Unit Outline

In dynamic, high pressure work environments, public sector managers and leaders are now expected to have specialised skills with strategising to overcome complex, and at times intractable, problems. Students undertaking HSP407 will engage in deep thinking and critical analysis to formulate their own innovative, strategic evidence-based project proposal focused on addressing a complex problem in an authentic public sector context. They will learn and apply knowledge and skills in three areas: 1. What complex problems are and how to identify them; 2. What project management principles are and how to use them; and 3. What research methods are and how to use them (using surveys, interviews, document analysis, analysis of existing data, policy analysis, in-depth literature review, evaluation research, legal analysis). Students will work in a research supervision relationship with experts linked with their topic. They will have a subject matter expert in their workplace setting (their workplace adviser), a university academic expert at UTAS or other universities (their research supervisor), and an external stakeholder.

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	Identify and define a complex problem grounded in an understanding of evidence-based research literature about the problem
2	Critically analyse and synthesise research to justify an approach for addressing the complex problem
3	Design a research proposal for addressing the complex problem
4	Communicate proposed research clearly in written formats at a level commensurate with a research leader

Alterations as a result of student feedback

A new hurdle task has been added to Week 10 of the semester, which requires students to seek institutional approval from Victoria Police or Tasmania Police to proceed with their topic and proposed method of research.

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:	Appoint and meet with your supervision team	Week 4	0 %	LO1, LO4
Assessment Task 2:	Progress report online quiz	Week 6	20 %	LO1, LO2
Assessment Task 3:	Critical literature review	Week 8	30 %	LO1, LO2, LO4
Assessment Task 4:	Project approvals	Week 10	0 %	LO3, LO4
Assessment Task 5:	Project	Week 14	50 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Appoint and meet with your supervision team

Task Description:

Supervisors are critical to good outcomes in research. In this compulsory hurdle exercise, you will need to appoint and meet with your supervision team (academic, workplace and community supervisors) to discuss your supervision arrangements and research topic. In this meeting, you should also make arrangements for regular supervision meetings across HPS603 and HSP604.

You will need to:
1. Review the profiles of available academic supervisors to identify someone with the requisite knowledge and skills to support your research.
2. Contact your preferred academic supervisor to arrange an initial meeting to discuss supervision arrangements and suitability of proposed workplace and community supervisors.
3. Meet with your full supervision team to finalise your project topic and proposed research methods.
4. Upload email communication confirming your supervision arrangements, including regular schedule of recurring meetings for HSP603 and HSP604.

NB: If you are not able to identify an appropriate academic supervisor from the list of UTas available staff, please contact the Unit Coordinator immediately to discuss other possible academic supervisors.

Task Length:

Initial meeting with academic supervisor and second meeting with full supervision panel, and upload email communication confirming your supervision arrangements, including regular schedule recurring meetings for HSP603 and HSP604.

Due Date:

Week 4

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Communicate with proposed academic supervisor to arrange initial meeting to discuss supervision arrangements and suitability of proposed supervision team.	LO4
2	Meet with your full supervision team to finalise your project topic and proposed research methods	LO1, LO4

Assessment Task 2: Progress report online quiz

Task Description:

You will complete an online quiz to collect information about your research supervision and test
your knowledge about identifying complex problems. You will answer a maximum 20 multiple
choice questions and one short answer question.
Before you do the quiz, you need to:
1. Attend/listen to online workshops and complete online learning about identifying a
complex problem
2. Create your research supervision team including a subject matter expert in your
workplace, an academic supervisor at UTAS or another university, and an external
community stakeholder
3. Discuss your complex problem project proposal with your supervision team
When you do the quiz, you will be asked to:
1. Answer questions that assess your learning about complex problems (multiple choice)
2. Write 200 words that (short answer):
a) Describe how your project is strategically important to your organisation and/or area of interest
b) Describe why we need this project done in the current context

Task Length:

Maximum 20 multiple choice questions and 200 words

Due Date:

Week 6

Weight:

20 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Demonstrate knowledge of how to identify complex problems	LO1
2	Articulate strategic importance of your problem to your organisation and/or your interest	LO2
3	Critically analyse why we need this project undertaken in the current context	LO2

Assessment Task 3: Critical literature review

Task Description:

