CQUniversity Unit Profile.

There are two (2) online quizzes to be completed during the term which together contribute to 30% of your overall grade. These are online quiz 1 and online quiz 2. 

Both quizzes can be accessed via the MEDS11001 unit Moodle site, under the 'Assessment' tile or 'Assessment' tab. 

Each quiz will consist of 15 multiple choice, match and mix, labeling or similar style questions and each quiz is worth 15% of the final grade for this unit. You will have 23 minutes to complete each quiz (equating to approximately 1.5 minutes per question).

Online quiz 1 and online quiz 2 will each be open and available to complete for 39 hours and you will need to allocate 23 minutes during the 39 hour period it is open to complete each online quiz.

Online Quiz 1 will be completed in Week 4 and is worth 15% of the final unit grade. The quiz will assess content covered in Weeks 1–3. The quiz will open at 9:00 am (AEST) on Wednesday 1st April and close at 11:59 pm (AEST) on Thursday 2nd April. .

Online Quiz 2 will be completed in Week 8 and is worth 15% of the final unit grade. The quiz will assess content covered in Weeks 5–7. The quiz will open at 9:00 am (AEST) on Wednesday 6th May and close at 11:59 pm (AEST) Thursday 7th May. 

Once started, the quiz cannot be paused, stopped or re-started. Once the time limit is reached, the quiz will close and any open questions will be automatically submitted. Once you have completed the quiz, it cannot be retaken.

You will require stable internet access to complete these online quizzes.

As these quizzes involve multiple choice questions and similar style questions you will be required to select the most appropriate answer from a selection of possible answers in relation to the question asked.

These online quizzes must be completed by you, without assistance or collusion with others. Any evidence of collusion will be dealt with in adherence with the CQU student academic integrity policy and procedure.

Note: the CQU 72-hour grace period for assessments does not apply to online quiz 1 or online quiz 2. 

Level of Gen AI use allowed:  Level 1: You must not use Gen Al at any point during the assessment. You must demonstrate your core skills and knowledge.  

Quizzes will be graded on the correct answers provided related to the questions asked.

There are fifteen questions within each online quiz and each question is worth one mark.

During your attendance at the compulsory Residential School, you will participate in practical activities, where you will observe, learn and perform practical scanning techniques and skills relating to the sonography profession. 

Attendance for the entirety of the residential school is compulsory and you must attend the residential school at your campus of enrolment. You will be automatically allocated to this campus, and appropriate staffing/resource arrangements will be made for that location.

Following participation in the residential school practical activities, a practical assessment will be conducted and completed on the second day of the residential school (Thursday).

For this, you will be assessed on your ability to perform sonographic imaging in specific anatomical planes of the body, move the probe in specific directions using anatomical terms and identify the associated image orientation and recognise key sonographic landmarks. 

If for some reason your first attempt at the practical test is unsuccessful, you are permitted a single re-sit of the practical assessment.

Detailed information about this assessment and marking criteria will be made available on the unit Moodle site.

Note: the CQU 72-hour grace period for assessments does not apply to the practical residential school assessment.  

Level of Gen AI use allowed:  Level 1: You must not use Gen Al at any point during the assessment. You must demonstrate your core skills and knowledge.

The practical assessment will be conducted by a sonography lecturer or tutor, who will observe and assess your ability to carry out practical skills relating to your knowledge of anatomical planes of the body, sonographic scanning planes and associated image orientation recognition. As part of the assessment, you will also be observed performing appropriate hand hygiene prior to commencing the task and demonstrating awareness of appropriate ultrasound probe cleaning following completion of the task. Assessment of the task will be relative to the practical assessment marking criteria, which will be made available on the unit Moodle site.

The practical assessment is different from other assessments in this unit, it is not weighted, but rather a pass/fail assessment, meaning you need to pass this assessment task to successfully complete this unit.

As per the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework), Section 5.54, this assessment must be completed on the final day of the residential school in the absence of an approved extension.

Task Description

You are required to complete a structured reflective written assessment that integrates learning from unit content, residential school, the practical assessment, and independent academic research. The reflection should demonstrate the development of your understanding of diagnostic medical sonography, the role and responsibilities of the medical sonographer, and the broader context of medical imaging practice.

This assessment evaluates not only knowledge acquisition, but also your ability to interpret and reflect on learning experiences in relation to healthcare practice.

Accordingly, this task is not intended as a summary of unit materials. Instead, students are expected to reflect on learning experiences and explain how these have informed their understanding of professional practice and ongoing learning needs within sonography.

Task Structure

1. Role of the Medical Sonographer and Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound

Reflect on your learning about diagnostic medical ultrasound and the role and scope of practice of the medical sonographer, including key professional responsibilities. Consider an aspect of ultrasound practice that surprised you and how unit learning or residential school contributed to this understanding. Conclude by explaining how the real‑time, operator‑dependent nature of ultrasound shapes the sonographer’s responsibility and accountability in clinical practice.

2. Comparing Ultrasound with Other Imaging Modalities 

Compare diagnostic ultrasound with one other imaging modality by considering differences in image acquisition, patient interaction, workflow and practitioner involvement, and safety. Explain how these differences influence the role of the sonographer in comparison with other medical imaging professionals.

