Aims

The assessment allows you to develop and demonstrate your active listening skills with your student peers in group work activities during the residential school. Attending and completing the five-day residential school is a compulsory requirement of this unit. The residential school is delivered on-campus at Rockhampton, QLD and Geraldton, WA. This is non-negotiable and the dates cannot be changed. 

Task Description

The residential school will be held from Wednesday 20th August 2025 to Sunday 25th August 2025 from 9:00am – 5:00pm each day.  The session on Sunday, 25th August, will conclude at 2 PM. Please note that leaving before this time is not permitted.

You will need to provide evidence of your attendance at the residential school.    

There will be a sign-in sheet available for every session. You need to ensure that you sign in and out of every session. 

After each session, teaching staff will review the attendance sheet report to ensure that students are present for the entire session. Teaching staff will not follow up if you are absent, it will be solely your responsibility to ensure that the 'record of attendance' is completed correctly. 

To meet the course accreditation requirements of the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW), a student cannot miss any more than two hours of the residential school and must provide a reason and sufficient supporting documentation to do so, for example if there is a significant unforeseen event or illness. The AASW requires that all social work students complete at least 20 days of face-to-face learning activities across the accredited social work program. 

To meet the ASWEAS attendance requirements, you must pass this assessment to pass the unit. Failure to do so will result in a final grade of 'Fail' for the entire unit.

No Assessment Criteria

Length: 10-minute active listening demonstration, 1,500-word reflection, +/- 10%

Unit Coordinator: Dr Helen Hickson

Aims

The aim of this assessment is to demonstrate your knowledge and skills regarding active listening and therapeutic communication.    This assessment has two parts.

Task Description

Part A: Active Listening Demonstration (10 minute demonstration)

During residential school, you will practice active listening skills with other students. 

For this assessment you will record (audio and video) a 10-minute demonstration (minimum 9 minutes, maximum 11 minutes) of your active listening skills with another student.  

There will be an opportunity to record this demonstration during residential school. 

This demonstration needs to be uploaded to Moodle and will be assessed. Please ensure the discussion is not about significant personal or confidential issues, as this is not a counselling session, rather it is a demonstration of active listening and communication skills. 

Your active listening demonstration, should include the following:

·        the use of communication skills which include empathy and sensitive use of self,

·        the ability to apply the AASW values of respect and self-determination in the helping context, and

·        Active Listening Skills that are practiced during the Residential School, such as  attending, following, and reflecting.

Important Note: This demonstration is not a role play of counselling skills; it is a demonstration of active listening skills. Please also respect the privacy of participants and their confidentiality in discussions.

Part B: Reflection of Active Listening Skills Demonstration (1500 words written)

Your written reflection should critique your active listening skills from the recording you undertook. You will identify your strengths and areas that need further development, and consider what you might do in the future to improve your listening skills.  

Please address the following in your written submission:

·        An introduction that outlines the situation discussed in the recording (very briefly).

·        Identify and analyse your strengths 

·        Analyse your capacity to listen effectively, demonstrate empathy and sensitivity and how these influenced you and the conversation.

·        Identify your own assumptions, values, and past experiences and how these influenced you and the conversation. 

·        Reflect on how your personal values and social work professional values may have aligned or were challenged

·        reflect on language used (verbal and body language), and the social and cultural factors of the conversation. How did these impact your communication?  

·        identify future development of your communication skills, citing why and how you might do that.

·        Finally, reflect on feedback provided from social work academics and others while at residential school. What do you think about it, what did you find helpful/not helpful and how you will use it or why you wouldn’t use it in the future?

You should use a minimum of five references to connect your reflections to academic literature. Recommended readings will be provided to assist you with this.

Your understanding should be informed by the unit material and your reading of the suggested material.

Use the above bullet points as a guide for your own critique. This is a reflective piece, not a formal essay, you can write in first-person perspective.

Literature and references
 

In this assessment, use at least five academic, scholarly references to support your reflection. Suitable references include peer-reviewed journal articles as well as textbooks and credible websites. When sourcing information, consider the five elements of a quality reference: currency, authority, relevance, objectivity, and coverage. Grey literature sourced from the internet must be from reputable websites such as from government, university, or peak national bodies: for example, the Australian Association of Social Workers.

