Designing Environments for Children

Students are expected to plan work in advance to meet assessment deadlines. In exceptional circumstances, a student needing to negotiate alternative due dates must contact the upgrade coordinator before the due dates stated above. Such requests will not be granted automatically.

There are two assignments for this course. Each is equally weighted and graded using the university scale. Note: satisfactory completion of each assignment to at least a C- grade is required to pass the course.

Grading Scale

Grade    GPA      Marks

A+       9      90 – 100
A         8      85 – 89
A-        7      80 – 84
B+       6      75 – 79
B         5      70 – 74
B-        4      65 – 69
C+       3      60 – 64
C         2      55 – 59
C-        1      50 – 54
D         0      40 – 49
E        -1       0 – 39

Distance students must participate in the course via Learn to meet the learning outcomes.  Students are responsible for obtaining relevant lecture/course information via Learn. This will mean regular engagement with forums and course materials on the Learn site. Participation will enhance your understanding of issues and allow for discussion and clarification of complex issues. Online activity will ensure all students can discuss, debate and reflect. Insufficient participation in the course will jeopardise students passing the course.

The College undertakes a process of internal and external moderation of assessment.  This is to ensure that the assessment system is fair, equitable, consistent and manageable.

Work handed in after the due date with no extension granted is considered late.  Late work will not be marked, unless exceptional circumstances apply (e.g. illness, accident, bereavement or critical personal circumstances).  Relevant evidence such as a medical certificate or a letter from a counsellor may be required in order for the course-coordinator to make a decision about whether or not to mark late work.  No work will be accepted after assignments have been returned to students.

Under exceptional circumstances (e.g., illness, accident, bereavement or critical personal circumstances) individual students may be granted an extension of the due date for an assignment.  There is, however, a limit to the length of time that an extension can be granted and this should be negotiated with the course co-ordinator in the first instance.  Extensions will not normally be given for longer than one week from the due date, unless exceptional circumstances prevail.  Extensions are not granted automatically to students.

Requests for extensions should be emailed to the course co-ordinator at least two working days prior to the due date for the assignment.  Relevant evidence such as a medical certificate or a letter from a counsellor may be required in order for the lecturer to make a decision about whether or not to grant an extension.  A copy of the course co-ordinator's email confirming the extension (if granted) and any supporting documentation must be attached to and submitted with the assignment.

Extensions will not normally be granted because of pressure of university study, e.g. several pieces of work being due at about the same time.  Students are encouraged to plan their work in a realistic manner and in advance so that they can meet their assessment deadlines.

The decision to grant a resubmission will be made by the course lecturer in consultation with the course coordinator and will be subject to the student concerned having demonstrated a satisfactory level of course attendance and participation.
Normally a resubmit will only be considered for assignments which meet most of the pass criteria and meet the tertiary literacy standards and which is within the ‘D’ range (40.00 – 49.99%).

Assignments which have been resubmitted are restricted to a minimum passing grade (C- or 50%) for that assessment. Students may only be granted one resubmission per course.
The timeframe for students resubmitting work will normally be no more than two weeks and the date of the resubmission must be provided to the student in writing.

Students may apply for special consideration if their performance in an assessment is affected by extenuating circumstances beyond their control, where:
(a)  they have suffered an acute illness, injury, or other reasonably unforeseeable circumstances:
i.    which has prevented them from completing any major item(s) of work for assessment in a course; or
ii.   which has impaired their performance (including by interruption of pre-assessment revision) to the extent that the result(s) are likely to underestimate their true and evidenced level of mastery of the material in the course;
or
(b)  
i.    they have been selected to perform, compete, adjudicate, or officiate as a national sporting representative at national or international competitions; or
ii.   they are members of a national cultural group on tour nationally or internationally.
Please note that applications must be supported by evidence.  Further details are available at the above link.

Applications for special consideration should be submitted via the Examinations Office website http://www.canterbury.ac.nz/exams/ within five days of the assessment.

Where an extension may be granted for an assessment, this will be decided by direct application to the Course Co-ordinator and an application to the Examinations Office may not be required.

Special consideration is not available for items worth less than 10% of the course and may not be available for some other items of assessment as specified in Course Outlines.  (Refer to specific Course Outlines for this information.)

Students prevented by extenuating circumstances from completing the course after the final date for withdrawing, may apply for special consideration for late discontinuation of the course. Applications must be submitted to the Examinations Office within five days of the end of the main examination period for the semester.

NB: This information replaces any previous references to special consideration, Aegrotat or Backdated (Late) Withdrawal in the Course Information System, Learn or Course Outlines. If you are unclear about the implications or process please discuss with your Course Coordinator or contact the Student Advice team for assistance.

Students will be expected to submit their assessments via the online assessment system in the Learn (Moodle) class site by 5.00pm on or before the due date. The lecturer may also ask students to submit assessment work through the software Turnitin, to check for plagiarism. If this option is available students will submit work through Turnitin and obtain a report, after submitting assignments for marking via the Learn site.

It is the responsibility of the students to check their Internet access and ability to submit their work via the online system.  Any technical difficulties should be notified well in advance of the due date so that assistance can be provided or alternative arrangements can be negotiated. (Students who have unreliable internet access are advised to attend to this early in the course to prevent last minute pressures.) If you require assistance, please email ictservicedesk@canterbury.ac.nz, or phone 0800 763 676 ext 6060.