Overview
The final theory unit in the Bachelor of Social Work course equips you with an advanced understanding of social work theory and its application to real-world practice. Building on the foundational knowledge acquired in Field Education 1 (SOWK13009) and Integrating Theory and Practice 1 (SOWK13010), this unit emphasises the importance of applying research knowledge and skills in addressing the needs and aspirations of individuals, groups, and communities to achieve equitable outcomes. You will demonstrate your capacity to employ research knowledge and skills in your practice, as well as utilising research to inform your professional development. This unit is a co-requisite to SOWK14009 and can only be undertaken concurrently with field education.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Prerequisites: SOWK13009, SOWK13010, SOWK14005, SOWK14006 Corequisite: SOWK14009 Fieldwork Education 2
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 2 - 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 Academic teaching staff
Academic teaching staff identified the need to strengthen how evidence-based practice is taught within the unit, particularly in supporting students to respond to practice situations where there is limited or no established evidence base. There was also a need to further embed a social work lens that recognises the integration of research evidence, practitioner expertise, and lived experience, and to better support students to critically engage with dominant evidence hierarchies.
Enhance unit content and delivery, including the 5-day residential school, to further develop students’ understanding and application of evidence-informed practice from a social work perspective, with a specific focus on practice-based evidence, critical appraisal, and decision-making in contexts of uncertainty.
- Facilitate and engage in peer supervision, demonstrating advanced understanding of social work principles, reflective practice, and constructive feedback.
- Critically analyse and integrate reflective practice frameworks to understand the role of theories, knowledge bases, and knowledge sources in social work practice.
- Select and apply appropriate interventions to address clients' and service users' needs and circumstances, while upholding social work values and ethics.
- Communicate effectively, presenting knowledge and ideas in various contexts, and adapt skills to diverse situations.
The learning outcomes in this unit are aligned with the AASW social work graduate attributes outlined in the Australian Social Work Education and Accreditation Standards (ASWEAS) 2021.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Presentation - 30% | ||||
| 2 - Report - 40% | ||||
| 3 - Poster Sessions - 30% | ||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 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 | ||||