Admiralty Islands (PNG) – Flooding
Assessment item 1
Community analysis and interaction consequences
Value: 50%
Due date: 11-Aug-2017
Return date: 01-Sep-2017
Length: 5000 words
Submission method options
EASTS (online)
Task
Select a community with which to conduct your community analysis. As per Topic 4 in your Study Guide, your community needs to be large enough to enable you to address all the assessment task features. It also needs to be small enough to be manageable and to ensure that your analysis does not become so broad as to be of no use.
It is helpful to select a community that is within your reach and easily accessible to you, for instance the one you live in or work in.
After working through Topics 1 to 6 you are to conduct a community analysis in which you are to:
Part 1 Describe your community in terms of socio-economic and physical characteristics
Part 2 Explain the interaction consequences of an emergency event
Part 3 List the recovery needs of your community
Part 1 Describe Your Community 30 marks
Introduction
Introduce your selected community in a brief overview (i.e. geography, history, climate, and so on.)
Social-economic characteristics
Describe the socio-economic characteristics of your selected community You may describe the economic characteristics separately if you wish.
Physical characteristics
Describe the physical characteristics of your selected community
Part 2 Interaction Consequences 35 marks
In Part 2 you are asked to consider the interaction of your chosen community with either a specific threat (for example a flood) or following Mark Sullivan’s paper, a generic threat. On the one hand you have your community and on the other hand a potential threat – put them together, and what do you get? What are the interaction consequences?
Having summarised your chosen community you should now describe the interaction consequences of a threat/threats impacting on that community. You may be flexible with your approach to this section and select the headings that best suit your community and threat. If you are stuck, you may like to consider the following prompts:
1. Identify the threat/hazard/emergency situation.
2. Describe the implications of the threat on your community, highlighting potential problems and opportunities:
• Area affected
• People affected
• Property affected
• Facilities and services affected
• Anything else of relevance that may be affected
3. What conclusions can you draw to complete this section, regarding your chosen community’s capabilities, both social and physical?
Alternatively, you could consider writing about the interaction consequences through some of the following prompts:
• Consequences arising from previous emergencies
• Societal consequences and community expectations
• Combined geographical and infrastructure consequences
• Consequences of building design
and so on
You are encouraged to be creative and design your own structure; these are suggestions to get you thinking.
As you complete this assignment bear in mind that in Assessment Task 2 you will consider the recovery strategies that flow from the interaction consequences you are now describing.
Part 3 Recovery Needs and Conclusion 25 marks
List the recovery needs of your community as a result of the emergency event.
Construct a Conclusion which draws together the main points of your community, the interaction consequences of an emergency event and the needs that it creates.
Presentation and Referencing 10 marks
Rationale
In order to help plan for the recovery of a community before an emergency event it is important to understand how the community looks and functions under normal circumstances. The purpose of this assignment is to describe your selected community before a disaster strikes, then to envisage the effects of the emergency event on the community (interaction consequences), and lastly to list the needs of your community after the emergency event.
In Assessment Task 2 you will prioritise your list of needs.
Try to picture this assessment task as a table top exercise where you imagine your community (with its socio-economic and physical characteristics, and its current emergency management plans) and then the aftermath – what is destroyed, damaged, disrupted? To what extent? In Assessment Task 2 you will use this community and the interaction consequences you are envisaging now to write effective recovery plans.
Marking criteria
The following marking criteria together with the Assignment Marking Grade Descriptors should be utilised in the construction of your assignment. They will be used to provide feedback on your assignment. Your marks will be allocated according to the Grade Descriptors and how well you address the marking criteria.
