BSB50620 Diploma of Marketing and Communication

Entry to this qualification is limited to those who:

Have completed BSB42415 Certificate IV in Marketing and Communication

or

Have completed the following units (or equivalent competencies): BSBCMM411 Make presentations; BSBCRT412 Articulate, present and debate ideas; BSBMKG433 Undertake marketing activities; BSBMKG435 Analyse consumer behaviour; BSBMKG439 Develop and apply knowledge of communications industry; and BSBWRT411 Write complex documents. Equivalent competencies are predecessors to these units, which have been mapped as equivalent.

or

Have two years equivalent full-time relevant work experience.

And

International students must:

• Be at least 18 years of age.
• Have an IELTS score of 6.0 or equivalent (test results must be no more than 2 years old).
• Participate in a course entry interview to determine their suitability for the course.

The simulated training environment is achieved by using equipment, tools, technology, workplace conditions, legislation, quality standards and approaches to work that match those currently employed in industry. For example, workplace plans (business/operational/ weekly), administration documentation, IT hardware and Microsoft office software applications, telephones, tables and chairs, policy and procedure manual.
Students understanding of the workplace and its requirements will be developed throughout the course.
The environment is created to suit the specific unit requirements and the trainer reinforces understanding through relating to their own experience and through the use of learning materials e.g. textbooks, handouts or videos. Depending on the unit content and context the classroom environment is adapted to recreate the simulated work environment.
Appropriate simulated contexts and activities are incorporated into delivery and prepare students for assessment. These align to the contexts and activities indicated in the units of competency. The simulated assessment contexts and activities also align to the requirements of each unit of competency.
During the practical Lessons, sufficient time is allocated for students to perform the required tasks, practice their skills and reinforce their knowledge.

Alpha Institute has purchased and contextualised training and assessment resources from RTO Works, specifically their Business Works range, and has a complete set of training materials which includes trainer guides, student guides and PPTs for each unit.

• Training rooms, including desks, chairs, whiteboard and overhead projector
• Computers with Microsoft Office and access to the Internet.
• Learning and assessment materials as outlined in this TAS.

In addition, all students who are undertaking the BSB50620 Diploma of Marketing and Communication must have the following resources while in class.

• A laptop or computer that is installed with Microsoft Office or similar.

A separate and comprehensive timetable has been developed that shows scheduling relevant to the cohort i.e. dates and times. Trainers and assessors will be provided with this timetable.

Assessment Arrangements
Assessment will occur through a variety of methods, including projects incorporating role-plays, case studies and short answer questions. Assessment conditions will ensure a simulated workplace environment.
Assessment tasks:

• Reflect real life work tasks.
• Are required to be performed within industry standard timeframes as specified by assessors in relation to each task.
• Are assessed using assessment criteria that relate to the quality of work expected by the industry.
• Are performed to industry safety requirements as relevant.
• Utilise authentic workplace documentation.
• Require students to work with others as part of a team.
• Require students to plan and prioritise competing work tasks.
• Involve the use of standard, workplace equipment such as computers and software.
• Ensure that students are required to consider workplace constraints such as time and budgets.

Assessment Materials
Assessment materials comprise of:

• Student Assessment Tasks and Portfolio: There is one for each unit of competency that includes instructions to students about each of their assessments. It also includes an assessment plan where students can record the due dates of each task and an Assessment Task Cover Sheet that must be completed for each Assessment submission.
• Other documents specific to the workplace simulation task requirements are also included with the assessment tasks. These include document templates and simulated workplace policies and procedures and are described in the student and assessor instructions as relevant.
• Assessor Marking Guide and mapping: includes benchmark answers for each assessment, as well as checklists in which the assessor is to record their assessment decisions. Mapping to each unit is also provided.

All assessment is conducted in accordance with the Principles of Assessment and the Rules of Evidence.
The principles of assessment are:
• Validity
• Reliability
• Flexibility
• Fairness
The rules of evidence are:
• Authenticity
• Currency
• Sufficiency
• Validity

The definitions of each term are outlined in the Marking Guide for each unit.

To ensure these principles and rules are followed, Alpha Institute:

• Requires all students to submit written assessment tasks with a signed Assessment Task Cover Sheet where students are required to declare the work is their own – ensuring Authenticity.
• Assessment tasks are designed so that all unit of competency requirements are covered and a number of forms of evidence are used to form assessment decisions – ensuring Validity and Sufficiency. See also the section on Validation in this Training and Assessment Strategy.
• Evidence is Current as it relies on evidence collected during the course and includes third party reports and observations of work performance.
• Reliability is ensured by conducting regular validation and quality reviews of our assessment processes.
• Flexibility is ensured by providing options in the tasks based on their individual situation, drawing on a range of assessment methods suitable to the student’s current situation and allowing recognition of existing competencies through a formal RPL process.
• Fairness is provided by supporting individual needs and making reasonable adjustments as required. Clear instructions are provided to the student about their assessment requirements in the Assessment Task Booklets. Students may appeal an assessment decision following our Complaints and Appeals Policy and they are informed of this in the front of every task booklet. Students are asked to agree to the assessment arrangements in the Assessment Plan provided in each task booklet.

