Policy Development, Leadership and Organisational Practice PG (12018.1)

Please note these are the 2026 details for this unit
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Policy Development, Leadership and Organisational Practice PG
Available teaching periods Delivery mode Location
View teaching periods Online real-time
 UC - Canberra, Online
EFTSL Credit points Faculty
0.125 3 Faculty Of Health
Discipline Study level HECS Bands
Social Work Post Graduate Level Band 2 2021 (Commenced Before 1 Jan 2021)
Band 2 2021 (Prof Pathway Social Work- After 1 Jan 2021)
Band 4 2021 (Commenced After 1 Jan 2021)
Social workers work within a framework of social policies. This unit explores policy analysis, development, and change in a range of organisations with students developing skills in areas such as organisational analysis and change. Emphasis is placed on the significance of digital technologies in structuring contemporary social service work. Additionally, students examine the leadership potential of social workers and reflect on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of being and doing in context of leadership.

Learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
1. Critically evaluate the organisational construction of social work practice, including the central role of information and digital technologies;
2. Reflect and distil the contemporary developments within policy that shapes human service delivery nationally and internationally; and
3. Demonstrate specialised skills in an applied policy development and implementation.


Graduate attributes

1. UC graduates are professional - employ up-to-date and relevant knowledge and skills
1. UC graduates are professional - communicate effectively
1. UC graduates are professional - use creativity, critical thinking, analysis and research skills to solve theoretical and real-world problems
1. UC graduates are professional - display initiative and drive, and use their organisation skills to plan and manage their workload
2. UC graduates are global citizens - think globally about issues in their profession
2. UC graduates are global citizens - understand issues in their profession from the perspective of other cultures
2. UC graduates are global citizens - make creative use of technology in their learning and professional lives
3. UC graduates are lifelong learners - adapt to complexity, ambiguity and change by being flexible and keen to engage with new ideas
3. UC graduates are lifelong learners - evaluate and adopt new technology
4. UC graduates are able to demonstrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of knowing, being and doing - apply their knowledge to working with Indigenous Australians in socially just ways
4. UC graduates are able to demonstrate Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of knowing, being and doing - use Indigenous histories and traditional ecological knowledge to develop and augment understanding of their discipline


Skills development

Social Workers work within a framework of social policies, so this unit explores policy analysis, development, and change. It also explores the role of a Social Worker in a range or organisations with students developing skills in areas such as organisational analysis and change. Emphasis is on the significance of digital technologies in structuring contemporary social service work. Additionally, students examine the leadership potential of Social Workers and reflect on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of being and doing in context of leadership.  



Prerequisites

None.

Corequisites

None.

Incompatible units

None.

Equivalent units

None.

Assumed knowledge

None.
Year Location Teaching period Teaching start date Delivery mode Unit convener
2026 UC - Canberra, Online Study Block 1 19 January 2026 Online real-time Prof Lynne Keevers
2026 UC - Canberra, Online Study Block 4 06 July 2026 Online real-time Prof Lynne Keevers
The information provided should be used as a guide only. Timetables may not be finalised until week 2 of the teaching period and are subject to change. Search for the unit timetable.

Required texts

Bacchi, C., & Goodwin, S. (2016). Poststructural policy analysis (pp. 13–26). In Poststructural policy analysis: A guide to practice. Palgrave Macmillan. 

Bennett, B., Baines, D., Terare, M., & Howard, A. (2025). Emancipatory decoloniality as leadership in social service organizations: Insights from Indigenous and anti-oppressive yarnings. The British Journal of Social Work, bcaf104.

Erik Olin Wright. (2010). Envisioning Real Utopias. Verso Books.

Erik Olin Wright. (2019). How to be an anticapitalist in the twenty-first century. Verso.

Kingdon, J. (2014). Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies. https://questanbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Agendas-Alternatives-and-Public-Policies.pdf. Chapter 8 .

Submission of assessment items

Extensions & Late submissions

Where possible, all assessment items will be submitted online via the teaching site in UCLearn. The first page of each assessment item should include the following information:

  • Student ID number:
  • Assessment Name:
  • Word Count (if applicable):

 

Students' names are not to be included on any assessment tasks/submission. Only Student ID numbers should be included (as per the Assessment Policy and Assessment Procedures).

Assessment items must be submitted to the assignment area in the UCLearn teaching site, relating to that piece of assessment. It is the student's responsibility to upload the correct and corresponding draft or assessment item, to the right submission section.

Late submissions will only be accepted for a limited period. If more than one late submission is made within that period, only the first late submission will be accepted for marking and may be subject to penalties as detailed in the Assessment Procedures.

Extensions

Students can apply for an extension to the submission due date for an assessment item due to extenuating, evidenced circumstances (specific details are found in the Assessment Procedures). An extension must be applied for before the due date. Documentary evidence (e.g. medical certificate) will be expected for an extension to be granted, however this will not guarantee that the application will be successful. The Unit Convener or relevant Program Director/Course Convener will decide whether to grant an extension and the length of the extension.

An Assignment Extension form is available from the Student Forms page.

Late Submission

The following late submission period and penalty is applicable to any teaching period commencing after 1 April 2024.

To support the provision of timely feedback to students within the unit, late penalties will apply for summative assessments where late submission is permitted. Late submissions without an approved extension or reasonable adjustment will result in a penalty of a mark reduction of 10% of the maximum available marks for the assessment item per day (or part thereof) up to and including three calendar days. If a student submits more than three calendar days late without an approved extension or reasonable adjustment, the student will be allocated a mark of zero for that assessment, with no feedback provided.

Approval of extensions based on extenuating circumstances will be dependent upon the production of supporting documentation and at the discretion of the unit convener.