You will write a 2000-word critical literature review of the relevant research literature as it
applies to your chosen topic. You need to make an argument about what research knowledge
exists and how your chosen complex problem constitutes a gap in knowledge. For instance, you
might make an argument that your complex problem proposal is important because:
• It is the first time this is being considered in the context of your organisation
• It is the first time anyone has researched this particular issue using any method
• It is the first time anyone has researched this particular issue in Australia
• It is the first time anyone has use this a particular method to explore this issue (using
interviews with people instead of surveys)
• The research evidence tells us there could be an issue, but data has not been
collected/analysed to date
• Existing research only asks one group of people and no one has asked others
The literature to be reviewed must be chosen in consultation particularly with your supervision team. At a minimum, you must review and integrate at least 10 academic sources in your review of the literature. Grey literature (such as reports) are counted as additional resources. As critically analysing research literature is your focus in this task, you must integrate research evidence and must be properly and consistently referenced using a referencing style of your choice.

Task Length:

2000 words (excluding reference list)

Due Date:

Week 8

Weight:

30 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Source and integrate research findings from at least 10 academic sources	LO2
2	Integrate research evidence to show your knowledge of your complex problem	LO1
3	Critically analyse and synthesise existing research evidence according to key themes.	LO2
4	Make an argument justifying a focus on the knowledge gap related to your complex problem	LO4
5	Communicate clearly all research elements using well developed paragraphs, clear sentence structure and grammar, and appropriate in-text citations and reference list	LO4

Assessment Task 4: Project approvals

Task Description:

Project approvals are also critical to meeting professional standards in research. When you develop a research project to undertake, gaining approval from different people/organisations involved is crucial. In HSP603, you will begin two crucial project approval processes that you will need to undertake to do your research in HSP603/HSP604. In this compulsory hurdle exercise, you will therefore complete two tasks:
1. Complete a TILES/UTAS research approval form to seek in-principle approval to do your project from for your employing organisation and submitting this via email to your employer
2. Complete the Human Research Ethics Decision Tool to identify if you will require ethics approval to conduct your research, and if so, whether this will be an Ethics Exemption or Ethics Protocol (negligible/low/high level ethical clearance)

Task Length:

Upload employer email confirming submission/approval in-principle of your project as a pdf. Upload outcome of completed human research ethics decision tool as a pdf.

Due Date:

Week 10

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Populate one page research approval form with summary information about your project and submit via email to your employer.	LO3
2	Complete online human research ethics decision tool to determine whether: your project requires ethical clearance (and if yes, what level) OR whether your project is exempt from ethical clearance.	LO3
3	Communicate your proposed research clearly with relevant stakeholders.	LO4

Assessment Task 5: Project

Task Description:

You will write a project description on how you might address your chosen complex problem. You will populate a form that will be part of your Ethics Protocol when you begin your research in Semester 2 (HSP604) to ensure you cover key research information about your proposed project. Your project description will show your knowledge of project management principles and research methods, and will integrate your revised and abridged AT2 Literature Review.
Prior to embarking on this assessment task, student must review the information provided about ethical conduct of research, which can be sourced from here: https://www.utas.edu.au/research-admin/research-integrity-and-ethics-unit-rieu/human-ethics/about-human-research-ethics. In particular, students will need to review the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research (NHMRC 2023), which can be sourced from here: https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/about-us/publications/national-statement-ethical-conduct-human-research-2023.
Depending on your project focus, you will consider the following in your proposal (as per the template that is available from the MyLO site (Content>Assessment>AT3 Project Description):
• Project title
• Project team roles and responsibilities
• Background, including an abridged and revised literature review (from AT2), rationale/justification, research aims, and expected outcomes
• Project design, including methodological approach
• Participants, including description and number, inclusion and exclusion criteria, and justification for number of participants
• Recruitment, including recruitment strategies and timeframes
• Consent
• Data collection and gathering, including what types of data will be collected, and collection techniques
• Data management plan, including how you will store, access, transfer, archive or destroy data collected
• Data analysis, including sampling strategies and accounting for bias and missing information
• References

In preparation for submitting an Ethics Protocol via the ERM, you will also add a concluding statement at the end of the form about what ethical issues and risks may need to be considered in conducting your research as planned.
You will need to integrate the research evidence reported in AT2 (Critical Literature Review) so your Project Description must be properly and consistently referenced using a referencing style of your choice.

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.

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.