Unit Outline

The final year Social Work Practicum is one of the capstone units in the Master of Social Work (Qualifying). Students undertake 500 hours (minimum) of placement in a setting that is relevant to social work practice. Placements are undertaken on a full-time basis. In some circumstances part time placements may be negotiated, subject to availability. You will design and implement interventions and strategies. You will document the development, application and evaluation of your interventions. At the end of the placement, you are expected to demonstrate that you meet the beginning standards of professional social work practice. You will be required to attend preparation seminars in Semester 1. Full-time placements are undertaken over a period of 14 weeks.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

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


1.	Describe and demonstrate ethical, inclusive and culturally responsive social work practice skills in an agency setting.
2.	Describe social work theories and apply theory to practice in an agency setting.
3.	Identify and take responsibility for a range of tasks and social work interventions, methods and techniques used within an agency setting.
4.	Demonstrate professional attitudes, workplace behaviours and communication skills (verbal, nonverbal and written) appropriate to the profession of social work, particularly in complex and challenging situations.
5.	Critically reflect on your own practice within professional supervision.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Concurrent Pre-requisite	HGW423, HGW424 and HGW431

Alterations as a result of student feedback

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Mid-placement assessment	Week 7	0 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
Assessment Task 2:	Final assessment	Week 13	100 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Mid-placement assessment

Task Description:

The Mid-placement assessment of your progress in meeting the learning outcomes of this unit is assessed during a (minimum) 500-hour placement using The Learning Plan and Reporting Document (LePARD). Your LePARD has been designed based on the current Australian Association of Social Workers Practice Standards and the current Australian Association of Social Work Code of Ethics. Documented progress against each learning outcome is completed by/with your Social Work Field Educator/s and your External Social Work Field Educator (social work), if applicable.
A progress report is then submitted.

For part-time students, please see MyLO for due dates.

Task Length:

Progressive assessment during a (minimum) 500 hour placement, and formally via the mid-placement report.

Due Date:

Week 7

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Describe and demonstrate ethical, inclusive and culturally responsive social work practice skills in an agency setting (see LePARD).	LO1
2	Describe social work theories and apply theory to practice in an agency setting (see LePARD).	LO2
3	Identify and take responsibility for a range of tasks and social work interventions, methods and techniques used within an agency setting (see LePARD).	LO3
4	Demonstrate professional attitudes, workplace behaviours and communication skills appropriate to the profession of social work, particularly in complex and challenging situations (see LePARD).	LO4
5	Critically reflect on your own practice within professional supervision (see LePARD).	LO5

Assessment Task 2: Final assessment

Task Description:

The Final assessment of your progress in meeting the learning outcomes of this unit is assessed during a (minimum) 500-hour placement using The Learning Plan and Reporting Document (LePARD). Your LePARD has been designed based on the current Australian Association of Social Workers Practice Standards and the current Australian Association of Social Work Code of Ethics. Documented progress against each learning outcome is completed by/with your Social Work Field Educator/s and your External Social Work Field Educator (social work), if applicable.
At the conclusion of your placement, a final report submitted.

For part-time students, please see MyLO for due dates.

Task Length:

Progressive assessment during a (minimum) 500 hour placement, and formally via the mid-placement report.

Due Date:

Week 13

Weight:

100 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Describe and demonstrate ethical, inclusive and culturally responsive social work practice skills in an agency setting (see LePARD).	LO1
2	Describe social work theories and apply theory to practice in an agency setting (see LePARD).	LO2
3	Identify and take responsibility for a range of tasks and social work interventions, methods and techniques used within an agency setting (see LePARD).	LO3
4	Demonstrate professional attitudes, workplace behaviours and communication skills appropriate to the profession of social work, particularly in complex and challenging situations (see LePARD).	LO4
5	Critically reflect on your own practice within professional supervision (see LePARD).	LO5

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Academic integrity

Academic integrity is about acting responsibly, honestly, ethically, and collegially when using, producing, and communicating information with other students and staff members.

In written work, you must correctly reference the work of others to maintain academic integrity. To find out the referencing style for this unit, see the assessment information in the MyLO site, or contact your teaching staff. For more detail about Academic Integrity, see Important Guidelines & Support.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Review of results and appeals

You are entitled to ask for a review of the marking and grading of your assessment task if there is an irregularity in the marking standards or an error in the process for determining the outcome of an assessment. Details on how to request a review of a mark for an assignment are outlined in the Review and Appeal of Academic Decisions Procedure.