Staff Information & Teaching Guide - Swinburne University of ...

Faculty of Life and Social Sciences 

Higher Education Division 

Staff Information & Teaching Guide 

www.swinburne.edu.au/lss/sessional 

Updated: 2 nd February 2012

TABLE OF CONTENTS 

Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 1 

Faculty Structure ....................................................................................................................... 1 

Decanal Structure: ................................................................................................................................. 1 

Academic Leaders: ................................................................................................................................ 1 

Research Centres: .................................................................................................................................. 1 

Administrative and Technical Structure: ............................................................................................... 1 

General Induction Information ......................................................................................... 3 

Swinburne Induction Process ................................................................................................... 3 

Introduction to Hawthorn Campus ......................................................................................... 3 

Absences or Lateness ................................................................................................................. 3 

Accident Reporting Procedure ................................................................................................. 3 

Assignment Destruction ............................................................................................................ 3 

Bookshop .................................................................................................................................... 4 

Computer and Email Access ..................................................................................................... 4 

Contact Details ........................................................................................................................... 5 

Confidentiality ........................................................................................................................... 5 

Copyright ................................................................................................................................... 5 

Emergencies ............................................................................................................................... 6 

Medical emergencies ............................................................................................................................. 6 

Students with Disabilities ...................................................................................................................... 6 

Emergency Procedures in a Fire ............................................................................................................ 6 

Entrance to Buildings ................................................................................................................ 6 

During Teaching Hours ......................................................................................................................... 6 

After Hours and Weekends .................................................................................................................... 7 

Equipment Loans ...................................................................................................................... 7 

Fax............................................................................................................................................... 7 

Faculty Finance Office Contact Information .......................................................................... 7 

Sessional Academic Staff Payment .......................................................................................... 7 

Being Paid As a Consultant ................................................................................................................... 8 

Sessional Academic Teaching Staff....................................................................................................... 8 

Sessional Academic Research Staff ....................................................................................................... 8 

Submission of Time sheets, pay dates and pay rates ............................................................................. 8 

Payslips - Swinburne People Online ...................................................................................................... 9 

Update Personal/Banking Details .......................................................................................................... 9 

ID Cards ..................................................................................................................................... 9 

Photocopying .............................................................................................................................. 9 

Printing ....................................................................................................................................... 9 

Library Services for Staff ....................................................................................................... 10 

Lost Property ........................................................................................................................... 10 

Staff Information Guide 

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Mail Boxes ................................................................................................................................ 10 

Parking ..................................................................................................................................... 10 

Phone Directory ....................................................................................................................... 10 

Safety ........................................................................................................................................ 11 

Sessional Rooms ....................................................................................................................... 11 

Stationery ................................................................................................................................. 11 

Staff Facilities / Kitchens ........................................................................................................ 12 

Student Enquiries .................................................................................................................... 12 

Student Services (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv) ........................................................................ 12 

Disability Support Service (Higher Education) (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/disability)....................... 13 

Scholarships ......................................................................................................................................... 13 

Student Financial Advice (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/finance) ........................................................... 13 

Health and Well-being (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/health).................................................................. 14 

Housing (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/housing) ..................................................................................... 14 

Student Residences (www.swin.edu.au/residences) ............................................................................ 14 

Student Development and Counselling (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/counselling)................................ 15 

Careers and Employment (http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/careers/)..................................... 15 

Employment Programs for current students: ................................................................................... 15 

SwinEmploy (on-line Job Service): ................................................................................................. 16 

Swinburne International (www.international.swinburne.edu.au)...................................... 16 

Swinburne Student Amenities Association (www.myssaa.com.au/) ................................... 16 

Telephone Calls ........................................................................................................................ 16 

Swinburne Campuses .............................................................................................................. 16 

Teaching & learning issues ............................................................................................. 18 

Academic Roles & Responsibilities ........................................................................................ 18 

Deputy Dean ........................................................................................................................................ 18 

Head of Academic Group .................................................................................................................... 18 

Educational Development Coordinator (EDC) .................................................................................... 18 

Program Coordinators .......................................................................................................................... 18 

Unit of Study Convenors ..................................................................................................................... 18 

Unit of Study Panel .............................................................................................................................. 19 

Academic Development Advisor (ADA)............................................................................................. 19 

Blackboard iLearn .................................................................................................................. 19 

Plagiarism / Irregularities in Assessments and Appeals ...................................................... 19 

Policies & Procedures.............................................................................................................. 20 

Study Skills Support Services ................................................................................................. 20 

Learning Links – for local students (http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/study-support/learninglinks/) 

................................................................................................................................................... 20 

English Language and Academic Skills Support (LAS) – for International Students 

(http://www.international.swinburne.edu.au/contact/current-student-contacts/#SkillsSupport).......... 20 

English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students Service (ELICOS for short) 

(http://www.international.swinburne.edu.au/courses/elicos/).............................................................. 20 

Student Feedback on Units of Study (SFS) ........................................................................... 21 

Teaching & Learning Assistance ........................................................................................... 21 


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Swinburne Professional Learning (http://www.swinburne.edu.au/spl/) ............................ 21 

Teaching web links .................................................................................................................. 22 

Teaching Tips ........................................................................................................................... 22 

Recipes for success in teaching: .......................................................................................................... 22 

Attendance & Punctuality Issues ......................................................................................................... 22 

Adult learning expectations ................................................................................................................. 23 

Group dynamics ................................................................................................................................... 23 

International students - language & cultural issues, groups dynamics ................................................. 24 

Assessment Strategies & Criteria ........................................................................................................ 24 

Appendix 1: FLSS Staff Listing ...................................................................................... 25 

Appendix 2: SUT Hawthorn - Campus Map .................................................................. 28 

Appendix 3: SUT Hawthorn Campus - First Aid Cabinet Locations ............................ 29 

ATC Building TBA ............................................................................................................................. 29 

Applied Science (AS) Building ........................................................................................................... 29 

Brain Sciences Institute ....................................................................................................................... 29 

477 Burwood Road .............................................................................................................................. 29 

Chemistry (CH) Building .................................................................................................................... 29 

Engineering (EN) Building .................................................................................................................. 29 

Library Building .................................................................................................................................. 30 

Appendix 4: SUT Hawthorn Campus - Evacuation Assembly Areas Map ................... 31 

Appendix 5: SUT Hawthorn Campus - Emergency Management ................................. 32 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do if Dangerous or threatening person .................................... 32 

Emergency Action ........................................................................................................................... 32 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do in a Medical Emergency .................................................... 32 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do if Fire Emergency............................................................... 33 

When you hear the fire alarm: ......................................................................................................... 33 

General ............................................................................................................................................ 33 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do if Bomb or Substance Threat .............................................. 33 

Raise the Alarm ............................................................................................................................... 33 

IMMEDIATE ACTION .................................................................................................................. 34 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do if Gas Leak/Chemical Hazard/Spill.................................... 34 

Isolate Hazard .................................................................................................................................. 34 

Clear up ........................................................................................................................................... 35 

Evacuate .......................................................................................................................................... 35 

Appendix 6: Essay ............................................................................................................ 36 

References ........................................................................................................................................... 40 


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INTRODUCTION 

Welcome to all sessional and new staff that will be teaching in the Faculty of Life & Social 

Sciences (FLSS) at Swinburne University of Technology (SUT) for the first time, and 

welcome back to those who have taught in the Faculty before. 

As a member of the teaching staff, you are very important to the Faculty and are selected 

by Discipline Leaders and Convenors because they believe you have expertise and a 

passion for teaching to share with our students. As well as providing excellent teaching, 

the Faculty endeavours to continue its excellent research profile. 

This guide has been designed as a resource for new academic staff including sessional, 

on-going and contract staff within the Faculty to assist in your teaching. 

The following sites can also provide with further assistance: 

 

 

SUT website: http://www.swin.edu.au/ 

FLSS website http://www.swin.edu.au/lss/ 

Faculty Structure 

Decanal Structure: 

Dean 

Deputy Dean (Academic) 

Associate Dean, Research 

Associate Dean, International 

Director, Industry Liaison 

Education Development Coordinator 

Director – Quality Assurance 

Prof. Russell Crawford. 

Prof. Glen Bates 

Prof. Michael Gilding 

Dr Francois Malherbe 

Louise Dunn 

Dr Paula Geldens 

Bryan Cranston 

Academic Leaders: 

Biosciences 

Psychological Sciences and Statistics 

Humanities & Social Sciences 

Research Centres: 

Brain and Psychological Sciences Research Centre 

Institute for Social Research 

Prof. Linda Blackall 

Prof. Greg Murray 

Assoc Prof. Karen 

Farquharson 

Prof Mike Kyrios 

Prof. Julian Thomas 

Administrative and Technical Structure: 

Faculty General Manager 

Manager, Facilities & Laboratory Support 

IT Manager 

Manager, Finance & Resources 

Manager, Students & Programs 

Grace Sanna 

Cameron Young 

Chris Hoare 

Karen Briggs 

Geraldine Doherty 

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The names and contact details of some of the above staff have been included in this 

document (see Appendix 1). A list of all staff – teaching, research, administration and 

technical is available on the FLSS website (and is the most up-to-date resource). 

This guide will provide you with most of the information you need to orient yourself to the 

Faculty. In addition to this, your teaching colleagues and administrative staff within the 

Faculty will be pleased to assist with any further enquiries you might have. 

We hope you enjoy your time with us and encourage you to get to know all your 

colleagues as well as the Faculty’s academic and support staff. 

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GENERAL INDUCTION INFORMATION 

Swinburne Induction Process 

The University provides useful information to assist in your induction process at the 

following site: http://www.swin.edu.au/corporate/hr/induction. 

Links to many useful and important sites on the University site are available from 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/hr/induction/links.php. 

Introduction to Hawthorn Campus 

All units of study based in the Faculty are conducted at the Hawthorn campus, with some 

staff also teaching at Lilydale. A map of the Hawthorn campus is included (see Appendix 

2) or can be downloaded from the university website: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/campuses/. 

Absences or Lateness 

If you are running late for class or are unable to attend, please telephone your Unit 

Convenor or the Faculty Administration office (Undergraduate: 9214 8859; Postgraduate: 

9214 5209) as soon as possible in order for alternative arrangements to be made. 

Accident Reporting Procedure 

Accidents to all staff, students, contractors and visitors must be reported to the Manager 

Facilities & Laboratory Support (Cameron Young) through your supervisor. The 

appropriate form must be completed so that the accident can be analysed and preventive 

measures put in place. An Incident/Hazard form is available from the OH&S website: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/hr/ohs/. 