For teaching periods commencing prior to 1 April 2024, a late penalty of 5 % of the maximum available marks for the assessment item per day (or part thereof) was applied up to and including seven calendar days. An assignment submitted over 7 days late will not be accepted.

Assessment 3 requires students to upload a video recording of a 15-minute Peer Supervision session. Please see the detailed instructions on the Unit Canvas site for how to record and upload a video-related assessment.

Use of Artificial Intelligence in this Unit

 

Students have permission to utilise assistive academic support services or tools (translation, editing and paraphrasing tools or services) and/or Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI) programs for assessments in this unit, provided the following conditions are met:

1. Students appropriately acknowledge the use of assistive academic support services or GenAI in the assessment itself, as well as in the reference list (as per APA7 style)
 
2. Students provide a GenAI Acknowledgement Statement that is placed after the reference list. The GenAI Acknowledgement Statement should clearly outline what tools or services were utilised and in what ways they were utilised in the process of completing the assessment.
 
Your Unit Convenor may require additional specific information about how you have used GenAI, such as including the prompts you used or providing the output of the GenAI as an appendix to the submission. These requirements will be specified in the assessment instructions.
 
It is recommended that you:
- Keep records of the development of the work submitted for the assessment, and any drafts of the works submitted for a work-in-progress review, in a learning portfolio or equivalent. Access to these records may be requested by teaching staff.
- Ensure you are ready to respond to questions about your assessment to demonstrate your achievement of the learning outcomes of that assessment if / when you may be requested to participate in a conversation about your submission.
 

GenAI Acknowledgement Statement Examples

 
Complete the relevant GenAI Acknowledgement Statement for your assessment before copyin the statement into your submission after the reference list:
 
- I did not use any GenAI tools / services in the preparation of this assessment. I understand that providing false or misleading information in this GenAI Acknowledgment Statement may constitute a breach of the University of Canberra (Student Conduct) Rules 2023.
 
OR
 
- I have used the following Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) tools / services in the preparation of this assessment:
- GenAI service name and version: [Insert]
- Link to the GenAI service: [Insert]
- I used this GenAI service: [Insert]
 
I confirm I have not used GenAI in the preparation of this assessment for any purpose other than what I have acknowledged above. I understand that providing false or misleading information in this GenAI Acknowledgment Statement may constitute a breach of the University of Canberra (Student Conduct) Rules 2023.
 

Example:

I have used the following GenAI tools / services in the preparation of this assessment:
- GenAI service name and version: Microsoft Copilot
- Link to the GenAI service: https://copilot.microsoft.com/
- I used this GenAI service for: initial ideation in response to the topic, assisting in structuring my thinking, developing a comparison table, and suggesting clearer language.
  I confirm I have not used GenAI in the preparation of this assessment for any purpose other than what I have acknowledged above. I understand that providing false or misleading information in this GenAI Acknowledgment Statement may constitute a breach of the University of Canberra (Student Conduct) Rules 2023.
 

GenAI supporting information for students

 
The GenAI for Students Guide will assist you in understanding GenAI and how it can be used at the University of Canberra: https://canberra.libguides.com/genai
 

GenAI and referencing

 
Each referencing guide provided by the Library provides advice on how to appropriately reference the use of GenAI in-text.
 

Free and protected access to Microsoft Copilot

 
The University provides students with free and protected access to Microsoft Copilot and Dall-E. These GenAI services are accessible when you log-in using your UC username and password at: https://copilot.microsoft.com/
 

Recommendation

 
UC students should avoid using GenAI tools other than the secure Microsoft Copilot system and Studiosity Feedback Plus, provided by the University for completing assessments. Using these tools ensures your student data, personal information, and intellectual property are protected.

Students must apply academic integrity in their learning and research activities at UC. This includes submitting authentic and original work for assessments and properly acknowledging any sources used.

Academic integrity involves the ethical, honest and responsible use, creation and sharing of information. It is critical to the quality of higher education. Our academic integrity values are honesty, trust, fairness, respect, responsibility and courage.

UC students have to complete the Academic Integrity Module annually to learn about academic integrity and to understand the consequences of academic integrity breaches (or academic misconduct).

UC uses various strategies and systems, including detection software, to identify potential breaches of academic integrity. Suspected breaches may be investigated, and action can be taken when misconduct is found to have occurred.

Information is provided in the Academic Integrity Policy, Academic Integrity Procedure, and University of Canberra (Student Conduct) Rules 2023. For further advice, visit Study Skills.

Participation requirements

Attendance at tutorials is considered essential in this course. Students will be strongly supported to attain and demonstrate the required learning outcomes in their assessments via attendance and participation in weekly tutorials. Recordings will be made available for those students who are unable to attend live tutorial sessions, however recordings cannot replicate the live learning experience of engagement with peers, teachers and guest speakers. Please note sections of tutorial recordings may be removed if sensitive information has been disclosed.

Required IT skills

In order to engage in this unit, you are expected to have a reliable computer with the latest operating system. You will also need reliable internet connections and the latest version of Google Chrome (preferred browser) to access UCLearn. You are expected to have access to Microsoft Office applications: including Word, Excel and PowerPoint equivalent. In some units, you will be required to download specific software applications to complete the unit content and assessment successfully.

This unit involves online meetings in real time using Zoom in your UCLearn teaching site. Zoom allows you to communicate in real time with your lecturer and other students. To participate verbally, rather than just typing, you will need a microphone. For best audio quality we recommend a microphone and speaker headset. 

In order to complete research, you will need to be able to search the library databases for relevant academic resources. It is the individual student's responsibility to access appropriate help from the University IT services or the library if needed.

Please see the Social Work Hub on Canvas for orientation to key software and applications.

Work placement, internships or practicums

None

Next step

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