Note that websites such as Wikipedia are not suitable for this assessment task. Lecture notes are not primary sources of evidence and should not be used in this assessment. All resources, other than web pages and grey literature, must be sources from the CQUniversity library. You should use Australian literature.

Requirements 
•      Use a cover page that includes your name and student number, the subject code, the date, and the number of words in your submission.

•      You should include a statement about the use of Generative AI tools in your assessment. For example: ChatGPT has been used for understanding the key terms and checking references in this assessment

•      Use a conventional and legible size 12 font, such as Times New Roman or Arial, with 2.0 line spacing and 2.54 cm page margins (standard pre-set margin in Microsoft Word).

•      Include page numbers on the top right side of each page in a header.

•      Use formal academic language unless otherwise instructed.

•      All work submitted must be your own work. 

•      Paraphrase, summarise or quote information acknowledging the original source (referencing) to avoid plagiarism. 

•      Follow academic writing conventions: spell out contractions in full; introduce abbreviations and acronyms; spell out numbers for zero through nine and use numerals for numbers 10 and above. 

•      Start your reference list on a separate page to the body of your assessment. 

•      Use the seventh edition American Psychological Association (APA 7) referencing style. The CQUniversity Academic Learning Centre has an online APA Referencing Style Guide.

•      The word count is considered from the introduction's first word to the conclusion's last word. The word count excludes the reference list but includes in-text references and direct quotations.

 
Resources 

·        You are encouraged to use unit provided materials and other credible sources (e.g. journal articles, books) to reference your argument. The quality and credibility of your sources are essential. 

·        We recommend you access your discipline-specific library guide: the Social Work and Community Services Guide. 

·        We recommend you use EndNote to manage your citations and reference list. More information on how to use EndNote is available on the CQUniversity Library website. 

·        For information on academic communication, please go to the Academic Learning Centre Moodle site. The Academic Communication section has many helpful resources, including information for students with English as a second language.

·        You may wish to submit a draft to Studiosity. 

·        Submit at least one draft before the due date to review your Turnitin Similarity Score before making a final submission. Instructions are available here. Please remember, the similarity score is only a matching tool, and the score alone does not necessarily indicate or eliminate the presence of plagiarism. 

Academic Integrity 

1.     You must abide by the principles of academic integrity (see Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure). Completion of this assessment with another party or sharing of responses is not permitted at any time. 

2.     The use of any generative artificial intelligence is permitted for the following purposes: 

a.     Gen AI content is used to generate ideas and general structures. 

b.     Gen AI content editing.  

c.      Checking spelling and grammar (for example, Studiosity or Grammarly). 

If you use Gen AI to generate ideas, you are required to reference the Gen AI agent as per APA 7th guidelines. If you are using a Gen AI agent for content editing, please complete the declaration on the title page of your assessment. If Gen AI is not used, please delete this declaration. 

Submission
Submit your written assessment via the unit Moodle site in Microsoft Word format. You are required to upload the recording of your active listening demonstration. 

Late penalties of 5% per day of the available mark may be applied as per the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).  

Contact TASAC if you experience technical issues submitting your assessment: 

Phone toll-free 1300 666 620 or Email tasac@cqu.edu.au  

References 

There are no prescribed references for this assessment. 

Marking Criteria 

Refer to the marking rubric on the Moodle site for more detail on how marks will be assigned.   

Type: Written Assessment  

This assessment has a 72 hour grace period

Weighting: 40%

Length: 1,500 words, +/- 10%

Unit Coordinator: Dr Helen Hickson

Aims

This assessment demonstrates your knowledge about cross-cultural communication, with a particular focus on working with First Nations service users. You will explore effective communication strategies and understand the cultural approaches that influence working with First Nations communities.

Task Description

This assessment task requires you to write an essay which discusses communication with First Nations service users. You should include references to the concepts that have been discussed in the lectures and recommended readings, as well as AASW resources such as the Code of Ethics and Practice Standards. 

1.     Introduction

·        Introduce the importance of cross-cultural communication in professional social work settings.