Recent changes to Work Cover Legislation mean a Work Cover claim for compensation 

can be disallowed if an Incident/Accident Report is not received by the employer within 30 

days of the injury. An Incident/Hazard Report is considered received by the employer 

when it is handed to the appropriate supervisor or manager. 

If you have an OH&S concern please raise it with your direct manager in the first 

instance. If you want advice, wish to raise an issue or lodge a Hazard Report, you can 

contact the health and safety representative, Chris Key or Soula Mougos on 9214 8550. 

Alternatively you can contact Human Resources - Occupational Health and Safety at 

Hawthorn: OH&S Consultant on 9214 8157 or the HR WorkCover Coordinator on 9214 

8561. 

For more information about OH&S issues please visit the website: 

http://www.swin.edu.au/corporate/hr/ohs_home.htm. 

Assignment Destruction 

Under State government policies and procedures, (PROS 02/01 Authority for the Records 

of Higher and Further Education Institutions); Section 11.2.0 -Interim Assessment 

Compilation, the destruction of assignments, assessments and exams has been clearly 

detailed. Assignments/assessments need to be kept for a minimum of 10 months before 

destruction (6 months once the administrative use is concluded, but SUT keeps material 

for the extra period to allow time for the student appeals process). Remember that any 

destruction of assignment or assessment materials must be with the knowledge and/or 

approval of your unit convenor. 

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Once this period has lapsed, the materials then need to be measured, placed in locked 

confidential recycling bins and documented using a PROV Destruction Form 29 (which is 

available under the SUT RMS Intranet site) and signed off by the Dean of Faculty and 

then forwarded to Shane Arnold, University Records Manager. 

Under no circumstances can assignments be just thrown in a recycling bin. 

If you have any further enquiries, please contact Shane Arnold on 9214 5413 for 

instructions. 

Bookshop 

The SUT Bookshop can be found on the second level of the Student Union building, John 

Street, Hawthorn campus. A range of books, stationery and gifts are available. 

During semester the Bookshop opening hours are: 

Monday to Thursday: 8.30 a.m. – 7.30 p.m 

Friday: 8.30 a.m. – 5.00 p.m 

The first two Saturday mornings of each semester 

During semester breaks: 

Monday to Thursday: 8.30 a.m. – 5.00 p.m 

Friday: 8.30 a.m. – 4.00 p.m 

Closed Saturdays 

Computer and Email Access 

The Faculty has offices assigned for use by sessional staff (refer to ‘Sessional Rooms’ 

section of this manual). These rooms are equipped with a phone, computers and printer 

access. 

When your employment details have been entered into the HR system, you will 

automatically be assigned a SIMS (Swinburne Identify Management System) username 

and password. New staff members should contact the ITS Service Desk on 9214 5000 or 

at servicedesk@swin.edu.au to confirm their SIMS username. 

Once you have this username and password, you can log onto the SUT network and 

access your email as well as the H: drive, which is your home directory. 

To access your email and your home directory from off campus go to the SUT Home 

Page: www.swin.edu.au. Go to the section for staff and click on the GroupWise section 

and enter your username and password for your email. To access your home directory, 

scroll to the bottom of the staff page and select NetStorage. Here you will need to enter 

your username and password as well. The format is a little different to if you had logged 

on, on campus. 

To change your password, go to the My Swinburne section of the website and log in with 

your username and password. On the left hand side of the screen, there is an option to 

change your password and to set a challenge question, which is an extra level of security. 

When you change the password, it will be synchronised with all of your accounts, Novell 

login, GroupWise and Blackboard. 

Your computer account and email account are only valid for the semester that you 

are teaching. 

You may phone FLSS Technical Support for advice. The IT Manager Chris Hoare is on 

9214 8186 and Senior ITS Support Officer, Jemison Escalona, is on 9214 8832. 

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If you have any problems with your computer/internet access please contact the ITS 

Servicedesk on 9214 5000. 

Contact Details 

Please ensure your contact details are kept up to date, including an email address and a 

daytime contact telephone number. You can check your staff details and make any 

changes needed by accessing the Staff Internal directory: 

http://www.swin.edu.au/directory/. 

Go to the details listed for your name, and change any information by selecting “Edit 

details”. This will require your SIMS password for authentication. 

These details will not be provided to students by other staff. If students ask for sessional 

contact details, the Faculty Admin office will endeavour to contact the sessional staff 

member on the student’s behalf. Address and phone numbers are needed in case there 

are problems with timesheets or if any correspondence needs to be forwarded to you. All 

information collected is dealt with in accordance with the SUT Privacy Policy: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/registrar/ppd/docs/Privacy.pdf. 

Confidentiality 

Policy and Procedures for Confidentiality of Student Records can be found on the SUT 

web site: 

www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/registrar/ppd/docs/ConfidentialityofStudentRecordsPoli 

cy.pdf. Please note that exam results or personal details should only ever be discussed 

directly with the student, and no information on a student held by the University can be 

released to any external party (except in the circumstances outlined in Section 4.1 of the 

aforementioned policy). 

Student names and ID numbers should never be shown together. 

Copyright 

In Australia copyright protection is provided to all original works under the Copyright Act 

1968 (Cwlth). The Act covers text, graphic, audio, video and other material in both digital 

and hard copy form. Staff at SUT are permitted to copy and communicate copyright 

material providing they comply with the requirements of the Act and any commercial 

licences which SUT has entered. 

Any copies made for educational purposes (and this includes course pack and learning 

guide material) must include copyright statements. Digital copies communicated must be 

managed centrally. 

Contact the Faculty Liaison Librarian, Annette Steere, for assistance or further 

information on 9214 8177 or at asteere@swin.edu.au. 

There are a number of ways for staff to copy and communicate copyright material within 

legal limits. The following site provides information on the use of copyright material by 

staff at SUT: http://www.swin.edu.au/copyright/. 

Any digital copies made for educational purposes must have the electronic use notice 

prominently displayed at the beginning. This can be arranged for you by the Library, and 

linked to from Blackboard unit of study sites. 

Information on the Online Reserve can be found at: http://www.swin.edu.au/lib/digires. 

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Emergencies 

Medical emergencies 

If you find yourself having to handle a medical emergency during a teaching session: 

Notify Security on 9214 3333 

Give details of the location, type of incident and extent of urgency 

First aid cabinets are located in each building. A list of locations of first aid 

cabinets is included in Appendix 3. This list can also be accessed via the OH&S 

website: 

http://www2.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/emergency/firstaid_list.htm#hawthorn 

If you use something out of the first aid boxes please notify the Manager Facilities & 

Laboratory Support, Cameron Young, at cyoung@swin.edu.au, so that items can be 

replaced. 

During regular working hours (9.00 a.m. – 5.00 p.m.) Security will notify the SUT 

Health Service and call a nurse to the scene or, if necessary, call an ambulance. 

Before and after regular working hours (before 9.00 a.m. and after 5.00 p.m.) Security 

will attend immediately and, if needed, call an ambulance or arrange transportation for 

the person to get to a Casual ward or home if the situation is non-urgent. 

Students with Disabilities 

The University’s Disabilities Services Unit will formally advise the Faculty and Unit 

Convenor of any registered students in your class who may require assistance or special 

teaching needs. This notification will include details of the assistance to be provided (eg 

interpreter for hearing impaired; assignment extensions, etc) and must be adhered to. 

If you have a student in your class who has an obvious disability, or has notified you of 

such, it could help to have an agreed evacuation plan for that student i.e. in the event of a 

fire evacuation, a student unable to use the stairs may need to be left in the stairwell and 

firewardens notified immediately to attend to that person until rescued (however, they 

should not be left alone) The stairwells are fire and smoke proof. 

Emergency Procedures in a Fire 

It is vital to give your student group clear directions and ask them to stay together 

throughout any evacuation and at the Assembly area. You may be asked to account for 

your students by the Fire Brigade at the Assembly area to establish if any person is 

missing. A map is attached of the evacuation assembly (see Appendix 4). A summary of 

SUT’s emergency management procedures is also included (see Appendix 5). 

Entrance to Buildings 

During Teaching Hours 

All buildings are open during teaching hours; however you may need keys to access 

classrooms, laboratories or lecture theatres and your staff ID activated to access 

sessional rooms in ATC building. 

Keys and access card activation is done by the Manager Facilities & Laboratory Support, 

Cameron Young. You can contact Cameron on 9214 8135 or at cyoung@swin.edu.au. 

His office is located at AS311. 

Sessional Staff supervisors are required to email Cameron Young requesting keys for 

their staff, clearly indicating which locations sessional staff will require access to. When 

keys are ready for collection, they can be collected from AS311. Sessional staff will be 

required to present photo identification to collect keys. 

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If you are unable to access a teaching room, you can contact Security on 9214 8176 to 

open the room. 

External doors are locked by Security in the evenings (usually after 9.30pm). You will still 

be able to exit the buildings via the side doors of the BA building (John or Williams Road 

ends), and the ground floor rear door or door at the top of the ramp on the 2 nd level of the 

AS building. Exit the ATC building at the ground level at the north, south or west exits. In 

all cases you need to push the “push to exit” buttons to open the doors. 

After Hours and Weekends 

If you need to arrange access to buildings after hours or at weekends, contact the Faculty 

Manager Facilities & Laboratory Support, Cameron Young. You can contact Cameron on 

9214 8135 or at cyoung@swin.edu.au. 

Equipment Loans 

Overhead projectors are generally located in all tutorial rooms. The Faculty does have 

data projectors and laptop computers available for loan to FLSS staff from Technical 

Support in AS403. Bookings are always essential and can be made by email at 

servicedesk@swin.edu.au. 

For more information about FLSS Technical Support, visit: 

http://www.swin.edu.au/lss/intranet/technical/technicalhome.html. 

Fax 

The Faculty has fax machines located in the AS Administration offices which can be used 

by staff. The Undergraduate Office (AS202) fax number is 9214 5921 and the 

Postgraduate Office (AS320) fax number is 9819 0574. 

Faculty Finance Office Contact Information 

The Faculty Finance Office, located in AS317, can assist with sessional academic pay 

queries, stationery, photocopy access, printing requirements, travel and purchasing. 

Finance information and forms are published on the Faculty Finance Office intranet at: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/lss/intranet/finance/financehome.html 

All Finance queries should be emailed to 

lssfinance@swin.edu.au 

Finance Manager: Karen Briggs 9214 5983 

Finance Coordinator: Marlene Dias 9214 5570 

Finance Officer: Michelle Choon 9214 8124 

Client Liaison Officer (Resources): Sarah Inman 9214 5614 

Faculty Finance Office: Fax: 9819 0856 

Swinburne Internal Mail Number: 

H31 

Sessional Academic Staff Payment 

Sessional Academic staff (teaching and research) are required to complete an 

Application for Sessional Engagement Form (C2), available from: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/hr/f_forms.htm. 

