Unit Outline

Speech Pathology Practice 2 extends your core knowledge and application of concepts and skills developed in previous units and/or concurrently in Optimising Communication and Swallowing 1 and 2. You will integrate and apply your understanding and skills in on-campus intensive workshops and within practice education placements in either a paediatric, adult or mixed practice context. Throughout the learning activities and the practice education placement, you will focus on person and family-centredness, biopsychosocial models of practice, clinical reasoning, self-reflection, critical thinking, cultural responsiveness, and evidence-based practice. You will develop a range of communication and swallowing assessment and management skills across the lifespan. In this first clinical population practice education placement, you will receive high levels of support from your practice educator/s, in practice contexts where you have high levels of familiarity and low levels of complexity.

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	Provide evidence-based, person-centred and responsive speech pathology practice in situations involving a low degree of complexity, high degree of familiarity and significant levels of support.
2	Plan and administer contextually appropriate assessments and demonstrate clinical reasoning to synthesise, interpret, and report assessment findings for relatively straightforward needs in either an adult, paediatric or mixed practice context.
3	Plan, implement and evaluate intervention or service responses and demonstrate a range of therapeutic skills for relatively straightforward needs in either an adult, paediatric or mixed practice context.
4	Achieve respectful partnerships and collaboration in situations involving a low degree of complexity, high degree of familiarity and significant levels of support.
5	Critically reflect and evaluate own performance and learning to inform ongoing professional development and life-long learning in situations involving a low degree of complexity, high degree of familiarity and significant levels of support.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Pre-requisite	CXA725 Speech Pathology Practice 1 and CXA724 Foundations of Speech Pathology
Co-requisite	CXA734 Optimising Communication and Swallowing 1

Alterations as a result of student feedback

The unit has been reviewed and updated based on student feedback. A Speech Pathology Skills assessment has been removed in 2025 and these skills will now be practised within learning activities in the Residential Schools. A placement preparation day has been added to the Residential School schedule to support students going into their first external practice education placement. A session preparing students for their first case presentation and viva has been added to scaffold this assessment task.

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:	My Practice Standards portfolio and reflection assignment	Refer to Assessment Description	0 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
Assessment Task 2:	Assessment of Speech Pathology Practice	Refer to Assessment Description	0 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
Assessment Task 3:	Case presentation and clinical viva	Exam Period	0 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: My Practice Standards portfolio and reflection assignment

Task Description:

You will complete a portfolio of evidence and critical reflection, evaluating your development with respect to the Professional Standards. You will then identify goals based on your reflection, and strategies for achieving these goals, in a learning plan.
Submission of the portfolio and critical reflection is a compulsory hurdle task that must be completed at a pass standard to achieve an overall pass result in this unit. You will have an opportunity to resubmit if you do not meet the required level of competency.

Task Length:

Critical reflection: 1000 words

Due Date:

Refer to Assessment Description

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Evaluate development of speech pathology knowledge, skills and attributes against the Professional Standards	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
2	Critically reflect on own practice to evaluate strengths and weaknesses and formulate goals and strategies for continued lifelong learning.	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5

Assessment Task 2: Assessment of Speech Pathology Practice

Task Description:

You will complete 20 days of practice education in either a paediatric or adult speech pathology practice context. To be awarded an ungraded pass for this placement, you are expected to demonstrate at least ‘approaching intermediate’ level competency overall on COMPASS® and an ‘approaching intermediate’ level of competency across the Professional Competencies and the CBOS competencies. This means that your performance will generally reflect the intermediate level competency behavioural descriptors although some novice level behaviours may remain evident. There needs to be evidence of progression towards ‘intermediate’ level competency along the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) at end-placement assessment when compared with mid-way COMPASS (on competencies where there has been opportunity).

This assessment task is Pass/Fail. You must pass this assessment task to be eligible for a pass in the unit.

Task Length:

20 days

Due Date:

Refer to Assessment Description

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Perform across the COMPASS competencies at ‘approaching intermediate’ competency level on the COMPASS evaluation.	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5

Assessment Task 3: Case presentation and clinical viva

Task Description:

This individual oral examination will follow the completion of your paediatric or adult practice education placement.
You will submit a written case summary of a client you have worked with during your placement using a standard template. This written information will be submitted one week before the exam and is not assessed but will be used by examiners to select appropriate questions to assess your clinical reasoning, application of theory, and critical reflection. In the oral exam you will present a 2-minute case presentation and then respond to questions from two staff members regarding your assessment and/or management of the client.
This is a compulsory hurdle task that must be completed at a pass standard to achieve an overall pass result in this unit. If you do not meet the required level of competency, you will be given an opportunity to re-attempt the task.

Task Length:

20 minutes

Due Date:

Exam Period

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Demonstrate evidence-based practice and holistic, client-centred clinical reasoning skills.	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
2	Justify diagnosis and/or management decisions based on clear theoretically motivated rationales.	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4
3	Critically reflect on own practice and learning.	LO5

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, and pass any all assessment tasks.

Academic progress review

The results for this unit may be included in a review of your academic progress. For information about progress reviews and what they mean for all students, see Academic Progress Review in the Student Portal.

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.