COIT20249Assessment Details
Assessment item 3—Report
Due date: / 11:55 pm AEST, Friday, Week 9 / ASSESSMENTWeighting: / 30% / 3
Length: / 2500 words +/- 250 words(Note: Failure to submit within this range will result in a penalty of 5 marks)
Objectives
Please refer to the UnitProfile to see how this assessment item relates to the UnitLearning Outcomes.
This assignment is designed to stimulate critical thinking outside of the classroom by requiring students to write a formal academic report. You will need to follow the ARE process described in chapters 2 and 3 of Your Business Degree2(prescribedtextbook for COIT20249)to analyse the assessment task, research relevant information and evaluate the information you find. This information should be used to write an academic report in which you present your findings or outcomes and make recommendations for future practice Professional writing and writing reports are described in chapters 4 and 5 of Your Business Degree2.This assessment task will assess your skills in critical thinking, researching information, forming an opinion, academic writing, logical ordering of ideas and your ability to support your arguments with quotes from literature.These objectives will be measured by the ‘closeness of fit’ to meeting the assessment task, assessment requirements and markingcriteria
Please note that there is a wealth of material available on the Moodle Unit websitethat you should use to help you through the process of searching for andgatheringrelevant information,evaluating that informationand writing yourreport.
General Assessment Criteria
Assessments provide the opportunity for students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills to achieve the required standard. To do this, assessment responses need to be both clear and easy to understand. If not, the University cannot determine that students have demonstrated their knowledge and skills. Assessments will, therefore, be marked accordingly including the potential for 0 (zero) marks where relevant.
The report must focus on the case studyscenario given in the Assessment Task section. Any assessment items that do not address the case study scenario maybe awarded0 (zero) marks.
If you use Track Changes when writing your report you must ensure that the submitteddocument isthe finaland correctversion of the document. That is, if your submitted report contains Track Changes or Comments or any other editing marks itmay be awarded0 (zero) marks. It is your responsibility to submit the final and correct version of your report.
The length of the report must be within the recommended range. If the report exceeds the maximum word count the marker will stop marking after 2750 words.
Moodle auto-submits draft files that are in Moodle at the due date and time. Files that are auto-submitted will not be reverted to draft status except in extenuating circumstances (evidence required). It is your responsibility not to leave draft assessments in Moodle at the due date and time if the files are not ready to be submitted for marking.
Assessment task
Students are required to write an academic report as per the format outlined in chapter 5 of the textbook. Thereport must follow the CQU APA referencing style. See theAmerican Psychological Association (APA) abridged guide updated Term 2 2016available from: Please note that the prescribed textbook uses APA referencing guidelines. See also the Referencing Style subsection below.
The report is to be based on the following case study scenarioabout the use of Robotics.
The term Roboticsrefers to the design, development and use of robots which are automated machines that can accomplish a range of tasks in a variety of scenarios. Robots were first commercialised when they were integrated into factory assembly linesin order to streamline and improvemanufacturing productivity.The first popular application of robotics wasin the car industry. In the 21st Century, robots have increasingly been used to complete tasks that may be unsafeortedious forhumans this has led to the integration of robots into the mining and transportation industries and the military.The use of robots is expected to double by the year 2020. This will impact on how businesses operate and the economies of countries across the world (New Media Consortium, 2016).
Increasingly robots are also being used in the home. One of the most popular applications is that of the robot vacuum cleaner. Other robots that are increasing in popularity are gutter cleaners and lawn mowers.
There is significant interest in howwork environments will be affected by the growingdependence on robots and on how to ensure that they are autonomous, safe, and economical. In Queensland the State Government has introduced a program into State Schools that is designed to teach students coding and robotics from an early age. Referred to as #codingcountsthis action plan for education in Queensland is designed to prepare students for jobs of the future (Queensland Government, 2016).
It is argued that outreach programs such as #codingcounts can make students better problem solvers through promoting robotics and programming.It is also felt that interaction with humanoid robots may help learnerswith learning disabilities to develop bettercommunication strategies and social skills.
Whilst robots can make some work environments safer there are also potential problems. Is it ethically and morally responsible to manufacture robot workers that have the potential to take jobs from human workers? What happens when a robot hurts or injures a human or destroys property? Who is responsible, the manufacturer of the robot, the programmer who wrote the code to operate the robot, or the person who bought it and set it to work?There are also potential security problems. How can you prevent a robot being hacked and having someone take over control of the robot to commit a crime?