·        State the purpose of the report and provide an overview of the main points to be discussed.

2.     Understanding Cross-Cultural Communication and focus on First Nations Communities

·        Define cross-cultural communication and explain its significance in a social work settings.

·        Discuss the challenges and barriers that can arise when communicating with First Nations communities.  

·        Explain the historical, cultural and political context that influences communication with First Nations people.

3.     The Third Space

·        Discuss The Third Space in the context of social work with First Nations service users.

·        Provide examples of culturally appropriate communication techniques and practices.

·        Discuss the role of social workers using professional communication skills to build trust and rapport with First Nations service users.

·        Explore how social workers can advocate for and support the needs of First Nations communities through effective communication.

4.     Acknowledgement of Country

·        Explain the purpose of an Acknowledgement of Country statement and when it should be used, compared to a Welcome to Country statement

·        Develop a short, meaningful and locally relevant statement that is either an Acknowledgement of Country or a Welcome to Country statement and the type of occasion where this might be used.  

5.     Conclusion

·        You should end with a conclusion that summarises the key points and makes recommendations for incorporating the learning into the workplace.  

Requirements 
•      Use a cover page that includes your name and student number, the subject code, the date, and the number of words in your submission.

•      You should include a statement about the use of Generative AI tools in your assessment. For example: ChatGPT has been used for understanding the key terms and checking references in this assessment

•      Use a conventional and legible size 12 font, such as Times New Roman or Arial, with 2.0 line spacing and 2.54 cm page margins (standard pre-set margin in Microsoft Word).

•      Include page numbers on the top right side of each page in a header.

•      You should write in the third-person perspective. 

•      Use formal academic language.

•      All work submitted must be your own work. 

•      Paraphrase, summarise or quote information acknowledging the original source (referencing) to avoid plagiarism. 

•      Follow academic writing conventions: spell out contractions in full; introduce abbreviations and acronyms; spell out numbers for zero through nine and use numerals for numbers 10 and above. 

•      Start your reference list on a separate page to the body of your assessment. 

•      Use the seventh edition American Psychological Association (APA 7) referencing style. The CQUniversity Academic Learning Centre has an online APA Referencing Style Guide.

•      The word count is considered from the introduction's first word to the conclusion's last word. The word count excludes the reference list but includes in-text references and direct quotations.

 
Resources 

·        You are encouraged to use unit provided materials and other credible sources (e.g. journal articles, books) to reference your argument. The quality and credibility of your sources are essential. 

·        We recommend you access your discipline-specific library guide: the Social Work and Community Services Guide. 

·        We recommend you use EndNote to manage your citations and reference list. More information on how to use EndNote is available on the CQUniversity Library website. 

·        For information on academic communication, please go to the Academic Learning Centre Moodle site. The Academic Communication section has many helpful resources, including information for students with English as a second language.

·        You may wish to submit a draft to Studiosity. 

·        Submit at least one draft before the due date to review your Turnitin Similarity Score before making a final submission. Instructions are available here. Please remember, the similarity score is only a matching tool, and the score alone does not necessarily indicate or eliminate the presence of plagiarism. 

Academic Integrity 

1.     You must abide by the principles of academic integrity (see Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure). Completion of this assessment with another party or sharing of responses is not permitted at any time. 

2.     The use of any generative artificial intelligence is permitted for the following purposes: 

a.     Gen AI content is used to generate ideas and general structures. 

b.     Gen AI content editing.  

c.      Checking spelling and grammar (for example, Grammarly). 

If you use Gen AI to generate ideas, you are required to reference the Gen AI agent as per APA 7th guidelines. If you are using a Gen AI agent for content editing, please complete the declaration on the title page of your assessment. If Gen AI is not used, please delete this declaration. 

Submission
Submit your assessment via the unit Moodle site in Microsoft Word format only.

Late penalties of 5% per day of the available mark may be applied as per the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).  

Contact TASAC if you experience technical issues submitting your assessment: 

Phone toll-free 1300 666 620 or Email tasac@cqu.edu.au  

References 

There are no prescribed references for this assessment. 

Marking Criteria 

Refer to the marking rubric on the Moodle site for more detail on how marks will be assigned.