The form must be signed by the unit convenor or academic staff member engaging the 

sessional staff member, prior to the form being submitted to the Faculty Finance Office 

(AS317) for processing. 

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Being Paid As a Consultant 

Under no circumstances can a sessional academic staff member be paid as a consultant. 

In many cases where contract arrangements for sessional academic teaching are used, 

they are a substitute of Academic Sessional teaching as provided under the Certified 

Agreement and they are genuinely not contract arrangements. At common law, an 

employment relationship will be seen to subsist where the person is undertaking coreactivities 

of the University. 

A one-off guest speaker may be paid as a consultant; however they must first sign a 

’Services to Swinburne agreement’ prior to giving the lecture. The signed ‘Services to 

Swinburne Agreement’ is available at (OPAX password required to access this site): 

http://www.swin.edu.au/corporate/legal/. 

The ‘Services to Swinburne agreement’ must be returned to the Faculty Finance Office 

(AS317) to facilitate payment and the guest speaker will be required to invoice Swinburne 

University the agreed fee. The guest speaker must charge their own rates, not the 

Swinburne sessional academic rates of pay; otherwise it will appear an employment 

relationship will be seen to subsist. 

Sessional Academic Teaching Staff 

All sessional teaching staff that have been engaged by the Faculty, (i.e. completed an 

Application for Sessional Engagement Form (C2)) will be paid on a fortnightly basis 

according to the confirmed teaching scheduled discussed with their unit convenor. 

Sessional teaching staff are required to complete a sessional time sheet only where the 

payment claim is related to: 

 

Marking. Please discuss the number of hours allocated to you for marking with 

your unit convenor. Faculty Finance staff will monitor the number of hours 

submitted for marking and any time sheets submitted above your marking 

allocation will not be processed. Claims for payments above your allocation will be 

returned to the Academic Head to follow up. 

Additional work above the confirmed teaching scheduled, that has been approved 

by Faculty Management. 

Sessional time sheets are available from: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/lss/sessional/. All time sheets must be signed by unit 

convenors. 

Sessional Academic Research Staff 

Sessional time sheets are available from: http://www.swinburne.edu.au/lss/sessional/. 

All time sheets submitted for sessional research employees should quote a correct 

account code for payment and must be signed by their supervisor. 

Submission of Time sheets, pay dates and pay rates 

Timesheet deadlines, pay dates and rates of pay are published at the following Faculty 

intranet site: http://www.swinburne.edu.au/lss/sessional/ Time sheets must be submitted 

to the Faculty Finance Office (AS317 or Administration Mail Box 10 on AS building, level 

3) for approval and processing. Under no circumstances are timesheets to be taken 

directly to Human Resources. Faxed copies will not be accepted. 

8

The deadlines for submission of time sheets are published on the Faculty intranet at: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/lss/sessional/. Please note that extensive time delays can 

occur when timesheets are not submitted by deadlines or are not correctly completed. 

Important Note: Faculty of Life & Social Sciences sessional employees must submit their 

timesheets by the deadlines published by the Faculty, not the deadlines published by 

Human Resources. Faculty timesheet deadlines are PRIOR to the Human Resources 

deadline, to allow the Faculty sufficient time to process payroll information and submit to 

Human Resources. 

Payslips - Swinburne People Online 

Payslips are available online from the Human Resources, Swinburne People Online 

(SPO) located on the HR website at: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/hr/welcome.htm. 

Your logon to SPO is the Swinburne Identity Management System (SIMS). Payroll staff 

are automatically assigned a SIMS username and password once they have been 

entered into the HR Management System and have commenced employment. New staff 

members should contact the Service Desk on 9214 5000 to confirm their SIMS 

username. The HR website above, provides instructions regarding your SPO login and 

password etc. 

Update Personal/Banking Details 

If you wish to change/update your personal information details and banking details, you 

can also do this on SPO. 

ID Cards 

A ‘Staff Photo ID Application’ Form needs to be completed and is available from: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/hr/f_forms.htm. 

Please complete your name and date of birth and return to Faculty Finance Office 

(AS317) or via internal mail H31. This form will then be sent to HR for processing who will 

return the form to the Faculty. You will then be notified by email that the form is ready to 

collect. 

When you collect the form, it will have an ID number on it. You should take the form to 

the Student Information Centre located on the ground floor of the SPW building 

(Wakefield Street, opposite the multi-level carpark) and they will take your photo and 

produce a card on the spot. 

Photocopying 

Email the Faculty Finance Office lssfinance@swin.edu.au to arrange a code for 

accessing Faculty photocopiers. 

Printing 

Technical staff are available to offer technical assistance including setting up printer 

access and replacing toner cartridges. ITS Technical staff are available on 9214 5000 or 

at servicedesk@swin.edu.au. 

It is recommended that large amounts of printing be done on the photocopier or taken 

over to Swinburne Press, which may take one or two days, so please think ahead. 

9

Printing request forms can be obtained from the Swinburne Press website: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/press/. The completed form and material to be 

printed, must be submitted to the Faculty Finance Office (AS317) or by email to 

lssfinance@swin.edu.au, before submission to Swinburne Press. 

Library Services for Staff 

The Hawthorn campus library is located directly opposite the BA building main entrance, 

on the other side of the Atrium. The library opening hours are located on the library 

website at: http://www.swin.edu.au/lib/hours/hours.htm. You can access the Library 

website at: http://www.swin.edu.au/lib/welcome.html. 

Your Staff ID card gives you access to borrow from the library. You can access the 

Library catalogue and the online Reserves at: 

http://www.swin.edu.au/lib/catalogue/welcome.htm. You will need your OPAX logon and 

password to access the online reserves, which can be obtained from the ITS Servicedesk 

on 9214 5000. 

Lost Property 

Lost Property should be handed in to Security. At Hawthorn, Security are located in Alfred 

Street (near the railway station) and are contactable on 9214 8176. It is also wise to 

advise students to check the FLSS Administration offices (AS202 and AS320). 

Mail Boxes 

A sessional staff mailbox will be centrally located. However, it is best to use the Unit of 

Study Convenor’s mailbox. 

Mail Boxes in the ATC building for Psych, Stats and BPsyC staff are located on level 9/10 

of the ATC building. 

If you have a need for a specific mailbox, contact the Manager Facilities & Laboratory 

Support, Cameron Young. You can contact Cameron on 9214 8135 or at 

cyoung@swin.edu.au. For mail boxes in the ATC contact Libby Ewing (Level 10) 9214 

8664 or Melanie Reay (Level 9) 9214 4914. 

Parking 

Parking around SUT Hawthorn is very limited, especially during semester time. There is a 

multi-storey car park in Wakefield Street (just a few minutes walk) that costs $6.50 daily, 

and limited all day and two hour street parking. Parking is very competitive, and it is 

important you realise you may need to allow additional time to find and travel from 

parking locations. 

It is worth noting that Boorondara Council is vigilant in monitoring parking and the 

clearway hours in Burwood Road are closely monitored. Parking fines are readily 

distributed! 

Phone Directory 

A complete directory for the university can be located from the SUT home page under 

Staff, Internal Communications Directory, and Web Version: 

http://www.swin.edu.au/directory/. 

10

Safety 

You may find that as a Sessional staff member you often take late classes when most 

other staff have left the building. For you own personal safety, the following may help: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notify Security if you feel in any way nervous about working on your own or have 

reason to feel threatened in any way. Security can be contacted on 9214 8176. 

Security is located in Alfred Street (near the railway station). If a security guard is 

not in the office there is a phone which will put you straight through to the guard 

on duty. 

Keep to well lit up areas when leaving the building and report any areas where 

lighting is inadequate or not functioning. 

Use the ‘Late after-dark bus’, which leaves from outside the John Street, Corner 

Cafeteria (which is in front of the Sports and Recreation building). The bus covers 

a 2 km radius around the campus and will take you to your car or public transport. 

During winter months the bus leaves a quarter to and quarter past the hour from 

6.30 – 10.00 p.m. (or 7.30 – 10.00 p.m. during daylight saving). 

If appropriate, during office hours, students and staff are able to contact the 

Student Health Services on 9214 8703 or 9214 8483). There is always one doctor 

on duty. The Student Health Services is situated at 34W The George. 

If you are working after hours or on weekends alone it is best practice to call 

security to let them know you are there. Give them your name, room number, staff 

ID and estimated time you will be working. 

Sessional Rooms 

The Faculty has allocated staff offices in different locations for use by sessional staff. 

These rooms are equipped with computers and will have printing access. 

Discipline Location Discipline Location 

Media & Communications AS417 Psychology ATC 

1014/1015 

Multimedia AS417 Social & Policy Studies ATC 

1014/1015 

Statistics 

ATC 

1014/1015 

Contact the Manager Facilities & Laboratory Support, Cameron Young, on 9214 8135 or 

at cyoung@swin.edu.au.to, arrange swipe access to these rooms. For swipe access to 

the ATC sessional rooms you can also contact Libby Ewing 

The sessional rooms in ATC have lockers to securely lock away any personal items. 

Contact Libby Ewing for issue of lockers in these rooms on 9214 8664 or 

eewing@swin.edu.au. 

Stationery 

Stationery for teaching requirements is available from the Faculty Finance Office located 

in AS317. Please email lssfinance@swin.edu.au for assistance. 

11

Staff Facilities / Kitchens 

FLSS staff have access to tea and coffee making facilities/kitchens and staff lounge 

areas in the AS, BA and ATC buildings. These are located as follows: 

BA building Staff kitchen (tea/coffee) facilities located on the 10th floor 

AS Building AS414 Staff Kitchen facility with seating area 

AS314 Staff Kitchen 

ATC Building Breakout Kitchen Facilities outside rooms ATC 1032 and ATC 931 

ATC Building ATC 909 / 910 Kitchen facility and seating area 

Typically the kitchens are very basic but there is a small fridge, microwave oven and milk 

should be provided. 

Student Enquiries 

The Faculty’s student administration staff are located in the Applied Science Building and 

will be able to deal with most student queries such as enrolments, graduations, changes 

in their program, HECS etc. Email: lssinfo@swin.edu.au 

Manager, Students & Programs Location: AS321 Phone: 9214 8183 

Undergraduate Administration Location: AS202 Phone: 9214 8859 

Postgraduate Administration Location: AS320 Phone: 9214 5209 

Research Administration Location: AS334 Phone: 9214 8247 

Submission of Assignments: Please note that only in exceptional circumstances and only 

if prior arrangements have been made, neither Undergraduate nor Postgraduate Office 

can be used for the collection or date stamping of assignments. 

