Overview
This unit will introduce you to the characteristics and processes of human development across the lifespan within the physical, cognitive and psychosocial developmental domains. The theoretical perspectives and concepts that guide thinking and study in the field of developmental science are introduced. A key emphasis throughout the unit is that developmental changes are the result of the complex interplay between nature (genetic endowment, biological influences and maturation) and nurture (environmental influences, experiences and learning). Both the universalities and diversities in human development are explored across diverse contexts and culture. The unit is designed to facilitate a critical and applied understanding of theory and research in the field of developmental science.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
PSYC11008 and PSYC11009
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 3 - 2018
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 feedback
Students enjoyed the incorporation of 'real-world' examples to assist with theoretical understanding.
Maintain inclusion of 'real-world' examples and include more in-depth exploration of textbook case scenarios.
Feedback from Have you say feedback
On campus tutors supported learning experience.
On campus tutors are currently being trialled on a number of campuses. To further facilitate this, discussions with those campus tutors who had a higher number of engaged students may assist in engaging students on those campuses that had lower numbers.
- Identify and describe key developmental characteristics and changes within each of the major stages of the lifespan
- Describe the areas and processes of development within the physical, cognitive and psychosocial domains
- Evaluate the theories, concepts and methods in the field of developmental science
- Critically analyse social, historical and cultural considerations that influence developmental change and the study of developmental science
- Apply contemporary lifespan perspectives to explain developmental changes and concerns across diverse contexts and cultures
- Critique and apply theory, concepts, and research pertinent to the optimisation of human development.
The learning outcomes in this unit build directly to the foundtional competencies that form part of the Accreditation Standards for Psychology Programs (APAC, August, 2017).
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 1 - Online Quiz(zes) - 30% | ||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 40% | ||||||
| 3 - Examination - 30% | ||||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 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 Quiz(zes) - 30% | ||||||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 40% | ||||||||||
| 3 - Examination - 30% | ||||||||||
Textbooks
Life Span Human Development
Second Australian and New Zealand Edition (2016)
Authors: Carol K. Sigelman, Elizabeth A. Rider and Linda De George-Walker
Cengage Learning
South Melbourne South Melbourne , Victoria , Australia
ISBN: 9780170262170
Binding: Hardcover
Additional Textbook Information
Optional student resources CourseMate and SearchMe! are automatically bundled with new textbook purchases - see CQUni Bookshop here: http://lbookshop.cqu.edu.au.
Those who purchase second hand textbooks without these resources may purchase these resources separately by directly contacting the publisher Cengage.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
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.
k.hughes@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Introduction to Life Span Human Development
Chapter
Chapter 1 and pages 431 to 436 of Chapter 12
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Theories of Human Development
Chapter
Chapter 2 and
Additional Readings on Moodle:
Kilcullen, M. & Day, A. (2017).
Velez-Agosto et al., 2017
Events and Submissions/Topic
Quizzes 1, 2 & 3 open Monday 12 November 2018 8:00AM AEST
Module/Topic
Genes, Environment, and the Beginnings of Life
Chapter
Chapter 3
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Physical Growth, Motor Development, and Health
Chapter
Chapter 4
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
No Scheduled Classes or Activities
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Cognitive Development
Chapter
Chapter 5
Events and Submissions/Topic
ITEMS DUE:
Quiz 1 Closes Friday 14 December 2018 5:00pm AEST
Module/Topic
Information Processing: Perception, Attention, and Memory
Chapter
Chapter 6
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Intelligence and Creativity
Chapter
Chapter 7
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Language and Education
Chapter
Chapter 8
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Self and Personality
Chapter
Chapter 9
Events and Submissions/Topic
ITEMS DUE:
Assessment 2 - Due Monday 14 January 2019 09:00am AEST
Quiz 2 - Closes Friday 18 January 2019 5:00pm AEST
Assessment 2: Written Assessment Due: Week 9 Monday (14 Jan 2019) 9:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
Social Cognition and Moral Development
Chapter
Chapter 10
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Social Relationships and Attachment
Chapter
Chapter 11
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Death and Dying
Chapter
Chapter 13
Events and Submissions/Topic
ITEMS DUE:
Quiz 3 - Closes Friday 8th February 2019 5:00pm AEST
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Online Quiz(zes)
This assessment task comprises of three (3) quizzes to be completed and submitted online via the Unit's Moodle site. All three quizzes will open on the same day (Monday, Week 2) to allow students to work ahead of the schedule if they wish. However, each quiz will close at different times throughout the term as detailed below, and in your Schedule.