3. Learning Through Practice: Residential School and Practical Assessment 

Reflect on your residential school and practical assessment experiences by considering what you learned through hands‑on practice. Discuss how specific experiences and emotional responses influenced your learning or confidence, what these experiences revealed about the nature of ultrasound practice, and how feedback or self‑assessment clarified your strengths and areas for development. Conclude by identifying specific actions you will take to prepare for future practical or clinical learning.

4. Early Understanding of Patient Interaction 

Reflect on patient interaction as experienced or observed during simulated, peer‑based, or phantom‑based activities. Consider how communication, positioning, and professional behaviour influence comfort, confidence, and engagement. Discuss your developing understanding of professional conduct, consent, and cultural awareness, and why respectful practice is essential in ultrasound, even within simulated learning environments

5. Reflection on Developing Attributes

Select two professional attributes relevant to early sonography practice and reflect on how they were demonstrated, challenged, or developed during this unit or residential school. For each attribute, consider a specific context in which it was evident, how you responded in the situation, and what this revealed about the expectations of sonography practice or your own strengths and learning needs. Conclude by outlining practical and achievable actions you will take to further develop each attribute as you continue your sonography training.

Length:

•    1000 words (+/- 10%). Reference list, title page and headings are excluded.

Presentation requirements:

•    Submit your assessment as a Word document, with 1.5 line spacing and using a 12-point Arial font (not including headings). 
•    Include a separate title page with your name, student number, word count and assessment title. 
•    Include one (1) numbered reference list in CQU Vancouver format on a separate page at the end of the assessment for the whole assessment. 

Referencing requirements: 

•    This assessment requires you to conduct your own research to support your response.
•    You must consistently use in-text citations to support your analysis and discussion.
•    You must clearly indicate the sources of your information through accurate referencing.
•    A minimum of four (4) contemporary peer-reviewed journal articles (published within the last 10 years) must be included in your reference list.
•    All in text citations and all references in the reference list are to be accurately formatted using the CQU Vancouver referencing style. 

Submission requirements:

•    Online submission via the assessment tab on Moodle before the due date and time. 
•    All submissions must be uploaded through Turnitin. 
•    When submitting, file names must follow the format: Surname_First name_student number_MEDS11001_WrittenAssessment.doc

An inherent requirement is that this assessment task is written in appropriate academic language, and free of grammatical and spelling errors. 

Level of Generative AI use allowed for this assessment:

Students are permitted to use Generative AI for this assessment in the following ways:

Level 2:  You may use AI for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas.

As per academic writing requirements and assessment criteria, citations of information must be from the primary source (i.e. information returned by AI must be fact-checked and referenced from their original source as well as the AI source). There is information on CQU's Academic Learning Centre (ALC) site that can assist you with referencing AI.  A link to this can be found through ALC website and on your unit Moodle page. Failure to cite primary sources as well as AI sources could be considered a breach of academic integrity. 

Detailed information about this assessment and marking criteria will be made available on the unit Moodle site.

You will be assessed on the following criteria:

• Quality of submission addressing the topics in the questions clearly and concisely, with relevant and appropriate discussion and analysis of each topic
• Accuracy of spelling and grammar
• Correct use of medical and sonographic terminology
• Appropriateness of the reviewed literature
• Correct and accurate referencing
• Academic writing and expression
• All text, images, diagrams and tables correctly referenced and the word limit is adhered to.

A detailed marking rubric/criteria for this assessment will be made available on the unit Moodle site.

To demonstrate understanding and knowledge of the unit's content, and to assess whether the unit's learning outcomes have been achieved, students are required to complete an end of the term online test.

This online test will assess the content covered in the entire unit (weeks 1 to 12). This includes material covered in lectures, tutorials, the e reading list and any additional resources or learning materials on Moodle supplied during the term.

The test will consist of a combination of question types, including multiple choice, mix and match, fill in the blank, labelling questions, questions with images and short and long answer questions which require typed answers. Please ensure you read the questions thoroughly before beginning to formulate your answers and ensure you are using appropriate terminology at all times. 

The end of term online test will be available on Moodle under the 'Assessment tile' with two (2) hours of working time allocated. Once started, the test cannot be paused, stopped or re-started. Once the time limit is reached any open questions will be automatically submitted. Once you have completed the test, it cannot be retaken.

A stable internet connection is required for the online test.

This is an individual task. The online test must be completed by you, without assistance or collusion with others. Any evidence of collusion will be dealt with in adherence with the CQU student academic integrity policy and procedure.

Note: the CQU 72-hour grace period for assessments does not apply to this final online test.

Level of GenAI use allowed:  Level 1: You must not use GenAl at any point during the assessment. You must demonstrate your core skills and knowledge.  

Multiple choice questions will be automatically marked correct or incorrect.

Written response questions will vary in mark allocation. Each question will have the maximum marks allocated displayed next to the question.

Short and long answers will require:

• use of correct anatomic names of structures and recognition of their normal and abnormal sonographic appearances
• use of correct sonographic terminology
• evaluation of clinical information
• detail to demonstrate depth of understanding and critical thinking.
• identification of sonographic imaging planes, protocols and conventions as relevant
• explanation of pre and post scanning requirements, including medico legal aspects and infection control standards