You are the ICT Manager of a small Artificial Intelligence company based in Brisbane. Your organisation has interests in the use of robotics for domestic use and in mining, transport and manufacturing industries across Australia. The organisation is already using robotics as asmall but growing sideline business. But the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) would like to investigate how to make it a key enabler to achieve competitive advantage against your company’s rivals. Your organisation is now considering further diversification over the next five years, leveraging ICT as a core competency. Its plans include expanding the organisation’s operations within Australia and into the Asian region. The CEO of your organisation is interested in how to leverage the use of robotics as one of the key technologies to be considered as a part of this expansion strategy. However, she is aware of both positive and negative aspects of using robotics in the work and home environments.
The CEO has asked you to research robotic technology and its applications to be considered for the organisation’s five year strategic plan. She wants you to write a report that outlines your findings and make some recommendations on how to leverage the use of robotics to improve your business. It will be presented to the next executive management meeting for consideration.
The report should address the following tasks:
1. Definition/s of robotic technology and the current use of robots. This investigation must consider different types of robots used in various industries and in different parts of the world. As a minimum, consider the industries currently in your organisation’s business scope and the industries the organisation is considering to enter in the next five years when it plans to expand across Australian and into Asia (see case scenario). Your report must identify actual examples and should not just focus on generic uses of robotic technology.
2. Based on the findings from the previous section, propose how robotic technology could be incorporated into your organisation’s operations in the future. Discuss both short term and long term options from both industry and geographical perspectives to implement the strategy in your organisation.
As a part of this analysis, consider the potential advantages and disadvantages of using robotic including various risks for the organisation and with respect to robotictechnologies. As the ICT Manager of your organisation, you should focus on security and technology aspects as a priority, and propose potential solutions to overcome any disadvantages/risks identified in your analysis. Additionally, explore the ethical, social and legal considerations that your organisation should consider as a part of the proposed strategy, and discuss some solutions to overcome these issues.
Your analysis and proposed solutions in task 2 should lead to some recommendations at the end of your report. Make sure that the specific recommendations at the end of your report have been evaluatedas a part of your report discussion.
The report should be at a strategic level and must not consist of highly technical details as most of your readers are not from an information technology background.
Please note that you will need to make some assumptions about the organisation in order to write this report. These assumptions should match the information in the case study and not contradict with the objectives of the report. They should be incorporated in the introduction ofyour report when you describe the organisationand outline the problem to be solved.Relevant assumptions should be incorporated when addressing task 2 above. Do not make assumptions that are not relevant or will not be used in your report discussion to avoid loss of marks.
Specifically your report should include the following (word count details are approximate guidelines only):
1.Title page:Unitcode and name, assessment number, Report title, assessmentdue date, word count (actual),student name, student number, email address, campus lecturer/tutor, and Unit Coordinator.If applicable, add extension request ID and the new due date. Must be formatted to a standard required for a professional/business report. Check week 6 materials for example of a professionally formatted title page. Not included in the word count.
2.Executive summary:should include the purpose of the report, the problem including key issues considered andhow they were investigated, your findings, and overview of your recommendations.This part must not be longer than one (1) A4 page. Not included in the word count.
3.Table of Contents (ToC): should list the report topics using decimal notation. Needs to include the main headings and subheadings with corresponding page numbers, using a format that makes the hierarchy of topics clear. Because you are including a ToC the report pages should be numbered in the footer as follows: title page has no page number; and main text to have Arabic numerals commencing at 1.Create the ToC usingMS Word’s ToC auto-generator rather than manually typing out the ToC. Instructions can be found here included in the word count.
4.Introduction:provide a brief description of the organisation as given in the case scenarioincluding any assumptions, a concise overview of the problem you have been asked to research,the main aims/purpose of the report, the objectives to be achieved by writing the report (include the tasks outlined in the case study) and how you investigatedthe problem. Provide an outline of the sections of the report.Should be approximately 300words.
5.Body of the report (use appropriate headings in the body of the report.): Define key terms you will use in your report, such as what is meant by ‘robotics’. Present your ideas on the topic and discuss the information you found in your research that was relevant to the report’s objectives.Provide an analysis of the information that you gathered. Ensure that you explore the tasks listed in the case study scenario. In your discussion, examine the issues from a global perspective as well as from the local perspective (of the fictional organisation that is the centre of this report).