Each quiz will consist of 40 questions (10 questions per topic), with a maximum of 120 minutes in which to complete each quiz. The quiz questions will be in multiple choice format. Only one attempt per quiz is permitted.
Quiz 1 - Assesses topics 1 to 4
Quez 2 - Assesses topics 5 to 8
Quiz 3 - Assesses topics 9 to 12
3
Other
QUIZ 1 closes Friday of Week 5 at 5pm AEST. QUIZ 2 closes Friday of Week 9 at 5pm AEST. QUIZ 3 closes Friday of Week 12 at 5pm AEST.
Quiz total marks will be returned to students immediately after each quiz is submitted. Marks for each quiz question will be available after each quiz closes.
For each quiz, one (1) mark will be awarded for each quiz question answered correctly, and there will be no negative marking penalty for incorrect answers.
Each quiz is marked out of 40 and weighted at 10% of the final unit grade.
ALL QUIZZES MUST BE ATTEMPTED TO BE ELIGIBLE TO PASS THIS UNIT.
- Identify and describe key developmental characteristics and changes within each of the major stages of the lifespan
- Describe the areas and processes of development within the physical, cognitive and psychosocial domains
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
2 Written Assessment
For this assessment task, students will prepare a report that focuses on a selected topic and around the three main goals of the study of lifespan developmental science - to describe, explain, and optimise human development across the lifespan.
More specifically, in the report students will describe a developmental concern and the implications; explain the causes and origins of the concern; and then provide broad recommendations about how to prevent the concern to optimise development.
It is expected that the bioecological model and relevant elements of a lifespan perspective (e.g. A lifespan developmental model of health) / or model (e.g. Attachment; Transactional Model of Family Influence) will be integrated within the written assessment.
You might like to think of this assessment task in terms of imagining yourself as a consultant who has been commissioned to prepare a report for a human services, social or government agency that would like to know what they can do to more effectively prevent a particular developmental concern using an evidence-based approach.
The report length is 2,000 words +/- 10%, that is, the absolute maximum number of words is to be 2,200 words. The word count includes everything in your submission except the Title page, Abstract, and References list. Tables and any figures or bullet points that might be used within the report will all contribute to the word count.
The report topic choices and further task details will be available from the Assessment 2 Information Sheet on the Unit's Moodle site.
Week 9 Monday (14 Jan 2019) 9:00 am AEST
To be uploaded as a word document to the Assignments Submission area on the Unit's Moodle site.
Week 11 Monday (28 Jan 2019)
Marked Assessments will be returned to students via email once all assessments are marked. Grades will also be visible in student gradebook on the Unit's Moodle site.
The following aspects of the written assessment will be marked using a rubric which provides detailed criteria for performance at each grade level. The marking rubric will be available from the Assessment 2 Information Sheet on the Unit's Moodle site.
1. Part A: Introduction & Background (10 marks)
2. Part B: Origins and Causes (10 marks)
3. Part C: Recommendations (10 marks)
4. Quality of literacy and written communication skills (5 marks)
5. Adherence to APA (6th ed.) referencing / presentation style (5 marks)
This report will receive a total mark out of 40 and also has an overall Unit weighting of 40%.
- Apply contemporary lifespan perspectives to explain developmental changes and concerns across diverse contexts and cultures
- Critique and apply theory, concepts, and research pertinent to the optimisation of human development.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
- Social Innovation
Examination
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.
What can you do to act with integrity?