Students should be directed to your mailbox or to the mailbox of the Unit of Study 

Convenor. Ensure you clearly indicate the location of these mailboxes to the students 

(building and floor). 

Unfortunately, large assignments and videos, etc. do not fit into these boxes so it may be 

necessary to arrange for students to hand their work directly to the unit of study convenor 

or staff members. 

Plagiarism, Cheating and Student Discipline 

Any instance of suspected plagiarism or cheating, or inappropriate student behaviour or 

conduct should be reported to the Unit Convenor and the Faculty’s Manager of Students 

and Programs (Geraldine Doherty: gdoherty@swin.edu.au or 9214 8183) immediately. 

The Faculty and University have very clear guidelines how such matters are handled. 

Programs. 

Student Services (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv) 

In some circumstances, you may need to direct students to support services provided by 

the University. In addition, Student Services can provide advice to staff, act as mediators 

in disputes, or provide individual or group assistance for students. 

Student Services offers a range of confidential services to SUT. Experienced staff are 

available to assist them in a confidential manner. The health service and counselling 

service (in a consultary manner) are also available to SUT staff. Please see the Health 

and Student Development and Counselling sections below for more information. 

12

Services include 

Careers and Employment 

Student Development and Counselling 

Disability 

Equity Childcare Facilities 

Student Services Activities & Events 

Finance 

Health and Wellbeing 

Housing 

Swin-eCounselling 

Multi-Faith Facility 

Disability Support Service (Higher Education) (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/disability) 

Many students have ongoing issues that impact on their study, and may be eligible for 

Disability Services assistance. However, many students are shy of enquiring about this 

support service, or may not be aware of its availability. Support is available to students 

with disabilities and / or medical conditions that impact on study. Staff are based at 

Hawthorn, however available to meet on campus by appointment. Staff can be contacted 

on 9214 8500 and are located on Level 4, The George, Wakefield St Hawthorn. 

Scholarships 

Swinburne's centralised Scholarship website which lists all the scholarships available to 

our students at the following link: http://www.future.swinburne.edu.au/scholarships/. 

International students should refer to the following Scholarship website: 

http://www.international.swinburne.edu.au/apply/scholarships/index.html. The contact for 

International Scholarships is Justine Morris at jcmorris@swin.edu.au. 

Student Financial Advice (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/finance) 

The following are available via this service: 

 

 

 

 

Information, advice and advocacy on Youth Allowance and Austudy 

Financial advice including loans or other assistance 

Emergency financial assistance available in a crisis 

Assistance with fees for SUT accredited TAFE courses in cases of financial 

hardship 

Budgeting assistance and handouts available 

Tax Help, July to October 31 

Hawthorn: Student Information Centre and on 9214 8882 

Lilydale: Student Centre and on 9215 7105 

Prahran: Level 2, PK Building and on 9214 6734 

13

Health and Well-being (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/health) 


 

 

Medical consultations (male and female medical practitioners) are available by 

appointment to the students, staff and community. Students are bulk billed. 

(Available at the Hawthorn campus only but open to all SUT members) 

Campus Nurses on all campuses, are available on a walk-in basis or by 

appointment and provide: 

o Emergency response 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

Assessment and Triage. Treatment and referral as necessary in a clinical 

setting. 

Health counselling including: 

Immunization, general and overseas 

Nutrition 

Sexually Transmitted Infections (sexual health) 

Contraception 

Health and lifestyle management 

Referral to community centres such as doctors, hospitals, dentists, 

physiotherapy, drug and alcohol agencies as indicated 

Rest rooms with nurse observation if unwell and available for those 

wishing to rest or meditate 

Health Promotions Programs 

Naturopath, Homeopath, Acupuncture and Therapeutic Massage by 

appointment (Available at Hawthorn campus only) 

Hawthorn: L4 The George and on 9214 8483 

Lilydale: LD108 and on 9215 7106 


Housing (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/housing) 


 

 

 

 

Information, advocacy and advice on tenancy rights and responsibilities 

Assistance with tenancy dispute resolution 

Lists of local real estate agents 

Assistance finding emergency or short term accommodation; information on long 

term hostels 

Hawthorn: Student Information Centre and on 9214 8882 



Student Residences (www.swin.edu.au/residences) 

Information about student residences at Hawthorn can be obtained via the website or on 

9214 5555. 

14

Student Development and Counselling (www.swin.edu.au/stuserv/counselling) 


 

 

 

 

Workshops are run throughout the year at all campuses to assist and support 

students through studies (i.e. exam anxiety, time and stress management 

workshops), please see email address below for further information 

Group Programs for students to provide support as well as address any problems 

students may be experiencing while at SUT 

Short term individual counselling available. Students can simply telephone or call 

in to make an appointment to see a counsellor. Students do not need to provide 

an explanation when booking an appointment 

Workshops / mediation provided for staff for issues relating to students 

Consultary service for staff for issues relating to students 

Hawthorn: L4, The George and on 9214 8025 



Careers and Employment (http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/careers/) 

Careers & employment provide services to the TAFE and Higher Education Sectors and 

Alumni. Services include: 

Career Information Library with a broad range of career and employment related 

books, videos, journals, computer programs and more 

Employment preparation handouts 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Career planning and job hunting seminars 

Individual career counselling appointments 

Resume and cover letter checks 

Careers in the Curriculum unit of study 

Employment information 

Interview skills and practice 

Fee for service to general public 

Employment Programs for current students: 

Employment Fair 

Jobs for Students 

Information for students - Undergraduate and Postgraduate 

Employer Information 

Information for Parents 

Information for Staff 

15

SwinEmploy (on-line Job Service): 

Visit SUT’s online employment service for: 

Casual and part-time jobs 

Course related part-time and full-time positions 

Graduate positions 

Employment related information and events 

Hawthorn: L2, The George and at 9214 5360 

Prahran: BA Building Level 2, Room PK224 and at 9214 5360 

Lilydale: LA102M, La102O and at 9215 7000 

Swinburne International (www.international.swinburne.edu.au) 

Swinburne International are located in the Student Information Centre, Wakefield Street, 

Hawthorn and can be contacted on 9214 5575. 

This is the first point of contact at Swinburne for international students and is responsible 

for the admission, orientation and welfare of all international students. Staff can refer 

students with problems onto appropriate staff within the University and Student Union. 

Swinburne Student Amenities Association (www.myssaa.com.au/) 

The Swinburne Student Amenities Association (SSAA) is located in the UN Building on 

the corner of John St and Burwood Road, Hawthorn, and can be contacted on 9214 

5455. They offer the following services: 

 

 

 

 

 

Academic support is provided by the Student Advisory and Academic Support 

Centre (SAASC). Staff are employed to assist students if they have been 

excluded, are unhappy with a mark or have a general complaint about a course or 

teaching. 

The Equity Unit is responsible for dealing with problems arising from such things 

as discrimination, harassment or access to and support for disadvantaged groups. 

Legal advice is offered to students on any civil or criminal matters. The solicitor is 

available at the Hawthorn campus. Students will be referred to sympathetic legal 

practitioners should representation be required. 

The Night Bus is a free service to students and staff, transporting them to their 

cars and public transport safely within the local area. The bus leaves every half 

hour outside the Corner Café (corner John Street and Wakefield Street) Monday 

to Thursday 6.15pm to 9.45pm (during daylight savings the service starts at 

7.15pm. 

Noticeboards are located throughout the Hawthorn campus. Students and staff 

can have notices put up by the Student Union. Posters are approved at the 

Student Union and must have a SSU stamp and date or they will be removed. 

Notices are removed after 1 week. 

 

Telephone Calls 

Telephones are available in each of the sessional offices. You will need to dial ‘0’ in order 

to get an outside line. Otherwise if you are dialling an internal number, just dial the 

extension number. For the Switchboard - dial ‘9’. 

Swinburne Campuses 

16

Croydon 

12-50 Norton Road, Croydon, 

Victoria, Australia 3136 

Tel: + 61 3 9214 8000 

Healesville 

237 Maroondah Hwy, Healesville, 


Tel: + 61 3 5957 1800 

Hawthorn 

John Street, Hawthorn, 


Tel: + 61 3 9214 8000 

Sarawak 

Jalan Simpang Tiga, 93350 Kuching, 

Sarawak, Malaysia 

Tel: + 60 82 416 353 (General line) 

+60 82 415 353 (Course enquiry line) 

Lilydale 

Melba Ave, Lilydale, 


Tel: +61 3 9214 8000 

Prahran 

144 High Street, Prahran, 


Tel: +61 3 9214 8000 

Wantirna 

369 Stud Road,Wantirna, 


Tel: +61 3 9214 8000 

17

TEACHING & LEARNING ISSUES 

Academic Roles & Responsibilities 

A more detailed account of the roles and responsibilities of each of these positions is 

currently being developed within the Faculty. The following is presented as a general 

overview. 

Deputy Dean 

The Deputy Dean and Associate Dean assist the Dean in managing all aspects of the 

teaching and learning operations and strategy of the Faculty. Areas of responsibility 

include: Allocation of teaching duties, teaching strategies; quality assurance; curriculum 

development; program accreditation; academic professional development. 

Head of Academic Group 

This role carries overall responsibility for program coordination of all teaching programs 

assigned to an ‘academic group’. This includes: visionary and strategic leadership of the 

group, workload allocations for academic staff, assisting in the management of teaching 

(including sessional) staff, conducting Course Advisory Committees, quality assurance, 

resourcing and accreditation of programs. 

Educational Development Coordinator (EDC) 

The Education Development Coordinator assists the Deputy Dean in meeting learning 

and teaching and curriculum needs of the Faculty. This includes course development 

and review, teaching quality, professional development and staff/student feedback. 

Dr Paula Geldens is the Faculty’s EDC and is currently located in BA1026. Paula can be 

contacted by email pgeldens@swin.edu.au or by phone on 9214 4677. 

Program Coordinators 

This role has direct responsibility for one or more particular teaching programs. This 

includes: advising the Academic Leader on issues related to the program, advising 

students on academic matters (in consultation with administrative staff), chairing the 

program panel and general overseeing of the program. 

Unit of Study Convenors 

This role is responsible for the academic management and delivery of a unit of study 

during the teaching period. The Unit Convenor chairs the unit panel. Duties include: 

teaching into the unit of study, advising students and dealing with student queries, 

development and management of unit of study delivery, content, learning activities and 

assessment tasks; updating and maintaining the unit of study details on Blackboard; 

processing assessment results; ensuring assessment results & feedback are timely; 

mentoring and supervising teaching staff within the unit; handling student grievances 

and/or informal discipline procedures (eg plagiarism issues). 

