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Unit Synopsis
This unit provides you with fundamental skills and knowledge in the design and operation of computer networks. It deals in-depth with the techniques used in the Internet to forward the packets from the source to the destination via various types of networks. The unit analyses the Internet and Transport layer functions, with emphasis on IPv4 and IPv6 addressing as well as switching and routing technology. The unit covers these functions in relation to both Local Area Networks (LANs) and Wide Area Networks (WANs) as well as wired and wireless networks ensuring you can adapt to future changes in the field.
Details
| Level | Postgraduate |
|---|---|
| Unit Level | 9 |
| Credit Points | 6 |
| Student Contribution Band | SCA Band 2 |
| Fraction of Full-Time Student Load | 0.125 |
| Pre-requisites or Co-requisites |
Prerequisite: COIT20246 ICT Services Management. Anti-requisite: COIT20229 Networking with TCI/IP.
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). |
| Class Timetable | View Unit Timetable |
| Residential School | No Residential School |
Unit Availabilities from Term 2 - 2019
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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 Postgraduate 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.
Assessment Tasks
| Assessment Task | Weighting |
|---|---|
| 1. Written Assessment | 15% |
| 2. Written Assessment | 25% |
| 3. Examination | 60% |
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%).
Past Exams
All University policies are available on the Policy web site, however you may wish to directly view the following policies below.
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of policies are available on the Policy web site.
No previous feedback available
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.
Source: Student feedback
Consider incorporating more practical activities, e.g. cloud computing, into the assessments to enhance hands-on learning and reinforce students' understanding of the learning materials.
Integrate hands-on lab exercises using cloud computing tools such as Microsoft Azure into the unit. Assessing one or more of the lab activities should serve to reinforce student learning and enhance their practical experience.
The incorporation of hands-on practice with physical devices has demonstrably enhanced student understanding, as evidenced by their reflections. Efforts are currently underway to integrate additional networking practices into the unit, further strengthening learning outcomes.
Source: Student feedback, reflection
Ensure feedback on assessment is clear, informative and practical to students.
Establish a minimum standard for delivering marker feedback that emphasises clarity, informativeness, and practicality to students. This should ensure a benchmark consistency across campuses and staff in providing feedback that meets student expectations.
Guidance has been provided to the markers to ensure the feedback on the assessment is clear and informative.
Source: Students' feedback.
Previous actions have introduced more practical networking tasks. Continue strengthening the practical component by expanding the scope of lab-based exercises and integrating real-world networking scenarios to better balance theory and application.
The balance of practical learning should be enhanced by incorporating more hands-on networking tasks alongside the theoretical content.
In Progress
Source: Unit Coordinator's reflection.
Balancing authentic skill assessment with academic integrity in online tests is increasingly complex in the context of generative AI.
Review the current in-class test structure and consider introducing a small practical project to better assess applied skills while maintaining assessment integrity.
In Progress
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- Apply your knowledge in Network Routing to solve problems in wired and wireless networks
- Design IP addressing plans for suitable use in organisational networks
- Analyse the application of wireless network technologies in different scenarios
- Compare and contrast the protocols and standards in routing and switching
- Evaluate and report complex ideas on emerging trends or issues in networking.
Australian Computer Society (ACS) recognises the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA). SFIA is in use in over 100 countries and provides a widely used and consistent definition of ICT skills. SFIA is increasingly being used when developing job descriptions and role profiles.
ACS members can use the tool MySFIA to build a skills profile at https://www.acs.org.au/professionalrecognition/mysfia-b2c.html
This unit contributes to the following workplace skills as defined by SFIA. The SFIA code is included:
- Systems Design (DESN)
- Systems Integration (SINT)
- Network Support (NTAS)
- Configuration Canagement (CFMG).
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment | • | • | |||
| 2 - Written Assessment | • | • | • | ||
| 3 - Examination | • | • | • | ||
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Knowledge | • | • | • | • | • |
| 2 - Communication | • | • | • | • | • |
| 3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | • | • | • | • | • |
| 4 - Research | • | • | • | • | • |
| 5 - Self-management | • | • | • | • | • |
| 6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | • | • | • | • | • |
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment | • | • | • | • | • | • | |||
| 3 - Examination | • | • | • | • | • | ||||