COIT20249Assessment Details
Assessment item3—Report
Due date:
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11:55pmAEST,Friday, Week9
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ASSESSMENT
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Weighting:
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30%
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3
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Length:
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2500words+/-250words(Note: Failure to submit within this range will result in a penalty of 5 marks)
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Objectives
Please refer totheUnitProfile to see how this assessment item relates totheUnitLearningOutcomes.
This assignment is designed to stimulate critical thinking outside of the classroom by requiring students towrite a formal academic report. You will need to follow the ARE processdescribedinchapters 2 and 3 ofYour Business Degree2(prescribedtextbook forCOIT20249)to analyse the assessment task, research relevant information and evaluate the information you find. This information should be usedto write an academic report in which you present your findings or outcomesandmake recommendationsfor future practice Professional writing and writing reports are described in chapters 4 and 5 ofYour Business Degree2.This assessment taskwill assess your skills in critical thinking,researching information, forming an opinion, academic writing, logical ordering of ideas andyour ability tosupportyourarguments with quotes from literature.These objectives will be measured by the ‘closeness of fit’ to meeting theassessmenttask,assessmentrequirements andmarkingcriteria
Please note that there isa wealth of material available ontheMoodleUnit websitethat you should use to help youthrough the process ofsearching for andgatheringrelevant information,evaluating thatinformationandwriting yourreport.
General Assessment Criteria
Assessments provide the opportunity for students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills to achieve the required standard. To do this, assessment responses need to be both clear and easy to understand. If not, the University cannot determine that students have demonstrated their knowledge and skills. Assessments will, therefore, be marked accordingly including the potential for0 (zero) marks where relevant.
The reportmust focus on thecase studyscenariogiven in theAssessment Tasksection. Any assessment itemsthatdo not addressthecase study scenariomaybe awarded0 (zero) marks.
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Ifyou use Track Changeswhen writingyour report you must ensure thatthesubmitteddocumentisthefinaland correctversion ofthedocument. That is, if your submitted report contains Track Changes or Commentsor any other editing marksitmay be awarded0 (zero) marks. It isyourresponsibility to submit the finaland correctversion ofyourreport.
The length ofthe reportmust be within the recommended range.If thereport exceeds the maximum word count the marker willstop marking after2750 words.
Moodle auto-submits draft files that are in Moodle at the due date and time.Files that are auto-submitted willnot be reverted to draft status except in extenuating circumstances (evidence required). It is your responsibilitynot to leave draft assessments in Moodle at thedue date andtime if the files arenot ready to be submitted for marking.
Assessment task
Students are required towrite an academic report as per the format outlined in chapter 5 of the textbook. Thereportmustfollow theCQU APA referencing style.See theAmerican Psychological Association (APA) abridged guide updated Term 2 2016available from: https://www.cqu.edu.au/student-life/services-and-facilities/referencing/cquniversity-referencing-guides.Please note thattheprescribedtextbook uses APA referencing guidelines. See also theReferencingStyle subsection below.
The report is to be based on the followingcase studyscenarioaboutthe use ofRobotics.
The termRoboticsrefers to the design, development anduse ofrobotswhich areautomated machines thatcanaccomplish a range of tasks in a variety of scenarios.Robots werefirst commercialised when they wereintegrated into factory assembly linesin order to streamlineandimprovemanufacturingproductivity.The first popular applicationof roboticswasin thecar industry.In the21st Century,robots have increasingly been used tocomplete tasks thatmay be unsafeortedious forhumansthis has led to theintegration of robots intothemining andtransportationindustries and the military.Theuse ofrobots is expected to double bythe year 2020. This will impacton howbusinesses operate and theeconomiesof countries across theworld (New Media Consortium, 2016).
Increasingly robots are also being used in the home. One of the most popular applications is that of the robot vacuum cleaner.Other robots that are increasing in popularity are gutter cleaners and lawn mowers.
There is significant interest inhowworkenvironmentswill be affected by the growingdependence on robots and on how to ensure that they areautonomous, safe, andeconomical. In Queensland the State Government has introduced a program into State Schoolsthat is designed toteach students coding and robotics from an early age. Referred to as#codingcountsthis action plan for education in Queensland is designed to prepare students for jobs of the future (Queensland Government, 2016).