Assessment Marking Grade Descriptors
Australian Graduate School of Policing and Security
Criteria Referenced Standards Based Assessment – Articulated Standards
Standards: Generic Descriptors of Quality
Morgan, Chris, et al. The Student Assessment Handbook: New Directions in Traditional and Online Assessment. London: Routledge Falmer, 2004, pp.221-235, suggest grade descriptors applicable for extended tasks in the humanities. They adapt well for the disciplines of Policing, Security and Public Safety. These grade descriptors assess the level of:
• Comprehension of theoretical underpinnings; understanding of concepts and principles;
• Critical understanding of the material
• Range of resources; evidence and depth of reading and research;
• Quality of presentation; clarity of structure; expression and grammar; sustained evidence of correct citation and referencing
• Development and quality of argument; relevance of content; evidence of analysis; critical evaluation; validity of deductions and conclusions;
Pass – PS – Adequate Work (50% – 64%)
• Shows awareness of concepts and theories without explicitly explaining or applying them; evidence of limited understanding of some part of the issues; evidence of willingness to state a position on an issue but limited use of supporting evidence; descriptive rather than theoretical and analytical; presence of some relevant factual knowledge and/or awareness of theoretical issues; some evidence of analysis, but the criteria used are not stated; signs of limited application of new knowledge to new situations
• Dependent of a limited range of resources
• Coherent style and composition; readable
Credit – CR – Above Average Work (65% – 74%)
• Understanding of the major issues in the question demonstrated; recognizes and describes concepts, theories used to explain descriptive material; evidence of an ability – on the basis of evidence – to state a personal position on an issue; evidence of ability to collate information and construct generalisations from it, commenting on the weight of evidence or opinion; evidence of a satisfactory level of analysis and judgement, including a statement of the criteria used; evidence of the application of knowledge to new situations;
• Use of reasonable array of sources in light of the nature of the task and its demand hours; evidence of selection of appropriate material, logical structure, clear argument and a sound overall framework; coherent argument that is focused but could be improved
• Some useful insights
• Clearly written
• Very little sign of imprecise statements.
Distinction – DI – Excellent Work (75% – 84%)
• Evidence of a sound knowledge of relevant theory; understands and compares theories, concepts, ideas accurately and systematically
• Evidence of ability to state and defend a personal position on an issue, on the basis of evidence; evidence of ability to evaluate information and synthesise generalisations from it; sustained arguments, linking empirical detail with theoretical perspectives; makes incisive critical comment on the literature; evidence of a sound level of analysis and judgement, including a justification of the criteria used
• Clear evidence of selection of appropriate material, logical structure and coherent argument; evidence of use of a wide range of resources; evidence of wide reading beyond core subject matter
• Evidence of the application of knowledge to new situations
• Stylish composition; writing provides evidence of knowledge, enthusiasm and control.
High Distinction – HD – Exceptional Work (85% – 100%)
• Originality in synthesis at a high level of consistency through argument
• Mastery of material – material understood, represented accurately in all its complexity, critically appraised, used effectively in the argument
• Extensive range of pertinent sources showing evidence of wide, systematic and creative information retrieval
• Effective and interesting use of English prose
• Thought provoking; the assessor is offered fresh insights into his/her own thinking and dependent on the question would consider the paper as worthy of publication
• Evidence of ability to maintain a personal position in original terms and show a command of the accepted critical positions and of attempts at innovation.
• Higher grades will usually contain the essential elements of lower, but passing, grades. Those elements should be seen as prerequisites to high achievement.
Fail – FL – Unsatisfactory Performance (0% – 49%).
The assignment does not meet the minimum requirements for a pass. For example, one or more of the following:
• At best, some restatement of the question and basic interpretation, but generally only part of the question; misunderstanding of the topic; little or no understanding of issues or concepts; at best, coherent notes appropriate to the question
• At best, evidence of limited mechanical reproduction of material from readings with no interpretation; irrelevant material included; reliance on few resources ; evidence of willingness to state a position on an issue but no, or very limited, use of supporting evidence.
• Unreadable
• Major error of focus
• Incomplete
Presentation
Please ensure you have side margins and have used 1.5 or double spacing and 11 or 12 point font. Ensure you put a Cover Sheet/ title page on your assignment, including the Subject number and name, Assignment number, your name and student number. Also place your name, assignment number, subject code and page number in either a header or footer on each page within your assignment.
You should use the APA referencing style if you are not conversant with other acceptable forms. The guide for the APA referencing style is available on the CSU library web site.