Tutoring/Laboratory staff 

This role is responsible for the learning activities that take place during 

tutorials/laboratory sessions. The Convenor of the unit of study in which you are 

teaching will be your primary contact. They will provide you with support and resources 

to support your classroom/laboratory activities. In the event of any difficulties arising in 

your teaching, your Convenor will be able to assist. You may be required to attend 

regular unit of study meetings to discuss unit of study planning and assignment marking. 

18

Unit of Study Panel 

The role of the Unit of Study Panel is to monitor all curriculum and assessment aspects 

of a unit. These panels meet prior to semester beginning, during and after semester and 

are convened by the Unit of Study Convenor. 

Academic Development Advisor (ADA) 

The ADA works closely with the EDC, Academic leaders and the Deputy Dean in 

meeting the curriculum and learning and teaching needs of the Faculty, and also to 

assist individual staff on learning and teaching matters. The ADA also has a Universitywide 

responsibility through LTS for providing academic change management advice, 

educational quality improvement support and academic professional development. 

Catherine Pocknee is the Faculty’s ADA. She is located in BA level 9, and can be 

contacted by email cpocknee@swin.edu.au or by phone on 9214 5246. 

Blackboard iLearn 

Blackboard iLearn is a commercial Learning Management System (LMS) environment 

licensed by SUT for its Higher Education staff and students. The LMS provides access 

to communication and materials via the Internet so, provided you have an Internet 

connection and a browser, you can stay connected with staff and students involved in 

your unit of study or course even when you are not physically on campus. It is important 

that you are aware of the ways in which this system is being used in your units. 

Blackboard at SUT is located at: http://ilearn.swin.edu.au/ or you can access it via the 

Staff Information page under the Online Courses and Units of Study – Login links, where 

you will need to select Blackboard - iLearn link. Your Unit of Study Convenor will 

organise your access to Blackboard and will demonstrate how blackboard works, 

particularly any special requirements for unit of study(s) you will be teaching into. There 

also training sessions run throughout the year. 

If you are having trouble accessing your unit of study, please first check with your 

convenor(s) that they have enrolled you as a user. For Blackboard problems and help, 

contact the Information Technology Service (ITS) Helpdesk on 9214 5000 for general 

enquiries or the Blackboard Helpdesk on 9214 5295 or at blackboard@swin.edu.au. The 

Blackboard Helpdesk is open from hours of operation are Monday to Friday 9 am to 5pm 

Australian Eastern Standard Time. 

Plagiarism / Irregularities in Assessments and Appeals 

SUT takes plagiarism very seriously. As a staff member, you will be enrolled, via 

Blackboard in: Minimising Plagiarism@Swinburne. If you are not enrolled in this site, 

please contact the ITS HelpDesk on 9214 5000 or on servicedesk@swin.edu.au. 

As noted above, any instance of suspected plagiarism or cheating, or inappropriate 

student behaviour or conduct should be reported to the Unit Convenor and the Faculty’s 

Manager of Students and Programs (Geraldine Doherty: gdoherty@swin.edu.au or 9214 

8183) immediately. The Faculty and University have very clear guidelines how such 

matters are handled, and are usually handled by the Manager of Students and 

Programs. 

19

Please view the Swinburne Policies and Procedures website to familiarise yourself with 

the University Assessment and Appeals Policy (Higher Education): 

http://ppd.swin.edu.au/default.htm. 

Policies & Procedures 

The Policies and Procedures database is an important site and can be accessed at: 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/registrar/ppd/welcome.html. Individual policy 

documents are available from this site. 

Study Skills Support Services 

Learning Links – for local students (http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/studysupport/learning-links/) 

This group offer free face-to-face advice in relation to mathematics, language and study 

skills assistance to SUT students individually or in groups. For appointments, students 

should contact the relevant coordinator for their campus. The website is also a great 

resource for students who wish to access information and advice online. 


advice on assignments 

Help for students to achieve success in their courses 

Individual tuition 

Return to Study courses 

Regular group workshops 

Specific workshops as required 

Hawthorn: TD 345 and on 9214 8634. 

English Language and Academic Skills Support (LAS) – for International Students 

(http://www.international.swinburne.edu.au/contact/current-studentcontacts/#SkillsSupport) 

The LAS website provides information about various programs run through this service. 

LAS Advisers also provide individual tutorials to help students with essay and other 

writing, oral presentations, question analysis, structuring assignments and other 

language and academic skills such as using databases, referencing, making notes, 

using basic software and doing basic statistics. 

Appointments can be made on 9214 6741 or at isa@swin.edu.au. 

English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students Service (ELICOS for 

short) (http://www.international.swinburne.edu.au/courses/elicos/) 

ELICOS courses are designed to prepare international students who want to study in 

Australia or wish to improve their English for social or career purposes. 

The Faculty also offers a number of programs and workshops throughout the year, 

including the Effective Academic Skills program for international students. The Faculty’s 

20

Manager of Students and Programs will provide details to your staff email account as 

workshops are offered. 

Student Feedback on Units of Study (SFS) 

Each semester, SUT carries out surveys of student experience. Most units will be 

surveyed at least once each year. The SFS is administered for the Academic Programs 

Quality Committee (APQC), a sub-committee of the Academic Board. The aims of this 

survey are to: 

provide information about the effectiveness of teaching and learning 

create an environment that allows all participants to constructively contribute to 

the improvement of the education process 

facilitate a process of improvement in course delivery 

inform curriculum development and the evaluation of teaching practices 

recognise and encourage excellence in teaching and learning 

The surveys are administered online and reports produced and disseminated following 

the end of the exam period. 

Teaching & Learning Assistance 

There are many different experiences and situations that you will be faced with when 

teaching. Some situations are predictable and you can prepare for, but many events 

may arise that you could not foresee and you need to cope with as they arise, and try to 

avoid in the future. In addition, the variety of students and topics that you teach can also 

give rise to a range of requirements and circumstances that you may need assistance 

with. 

Remember that your colleagues (whether sessional or on-going staff) can be a valuable 

source of information and teaching ideas. We encourage you to discuss problems, 

issues, new teaching approaches etc with your teaching colleagues, and in particular 

with your unit of study convenor and teaching panel. Also draw on the teaching support 

facilities and advice offered by the University’s Teaching & Learning Support group. 

Catherine Pocknee is the Faculty’s ADA. She is located in BA level 9, and can be 

contacted by email cpocknee@swin.edu.au or by phone on 9214 5246. 

The University sites provide some websites with information to support your teaching, 

some of which we have referred to elsewhere in this booklet: 

Swinburne Professional Learning (http://www.swinburne.edu.au/spl/) 

Swinburne Professional Learning supports teaching excellence and innovation in Higher 

Education. SPL carries out the complementary roles of curriculum and learning and 

teaching support, ongoing Faculty-linked academic development, and undertaking 

project-based initiatives related to Swinburne's Professional Learning Model. 

On their website you will find more information about the support mechanisms offered by 

SPL, including professional development (also Graduate Certificate in Learning & 

Teaching and Foundations of Teaching Practice), grants and awards, current curriculum 

renewal activities, and learning and teaching resources. 

21

. 

Teaching web links 

There is an abundance of excellent learning and teaching resources to be found online. 

Some useful information and teaching tips can be found at the following: 

Macquarie University: http://www.mq.edu.au/ltc/resources/index.htm 

Murdoch University: http://our.murdoch.edu.au/Educational-Development/ 

Queensland University of Technology: 

http://www.ltu.qut.edu.au/development/teaching.jsp 

Melbourne University: 

http://www.cshe.unimelb.edu.au/prof_dev/new_staff/docs/Sessional_Handbook_ 

2009-2.pdf 

Teaching Tips 

We have also put together a few thoughts from staff that may help you in preparing and 

structuring your teaching sessions. This is not an exhaustive list – but designed to trigger 

your thoughts on teaching approaches and styles. 

Recipes for success in teaching: 

Clear objectives for each lecture or tutorial shared at the beginning. 

Summary at the end referring back to objectives. Homework and preparation for 

next lecture. A snapshot of what is to follow in the next class. 

As much participation as possible generated by asking lots of questions - simple 

questions as well as more difficult questions. Positive feedback to all responses. I 

like to do this even with big classes, but this can cause problems if you have too 

enthusiastic a response. Encourage questions and group discussion. 

Humour and humility. Genuine concern for students' difficulties. 

Support the unit coordinator. Discuss any problems with the coordinator rather 

than the students. 

Be very enthusiastic and be well prepared so that you can answer the curly 

questions. 

Be receptive to new ideas and alternative answers. 

Attendance & Punctuality Issues 

“I make sure I am on time, so hopefully setting an example. I usually allow about 5 

minutes for people to get to class and get settled, and then start promptly. I think it’s 

important to let the students know that they are expected to be on time, and also to start 

on time for the students who do make the effort to be punctual. A quiet word is usually 

enough for repeat late comers. I have only had one class where two students repeatedly 

arrived late. The day they told me they had to leave early as well because they were in a 

22

one hour car park for a 90 minute class, I told them publicly (and in fairly uncertain 

terms) that I didn’t think that was appropriate. They were always on time (and there for 

the whole class) after that. (They both also chose to be in my class the following 

semester, so I guess I didn’t leave any long-term psychological scars).” 

Punctuality: Start the lecture with a brief recap of the previous week's lecture. This 

serves as a useful bridge with previous learning, and puts the material being delivered 

that day within the overall learning context. An additional benefit of this is that if students 

are a few minutes late, they are not missing out on the latest material being delivered. I 

adopt a similar technique in tutorials. 

With computer labs using a 'follow along from screen' technique, it's important that the 

bulk of the students are in attendance before commencing the lab. As students are 

dribbling in, you can request students show tutors their assignment work in progress. 

This allows valuable student feedback to be given, maximises the useful time within the 

lab, and allows the bulk of the class to arrive before the lab's delivery starts. 

Attendance: Many units of study have labs or tutorials that are considered compulsory. 

For example, in multimedia labs there are set exercises which must be completed each 

week. At the end of the formal delivery, students complete these exercises and their 

attendance is marked off once the completed exercises are shown to the tutor. This 

ensures that attendance is recorded, and that the students are engaging with the 

material (by practising the set exercises). 

It is also useful to emphasise to students when attendance in labs is considered 

compulsory, and that (when indicated in the Unit of Study Outline) an academic penalty 

can be applied for missed lab classes. Also point out that attendance may be taken into 

consideration when considering issues such as extensions and borderline grades. 

