Course overview
- Study period
- Semester 2, 2025 (28/07/2025 - 22/11/2025)
- Study level
- Undergraduate
- Location
- St Lucia
- Attendance mode
- In Person
- Units
- 2
- Administrative campus
- St Lucia
- Coordinating unit
- Nursing, Midwifery & Social Wk
This course will prepare students for national and international professional midwifery practice focusing on woman centred care. Students will critically analyse woman centred care and the role of midwives in supporting women in their childbearing choices. Further analysis will include the impact of the midwifery partnership as well as collaborative practice on outcomes for mothers, babies, and midwives.
Midwifery is a health profession that is primarily focused on the care of women and their families across the childbirth continuum. Based on primary health care principles, midwifery care is influential in shaping the health and wellbeing of not only the mother-baby dyad but also the family and wider community. Having developed an understanding of woman-centred care in previous courses, students in this course will critically reflect on midwifery practice and the midwife’s role, with a specific focus on the philosophical underpinnings of woman-centred care and being with woman.ﾠ
ﾠ
Course requirements
Assumed background
It is assumed that students taking this course have successfully completed all previous courses in the program or have been granted credit for these courses. Students will be required to be competent in the skills learned in previous years in order to advance their practice.
Restrictions
BMID, BN/BMid
Course contact
Course staff
Lecturer
Ms Emma Shipton
Timetable
The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.
Additional timetable information
An introductory lecture is timetabled for students in Week 1. A course overview including assessment requirements will be given by the course coordinator and there will be an opportunity to ask questions. Please check your UQ Timetable and attend.ﾠ
Aims and outcomes
Woman centred care is the philosophy that lies at the heart of midwifery practice. This important concept underpins the role of a midwife and the important focus of the relationship between a woman and midwife. This course aims to cross-examine the principles of woman centred care and trace the historical roots of midwifery that have shaped contemporary midwifery practice and registration as a midwife nationally and internationally. The course will critically reflect on how history has shaped the care provision through a philosophy of practice that is underpinned by woman centred care.
Assessment
Assessment summary
| Category | Assessment task | Weight | Due date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Examination |
Early Semester Blackboard Exam
|
30% |
22/08/2025 1:00 pm
Once you start the exam you will have 60 mins to complete and submit via Blackboard Ultra. |
| Essay/ Critique | Critical Essay Woman Centred Care in Midwifery Practice | 40% |
5/09/2025 1:00 pm |
| Presentation |
Storytelling in Midwifery 3 Video Journals
|
30% 10% for each video |
19/09/2025 - 24/10/2025
You are required to submit one video journal Friday 1300 in weeks 8,10, & 12 three video journals in total |
Assessment details
Early Semester Blackboard Exam
- Online
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Examination
- Weight
- 30%
- Due date
22/08/2025 1:00 pm
Once you start the exam you will have 60 mins to complete and submit via Blackboard Ultra.
Task description
This assessment is designed to assess your understanding of the key concepts covered in the first 4 weeks of the course .Please refer to the task sheet and marking rubric for this assessment available in the course Blackboard site.
Exam details
| Planning time | no planning time minutes |
|---|---|
| Duration | 60 minutes |
| Calculator options | Any calculator permitted |
| Open/closed book | Closed book examination - no written materials permitted |
| Exam platform | Other |
| Invigilation | Not invigilated |
Submission guidelines
This will be an off campus, online non-invigilated assessment on the platform Blackboard Ultra.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 7 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Extension requests are submitted online via my.UQ. Extension requests received in any other way will not be approved.
Extension guidelines
- Extension requests should be submitted prior to the assessment deadline.
- Requests for extensions received after the assessment item submission due date may not be approved. Late requests must include evidence of the reasons for the late request as per the guidelines in my.UQ.
- The extension granted should be in proportion to the period of illness or disruption caused by the exceptional circumstances and will typically be no more than the specified maximum extension length for each assessment.
- A maximum of three assessment requests can be submitted for each assessment, and the third request must include an Assessment Management Plan.
- Students who have been ill or unable to attend class for more than 4 weeks in a semester are advised to carefully consider whether they are capable of successfully completing their courses and may need to consider applying for removal of course.
- Students who have a disability or a chronic medical condition (including a mental health condition) are encouraged to meet with a Disability Advisor within Student Services to request a Student Access Plan (SAP) with a clause on extension requests. Students who have an SAP can apply for a 7-day extension.
