Overview
This unit provides you with the opportunity to learn from your field placement or human service practice experiences through the critical reflection and evaluation of the integration of theory and practice that considers context and social work aims, values and ethics. You will engage in critical reflective and reflexive practice to evaluate the implications of theoretical understandings and approaches and the influence of the personal, organisational and socio-economic-political contexts for creative and socially just social work practice responses. You will be required to draw on feedback from your previous coursework and field placement/human service work experiences for the ongoing critical reflection of your developing professional practice framework and use of self in practice.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Prerequisite: SOWK12011 Social Group Work and Family Work. Co-requisite: SOWK13009 Fieldwork Education 1
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).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2026
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).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate 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.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
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.
Feedback from Unit Coordinator
To accommodate for differences in field placement learning experiences, case studies, rather than experiences from field placement, will be used to facilitate the integration of theory and practice.
Case studies, rather than a field placement experience, will be used in the final assessment.
Feedback from Unit Coordinator
Student evaluation continues to indicate students enjoy all aspects of this unit and the residential school.
While study modules and the content will be updated, a similar residential program and teaching and learning approach will be taken.
- Critically reflects to enhance awareness of the influence of personal and professional values, beliefs, culture, and assumptions on social work practice and the use of self within the field placement or human service practice context
- Critically examines and evaluates the implications of dominant discourses, social and historical contexts and power relations on service user groups and social work practice
- Critiques your application of cross-cultural competencies including working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
- Critically reflects on your developing social work identity and professional practice framework
- Critically evaluates theories and theoretical approaches and their application to different practice contexts in the field placement or human service setting.
Australian Association of Social Workers Education and Accreditation Standards
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Online resource/s - 0% | |||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 20% | |||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 30% | |||||
| 4 - Written Assessment - 50% | |||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||||
| 5 - Team Work | |||||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||||
| 10 - First Nations Knowledges | |||||
| 11 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | |
| 1 - Online resource/s - 0% | |||||||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 20% | |||||||||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 30% | |||||||||||
| 4 - Written Assessment - 50% | |||||||||||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
Additional Textbook Information
Students are encouraged to access and draw on Moodle readings, theory and practice textbooks, and previous social work theory unit resources, as well as engage in independent research and reading.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Microsoft Word Document
- Windows Player Media or equivalent
- ZOOM
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 7th Edition (APA 7th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
m.chesham@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Integration of Theory & Practice
Chapter
Complete the study Module on the unit Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Face-to-Face Compulsory Residential School - Brisbane campus from the 6th to the 10th March 2026. In preparation, visit the Residential School tile on Moodle.
Orientation: Take some time to carefully read the unit profile and the assessment task descriptions, and orient yourself to the unit Moodle site, beginning with the welcome video.
Activity: Access the General Discussion page and introduce yourself to your peers by providing your name and maybe where you are going on field placement or working.
Assessments: Review the assessment tasks and make a study plan.
Foundations of Academic Integrity Program: Complete your annual program.
Assessment Zoom sessions: It is highly recommended that students attend all Assessment Zoom sessions.
Virtual Classes tile: Find the unit's Zoom session schedule.
Announcements and Discussion Forums: Check for posts and updates each week.
Student email – Check your student email at least twice per week for important communications.
Module/Topic
Reflective Practice
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
- In preparing your Assessment 2 Part B submission, take some time to reflect on the learning you experienced in your small group case study experience at the residential school.
Confirmation of Attendance at residential school - Face to Face at Brisbane Campus Due: Week 2 Wednesday (18 Mar 2026) 4:00 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Critical Reflection
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle site
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Consider how the theory informing critical reflection shapes its focus and key elements.
Assessment 2 - PPT and reflection Due: Week 3 Wednesday (25 March 2026) 4:00 PM (AEST)
Module/Topic
Critically Reflective Practice
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Consider how the critically reflective practice frameworks differ and are similar to the reflective practice models you have previously used.
Census Date - Tuesday Week 4
Module/Topic
Context & Social Work Practice
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Continue to research the influence of context on social work practice.
- Does your Assessment 3 consider the influence of social forces and context on this field of practice?