Adult learning expectations 

Having come back to study as a mature age student myself, I am able to empathise with 

people in this situation. I sometimes relay to students my very different experiences of 

doing my first degree straight out of school while I was living with my parents, and doing 

my second degree while managing four young children and part-time work. I usually 

suggest to students in this situation that they should not be too hard on themselves, 

particularly in the first couple of weeks when they can feel a bit shell shocked. I think it 

helps to acknowledge that they might find it a bit harder and to provide some moral 

support and encouragement along the way. Often though, these students are the ones 

who make the most effort to get to class and get work done, because they have made a 

big investment to get here. 

Encourage students to ask questions and answer them of course! Additionally, get 

students to interact with each other as much as possible (within and outside the 

classroom). Let them build up some network of learners or peers. Also encourage them 

to seek assistance of tutors, lecturers, demonstrators. 

Group dynamics 

Group work can be a great way for students to get to know each other in the first few 

weeks. As much as possible, it’s best to have something for each member of the group 

to do so that everyone is actively involved. Group work also reduces to possibility of 

23

having a few people dominate class discussions. Asking each group to give a brief 

‘report’ to the class tends to encourage the group to stick to the task at hand rather than 

becoming involved in non-class discussions. 

During group work, I usually move from group to group and sit in for a few minutes. This 

also helps to keep the group on task. I addition, it gives people who might be reluctant to 

ask me questions in the full class a chance to ask questions in the smaller group setting. 

I also use moving around the groups as an opportunity to get to know or reinforce 

students’ names. 

Try different things. Also communicate with the group (especially if a small tutorial or lab 

class), and see what their expectations are. Be prepared to change whatever is not 

working. 

International students - language & cultural issues, groups dynamics 

Some international students feel reluctant to become involved in full class discussions. 

Group work can provide an opportunity for these students to become actively involved or 

to ask questions. Sometimes cultural differences are relevant to issues being discussed 

in class. I have found international students are usually happy to talk about their 

particular cultural perspective when invited to, and this can lead to interesting class 

discussions. If students are particularly quiet, I often try to talk to them individually to see 

how they are going and to let them know that I am happy to answer any questions. I am 

happy to make appointments for additional consultation as needed. I think staff being 

approachable is important for all students, but particularly for international students. 

Talk about your expectations of the class early on in the class time/semester, and 

encourage some discussion on aligning the class objectives and your own if possible. 

Inform the international students that Uni in Australia is different from other places. 

Students will be expected to contribute, to have an opinion, and to be able to set up a 

logical argument in almost all their classes. Encourage them to interact and speak to 

teaching staff and others to ensure the learning process has the best chance. 

Assessment Strategies & Criteria 

For most students, assessment requirements are the single most important facot in their 

understanding of a unit. It is therefore an important tool in directing their attention and 

improving their leanring. Clear assessment criteria, and tasks that explicitly address thee 

unit objectives will provide students with a strong framework from which to learn. 

Programs use a range of assessment approaches. Unit Convenors should provide you 

with guidance on assessment criteria for their unit, including criteria for grading and 

feedback. 

A useful resource for understanding the importance of assessment is provided by the 

Centre for the Study of Higher Education, based at Melbourne University: 

http://www.cshe.unimelb.edu.au. 

An essay addressing issues related to assessment criteria is included in Appendix 6. 

This essay may help stimulate your thoughts and discussions about assessment. 

24

APPENDIX 1: FLSS STAFF LISTING 

As at 25 January 2012 

NAME POSITION ROOM 

NUMBER 

OFFICE OF THE DEAN 

EXTENSION 

Prof Russell Crawford Dean AS307 8573 

Prof Glen Bates Deputy Dean AS305a 8100 

Prof Michael Gilding Associate Dean, Research AS302a 5738 

Prof Julie Mulvany Associate Dean, Learning & Teaching AS312 8209 

Dr François Malherbe Associate Dean, International AS322 5361 

Grace Sanna Faculty General Manager AS310 8224 

Jenny Ng Personal Assistant to the Dean AS308 8175 

Heather Morris Executive Officer to Deputy Dean AS305 5793 

Bryan Cranston Director, Quality Assurance AS313 5628 

Sarah Nammuni Dewage Staff Services Coordinator AS302 8254 

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES 

Chris Hoare ITS Client Services Manager AS403 8186 

Joseph (Jemison) Escalona ITS Support Officer AS403 8832 

John Alfaro ITS Technical Officer AS403 8612 

FACILITIES & LABORATORY SUPPORT 

Cameron Young Manager Facilities & Laboratory Support AS311 8135 

Angela McKellar Laboratory Manager, Biosciences AS227 5965 

Andrea Hunt Senior Technical Officer CH205a 8454 

Savithri Galappathie Technical Officer CH107a 8523 

Soula Mougo Technical Officer AS207a 8550 

Ngan Ngoc Nguyen Technical Officer AS225a 8140 

Christopher Key Technical Officer AS207a 8550 

Chris Anthony Technical Officer AS316 8818 

Karl Hedger Technical Assistant – Biotechnology AS316 4789 

VACANT Technical Assistant – Biotechnology AS207a 8353 

FINANCE & RESOURCES 

Karen Briggs Manager, Finance & Resources AS315 5983 

Marlene Dias Coordinator, Finance & Resources AS317 5570 

Michelle Choon Finance Officer AS317 8124 

Sarah Inman Client Liaison Officer, Resources AS317 5614 

STUDENTS & PROGRAMS 

Geraldine Doherty Manager, Students and Programs AS321 8183 

Robyn Watson Research Administration Coordinator AS334 5017 

Hayley Mowat Research Administrator AS334 8247 

Danielle Bellinger Client Liaison Officer (Research) AS334 

Marlene Fernandes Coordinator, Timetabling, Data Management and Reporting AS204 8880 

Kathy Diakovsky Coordinator, Students and Programs AS302 5647 

VACANT Coordinator, Students and Programs, Postgraduate AS320 8542 

Robyn Timms Administrator, Students & Programs, Postgraduate EW Lvl 1 5566 

Lilla Amon Administrator, Students & Programs, Postgraduate AS320 5646 

25

Elizabeth Moran Administrator, Students & Programs, Postgraduate AS320 5640 

Michelle Wood Client Liaison Officer, Postgraduate AS320 5209 

Christian Leclair Client Liaison Officer, Postgraduate AS320 5209 

Jennifer Lim Client Liaison Officer, Postgraduate AS320 5209 / 8415 

Shelley Allsop Coordinator, Students & Programs, Undergraduate AS204 5019 

Melissa Abrahams Administrator, Students & Programs, Undergraduate AS202 5086 

Merran Hunt Administrator, Students & Programs, Undergraduate AS202 5189 

Christina Matthews Administrator, Students & Programs, Undergraduate AS202 5457 

Amanda Frost Administrator, Students & Programs, Undergraduate AS202 5398 

Chris Pozzebon Client Liaison Officer: Undergraduate AS202 8859 

BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT 

David Shields Business Improvement Manager AS328 8803 

Eric O Multimedia Developer AS331 8203 

MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS 

Susannah Woodward Manager, Marketing & Communications AS330 5661 

Doseda Hetherington Marketing & Communications Officer AS329 5662 

Cindy Ogwayo (IBL) Marketing and Web Publishing Officer AS329 4694 

Taryn Mazzarella (IBL) Events Assistant AS329 8850 

EDUCATION DEVELOPMENT 

Dr Paula Geldens Education Development Coordinator BA1026 4677 

COOPERATIVE EDUCATION OFFICE 

Ms Louise Dunn Director Industry Liaison AS218 8770 

Annette Pelgrim Cooperative Education Manager AS326 8753 

RESEARCH CENTRES 

Brain and Psychological Sciences Research Centre (BPsyC) 

Prof Mike Kyrios Director, BPsyC ATC915 4886 

Fanny Tjan BPsyC Research and Finance Coordinator ATC917 8006 

Melanie Reay BPsyC Administrative Officer ATC920 4914 

Luisa Coyle Client Liaison Officer, ATC ATC Gr Floor 4361 

The Swinburne Institute for Social Research (SISR) 

Prof Julian Thomas Executive Director, ISR EW123 5466 

Grace Lee ISR Research Coordinator EW121 5286 

Maria Han Administration Officer EW 5356 

Yee Man Louie Administrative Officer EW106 8825 

Gemma Villani Finance Officer EW110 8627 

Psychology Clinic 

A/Prof Roger Cook Director, Psychology Clinic ATC1017 8358 

Lynette Cutri Administration Officer GS4 8653 

Philippa O’Connor Administration Officer GS4 8653 

Lauren Rossi Project Officer GS4 5528 

National eTherapy Centre (NeTC) 

VACANT Director, The National eTherapy Centre Wakefield St 

A/Prof David Austin Deputy Director, The National eTherapy Centre Wakefield St 8682 

26

ACADEMIC GROUPS 

Prof Greg Murray Academic Leader: Psychological Sciences and Statistics ATC1018 8300 

Libby Ewing Administrative Officer ATC1021 8664 

A/Prof Karen Farquharson Academic Leader: Humanities, Arts and Social Studies BA1005 5889 

Prof Linda Blackall Academic Leader: Biosciences AS312 TBA 

Akshaya Borkar Client Liaison Officer, Resources BA1003 4983 

FAX NUMBERS: 

Undergraduate Fax Number AS202 9214 5921 

Postgraduate/Research Fax Number AS320 9819 0574 

Finance/Resources Fax Number AS317 9819 0856 

OTHER AREAS: 

SISR EW Swin Walk 8825 

LSS Boardroom/Meeting Room Level 3, AS Building AS324 8387 

ISR Meeting Room Level 2, EN Building EW201 5239 

CAIA Meeting Room Level 3, AS Building AS327a 

27

APPENDIX 2: SUT HAWTHORN - CAMPUS MAP 

28

APPENDIX 3: SUT HAWTHORN CAMPUS - FIRST AID CABINET 

LOCATIONS 

ATC Building TBA 

Applied Science (AS) Building 

Level Room No. Description 

Level 1 AS 124 Machine Shop 

Level 1 AS Corridor 

Level 2 AS 207a Prep Room 

Level 2 AS 207 Laboratory 

Level 3 AS 316 a Prep Area 

Level 4 AS 414 Staff Room 

Level 4 AS 403 ITS Office 

Brain Sciences Institute 

Level 1 BS Corridor 

Level 2 BS Open Space 

477 Burwood Road 

Level 2 

477B 

Chemistry (CH) Building 

Level 1 CH 107b Prep Area 

Level 2 CH 207a Prep Area 

Level 2 CH 207 Lab 

Level 3 CH 308 Postgraduate Office./ Lab 

Engineering (EN) Building 

Level 1 EN 102 Machine Tools Lab 

Level 1 EN 102b Workshop Store (Mezzanine Floor) 

Level 1 EN 108 Steam Lab 

Level 1 EN ITS - Kitchen 

Level 2 EN 201 Administration 

Level 2 EN 202 

29

Level 2 EN 208 ITS 

Level 2 EN 228 Thermodynamics Lab 

Level 3 EN 301 Workshop 

Level 4 EN 410 Staff Room 



Library Building 

Level 2 

Level 3 LB 315 

Level 5 LB 506 

Behind Staff Counter 

Security 

Level Room No. Description 

Level 1 68W Lunch Room (2 kits) 

Note locations in EN and BA buildings may change due to building renovations. 

http://www.swin.edu.au/corporate/hr/ohs_cab_haw.htm. 