It is argued thatoutreach programssuch as#codingcounts can make students better problem solversthroughpromoting robotics and programming.It is also felt thatinteraction with humanoid robotsmayhelp learnerswithlearning disabilities to develop bettercommunication strategies and social skills.
Whilst robots can make some work environments safer there are also potential problems. Is it ethically and morally responsible tomanufacture robot workers that have the potential to take jobs from human workers? What happens when a robot hurts or injures a human or destroys property? Who is responsible, the manufacturer of the robot, the programmer who wrote the code to operate the robot, or the person who bought it and set it to work?There are also potential security problems.How can you prevent a robot being hacked and havingsomeone take over control of the robotto commit a crime?
Youare the ICT Manager of a small Artificial Intelligence company basedinBrisbane. Your organisation has interests inthe use of roboticsfor domestic use andinmining, transport andmanufacturingindustriesacrossAustralia.The organisation is already using robotics as asmall but growingsideline business. ButtheChief Executive Officer (CEO)would like to investigate how to make it a key enabler to achieve competitive advantage againstyour company’srivals.Your organisationis now considering further diversification over the next five years, leveraging ICT as a core competency. Its plans include expanding the organisation’s operations within Australia and into the Asian region. TheCEO ofyour organisation is interested inhowto leveragethe use ofroboticsas one of thekeytechnologies to be considered as a part of this expansion strategy.However, she is aware of both positive and negative aspects of usingrobotics in the work and home environments.
The CEO has asked you to researchrobotictechnologyand its applications to be considered for the organisation’s five year strategic plan.She wants you to write areportthatoutlines your findings and make some recommendationson how to leverage the use of robotics to improve your business. It will be presented to the next executive management meeting for consideration.
The report should address the following tasks:
1. Definition/s ofrobotic technology and the current use ofrobots. This investigation must considerdifferent types ofrobots used in various industries andin different parts of the world. As a minimum, consider the industries currently in your organisation’s business scope andthe industries the organisation is considering toenter in the next five yearswhen it plans to expand across Australian and into Asia(see case scenario). Your report must identify actual examples andshouldnot just focus on generic uses ofrobotic technology.
2. Based on the findings from the previous section, propose howrobotictechnology could be incorporated into your organisation’s operations inthefuture. Discuss both short term and long term optionsfrom both industry and geographical perspectivesto implement the strategy in your organisation.
As a part of thisanalysis, consider the potential advantages and disadvantages of usingroboticincluding various risks for the organisation andwith respect to robotictechnologies. As the ICT Manager of yourorganisation, you should focus on security and technology aspects as a priority, and propose potential solutions to overcome any disadvantages/risks identified in your analysis. Additionally, explore the ethical, social and legal considerations that your organisation should consider as a part ofthe proposedstrategy, and discuss some solutions to overcome these issues.
Your analysisand proposed solutionsintask 2 should lead to some recommendations at the end of your report.Make sure that thespecific recommendations at the end of your report have beenevaluatedasapart ofyour report discussion.
The reportshould be at a strategic leveland must not consist of highly technical detailsas most of your readers are not from an informationtechnology background.
Please note that you will need to make some assumptions abouttheorganisationin order to write this report. These assumptionsshouldmatch the information in the case study and not contradict with the objectives of the report. They shouldbe incorporated in the introductionofyour report when youdescribe theorganisationand outline the problem to be solved.Relevant assumptions should be incorporated when addressingtask 2 above.Do not make assumptions that are not relevant or will not be used in your report discussion to avoid loss of marks.