Module/Topic
Culturally Responsive Practice - Decolonising Practice
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Consider how culture influences social work practice in how problems/issues are understood and responded to.
- All people experience a level of cultural identity and socialisation. Complete the module's activities to explore how culture might influence your practice.
Module/Topic
Vacation week.
Chapter
Please use this mid-term break as an opportunity to rest and recover. Enjoy your break.
Events and Submissions/Topic
No timetabled learning activities.
Module/Topic
Values and Ethics
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Reflect on a time when you identified a gap between your espoused values and values in practice/action.
- How did this influence your practice/actions?
- How did you resolve this gap?
Critical Reflection & Evaluation Due: Week 7 Wednesday (29 Apr 2026) 4:00 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Uncovering assumptions
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
- What strategies and practices will you utilise to identify the influence of assumptions on practice?
Module/Topic
Examining power relations
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle site.
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Consider the inherent power of the social work role in the case studies and its influence on service users and social work practice.
Module/Topic
Uncovering Assumptions
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle page.
Events and Submissions/Topic
- What strategies will you use to identify and challenge assumptions influencing your practice?
Module/Topic
Reflexivity & use of self
Chapter
Complete the study module on the unit Moodle page.
Events and Submissions/Topic
- What strategies, such as journaling and supervision, will you utilise to reflect on your use of self in practice and increase self-awareness?
Student Unit and Teaching Evaluation survey – We encourage you to provide feedback about your unit and teaching experiences in this unit. The survey opens in Week 11 and closes one week before the release of grades.
Module/Topic
Professional Practice Frameworks
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- What is your understanding of professional practice frameworks?
- What are the key elements of a practice framework?
- What have you learned about your developing professional practice framework while on field placement?
- How does practice context influence professional practice frameworks?
Student Unit and Teaching Evaluation survey – Please complete the unit evaluation survey.
Congratulations on completing this unit. Don’t forget to check your unit enrolments for next term.
Social Work Practice Framework Due: Week 12 Monday (1 June 2026) 9:00 am AEST
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
As this unit is offered online and face-to-face at the residential school, students are asked to prepare their own individual study plan to undertake self-led, self-directed study throughout the term. A key to your success is a strategic self-directed approach to learning and regular contact with your Unit Coordinator/s. Please check the Announcements and Discussion forums at least twice a week – there will be regular announcements about assessments and unit resources throughout the term, and reviewing this information is essential to unit knowledge and your success. CQUniversity communicates with students through CQUniversity email. We recommend that you access your CQUniversity email at least twice a week so that you do not miss vital information about your studies.
1 Online resource/s
Aim
The aim of this assessment is for you to 1) attend and engage in the compulsory residential school in Brisbane, and 2) demonstrate the integration of theory and practice. Participation in all learning activities and completion of the residential school are compulsory requirements of this unit.
Please note: Any previous attempts at Field Education 1 and Integrating Theory and Practice 1 that resulted in a Fail grade and any previous residential attendance for this unit are not carried over or counted towards a subsequent attempt at the unit.
Instructions
Please follow the steps below to complete this assessment task:
- Ensure that you sign in and out on the Record of Attendance form for every residential school session. The attendance record will be checked after each session to confirm your participation. Teaching staff will not follow up on absentees.
It is your responsibility to ensure that the Record of Attendance is completed. - Actively participate in a range of learning activities throughout the residential school, including class discussions, guided learning activities, collaborative small group tasks, and group presentations.
- Demonstrate respectful communication, collaboration with peers, and adherence to the social work code of ethics.
- On the final day, after verifying your attendance record, the Unit Coordinator will provide a Confirmation of Attendance Record. You need to submit this document to the Assessment 1 submission link in the unit’s Moodle Assessment tile by the due date.
Please refer to the assessment task instructions on the unit Moodle site.
Extensions
Extensions are not available for this assessment as per policy.
The 72-hour grace period may apply to this assessment.
Minimum Pass Criteria
- You must pass this assessment to pass the unit.
- In the event you are eligible for a supplementary assessment, all assessment tasks must be reasonably attempted in this unit.