30

APPENDIX 4: SUT HAWTHORN CAMPUS - EVACUATION 

ASSEMBLY AREAS MAP 

31

APPENDIX 5: SUT HAWTHORN CAMPUS - EMERGENCY 

MANAGEMENT 

The following has been taken directly from our Emergency Management website. (see 

http://www.swinburne.edu.au/corporate/emergency/safety.htm). Greater detail is 

provided on this website. 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do if Dangerous or threatening person 

Confrontation with an armed person 

Confrontation with an unarmed person 

Armed Hold-Up 

Assault / Physical Injury (or the threat of physical injury or assault) 

Threatening the life of others or oneself 

Hostage / Kidnap scenarios 

Due to the inherent nature this type emergencies, ie dealing with people, it is always 

difficult to expect or plan for certain outcomes. It is the volatility of human nature and 

emotion that ultimately dictates the way in which this type of emergency will play out. 

It is imperative to remember that the welfare and safety of all could be seriously 

breached during such an incident. Do not act in such a manner that may exacerbate the 

threat or cause it become a catalyst for life threatening outcomes. Be responsible and 

understanding whilst never compromising the safety to yourself and the others around 

you. 

Any staff or students witnessing this type of situation should always alert SECURITY ON 

9214 3333 IMMEDIATELY. 

Emergency Action 

In the event of being confronted by an aggressive or potentially violent person: 

Try to remain calm. 

Alert supervisor. 

Be firm but polite with the person and let them know that their behaviour is not 

acceptable. 

If the behaviour of the person is such that outside intervention is required, contact or 

arrange to have contacted SECURITY ON 9214 3333 IMMEDIATELY. 

You should not feel obliged to rectify the situation on your own. The Security staff are 

trained to handle these situations. 

Abusive phone calls: hang up the phone and notify security and your supervisor. 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do in a Medical Emergency 

Do not attempt to move the injured person unless they are in danger 

Contact security on 3333 or first aid support 

For a serious injury call 0 000 on external lines to get assistance 

Do not leave the person unattended. 

32

Report the incident to the OHS Consultant – HR on 0404 006 987 and through the 

incident Hazard Report Form. 

Once the injured party has been attended to, please report the incident to Security on 

9214 3333 who will initiate appropriate procedures internally if required. 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do if Fire Emergency 

At the sound of an evacuation alarm, staff are responsible for ensuring their colleagues, 

students and visitors leave the building. For example, teaching staff need to ensure their 

classroom of students evacuates on an alarm, or staff can ask their colleagues to exit 

the building with them. 

Close the door as you leave the room 

Pull the nearest fire alarm (if your building is equipped) or break glass alarm 

Report the fire to the emergency number at your campus on 9214 3333 

Evacuate the building via the nearest safe exit 

DO NOT use the escalators or lifts 

When you hear the fire alarm: 

 

 

 

 

General 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Evacuate the building via the nearest exit to the designated assembly area. 

DO NOT use the escalators or lifts 

Keep clear of the building to permit emergency access 

DO NOT re-enter until authorized by Fire Officer 

University buildings MUST BE EVACUATED during any alarm 

Report all fires, no matter how small, to Security 

Report the smell of smoke of undetermined origin to Security. 

Attempt to extinguish the fire only if you can do so safely. 

Familiarize yourself with the location of fire exits and fire extinguishers in your 

area. 

Obey the instructions of the Wardens 

If you find a fire there is always the temptation to fight it personally. However, 

your first priority must be to confine the fire, raise the alarm and safely evacuate 

the building. DO NOT FIGHT THE FIRE unless you have had specific recent 

training in the use of extinguishers and have backup present. 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do if Bomb or Substance Threat 

Raise the Alarm 

A bomb threat may come to the attention of the receiver in various ways 

Written threat 

Telephone threat 

33

Doubtful or Suspect Article 

It is important to compile as much information as possible. Please DO NOT attempt to 

notify or evacuate an entire building as this could consume valuable time that would be 

better used to gather important information. 

Please keep in mind that the vast majority of bomb threats are false and are primarily 

intended to elicit a response from the building occupants. 

In the case of a written threat, it is vital that the document be handled by as few people 

as possible as this is evidence that should be turned over to Kirsten Jeffery 

(kjeffery@swin.edu.au, 9214 5734) If the threat should come via e-mail, make sure to 

save the information on your computer. Most bomb threats are transmitted over the 

telephone; thus, the following instructions will be provided with that assumption. 

IMMEDIATE ACTION 

Remain calm and immediately refer to the attached bomb threat checklist. If 

applicable, pay attention to your telephone display and record the information on 

the checklist. 

The objective is to keep the caller on the line as long as possible to attempt to 

gather as much information as possible. Try not to anger the caller at any time. 

While engaging the caller, pay attention to any background noise and distinctive 

sounds (machinery, traffic, other voices, music, television, etc.). 

Note any characteristics of the caller's voice (gender, age, education, accent, 

etc.). 

Attempt to obtain information on the location of a device (building, floor, room, 

etc.). 

Attempt to obtain information on the time of detonation and type of detonator. 

Immediately after the caller has ended the call, notify Security on 9214 3333 

If the threat was left on your voice mail, do not erase. 

Notify the immediate supervisor within your work area. 

SAFETY INFORMATION - What to do if Gas Leak/Chemical Hazard/Spill 

Ensure the immediate safety of anyone within the vicinity of the spill. 

Evacuate the immediate area. 

Report the spill to Security 9214 3333 to your supervisor and the OH&S CONSULTANT: 

Mobile 0404 006 987. 

Remember DO NOT USE a mobile phone in the event of a gas leak. 

If you cannot contact any of these, break the nearest fire Break Glass Alarm, which 

automatically notifies the Fire Brigade. 

Isolate Hazard 

Anyone who has been exposed to the hazardous materials must, if safe to do so, be 

moved to a safe decontamination areas. The treatment of serious injury must take 

precedence over decontamination and containment. If unsure contact the OH&S 

CONSULTANT: Mobile : 0404 006 987 

34

Restrict unnecessary movement into and through the area to avoid spreading 

contamination. Isolate the affected area at a safe distance by erecting a temporary 

barricade and placing suitable warning signs. 

Clear up 

Do not re-enter the area until it has been decontaminated by MFB or a personnel trained 

specifically in chemical safety. 

Evacuate 

Evacuate the building as instructed to do so by the emergency personnel. 

Walk quickly and calmly to the assembly area advised by the emergency personnel. 

Remain at the assembly area in groups. 

In the case of a fire, every effort must be made to prevent undue spreading of 

contamination. However, fire fighting must take precedence over the control of 

contamination. 

Do not switch on any electrical equipment, light switches, etc, as these may cause a 

spark and become an ignition source. 

It is the responsibility of the lecturer/tutor to ensure that their particular class is 

evacuated and to maintain control of the students during the emergency until released 

by the warden. 

35

APPENDIX 6: ESSAY 

Assessment within institutional, departmental and unit of study systems - an 

examination of assessment criteria 

Assessment in the higher education system has traditionally been focussed on 

determining the degree to which students have achieved the knowledge of a particular 

course. Such assessment has typically resulted in the quantification of students’ 

achievements being used to rank students (Nightingale et al., 1996). These rankings 

have frequently been used as professionally- and community-recognised standards, and 

have in turn been used by prospective employers and the community for on-going 

assessment of the individual’s worth and expertise. However, such traditional forms of 

assessment are gradually changing as a consequence of education reforms and 

changes associated with the increasing need for a broader role in university education. 

Universities are now under considerable pressure to ensure that courses facilitate the 

development of a range of specific and generic abilities or graduate attributes which can 

be demonstrated at the completion of the higher education process. It is not sufficient for 

universities to simply list attributes that they see as desirable (in both specialist and 

generic skills). It is therefore necessary for the universities to be able to demonstrate the 

degree to which individual students have developed or achieved such attributes, and this 

in turn has required universities to encourage and promote the development of 

assessment strategies which can better reflect the learning process at both the specific 

academic and generic skill level. 

Assessment has been defined as the measuring of learner achievement in activities 

associated with an instructional (academic) program (Percival & Ellington, 1984). 

Traditionally, particular assessment styles have been associated with particular 

academic fields – such as greater emphasis on the use of essays in the humanities and 

greater emphasis on examination results in the scientific fields (Brown & Knight, 1994), 

but there has been little evidence of consideration of the need to link the method of 

assessment and the quality of assessment. 

It is now recognised that assessment can be designed to assess generic skills 

associated with the academic unit of study area as well as assessing academic progress 

throughout the unit of study and/or course. This assessment is best achieved using a 

range of assessment techniques which are designed to provide information about the 

student’s ability in a specific academic task, and the progress in the student’s 

development of more generic skills. Such use of multiple methods of assessment will 

provide the opportunity to assess multiple talents of the students, suitable for the 

requirements and interest of multiple audiences (Brown & Knight, 1994). 

Assessment procedures need to be investigated to determine the degree to which they 

are valid (ie relevant to the curriculum content), reliable (producing reproducible results 

within different groups of similar student cohorts), practical and cost-effective (in terms of 

staff time, ease of application, and administration and development costs), fair (reflecting 

the range of expected behaviours or skills and not advantaging one student over 

another), and useful – particularly with respect to feedback which can benefit the student 

in the learning process. It is important to also keep these criteria in mind when 

considering the relative merits of different assessment techniques to be adopted as 

multiple assessment procedures for determining a range of specific and generic skills 

and knowledge. Different assessment techniques can include the use of formative and 

summative assessment, the adoption of assessment benchmarking (norm- versus 

criterion- referenced assessment), and the effectiveness and potential for feedback to 

36

students which will lead to assessment having a positive influence on the student 

learning process – in the current course and with respect to the student’s on-going lifelong 

education. These assessment criteria will be considered with reference to 

psychophysiology course content, including factors affecting course content associated 

with cross-discipline studies. 