Specifically your report shouldinclude the following (word count details are approximate guidelines only):
1.Title page:Unitcode and name, assessment number,Reporttitle,assessmentdue date,word count (actual),student name, student number,email address,campus lecturer/tutor,andUnitCoordinator.If applicable, add extensionrequest IDand the new due date.Must be formatted to a standard required for a professional/business report. Check week 6 materials for example of a professionally formatted title page.Notincluded in the word count.2.Executive summary:should include the purpose of the report, the problemincludingkey issues considered andhowtheywereinvestigated, your findings, andoverview ofyour recommendations.Thispartmustnotbe longer thanone (1) A4 page.Not included in the word count.3.Table of Contents (ToC): should list the report topics using decimal notation.Needs to include the main headings and subheadings with corresponding page numbers, using a format that makes the hierarchy of topics clear.Because you are including a ToC thereport pages should be numbered in the footer as follows: title page has no page number; and main text to have Arabic numerals commencing at 1.Create the ToC usingMS Word’s ToC auto-generator rather than manually typing out the ToC.Instructions can be found herehttps://support.office.com/en-gb/article/Create-a-table-of-contents-or-update-a-table-of-contents-eb275189-b93e-4559-8dd9-c279457bfd72#__create_a_table.Notincluded in the word count.4.Introduction:provide a brief description of the organisation as given in the case scenarioincluding any assumptions,aconciseoverview of theproblem you have been asked to research,the main aims/purpose of the report, theobjectives to be achieved by writing the report(include the tasks outlined in the case study)and how you investigatedthe problem.Provide an outline of the sections of the report.Should beapproximately300words.5.Body ofthereport (use appropriate headings in the body of the report.):Define key terms you will use in your report, such as what is meant by‘robotics’.Present your ideas on the topic and discuss theinformationyou foundin your researchthat wasrelevant to the report’s objectives.Provide ananalysis of theinformationthat you gathered.Ensurethat you explore thetasks listed in thecase studyscenario. In yourdiscussion,examine the issues from aglobalperspectiveas well asfrom thelocal perspective (ofthefictionalorganisation that is the centre of this report).Do NOT usegeneric words such as‘Body,Body of the Report,Tasks’ assectionheadings. Create meaningful headingsand subheadingsthat reflect thetopic andcontent of your report.Should be approximately 1600 words.6.Conclusion:restate the purpose of the report and key issues investigated and the related findingsbased on your research and analysis. Explain the significance of your findingsfor addressing the problem stated in the case scenario and any limitations. Statehowyour report has achieved its objectives and anyfuture work to be considered.Should beapproximately300 words.7.Recommendations:(must bebased on your findings and proposed solutions discussed in the body of the report) what would your recommendations be to yourCEO and the executive management teamin this situation?Provide some guidelines for theorganisationwithrespect tothe use ofrobotics as a future technology in your organisation.Should beapproximately300words.8.Reference list.Not counted in the word count.9.Appendices if necessary.Not counted in the word count.
Note:Additional information regarding this assignment may be placed on theMoodle Unit website as required.Check theMoodle Unitwebsite at least once a week for further information relating to the report.Regular access to theMoodle Unitwebsite is a requirement of thisUnit.
Reference List
New Media Consortium. (2016).Horizon Report: 2016 Higher Education Edition. Austin, TX: New Media Consortium. Retrieved fromhttp://cdn.nmc.org/media/2016-nmc-horizon-report-he-EN.pdf
AssessmentRequirements
Your response should bestructured asareport (chapter5 of textbook), written in accordance with standard academic writing principles(chapter 4 of textbook).The report must be writtenusing your own words withanyin text citations clearly marked(seeReferencing Stylesubsectionbelow). You may discuss the assessment task with other students and the lecturing staff but you mustWRITE the report YOURSELF in your own words.
Youwill need toconduct research to support yourarguments usingatleastten(10) references.Note that all the references you chose to use should have been evaluated using the Triple-R framework in the research stage of preparing your Report.One of the referencescould beyour set textbook (if you reference the textbook you must include it in the reference list). You must havea minimum often (10) referencesin your reference list.At least six (6) of these references should be from refereed academic journals and books. All sources should be currentthat is,dated2012 or later.Minimum requirements relate to a Pass mark.You are encouraged to use more than the minimum requirements for a better quality outcome to your report throughimproving the quality ofyouranalysis.
The assignment shoulddemonstrate alogical flow of discussion,andbefree from typographical, spelling andgrammaticalerrors. It should be preparedin MS-Word (or equivalent)using 12 point font, 1.5 line spacing and margins of 2.54 cm.It is highly recommended that you submit your assignment to theAcademic Learning Centre (ALC)AT LEAST ONE WEEK before the due date. The ALC can check your report for correct structure, referencing, paragraphing and some language issues.