Outcome of application
Extension requests are generally processed within 2 working days.
Late submission
Exams submitted after the end of the submission time will incur a late penalty.
Critical Essay Woman Centred Care in Midwifery Practice
- Mode
- Written
- Category
- Essay/ Critique
- Weight
- 40%
- Due date
5/09/2025 1:00 pm
Task description
Critical Essay Woman Centred Care in Midwifery Practice
Word limit: 2000 words. A word count that is within +/- 10% of this word limit is acceptable. A word count outside these 10% will result in 10% reduction of the total mark available. Reference lists and appendices are not included in the word count.
Font: Calibri 11, Times New Roman 12, Arial 10
Line Spacing: Double
Reference system: APA 7th
Header: Student ID (eight digits), Course Code
Footer: Total word count, page number.
Please refer to the task sheet and marking rubric for this assessment available in the course Blackboard site.
Submission guidelines
All courses require students to submit an electronic version of their assignment via Blackboard. Submit via the course link turn it in. Please refer to ITS help if you experience difficulties in submitting your assessment in Blackboard or using Turnitin.
This task has been designed to be challenging, authentic and complex. Whilst students may use AI and/or MT technologies, successful completion of assessment in this course will require students to critically engage in specific contexts and tasks for which artificial intelligence will provide only limited support and guidance. A failure to reference generative AI or MT use may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct. To pass this assessment, students will be required to demonstrate detailed comprehension of their written submission independent of AI and MT tools. A failure to reference generative AI or MT use may constitute student misconduct under the Student Code of Conduct.
- Please ensure that you complete and upload the AI assessment coversheet when you submit your assessment. This form is available in Blackboard and is to be submitted in gradebook when submitting your assignment.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 14 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Extension requests are submitted online via my.UQ. Extension requests received in any other way will not be approved.
Extension guidelines
- Extension requests should be submitted prior to the assessment deadline.
- Requests for extensions received after the assessment item submission due date may not be approved. Late requests must include evidence of the reasons for the late request as per
- the guidelines in my.UQ.
- The extension granted should be in proportion to the period of illness or disruption caused by the exceptional circumstances and will typically be no more than the specified maximum
- extension length for each assessment.
- A maximum of three assessment requests can be submitted for each assessment, and the third request must include an Assessment Management Plan.
- Students who have been ill or unable to attend class for more than 4 weeks in a semester are advised to carefully consider whether they are capable of successfully completing their
- courses and may need to consider applying for removal of course.
- Students who have a disability or a chronic medical condition (including a mental health condition) are encouraged to meet with a Disability Advisor within Student Services to request a Student Access Plan (SAP) with a clause on extension requests. Students who have an SAP can apply for a 7-day extension.
Outcome of application
Extension requests are generally processed within 2 working days.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Storytelling in Midwifery 3 Video Journals
- Online
- Mode
- Oral
- Category
- Presentation
- Weight
- 30% 10% for each video
- Due date
19/09/2025 - 24/10/2025
You are required to submit one video journal Friday 1300 in weeks 8,10, & 12 three video journals in total
Task description
Storytelling in Midwifery [3 Video Journals]
This assessment requires you to reflect on a maternal clinical care episode in the context of the provision of woman-centred care. For this assessment you can choose a past or present clinical care experience, or a continuity of care experience. This is an ongoing assessment that requires you to create three (3) engaging five (5) minute video entries. Time length for each of the presentations must be within +/- 10% of the allocated time. A time limit outside this 10% will result in 10% reduction of the total mark available.
Please refer to the task sheet and marking rubric for this assessment available in the course Blackboard site.
Video Journal-This assessment for this course will be recorded in alignment with UQ policies and procedures. A presentation time that is within ±10% of the set time is acceptable. For presentation time that is outside this (by 10%) will be penalised through a reduction of 10% of the total mark available for the assessment.
Submission guidelines
All courses require students to submit an electronic version of their assignment via Blackboard assessment link. Please refer to ITS help if you experience difficulties in submitting your assessment in Blackboard or using Turnitin.
Deferral or extension
You may be able to apply for an extension.
The maximum extension allowed is 14 days. Extensions are given in multiples of 24 hours.
Extension requests are submitted online via my.UQ. Extension requests received in any other way will not be approved.
Extension guidelines
- Extension requests should be submitted prior to the assessment deadline.