The process by which assessment criteria are derived has several important aspects to 

consider. The assessment criteria should be a reflection of the learning outcomes 

incorporated in a course of study. The learning outcomes in themselves should be based 

on the aims and needs of the curriculum – what the course is intending to achieve, and 

how these achievements can be attained (Baume & Baume, 1998). The curricula needs 

are complex, and should consider and reflect the multiple demands and purposes of the 

course relative to its different audiences - students, staff and community or professional 

groups (Brown & Knight, 1994). The definition of the curriculum aims and needs can 

themselves also be influenced by factors external to the specific course’s department or 

faculty (university-wide policies) and also by external factors such as the expectations of 

professional associations and institutions associated with specialist courses. 

At Swinburne University – and as now occurs at many universities – the recognition of 

the need for greater diversity in graduate skills has resulted in the definition of generic 

graduate attributes and associated policy which leads to their incorporation into 

curricula. These attributes have been defined as: 

Graduates are capable in their chosen professional, vocational or study areas. 

Graduates operate effectively in work & community situations. 

Graduates are adaptable & manage change. 

 

Graduates are entrepreneurial in contributing to innovation and development 

within their business, workplace, or community 

Graduates are aware of environments. 

(Swinburne University, 2002) 

The promulgation of generic attributes has influence on program planning and 

curriculum development across the university, particularly in the choice of teaching and 

assessment methods in different courses 

The definition of the curriculum aims and needs can themselves also be influenced by 

factors external professional associations and institutions associated with specialist 

courses. Such groups have control through external accreditation processes, and can 

therefore influence both the course content and assessment procedures through clearly 

defined Institute-specific graduate attributes. Examples of such influential organizations, 

which have potential cross-discipline effects, are the Australian Engineers (IEAust) and 

the Australian Psychological Society (APS). Both organizations have great influence 

Australia-wide in the definition of course content and development, with very specific 

definitions of topics to be covered, skills to be developed etc. These organization 

requirements can then in turn also affect the curriculum development of related or 

elective unit of studys in cross-discipline fields. 

The IEAust aims to provide accreditation processes which permit the maintenance of 

international benchmarking standards in engineering practice. In defining the target 

generic attributes for engineering graduates, the IEAust has provided a focus for 

engineering programs to develop these attributes, and has procedures in place within 

the accreditation process to assess the processes employed by programs to develop 

and measure these attributes. These graduate attributes must also be considered by any 

37

unit of studys which may be incorporated into the IEAust accredited study sequence of 

engineering students, even if only as electives. These attributes include the ability: 

to apply knowledge of basic science & engineering fundamentals; 

to communicate effectively with scientists & also with the community at large; 

to undertake problem identification, formulation & solution; 

 

 

to function effectively as an individual & in multi-disciplinary & multi-cultural 

teams, with the capacity to be a leader or manager as well as an effective team 

member; 

to develop an understanding of professional & ethical responsibilities & 

commitment to them, 

to develop an expectation of the need to undertake lifelong learning, & the 

capacity to do so 

(Council of IEAust, 1997) 

In addition to these above-named attributes, there are others specific to engineering, 

which are required to be adopted by engineering courses, but may perhaps not have to 

be adopted in only marginally related unit of studys. 

Although the APS has strong influence on the definition of course structure and should 

be considered by any unit of studys which may be incorporated into the APS accredited 

study sequence of psychology students. This organization has very strict control over 

undergraduate psychology programs Australia-wide, and its goals related to psychology 

training and education – although less specifically stated as graduate attributes – should 

be reflected in allied courses to ensure that allied (cross-discipline) unit of studys follow 

similar processes when designing course content and assessment procedures for the 

scientific study of psychology-allied unit of studys such as psychophysiology. 

With such strictly defined graduate attributes from within the university and from external 

bodies, it is important to examine the assessment systems utilised by unit of studys 

under this influence (even if only elective or allied unit of studys in such courses), to 

determine if they are able to adequately assess any of these attributes. As suggested by 

Percival and Ellington (1984), the most appropriate method of assessment should use a 

battery of techniques to assess different learning objectives and thereby increase the 

reliability and validity of the assessment while remaining fair and useful to students. In 

view of this, a range of assessment techniques have been adopted in the 

psychophysiology coursework in an attempt to provide multiple methods of assessment 

of a range of learning skills and outcomes. 

With the focus of curricula extending to increased emphasis on real world learning and 

projects work, there is an increasing need to utilise a range off assessment teachniques 

within programs. Practical and project work incorporated into a curriculum provides 

important opportunities for the students to develop a range of more generic skills. How to 

assess their development of these skills and knowledge in this range of students is 

always a challenge. 

Laboratory report assessment: The use of practical reports as an assessable items has 

reflected a direct relationship to the needs of students to develop strong report writing 

skills. Some students such as those enrolled in the psychology program are strongly 

aware of the needs to develop such skills, which begin in the first semester of their 

course in both psychology and physiology unit of studys. However, other student cohorts 

– such as technology/science/engineering students – are not exposed to such reporting 

38

systems until later in their course, and then with less structured requirements. While 

guidelines are provided for all students, the greater experience in report-writing practice 

by the psychophysiology students has the potential to place them at an advantage over 

other students unless very careful moderation of assessment occurs. It is therefore 

difficult to ensure that such assessment is fair to all students. 

In its simplest form, report writing assessment is part of the summative assessment in 

the unit of study, but attempts are also made to utilise it as a formative version, by 

providing extensive positive and negative feedback to the students (written comments on 

reports) which can assist in the development of their learning skills. Effective feedback is 

recognised as an important factor in assisting students to address their strengths and 

weaknesses in the learning process (Rowntree, 1987). However, this feedback can 

prove to be a very costly exercise in providing the desired feedback to all students The 

difficulty with this restricted version of formative assessment is the reliance on the 

assessors to provide constructive criticism/support, and on the students to either collect 

their assessed work and/or to bother to read the feedback. 

Project work assessment: The use of project activities and associated reports is another 

of the assessment techniques which complements the project/research requirements of 

many programs. Projects undertaken throughout the course provide students with 

numerous opportunities to develop and demonstrate their research and reporting skills. 

These projects have many benefits, particularly that of increasing the motivation of 

students to actively participate in their learning process (Rowntree, 1987). 

A variety of reporting styles are also used throughout different courses. In many cases, 

the students provide a written report – sometimes accompanied by a presentation 

summary. In other cases, the students are able to provide poster or seminar summaries. 

A range of reporting requirements provides ample opportunity for students to develop 

their presentation skills, and is therefore a very valid and useful combination of 

assessment techniques, with great relevance to both the course curriculum and to the 

generic attributes which are being addressed by the learning outcomes. However, due to 

different assessors, and their varying understandings of the degree to which some of 

these skills should be developed at different stages of the course, this method of 

assessment is not always reliable. In addition, the supervision of such projects usually 

involves low cost-effectiveness, with great demands on staff time and resources to 

support these projects. 

Blackboard discussion forums: The increasing use of Blackboard as a delivery tool has 

resulted in an increase in the use of the discussion forums to stimulate participation in 

the course (in a more flexible environment) and therefore has led to problems associated 

with assessing these contributions. It is not sufficient for students to simply log into a 

discussion forum to satisfy any assessment requirements, but the demand for “quality” 

contributions to such forums leads to a different problem - it can be very difficult for 

different assessors to consistently determine the quality and validity of such 

contributions, and assessors must learn new skills to help them facilitate the use of this 

on-line forum. 

Examinations: The traditional form of summative assessment is a major part of 

assessment in many programs, typically forming 50-60% of the assessment, despite the 

awareness of the limitations of such assessment – particularly related to the lack of 

feedback and the tendency for it to test different aspects such as memory abilities and 

stress-coping strategies. It is, however, a norm-referenced assessment technique 

commonly accepted in the sciences, technology and engineering, and therefore 

maintains a strong position in curriculum assessment in those areas. In many cases it is 

also a cost effective technique – particularly when multiple choice questions are used 

39

and scanning techniques assist in the marking process. However, when essay or shortanswer 

questions are used to increase the validity of the examination content, 

examination assessment is also unit of study to variations in its reliability and decreased 

cost-effectiveness and usefulness. 

Plagiarism: The increasing use of the internet and the ease with which students can 

access electronic information has placed increased demands on the skills of assessors 

in detecting plagiarism. The time demands now placed on staff in tracking student 

assessment responses and attempting to detect and discourage plagiarism has a 

dramatic effect on the cost-effectiveness of on-going (formative) assessment techniques. 

Plagiarism is more simply avoided (or at least reduced) in traditional examinations, and 

this has added weight to arguments to continue to include examinations in multiple 

assessment procedures. The use of laboratory or practical tests, particularly open-book 

tests, can potentially increase the risk of plagiarism – particularly in technical unit of 

studys, such as those involving programming. 

Conclusion: Curricula needs are complex, and should consider and reflect the multiple 

demands and purposes of the course – incorporating both internal (university and 

faculty) and external influences and demands. The community recognition (professional 

and academic) of the need for greater diversity in graduate skills has resulted in the 

increasing generation of generic and specific graduate attributes to help fashion the 

course content and learning outcomes. This change in attitude has also been influenced 

by technical advances which have rapidly brought about changes in course delivery, and 

provide a greater variety of options for learning and teaching methods in general. It is 

recognised university-wide that not all attributes may be developed in all units of study, 

and that there will be degrees of development throughout different levels of the course 

and throughout different courses. The introduction of these attributes has provided a 

mechanism with which the university can initiate an increased awareness of the need to 

incorporate different skill development procedures within courses, typified by the 

different assessment techniques employed to varying degrees in the psychophysiology 

coursework. These changes in awareness of course and skill development will then 

gradually assist in effecting change in the university’s attitude to assessment and 

teaching in general. 

References 

Baume D. & Baume C. (1998). Learning to teach: assessing students’ work. Oxford, Oxford 

Center for Staff Development. Pp 17-8. 

Brown S. & Knight P. (1994). Assessing learners in higher education. London, Routledge Flamer. 

Council of IEAust, (1997). Manual for the accreditation of engineering programmes. Institution of 

Engineers Australia. 

Nightingale P., Wiata I., Toohey S., Ryan G., Hughes C. & Magin D. (1996). Assessing learning in 

universities. Sydney, UNSW Press. 

Percival F. & Ellington H. (1984). Handbook of educational technology. London, Kogan Page. 

Rowntree, D. (1987). Assessing students: how shall we know them? London, Kogan Page. 

Swinburne University of Technology. (2002) Flexible Learning & Teaching Strategic Development 

Plan. 

Faculty of Life & Social Sciences 

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