Referencing Style
References must be cited (in text) and a reference list provided in accordance withtheCQUAPA referencing style.See the American Psychological Association (APA) abridged guide updated Term 2 2016available from: https://www.cqu.edu.au/student-life/services-and-facilities/referencing/cquniversity-referencing-guides.Helpful information on referencing techniques and styles can also be found on CQU’s referencing webpage:
https://www.cqu.edu.au/student-life/services-and-facilities/referencing
Markswill be deducted for poor referencing or havingless thanten (10) references or going under or over the word length.
Use quotation marks for direct quotes and you must include theauthor, date andpage number(s) with thequoteas per the referencing standards.
ALL assignments will be checked for plagiarism (material copied from other students and/or material copied from other sources)using TurnItIn.If you are found to have plagiarised materialor if you have used someone else’s words without appropriate referencing, you will be penalised for plagiarism which could result in zero(0)marks for the whole assignment. In some circumstances a more severe penalty may be imposed. Please note that if needed students may be required to explain the report preparation process.
The University’sAcademic Misconduct Procedureis availablein the policy portalhttps://www.cqu.edu.au/policy.
Useful information aboutacademic integrity (avoiding plagiarism)can be foundin the ALC resources on the Moodle Unit website andat:
https://www.cqu.edu.au/student-life/services-and-facilities/referencing
https://www.cqu.edu.au/student-life/services-and-facilities/referencing/cquniversity-referencing-guides
Guidelineswith respect to self-referencingare available on theCOIT20249Moodle website.
Submission
The report has to be submittedusing theCOIT20249MoodleUnitwebsiteon or before the due date.The submission link can be accessed through the Assessment block.
Beforesubmitting your assignmentyou should check it against the detailedassessmentcriteriain the following tableto ensure that you havesatisfactorilyaddressedall the criteria that will be used to mark your report.
It is your responsibility to ensure that your report issubmitted for grading.At the due date of the assessmentMoodlewill auto-submitfiles that have beenuploaded and left as drafts. However, anyfiles uploaded after thedue datemust be manually submitted.This means thatif you have been granted anextension or areuploading a late assessment (after the due date)you must complete the Moodle submission process. Further details on completing the submission process are available via the ‘Moodle Help for Students’ link in the Support block of your Moodlewebsite.
If your report is left asadraftin Moodle after thedue date it willaccruealate penalty. Late submissions attractapenaltyof 5% per day of the total available mark for the individual assessment item.See theAssessment Policy and Procedure – Higher Education Coursework in the policy portalhttps://www.cqu.edu.au/policy.
Note: if your Report is auto-submittedthe submission willnotbe reverted to draft unless there are extenuating circumstances. Any request must be supported by evidence.
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MarkingCriteria
This assessment is criterion referenced which means your work is assessed against the criteriain the markingrubricbelow.
Criteria
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Quality
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High Distinction
(2.75-3.0 marks)
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Distinction
(2.25-2.5 marks)
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Credit
(1.75-2 marks)
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Pass
(1.25-1.5 marks)
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Fail
(0-1 marks)
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Executive summary
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Theexecutive summary contained:
-abrief description of thepurpose of the report
-thedefinition of the problem, key issues explored, and howthey wereinvestigated
-asummary of what youfound and what you concluded
-overview ofyourrecommendations
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The executive summary contained the proper sections but did not include enough detail.
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The executive summary had sections which were too brief or missing. Did not include enough detail.
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The executive summary lackedclarity and has incomplete or missing sections. It did not clearly explain the problem, how it was investigatedandyourrecommendations.
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Entire sections of the executive summary are missing.There is a lack of detail andthe problemis not well explained.
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Table of contents
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Lists the report topics using decimal notation. Includesmeaningfulmain headings and subheadings with corresponding page numbers.Format makes the hierarchy of topics clear.Auto generated using MS Word.
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A few things missing from the table of contents.Pages are numbered.
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Some things missing from the table of contents. Pages may not be numbered.
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Includes the main headings only.Pages may not be numbered.
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Table of contents missing. Pages not numbered.
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Introduction
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Set the scene for the report; gave some background information for the topic. Included a brief description of the organisation.
Stated the objectives of the investigation.Included the problem you are addressing and the key issues to be explored.
Explained the research method used to gather information.
Outlined the sections of the report.
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The introduction contained the proper parts but did not include enough detail.
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The introduction had parts which were too brief or missing. Did not include enough detail.
