Assignment 1 – Individual research and participation Weighting: 20% (A post for 2 Topics x 10 marks each) Due: You need to post a contribution for 2 Topics by the date/times listed below to a...

Assignment 1 – Individual research and participation

Weighting: 20% (A post for 2 Topics x 10 marks each)

Due:
You need to post a contribution for 2 Topics by the date/times listed below to a Discussion Forum (DF) that will be available for EACH Topic.

NOTE: All times are NSW (Sydney) time

Students need to choose 1 topic from Topics 1 – 4 AND choose 1 topic from Topics 5 – 7:

(The point is to offer you some flexibility to work around assessments in other units & whatever other commitments you have to manage)

Topics 1 – 4:
any time
until noon Monday 12 August (Week 7

Topics 5 – 7:
any time
until noon 1 September (Week 11)

You are required to do two (2) things as an individual student for this Assignment:

1. Choose & identify a relevant article for EACH of
your
two chosen Topics;

2. Contribute a 500-word post to a Discussion Forum (DF) explaining the relevance of the article.

Make sure you PAY ATTENTION to the details below about each of these two things!

NOTE:
there will also be a short recording made available in week 5 explaining this in the Assessment Details section and some good and poor examples are provided in the Assessment Details section.

1.
Choose & identify a relevant article for EACH of your two chosen Topics

Ideally, throughout the session you will undertake some wider reading regarding ACC03032 (that is, read more widely than your text, study guide and set readings). This assignment offers some incentive to do so, at least for a couple of topics.

For EACH of your two chosen topics,
choose an article
you believe is
relevant to that topic. Your article needs to have been
published
after 1 January 2019. “Relevant” is explained in #2 below.

Once you have chosen your article you need to
identify it
so it is NOT chosen by another student. You will do this by RESERVING or NOMINATING it as “yours” on the relevant Topic DF by adding the following details in the SUBJECT line of your DF post:

· Author names;

· Name of the source of your article;

· Date & issue details (as applicable).

Here are two fictional (made-up) examples:

· Smith and Jones, Critical Perspectives on Accounting, Volume 24, Issue 1, 2013, pp.23-47;

· Stevens, Australian Financial Review, 2 May 2012, p.4.

2.
Contribute a 500 word post to a Discussion Forum (DF) explaining the relevance of the article

For each of the 2 topics you choose
contribute a post (maximum 500 words) on the relevant Discussion Forum (DF).

There will be a separate DF for each Topic

– NOTE: each Topic DF will become UNAVAILABLE on the due date/time specified above.

If you have NOT posted by that date/time it will be too late!

Your post needs to
explain
how your chosen & identified article is of
relevance
to your chosen topic that will have been covered in ACC03032 by that time and will
also include a personal reflection.

· Your
explanation for relevance
needs to provide examples from the article to
illustrate theories and/or principles from your chosen Topic
(maximum 300 words). It is important to provide evidence (facts) from the articles to support any opinion and arguments you express; perhaps facts illustrate certain terms you learn in a topic (even an earlier topic); maybe you recognise that the findings are only applicable in a certain context; or the interpretation of the facts illustrate a certain theoretical lens (or approach).

This DOES NOT mean summarise the article, summarise the topic or define the theories.

· Your
personal reflection
part for each contribution needs to explain what you found to be the aspect of your chosen topic that created the most reaction from you (biggest impact on your learning … something you realised or now feel you understand more clearly). For example, you may not have thought about the issue before; you may have observed behaviour related to the matter before and that was important to you; you may have related the issue to a current development in the world – current affairs, your employment or business, etc. This is subjective and personal reflection that will differ from student to student (maximum 200 words).
This DOES NOT mean making recommendations about what you think the authors might have said/done.

· Please include a link (URL) to the article or attach a PDF copy in your post & the
full
reference.

Marking criteria Assignment 1

In assessing Assignment 1, the marker will take into account your performance in the following areas:

• logical coherence of discussion (unintelligible discussion will receive no marks)

• extent of insight provided (in the personal reflection and comments this will be personal insight; in comment regarding the article this will be insight into the way the article illustrates theories from the relevant topic … NOT summaries of the article or topic or definitions of the theories … you only have 500 words!)

• structure/organisation of content (you only need two sections, or they can be integrated J)

• conciseness and clarity (500 words is not very much and is to foster this)

• level of understanding of course concepts

• extent of evidence presented in support of your opinion (using examples from the article to illustrate Topic theories … you do not need to refer to additional articles or references).

The checklist on the next page should help … you can use it to “self-assess” your contribution before the due date (YOU can fill in the Yes/No columns if you wish but it is only for YOU,
no need to submit it!
) and it also offers an insight into the template you will receive in View Grades for feedback and your mark.
Remember, you can edit your own contribution ANYTIME up until the due/date and time
… of course, when you leave things until the last minute it will be too late!