As the assessment tasks for each unit include a practical activity, there will be instances where the trainer/assessor is required to assess the student away from other students. This time amounts to approximately 1 hour per unit per student. Time for the assessment has been scheduled during the final
two weeks of each unit, allowing sufficient time to complete practical assessment activities. A separate area for practical assessments is also allocated within the Alpha Institute campus. Students not participating in the assessment will be directed by the trainer to continue with their assessment activities.

Where a student fails one or more assessment tasks within a unit, they are to be re-assessed as per Wakefield International Business School Trading As Alpha institute re-assessment policy. If after re-assessment the student fails the assessment, they will be provided with a first warning letter for unsatisfactory course progress and provided with the appropriate intervention to assist them to complete their course in the required duration. Following failure of a second consecutive unit, the student will then be sent a second warning letter and again provided with the appropriate intervention to ensure they meet course requirements. If the student fails a third consecutive unit they will be sent a notice of intention to report.

If the student does not pass one or more assessment tasks following re-assessment they may be able to re-enrol in the unit if this does not significantly impact their course duration.

Alpha institute requires that students complete all assessments/provide assessment evidence ethically and without cheating, plagiarism and collusion. The RTO Manager and trainer/assessors will ensure that academic integrity is maintained in all learning and assessment activities by providing information to students to ensure they understand what constitutes cheating, plagiarism and collusion and what will be the outcome if they undertake such practice. Wakefield International Business School Trading As Alpha institute has the following definitions for cheating, plagiarism and collusion.

Cheating – this is the use of any means to gain an unfair advantage during the assessment process. Cheating may include copying a friend’s answers, using mobile phones or other electronic devises during closed book assessments, bringing in and referring to pre-prepared written answers in a closed book assessment and referring to texts during closed book assessments amongst others.

Plagiarism – plagiarism is the submission of somebody else’s work as if it was the student’s own. This may include copying all or part of another person’s thoughts or ideas and representing them as your own. If a student fails to identify the original source of some or all of the submission this also constitutes plagiarism. If a student copies another student’s work and passes this off as their own, then this is also a form of plagiarism and cheating.

During assessment students will read about ideas and gather information from many sources. When students use these ideas in assignments they must identify who produced them and in what publications they were found. If students do not do this, they are plagiarising. If students are including other peoples’ work in submissions e.g. passages from books or websites, then reference should be made to the source.

Collusion – this is the presentation by a student of an assignment as his or her own which is the result of unauthorised collaboration with another person or persons. Collusion involves the cooperation of two or more students in plagiarism or other forms of academic misconduct or cheating. Both collusion and plagiarism can occur in group work.

Where it is found that cheating, plagiarism or collusion has occurred, this will result in the student’s assessment submission being invalidated and students will be investigated for academic misconduct.

Each assessment task will be given an outcome of either Satisfactory (S) or Not Satisfactory (NS). Students must complete all tasks for a unit satisfactorily to achieve an overall outcome of Competent (C) for the unit. If one or more of the tasks are assessed as Not Satisfactory, they will be given an outcome for the unit of Not Yet Competent (NYC). The student can have a total of 3 attempts to complete each task and achieve a ‘Satisfactory’ outcome (noting that the third attempt is chargeable as per the fees and refunds policy). The student will be advised of the timeframe for resubmission (usually within one month) and advised what they must include in their re-submission (usually the whole task again).

If, after the third attempt, the student is still assessed as Not Satisfactory for a task, they will need to re-enrol in the unit.

Students can make an appeal against any assessment decision by following the Complaints and Appeals Policy outlined in the Student Handbook. Appeals will be dealt with following the Complaints and Appeals Procedure.

Alpha Institute provides all the course details with week, unit, classroom training schedule and assessment, training and assessment hours and study hours for each term.

Alpha institute has a plan for, and implements, systematic validation of assessment practices and judgments. The Validation Plan ensures that each unit or module on the RTO’s scope of registration is validated at least once every five years, with at least 50% of all units or modules validated within the first three years of each five-year cycle.

The Validation Plan includes:

• When assessment validation will occur
• Which training products will be the focus of the validation
• Who will lead and participate in the validation activities.

Validation is conducted on a regular basis for each training product in line with the requirements of the Standards for RTOs 2015 (Clause 1.9, 1.10 & 1.11). Collectively, those involved in validation must have:

• Vocational competencies and current industry skills
• Current knowledge and skills in vocational teaching and learning
• The training and assessment qualification or assessor skill set