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The introduction lacked clarity and had incomplete or missing parts. It didnot clearly introduce the report.
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The introductionwas missing orwas a repeat of the executive summary. It did not clearly introduce the report.
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Body of report:
Selectionand sequencingof subject material; including evidence.
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Selected exact amount of relevant material that supports argument with no contradictions.
Substantial, logical, & concrete development of ideas. Argumentswere logical and clear.
Assumptions were made explicit.
Key terms were defined.
Detailswere germane, original, andconvincingly interpreted.
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Selected large amount of relevant material.
Offered soliddevelopment of ideasbut less original reasoning.
Assumptionswere not always recognised or made explicit.
Contained some appropriate details or examples.
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Selected adequate amount of material.
Some development of ideas; not muchoriginal reasoning.
Assumptions are not always recognised or made explicit.
Contains some appropriate details or examples.
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Selected adequate amount of materialbutnot all of itisrelevant.
Not much development of ideas.Very little original reasoning.
Offered somewhat obvious support that may be too broad.
Detailswere too general, not interpreted, irrelevant toproblem, or inappropriately repetitive.
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Selected too little material or material that is irrelevant.
No development of ideas ororiginal reasoning.
Offered simplistic, undeveloped, or cryptic support for the ideas.
Inappropriate or off-topic generalisations, faulty assumptions, errors of fact.
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Conclusion
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Problem restated clearly, main points and supporting arguments summarised.
Stated the significance of the findings and that the objectives of the report had been met.
No new material.
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The conclusion contained the proper parts but did not include enough detail.
No new material.
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The conclusion had parts which were too brief or missing. Did not include enough detail.
May have included some new material.
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The conclusion lacked clarity and had incomplete or missing parts. It didnot clearly conclude the report.
May have included some new material.
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The conclusion is missing orwas a repeat of the executive summary. It did not clearly conclude the report.
Included new material.
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Recommendations
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Suggestedspecificactions to address the problem.
Actions were clearly based on the findings of the report.
Correctly formatted recommendations based on report writing guidelines.
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Most suggested actions were relevant to the problem.
Actions were based on the findings of the report.
Correctly formatted recommendations.
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Suggested actions were somewhat relevant to the problem.
Not all actions were based on the findings of the report.
Recommendations not presented effectively in line with the report writing guidelines.
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Suggested some actions. Not all actions were relevant to the problem.
Not all actions were based on the findings of the report.
Descriptions of possible actions but no specific actions proposed or not in line with the report writing guidelines.
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Recommendations missing or irrelevant to the problem and/or did not relate to the findings.
Not formatted correctly.
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Organisation:of ideas/main points;structure of sentences and paragraphs.
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Organisation fully supportedthe problem being addressed and the objectives of report.
Sequence of ideaswas effective.
Excellent sentence structure.Well-constructed paragraphs;clear linkages between paragraphs.
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Organisation supported theproblem being addressed and the objectives of report.
Sequence of ideas could be improved.
Good sentence structure. Linkagesbetweenparagraphs were mostly appropriate.
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Organisation supported theproblem being addressed and the objectives of report.
Sequence of ideas did not always flow in a logical manner.
Some good sentencestructure. Linkages betweenparagraphs could be improved.Some brief, undeveloped paragraphs.
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Some signs of logical organisationbut not effectively addressing the problem.
May havehadabrupt or illogical shiftsandineffective flow of ideas.
Some awkwardsentences;paragraphs not well linked. Paragraph structurenot well integrated;containedextraneous information.
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Unclear organisationororganisational planwas inappropriate toproblem being addressed.
Poorly worded sentences.Nolinkages betweenparagraphs.
Showed minimal effort orlack ofcomprehension of the assignment.
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Presentation: •Title page•Grammar,punctuationandspelling.•Formatting |
Title page contained all necessary information:Unitcode, assessment number,reporttitle,assessment due date, word count,student name, student number, email address, campus lecturer/tutor,andUnitCoordinator.
Written expressionwas clear and correct; evidence ofthoroughproof-reading.
Grammar excellent; correct use of punctuation; minimal or no spelling errors.
Observedprofessional conventions of written English andreport format.
Formattedcorrectly in MS Word or compatible applicationusing 12 point font, 1.5 linespacing and margins of 2.54 cm.