- Requests for extensions received after the assessment item submission due date may not be approved. Late requests must include evidence of the reasons for the late request as per the guidelines in my.UQ.
- The extension granted should be in proportion to the period of illness or disruption caused by the exceptional circumstances and will typically be no more than the specified maximum extension length for each assessment.
- A maximum of three assessment requests can be submitted for each assessment, and the third request must include an Assessment Management Plan.
- Students who have been ill or unable to attend class for more than 4 weeks in a semester are advised to carefully consider whether they are capable of successfully completing their courses and may need to consider applying for removal of course.
- Students who have a disability or a chronic medical condition (including a mental health condition) are encouraged to meet with a Disability Advisor within Student Services to request a Student Access Plan (SAP) with a clause on extension requests. Students who have an SAP can apply for a 7-day extension.
Outcome of application
- Extension requests are generally processed within 2 working days.
Late submission
A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.
Course grading
Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.
| Grade | Cut off Percent | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 (Low Fail) | 0.1% - 29.9% |
Absence of evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 2 (Fail) | 30% - 46.9% |
Minimal evidence of achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 3 (Marginal Fail) | 47.99% - 49.99% |
Demonstrated evidence of developing achievement of course learning outcomes |
| 4 (Pass) | 50% - 64.49% |
Demonstrated evidence of functional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 5 (Credit) | 64.5% - 74.49% |
Demonstrated evidence of proficient achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 6 (Distinction) | 74.5% - 84.49% |
Demonstrated evidence of advanced achievement of course learning outcomes. |
| 7 (High Distinction) | 84.5% - 100% |
Demonstrated evidence of exceptional achievement of course learning outcomes. |
Additional course grading information
All items of assessment must be submitted for the students to be eligible to pass the course.ﾠ
Supplementary assessment
Supplementary assessment is available for this course.
Additional assessment information
Artificial Intelligence (AI) - This assessment task is authentic and is to be completed in-person.
Learning resources
You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.
Library resources
Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.
Additional learning resources information
Students are provided with a UQ email account and must monitor the account whilst enrolled at UQ. Please see the Information Communication Technology Policy and the Personal use of UQ email section in the Acceptable use of ICT Resources guideline for for information regarding the appropriate use of email.
Students must use their UQ email account for all correspondence with academic staff.
Learning activities
The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.
Filter activity type by
Please select
| Learning period | Activity type | Topic |
|---|---|---|
Week 1 (28 Jul - 03 Aug) |
Lecture |
Course introduction lecture This face to face lecture will introduce and discuss in detail, course requirements including the exam, critical essay and video journals assessment. Attendance is highly recommended. |
Not Timetabled |
Module 1 The philosophy of midwifery Students will complete Module 1online learning activities. |
|
Multiple weeks From Week 2 To Week 10 |
Tutorial |
Woman Centred Care in Practice Tutorials Midwives use storytelling as a way of sharing and developing practice. Using stories relays information in a powerful way that enhances learning. Knowledge and skills are fundamental to midwifery practice but knowing how to use them is the illusive “art” of practice. The use of storytelling personalises and humanises the experience and engages the listener, and this allows for reflection and an authentic learning experience that helps to develop your art of midwifery practice. This course tutorial students will come together and share stories of developing woman-centred care practice. Students should attend these tutorials via the Zoom link supplied in the course Blackboard. |
Multiple weeks From Week 3 To Week 4 |
Not Timetabled |
Module 2 Primary maternity care Students will complete Module 2 online learning activities. |
Multiple weeks From Week 5 To Week 6 |
Not Timetabled |
Module 3 The mother-midwife relationship Students will complete Module 3 online learning activities. |
Multiple weeks From Week 7 To Week 8 |
Not Timetabled |
Module 4 Midwifery partnership Students will complete Module 4 online learning activities. |
Multiple weeks From Week 9 To Week 10 |
Not Timetabled |
Module 5 Midwifery and the global agenda Students will complete Module 5 online learning activities. |
Additional learning activity information
One hour tutorials are offered on Thursdays either 0900-1000 or 1700-1800. Please sign on to your individual timetable and attend the session that suits you.
Policies and procedures
University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:
- Student Code of Conduct Policy
- Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
- Assessment Procedure
- Examinations Procedure
- Reasonable Adjustments for Students Policy and Procedure
Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.