PSYC21001 - Assessment 1

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit is intended to provide you with knowledge and skill acquisition at Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC) Accreditation Standards Level 3, which represents professional and specialised areas of practice competencies necessary for working as a psychologist. Specifically, this unit aims to build your competency in theoretically informed selection, administration, interpretation, and integration of standardised psychological testing into broader assessment of cognition, intelligence, and learning. You will build knowledge and skills specific to culturally-responsive reflective practice approaches to psychological assessment.

Details

Level Postgraduate
Unit Level 9
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 4
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Students must be enrolled in CG17 Master of Clinical Psychology or CL68 Master of Professional Psychology.

Anti-req PSCY20055

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).

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Residential School Compulsory Residential School
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Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2023

Term 1 - 2023 Profile
Mixed Mode

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).

Assessment Overview

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. Practical Assessment 0%
2. Written Assessment 0%
3. Direct observation of procedural skills (DOPs) 0%
4. Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books 0%

This is a pass/fail (non-graded) unit. To pass the unit, you must pass all of the individual assessment tasks shown in the table above.

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2022 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 100.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 45.45% response rate.

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: Collated student feedback.
Feedback
Students reported that some elements of the written Assessment Task did not align with their learning and stage of professional development.
Recommendation
The unit coordinator will modify the types of tests selected for the relevant Assessment Task, to be aligned with students' stage of professional development and with the internal clinical placement.
Action Taken
Assessment Tasks modified to students' stage of professional development, in line with other Units and APAC competencies.
Source: Collated student feedback.
Feedback
Students reported that some elements of the Reflective Log Assessment Task did not appear to align with unit content.
Recommendation
The teaching team will review this Assessment Task.
Action Taken
Refined this Assessment Task to ensure that the requirements aligned with the Unit content. Additionally, a rubric was development with clear expectations for this Assessment Task.
Source: Collated student feedback.
Feedback
Students stated that they would like more practical demonstration of scoring and assessment as they found this useful to support their learning.
Recommendation
The unit coordinator will incorporate more demonstration and practice of administration, scoring and interpretation of tests during scheduled lecture time.
Action Taken
More demonstration and practice of administration and scoring was scheduled during lecture time across some tests.
Source: Unit Coordinator Reflection
Feedback
Create more case-based learning experiences (e.g., interpretation and write-up) across the various standardised tests taught in the unit.
Recommendation
Create case studies based from de-identified data from the CQUniversity Wellness Centre.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: Unit Coordinator Reflection
Feedback
Break teaching up to allow for practical demonstration.
Recommendation
Create pre-recorded material for lecture content for students to view at any stage.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Critically apply theoretical knowledge and a culturally-responsive scientist-practitioner approach to standardised psychological testing, as situated within the context of comprehensive psychological assessment.
  2. Justify and effectively communicate evidence-based interpretation, integration and synthesis of assessment data in oral and written formats.
  3. Apply critically reflective and culturally-sensitive practice in standardised psychological assessment processes.

Learning outcomes are based on Australian Qualification Framework (AQF) level 9 criteria and level 3 core competencies specified by the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council (APAC):
3.2 Apply evidence-based and scientific methods to professional practice across the lifespan in empirically valid and culturally responsive ways,
3.4 Perform appropriate standardised psychological testing, as part of broader assessment, to assess and interpret aspects of functioning,
3.5 Identify psychological disorders using a recognised taxonomy,
3.6 Conduct professional interviews and assessments and synthesise information from multiple sources, including assessment of risk, to formulate a conceptualisation of the presenting issues to determine the most appropriate interventions, including management of risk, and
3.8 Interpret and communicate findings in oral and written formats, including formal psychological reports, using culturally appropriate language (APAC, 2019, p.13-14).

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3
1 - Practical Assessment •
2 - Written Assessment • •
3 - Direct observation of procedural skills (DOPs) • •
4 - Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Advanced Level
• Professional Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3
1 - Knowledge • • •
2 - Communication •
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills • •
4 - Research •
5 - Self-management •
6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Advanced Level
• Professional Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8