Each page (except Title page) is numbered.
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Title page contained all necessary information.
A fewerrors in grammar (wrong verb tense, subject-verb agreement, pronoun agreement, apostrophe errors, singular/plural errors, article use, preposition use, split infinitives, etc.). Madeoccasional problematic word choices or syntax errors.
Grammar strong despite occasional lapses;a few spelling or punctuation errors.
Observedprofessional conventions of writtenEnglish and report format; made a few minor or technical errors.
Formatted correctly.
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Title page contained all necessary information.
Some distracting grammatical errors (wrong verb tense,subject-verb agreement,pronoun agreement, apostrophe errors, singular/plural errors, article use, preposition use,split infinitives, etc.).Little evidence of proof-reading.
Grammar could be improved; errors in punctuation and spelling.
Needed to observe professional conventions of written English and report format; made numerous errors.
Some minor formatting errors.
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Some necessary information was missing from the title page.
Some major grammatical or proofreading errors (wrong verb tense, subject-verb agreement, pronoun agreement, apostrophe errors, singular/plural errors, article use, preposition use, split infinitives,sentence fragments, word form errors, etc.).Language frequently weakened by inexact word choices.
Frequent errors in grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
Needed to observe professional conventions of written English and report format; maderepeatederrors.
Major errors informatting.
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Title page missing or missing necessary information.
Numerous grammatical errorswhichseriously detracted fromunderstandingthewriting.
Frequent major errors in grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
Evidence ofpoor planningand/or no serious revision of writing.
Did not meet professional conventions of written English and report format.
Formatted incorrectly.
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References (1):Evidence of research and analysis of the referencesbased on the ARE framework.
Selection and use of references based on the Triple R framework.
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Thorough research indicated; clear well-thought out analysis clearly integrated into discussion.
Analysed and evaluated information in great depth.
Used references to support, extend, and inform, but not substitute writer’s own development of ideas.
Combined material from a variety of sources.
Did not overuse quotes.
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Research was generally thorough; analysis was generally well done; integrated into discussion.
Analysed and evaluated information in considerable depth.
Used references to support, but not substitute writer’s own development of ideas.
Combined material from a variety of sources.
Did not overuse quotes.
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Some evidence of research; basic analysis; some integration into discussion.
Analysed and evaluated information in reasonable depth, some description.
Used references to support, but not substitute writer’s own development of ideas.
Combined material from a few sources.
Did not overuse quotes.
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Basic research; weaknesses evident in analysis.
Little evidence of analysis and evaluation of information; recounted and described. Details were too general, not interpreted, irrelevant to topic, or inappropriately repetitive.
Used relevant references but lacked in variety of references and/or the skilful combination of references.
Combined material from a few sources.
Quotations and paraphrases may be too long or not well integrated into the text.
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Little or no evidence of research and analysis of information.
Neglected important references.
Simplistic or undeveloped support for the ideas.
Inappropriate or off-topic generalisations, faulty assumptions, errors of fact.
Overused quotations or paraphrasing to substitute writer’s own ideas.
Possibly used source material without acknowledgement.
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References (2):
In-text citations and reference list.
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More than tencurrentreferencesincluding more than six academic references; all referencesconformed to the Triple R framework.
Thorough referencing. Citations and reference list accurate and consistent withAPAreferencing style.
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More thantencurrentreferencesincluding more than six academicreferences.
A few inaccuracies withAPAreferencingstyle for citations and/or reference list.
Allcitations/references listed.
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At least tencurrentreferencesincluding at least six academicsources.
Some errors inAPAreferencing stylefor citations and/orreference list. Some citationsand/orreferences missing.
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At least tencurrentreferences.
Errors withAPAreferencing style.
Incomplete reference list. References not cited properly in text.
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Less than tenreferences.
Inconsistent withAPAreferencing style.
Problems with citations and references.
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Length
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Correct length (2250-2750words)
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Correct length (2250-2750 words)
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Correct length (2250-2750 words)
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Correct length (2250-2750 words)
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Too long (>2750words) or too short (
Words in excess of2750will NOT be marked.
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Comprehension
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If the content of the report isunable to be read and understoodby the markerthereport will be given 0 out of 30.
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