Do NOT use generic words such as ‘Body, Body of the Report, Tasks’ as section headings. Create meaningful headings and subheadings that reflect the topic and content of your report. Should be approximately 1600 words.
6.Conclusion:restate the purpose of the report and key issues investigated and the related findings based on your research and analysis. Explain the significance of your findingsfor addressing the problem stated in the case scenario and any limitations. State how your report has achieved its objectives and any future work to be considered.Should be approximately 300 words.
7.Recommendations:(must be based on your findings and proposed solutions discussed in the body of the report) what would your recommendations be to your CEO and the executive management teamin this situation? Provide some guidelines for the organisation with respect to the use of robotics as a future technology in your organisation. Should beapproximately 300words.
8.Reference list.Not counted in the word count.
9.Appendices if necessary.Not counted in the word count.
Note:Additional information regarding this assignment may be placed on the Moodle Unit website as required.Check the Moodle Unitwebsite at least once a week for further information relating to the report. Regular access to the Moodle Unitwebsite is a requirement of this Unit.
Reference List
New Media Consortium. (2016). Horizon Report: 2016 Higher Education Edition. Austin, TX: New Media Consortium. Retrieved from
AssessmentRequirements
Your response should be structured as a report (chapter 5 of textbook), written in accordance with standard academic writing principles (chapter 4 of textbook).The report must be written using your own words with any in text citations clearly marked (see Referencing Style subsectionbelow). You may discuss the assessment task with other students and the lecturing staff but you must WRITE the report YOURSELF in your own words.
You will need to conduct research to support yourarguments using atleastten(10) references. Note that all the references you chose to use should have been evaluated using the Triple-R framework in the research stage of preparing your Report. One of the references could be your set textbook (if you reference the textbook you must include it in the reference list). You must have a minimum of ten (10) references in your reference list. At least six (6) of these references should be from refereed academic journals and books. All sources should be current that is,dated 2012 or later.Minimum requirements relate to a Pass mark. You are encouraged to use more than the minimum requirements for a better quality outcome to your report through improving the quality of your analysis.
The assignment should demonstrate a logical flow of discussion,and be free from typographical, spelling and grammaticalerrors. It should be prepared in MS-Word (or equivalent) using 12 point font, 1.5 line spacing and margins of 2.54 cm.
It is highly recommended that you submit your assignment to the Academic Learning Centre (ALC)AT LEAST ONE WEEK before the due date. The ALC can check your report for correct structure, referencing, paragraphing and some language issues.
Referencing Style
References must be cited (in text) and a reference list provided in accordance with the CQU APA referencing style.See the American Psychological Association (APA) abridged guide updated Term 2 2016 available from:
Helpful information on referencing techniques and styles can also be found on CQU’s referencing webpage:
Marks will be deducted for poor referencing or having less thanten (10) references or going under or over the word length.
Use quotation marks for direct quotes and you must include the author, date and page number(s) with the quote as per the referencing standards.
ALL assignments will be checked for plagiarism (material copied from other students and/or material copied from other sources) using TurnItIn.If you are found to have plagiarised material or if you have used someone else’s words without appropriate referencing, you will be penalised for plagiarism which could result in zero (0) marks for the whole assignment. In some circumstances a more severe penalty may be imposed. Please note that if needed students may be required to explain the report preparation process.
The University’s Academic Misconduct Procedureis available in the policy portal
Useful information about academic integrity (avoiding plagiarism) can be found in the ALC resources on the Moodle Unit website and at:
Guidelines with respect to self-referencing are available on the COIT20249Moodle website.
Submission
The report has to be submitted using the COIT20249 Moodle Unit website on or before the due date. The submission link can be accessed through the Assessment block.
Before submitting your assignment you should check it against the detailed assessment criteria in the following table to ensure that you have satisfactorily addressed all the criteria that will be used to mark your report.
It is your responsibility to ensure that your report is submitted for grading. At the due date of the assessment Moodle will auto-submitfiles that have been uploaded and left as drafts. However, any files uploaded after the due datemust be manually submitted. This means thatif you have been granted an extension or are uploading a late assessment (after the due date) you must complete the Moodle submission process. Further details on completing the submission process are available via the ‘Moodle Help for Students’ link in the Support block of your Moodle website.