ORAL11003 - Introduction to Oral Disease

General Information

Unit Synopsis

On completion of this unit you will gain knowledge and understanding of the aetiology and pathogenesis of oral and systemic diseases as a foundation for clinical practice in Years 2 and 3. You will develop an understanding of the impact of systemic disease on the health of the oral cavity, dental management and treatment planning, the importance of patient medical history and the role of the oral health therapist within the dental team. You will learn the principles of intra-oral and extra-oral examination and screening for hard and soft tissue pathologies, as well as examination procedures in the detection of caries, changes in the tooth surface, pulpal and periapical tissues, and periodontal assessment. This knowledge will provide you with the foundations to recognise and describe oral pathological conditions in the clinical situation. You will learn to communicate information regarding oral health in oral and written forms and gain relevant interpersonal and team communication skills, professional attitudes and ethical behaviours.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 1
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 3
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Condition: Students must be enrolled in CB29 Oral Health Course to enrol in this unit.

Prerequisites: ORAL11001 Introduction to Oral Health Therapy and BMSC11010 Human Anatomy and Physiology 1.

Corequisites: ORAL11005 Oral Anatomy 2 and BMSC11011 Human Anatomy and Physiology 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).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 2 - 2025

Term 2 - 2025 Profile
Rockhampton
Term 2 - 2026 Profile
Rockhampton

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).

Assessment Overview

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.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. On-campus Activity 0%
2. Presentation 30%
3. Online Quiz(zes) 20%
4. In-class Test(s) 50%

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

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 2 - 2025 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 90.91% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 40.74% response rate.

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.

Source: In Class
Feedback
Students reported that the clinical activities, including intraoral and extraoral examinations, vital signs observations, and saliva testing, provided a valuable and enjoyable learning experience.
Recommendation
It is recommended to continue the clinical activities in future.
Action Taken
Clinical activities, including extra-oral and intra-oral examination, measurements of vital signs and saliva testing continued.
Source: In Class
Feedback
Students reported that they did not receive useful individual feedback on their oral presentation assessment and were especially disappointed as they had put a great effort into the assignment.
Recommendation
It is recommended the assessment rubric and individual feedback process be reviewed.
Action Taken
The oral presentation rubric was updated, and students noted that the amendments acknowledged their individual effort and subject knowledge.
Source: In Class
Feedback
Students reported feeling overwhelmed by the large amount of content and they felt it was difficult to recognise where to focus study.
Recommendation
It is recommended to review the amount of content in the unit.
Action Taken
Lecture slides were reorganized into smaller, clearer sections, with short quizzes added to reinforce understanding. Supporting materials were streamlined by categorizing them as essential or optional, and study guides were refined to eliminate duplication, enabling students to focus on core content.
Source: Face to face
Feedback
Students reported that the unit contained a lot of material, making it difficult to identify and prioritize key areas for study.
Recommendation
It is recommended to focus on essential material by enhancing the streamlined lecture slide layout and categorising additional learning resources as essential or optional.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Face to face
Feedback
Students valued the inclusion of short quizzes during lectures, as these helped check understanding and provided useful revision for assessment preparation
Recommendation
It is recommended that short quizzes continue to be incorporated during lectures.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate and describe the procedures involved in intra-oral and extra-oral examinations
  2. Recognize and describe pathological lesions in hard and soft tissues of the oral cavity
  3. Describe common and significant oral and systemic diseases and discuss the impact of these diseases on dental treatment and management by the dental team and oral health therapist
  4. Describe the aetiology and pathogenesis of dental caries, periodontal diseases, and pulp and periapical disease
  5. Demonstrate appropriate oral and written communication skills, professional attitudes and ethical behaviours as required of an Oral Health Therapist.

The learning outcomes of this unit are part of the overall learning outcomes in the BOralHlth course at CQUniversity. They will form part of the annual report documentation which is submitted to the Australian Dental Council for accreditation. 

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - On-campus Activity • • •
2 - Presentation • •
3 - Online Quiz(zes) • •
4 - In-class Test(s) • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
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 • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10