Week 2 Wednesday (18 Mar 2026) 4:00 pm AEST
Submit your completed Confirmation of Record of Residential Attendance form via Moodle. A photo of the record is permissible
Week 3 Wednesday (25 Mar 2026)
Students will be advised of release of results and feedback marking via an announcement posted to the Announcement's forum on the Unit Moodle site.
Assessment criteria will be available on the Moodle site.
- Critically reflects to enhance awareness of the influence of personal and professional values, beliefs, culture, and assumptions on social work practice and the use of self within the field placement or human service practice context
- Critically examines and evaluates the implications of dominant discourses, social and historical contexts and power relations on service user groups and social work practice
- Critiques your application of cross-cultural competencies including working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
- Critically evaluates theories and theoretical approaches and their application to different practice contexts in the field placement or human service setting.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Team Work
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
2 Written Assessment
Aim
This assessment aims to help you prepare for the integration of theory and practice, group work, and team-building activities you will experience during your field placement and practice.
You will undertake a case study via a small group work process and present your case study findings at the residential school (Part A) and complete an individual critical reflection of a small group experience (Part B) to identify insights and learning gained for your future social work practice in teams.
Instructions
The assessment comprises two parts:
- Part A. A small group presentation at the residential school
- Part B. Individual critical reflection
Please refer to the assessment task instructions on the unit Moodle site.
Academic Integrity – Part A and Part B
You must abide by the principles of academic integrity (see Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure). Completion of this assessment with another person or sharing of responses is not permitted at any time.
The use of any generative artificial intelligence is permitted as per Level 2 (AI planning) AI Assessment scale tool indicators for only the following purposes:
- Gen AI content editing and proofreading.
- Checking spelling and grammar.
- CQUniversity’s Gen AI tools approved for use in this assessment are Microsoft Copilot (protected version), Studiosity and Grammarly.
Any use of Gen AI software:
- Must be cited in the relevant sections.
- Must be referenced as per APA 7th guidelines.
You must complete the declaration of Gen AI use on the title page of your submission.
Extensions
Part A. Not available for this assessment as per policy.
Part B. Extensions for this assessment are available as per policy. The 72-hour grace period may apply to this assessment.
Minimum Pass Criteria
- You must achieve a cumulative grade of at least 49.5% across all assessments to pass this unit.
- In the event you are eligible for a supplementary assessment, all assessment tasks must be reasonably attempted in this unit.
Part A, Small Group Presentations will take place at the Residential School on Sunday the 8th of March, 2026. Students need to upload their presentation PowerPoint and Part B, Reflective Practice to the submission area on the 25th March, 2026.
Week 6 Wednesday (15 Apr 2026)
Students will be advised of release of results and feedback marking via an announcement posted to the Announcement's forum on the Unit Moodle site.
Assessment criteria will be available on the Moodle site.
- Critically reflects to enhance awareness of the influence of personal and professional values, beliefs, culture, and assumptions on social work practice and the use of self within the field placement or human service practice context
- Critically examines and evaluates the implications of dominant discourses, social and historical contexts and power relations on service user groups and social work practice
- Critiques your application of cross-cultural competencies including working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
- Critically reflects on your developing social work identity and professional practice framework
- Critically evaluates theories and theoretical approaches and their application to different practice contexts in the field placement or human service setting.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
3 Written Assessment
Aim
The aim of this assessment is for you to demonstrate your critical reflection skills in examining and analysing a practice situation. The goal is to critique the social work practice and gain a comprehensive understanding of the situation, considering the perspectives of all stakeholders involved, as well as relevant theories, knowledge and literature. A critical reflective approach will help you build an ethically robust practice framework. The case study is located in Appendix A at the end of the assessment task sheet.
Instructions
Apply the provided critical reflection framework to deconstruct and reconstruct the situation, integrating insights into a coherent action plan and emerging practice framework that embodies social work knowledge, theories, values and ethics.
Please refer to the assessment task instructions on the unit Moodle site.
Academic Integrity
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.
The use of any generative artificial intelligence is permitted as per Level 2 (AI planning) AI Assessment scale tool indicators:
- Gen AI content editing and proofreading.
