This assessment task will require you to demonstrate your ability to self-reflect as well as your understanding of how skills may be transferred from one context to another, enabling you to potentially fill any existing 'gaps' in direct clinical experience. You will be expected to provide a written reflection that describes how you have (or how you could in the future) transfer skills from one area to another, such as across range of practice areas, from adult to paediatric caseloads and vice versa, or between different workplaces or clinics. This written piece may then be included in your portfolio as a reflective statement which forms part of your collection of indirect evidence of skills across the different range of practice areas and CBOS units.

A marking rubric containing specific assessment criteria for this task will be made available on the unit Moodle site during term. These criteria will be based on the following:

• your ability to describe and reflect upon previous clinical experiences and to identify the learning that has taken place thus far
• your ability to link this learning to the CBOS and Generic Professional Competency (GPC) units
• your understanding of how skills may or may not be be transferable from one context to another
• your ability to understand your strengths as well as the areas for improvement, specifically in relation to CBOS and the GPC units, and to identify strategies that you may use in the future to address these areas requiring improvement
• your use of appropriate writing conventions, including accurate spelling, grammar, punctuation, cohesion, clarity, and organisation

During Term 2 you will either participate in two half-day clinical placements, or one full-day placement. This will depend on the nature of the clinic you have been allocated. The specific details will be provided to you via email by the Clinical Education Co-ordinator (CEC) prior to the commencement of the term.

For each placement, you will need to complete the following:

• mid-placement assessment using COMPASS On-line. This will be completed with your Clinical Educator (CE) at the mid-point of your placements, however you will also be required to complete a self-assessment (also using COMPASS On-line) prior to meeting with your CE for this assessment. The mid-placement assessment is formative in nature, which means that although it does not technically count towards your final mark at the end of the placement, it provides you with a formal opportunity to discuss your strengths and areas for improvement - that is, the areas to focus on for the second half of the placement. It also provides your CE with an opportunity to formally raise any concerns with the Clinical Education Co-Ordinator.

• final-placement assessment using COMPASS On-line. This will be completed at the completion of your placements. Again, you will be required to complete a self-assessment using COMPASS On-line prior to meeting with your CE. This final assessment is summative in nature, meaning that it provides the CE with the opportunity to give final marks and feedback regarding the entire placement. At this point you are required to be at intermediate level across each of the four generic professional competencies as well as the majority of the CBOS (2011) Units, including Units 1-4. The behavioural descriptors for the intermediate-level student can be found in the COMPASS Assessment Resource Manual which is available on COMPASS On-line and will also be posted on Moodle. These behavioural descriptors include the following: a moderate-low degree of supervision is required, the ability to draw some accurate conclusions about a client and to develop some plans for action, and the ability to recognise some important aspects of the total clinical situation. It is expected that you will still require support to recognise and prioritise all aspects of a situation and to flexibly apply problem-solving strategies, principles and theory.

• learning contract - this is a learning agreement that is reached between you and your CE at the beginning of the placement (i.e. in the first week). It enables both you and your CE to identify and discuss any particular areas which need to be focussed on and developed throughout the placement. The contract is to be reviewed at the mid and final points of your placements, in order to determine whether the goals you have set for yourself have been achieved.

• Clinical Hours Summary form - you should record your clinical contact hours each week and your CE will sign off on this form at the completion of the placement.

• any additional documentation that is required by the CE or placement organisation, such as written reports and information for client files.

Further specific details regarding recording hours, completing learning contracts and COMPASS can all be found in the Clinical Education Handbook, which will be posted on Moodle. The forms needed are also included in this handbook.

In order to determine whether you have passed this assessment item, your Clinical Educator will assess your competence using the COMPASS® online assessment tool. You will be required to demonstrate intermediate-level (or above) competence across each of the four generic professional competencies and the majority of the competency-based occupational standards (CBOS), including CBOS Units 1-4 (as described in the Behavioural Descriptors section of the COMPASS® Assessment Resource Manual).

Unless entry-level competence according to COMPASS® has already been reached, students must demonstrate that they have made sufficient progress during the placement in each of the assessed competencies. ‘Sufficient progress’ can be defined as:

I. Any amount of progress between the student’s performance on their mid-placement and final-placement assessments, as determined by a student’s mark on the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), for each competency assessed through the use of COMPASS®. This means that students are expected to demonstrate improvements on the VAS for each of the assessed competencies, provided that they have been given the opportunity to do so. For example, if a mid-placement assessment indicates that a student’s marks on the VAS are close to novice level for all competencies assessed at the mid-placement point, but that they are all at (or close to) the intermediate level by the end of the placement, this would indicate that progress has been made throughout the duration of the placement

AND/OR

II. Any amount of progress made between the final placement assessments of two consecutive placements, based on the student’s competency scores. For example, if a student achieves a competency score of 394 at the end of one placement and a competency score of 503 at the end of the following placement, this is considered to be ‘sufficient progress’.

The Clinical Education Co-ordinator (CEC) must also consider all available evidence of a student’s performance and competence and determine that a pass grade for that particular clinical placement is appropriate. Other evidence of performance and factors that need to be considered by the CEC may include (but are not limited to) variability / inconsistency in performance and opportunities to demonstrate required level of competence.

Further details regarding the specific pass criteria for block placements can be found in the Clinical Education Handbook and will also be discussed during scheduled tutorials. Students should familiarise themselves with the behavioural descriptors and competencies described on COMPASS, including the four generic professional competency units and the seven CBOS units.

As this unit is designed to be highly practical in nature, you will be required to complete your allocated clinical placement/s and also attend the scheduled classes, contribute to class discussions and participate in other interactive exercises that occur as part of these classes. This may include hands-on activities with fellow classmates that allow you to practise administering different assessments, applying therapy techniques and demonstrating counselling skills. This interactive approach will assist you to practise and further develop your skills as a Speech Pathologist in the classroom environment whilst also applying them in a clinical setting. It will also allow you to gather evidence of skill development that can be added to your clinical portfolio, a document that will be reviewed as part of this assessment task.

You will be required to attend a minimum of 80% of your classes. The Unit Coordinator must be informed as early as possible of any expected absences and a medical certificate may be requested by the Unit Coordinator. You must also submit your portfolio for review and feedback. This is a pass/fail assessment task, as a high level of class attendance and participation is considered to be a key requirement of this unit.