will have 15 minutes to present your intervention and justification, and answer questions from the Unit Coordinator. Time permitting, questions will be invited from the online student cohort. To assist in the delivery of your presentation, you are required to compile PowerPoint slides to present to the group in a live Zoom conference (seminar times will be communicated via Moodle throughout the Term). You will be required to submit one document to Moodle prior to the presentation (a copy of the PowerPoint slides, including a full reference list on the final slide). Further information is included below and on the ESSC13006 Moodle page, to assist with the development of your presentation.
General format:
- Duration: 15 minutes per presentation (10 minute presentation, followed by 5 minutes of question time).
- Presentation slides developed using PowerPoint or similar presentation software.
- Font: Arial or Calibri
- Referencing: Follow American Psychological Association (APA) 7th style referencing. Reference list must be included as part of the Moodle submission. References/citations must also be included on your PowerPoint slides
Submission and Presentation times:
- You are required to submit a copy of your PowerPoint slides prior to your presentation seminar time. This can be a .PPT, .PPTX or .PDF version of your slides. A list of references is also required and can be submitted as a .DOC .DOCX or .PDF file.
- Presentation seminars will occur in Week 9 (Tuesday to Friday). A specific schedule will be released on Moodle by Week 6 of term.
In the absence of an approved extension, any submissions received after the due date will incur penalties in accordance with University policy.
Submission of the presentation will occur during set seminar times in Week 9 of Term. A specific schedule will be released on Moodle by Week 6 of term.
Week 11 Friday (27 May 2022)
The oral presentation will be assessed on the following areas:
- Classification of the condition
- Assessment methods
- Intervention strategy
- Literary support
- Overall presentation skills
- Engagement with other presentations.
A detailed marking rubric will be available on the ESSC13006 Moodle site.
- Identify and describe common movement disorders that influence motor function
- Using knowledge from scientific literature, evaluate and design programs for learning motor skills
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
3 Written Assessment
The on-campus activities undertaken in this unit provide an opportunity for you to complete a range of experiments related to aspects of motor learning and skill acquisition, specifically cognitive function, posture, gait, mobility, and fatigue. Throughout these experiments, you will be assessing different aspects of motor learning and you will be required to develop a laboratory report from the data you collected during these experiments. You will be required to write a laboratory report based upon one of the activities undertaken as part of the on-campus laboratory activities. Below are guidelines for the laboratory report, further information will also be provided on Moodle:
- Word count: No more than 2500 words, excluding title page, references, figures, and tables.
- Title page including title of the report, student name and number, word count and number of tables/figures. Any tables/figures should be inserted directly into the main text rather than at the end of the document.
- Formatting guidelines:
- Double spaced and justified text
- Times New Roman, Arial or Calibri font, size 12
- Normal margins (one-inch, 2.54 cm on all sides)
- Page numbers in footer, centered and all pages should be numbered consecutively
- Figures and tables are encouraged to present the findings/results, however the is a maximum of THREE tables and/or figures allowed.
- This is an individual assessment and your laboratory report must be your own work.
- The report should be completed in Microsoft Word or similar word processing software.
- Follow American Psychological Association (APA) 7th style referencing. A full reference list is required at the end of the report.
- Your reports are to be submitted via the specific assessment submission link on the ESSC13006 Moodle page. Only .DOC, and .DOCX formats will be accepted. Submissions in other formats may not be able to be marked.
In the absence of an approved extension, any submissions received after the due date will incur penalties in accordance with University policy.
Week 12 Friday (3 June 2022) 11:59 pm AEST
Grades and feedback will be made available following the certification of grades as per CQUniversity policy.
The laboratory report is designed to evaluate your ability to collect, analyse, and interpret data related to the assessment of motor performance and factors which may impact function. The report will be marked using a detailed marking rubric. The laboratory report will be assessed on the following criteria: introduction, methods, results, discussion and conclusion. A detailed marking rubric will be made available on the ESSC13006 Moodle site.
- Explain fundamental concepts of motor control and describe how motor function changes with learning, aging and injury
- Develop and evaluate test protocols used to assess motor function
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
4 On-campus Activity
This assessment involves the compulsory attendance and active participation in the on-campus practical activities for the unit. You are required to attend (and actively participate in) ONE of the timetabled on-campus activity sessions (Mackay, Rockhampton or Cairns). Further details regarding the times and dates of these on-campus activities can be found in the Term Specific Information section of the ESSC13006 Unit Profile, on the ESSC13006 Moodle site and via the CQUniversity Handbook. A series of practical laboratory-based tasks will be completed during the on-campus laboratory activity sessions and you are expected to attend and participate in all tasks. A Laboratory Manual will be provided to you via Moodle prior to the on-campus activity which contains information to assist in performing each task, tables for data collection, and critical thinking/discussion questions. These sessions contribute to the data collection and analysis for your laboratory report assessment task. To complete this assessment item you must:
- Sign the attendance sheet. Please note there will be multiple attendance sheets to sign throughout the activity sessions
- Bring a printed copy of the Laboratory Manual to the on-campus laboratory activity sessions
- Actively participate in each of the tasks delivered throughout the on-campus activity sessions.
Attendance at on-campus practical activities will be recorded at the practical sessions in Mackay, Rockhampton and Cairns. See Term specific information for relevant dates and times for each location.
Attendance at the on-campus practical session, with adequate participation will result in a passing grade for this assessment. Failure to attend and adequately participate may result in a fail grade for this assessment item, and being unable to pass this unit. Attendance at the on-campus activities will be assessed through signed attendance sheets and facilitated by staff members managing the sessions, you will need to sign an attendance sheet for each task. If you miss a session without an approved reason, there will NOT be an opportunity to simply ‘catch up’ at any time. The Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework) outlines acceptable reasons for adjusting assessment. If you do not attend one of the on-campus laboratory activities, and provide a valid reason with supporting documentation, then an attempt to make alternate arrangements will be made (for example a ‘catch up’ session at a suitable time or an alternative assessment/task) in consultation with the Unit Coordinator.
No submission method provided.
- Develop and evaluate test protocols used to assess motor function
- Demonstrate professional practice and ethical behaviour expected in exercise and sport science settings
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Team Work
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
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.