- Checking spelling and grammar.
- CQUniversity’s Gen AI tools approved for use in this assessment are Microsoft Copilot (protected version), Studiosity and Grammarly.
Any use of Gen AI software:
- Must be cited in the relevant sections.
- Must be referenced as per APA 7th guidelines.
You must complete the declaration of Gen AI use on the title page of your assessment
Extensions
Extensions for this assessment are available as per policy. The 72-hour grace period may apply to this assessment.
Minimum Pass Criteria
- You must achieve a cumulative grade of at least 49.5% across all assessments to pass this unit.
- In the event you are eligible for a supplementary assessment, all assessment tasks must be reasonably attempted in this unit.
Week 7 Wednesday (29 Apr 2026) 4:00 pm AEST
Submit your assessment via the unit Moodle site in Microsoft Word format only.
Week 10 Wednesday (20 May 2026)
Students will be advised of release of results and feedback marking via an announcement posted to the Announcement's forum on the Unit Moodle site.
Assessment criteria will be available on the Moodle site.
- Critically examines and evaluates the implications of dominant discourses, social and historical contexts and power relations on service user groups and social work practice
- Critiques your application of cross-cultural competencies including working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
- Critically reflects on your developing social work identity and professional practice framework
- Critically evaluates theories and theoretical approaches and their application to different practice contexts in the field placement or human service setting.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
4 Written Assessment
Aim
The aim of this assessment is to develop the capacity to reflect on and articulate your social work practice effectively. A social work practice framework represents our preferred social work identity, a map of who we are as social workers, what we do and why. Drawing on a narrative theoretical approach to reflection, you will use a metaphor to symbolise your practice framework and share the story of your preferred social worker identity and its relationship to the past, present and future.
Instructions
Prepare a 10–12 minute audiovisual (AV) presentation of your practice framework to a small group of peers and an academic, using any suitable format (e.g., PowerPoint, Prezi, or another).
Please refer to the assessment task instructions on the unit Moodle site.
Academic Integrity
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.
The use of any generative artificial intelligence is permitted as per Level 2 (AI planning) and Level 2 (AI Collaboration) AI Assessment scale tool indicators:
- Gen AI content is used only to generate a metaphor or symbol.
- Gen AI content editing and proofreading.
- Checking spelling and grammar.
- CQUniversity’s Gen AI tools approved for use in this assessment are Microsoft Copilot (protected version), Studiosity and Grammarly.
Any use of Gen AI software:
- Must be cited in the relevant sections.
- Must be referenced as per APA 7th guidelines.
You must complete the declaration of Gen AI use on slide 2 of your assessment.
Extensions
Extensions are not available for this assessment as per policy.
The 72-hour grace period does not apply to this assessment.
Minimum Pass Criteria
- You must achieve a cumulative grade of at least 49.5% across all assessments to pass this unit.
- In the event you are eligible for a supplementary assessment, all assessment tasks must be reasonably attempted in this unit.
- You must attempt this assessment to pass the unit.
Week 12 Monday (1 June 2026) 9:00 am AEST
Submission will be a two-part process: 1. Submit your presentation slides by the due date via the Unit Moodle site. 2. You will be presenting live to your lecturer and fellow students using Zoom, a video conferencing program. Your lecturer will help you with using Zoom and arrange a suitable time with you to present. Your presentation will be recorded for marking purposes. Only your lecturer and unit markers will have access to this video, which will be stored securely.
Results for this assessment will be made available on 26th June, 2026. Students will be advised of release of results and feedback marking via an announcement posted to the Announcement's forum on the Unit Moodle site.
Assessment criteria will be available on the Moodle site.
- Critically reflects to enhance awareness of the influence of personal and professional values, beliefs, culture, and assumptions on social work practice and the use of self within the field placement or human service practice context
- Critically examines and evaluates the implications of dominant discourses, social and historical contexts and power relations on service user groups and social work practice
- Critically reflects on your developing social work identity and professional practice framework
- Critically evaluates theories and theoretical approaches and their application to different practice contexts in the field placement or human service setting.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Ethical practice
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
