NUTR2000 Fundamentals of Public Health Nutrition
Assignment Information
ASSESSMENT 1 – Briefing Paper: nutrition in primary school children
Assessment Worth: 20% of unit mark
The federal Minister for Health has asked you to write a briefing paper (max. 1300 words), comparing the 2011-13 Australian National Nutrition and PhysicalActivity Survey findings for primary school-aged children to current Australian dietary recommendations; and to explore the potential for a national school breakfast program initiative to address dietary shortcomings in this age group.
As part of this assessment you are required to visit a primary school breakfast program (SBP) and include a brief case-study of the program (suggested length 250 words) within your briefing paper.
Note: The marks and feedback of students who do not attend a SBP before submitting their assignment will be withheld until confirmation of attendance has been received from the organiser.
Unit Learning Outcomes:
This assessment will help you achieve the unit learning outcomes:
1. Discuss the issues and challenges for public health nutrition as a discipline
2. Appraise the different dietary requirements and issues specific for different stages of the lifecycle
3. Evaluate effective PHN programs and strategies positioned in an ecological framework
Tasks
In orientation week / week 1:
1. Sign up to visit a school breakfast program via SONIA: https://healthsciences.curtin.edu.au/schools/public-health/fieldwork/
Select ‘School of Public Health’. Login with your Curtin student ID and OASIS password
a. The visits have been arranged for you; please read the visit instructions in Bb and do not contact these schools directly. Send any queries to the Unit Co-ordinator
b. If you wish to visit a different SBP please discuss this with the Unit Co-ordinator
2. Comply with Curtin insurance and fieldwork requirements, including uploading evidence of your Working with Children Check to SONIA and bringing it with you on the visit (details in Bb)
3. Nutrition & Health Promotion students: Purchase a discipline specific shirt (details in Bb)
Before the visit:
4. Think carefully about these instructions and make sure you understand the assignment
5. Read the starting point references given below and begin planning your written submission
a. Make sure you understand what the Foodbank WA School Breakfast Program does, so you know what you are going to see and write about!
b. Based on your reading write down aspects of the SBP you will visit that you want to include in your case study. Write down any questions you want to ask the SBP organiser or volunteers.
c. You can begin writing the other sections of the briefing paper before your visit
On the day of the visit:
6. Follow the dress code (see information in Blackboard)
7. Take your WWCC card or receipt
8. Assist with the program – chat to students, make toast, do dishes, whatever is required!

After the visit:
9. Submit a formal, written report following the CHAS guide, addressing the above requirements
a. Suggested headings (or similar): Executive Summary, Introduction, Nutrition in Primary School Children (subheadings as desired), Recommendations: School Breakfast Programs (subheadings incl case study as desired), Conclusion, References.
Required references (compulsory):
· The Eat for Health Educator Guide: part of the Dietary Guidelines and Australian Guide to Healthy Eating resources, and your unit essential text. Available to download from https://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/guidelines
· Nutrition-related findings from the 2011-13 Australian National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey. This is a subset of the Australian Health Survey 2011-13. In particular, the publication: 4364.0.55.012 - Australian Health Survey: Consumption of Food Groups from the Australian Dietary Guidelines, 2011-12, available from the Australian Bureau of Statistics: http://www.abs.gov.au/australianhealthsurvey
Other useful references (optional):
· Butcher, L. M., Chester, M. R., Aberle, L. M., Bobongie, V. A-A., Davies, C...Begley, A. (2014). Foodbank of Western Australia's healthy food for all. British Food Journal, 116(9), 1490-1505. DOI: 10.1108/BFJ-01-2014-0041
· Fayet-Moore, F., Kim, J., Sritharan, N., & Petocz, P. (2016). Impact of breakfast skipping and breakfast choice on the nutrient intake and body mass index of Australian children. Nutrients, 8(8), 487. DOI: 10.3390/nu8080487
· Foodbank WA annual program report – please note only the most recent report is acceptable https://www.foodbankwa.org.au/about-us/media-centre/publicationsandreports/
· Ichumar, S. O., Dahlberg, E. E., Paynter, E. B., Lucey, F. M. C., Chester, M. R., Papertalk, L., & Thompson, S. C. (2018). Looking through the keyhole: Exploring realities and possibilities for school breakfast programs in rural Western Australia. Nutrients, 10(3), 371. DOI: 10.3390/nu10030371
· If you wish to write about nutrients, please refer to the Australian Nutrient Reference Values (NRV). Reports available to download from https://www.nrv.gov.au/resources
· World Health Organization Report of the Commission on Ending Childhood Obesity Available from: http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/childhood/en/ o Focus areas: Executive summary (p iv-1), Introduction (p2-7), Recommendation 1 (p16-20) and Recommendation 5 (p30-1) along with their supporting references.
You are encouraged to research further in order to provide a comprehensive evidence base to your briefing paper.
Please note the above list includes links to websites that contain journal articles and reports. With the exception of the AHS, ensure you access and reference the articles and not the websites.
Related learning activities
1. Lectures in weeks 1-4 will introduce many themes of the unit, to support your understanding of the recommendations for children, current intake data, and other relevant topics.
2. Tutorials in weeks 1-4 will reinforce some lecture concepts, introduce you to the role of schools in PHN interventions, and build your writing skills with a focus on briefing papers. We will look at some examples of briefing papers, and briefly explore the AHS findings and the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating in class. There will be in-class opportunities to ask questions about this assessment.

Advice for the submission Content
· This question requires an evidence-based discussion, drawing on a range of sources. Academic writing and formatting conventions apply and will affect your mark
· You are encouraged to use a table to compare AHS intake data to the recommendations:
o It should be your own creation, do not copy something in its entirety
o Refer to the CHAS guide for table formatting requirements
o Ensure you discuss the table & related findings in the body text
o Yes, the table counts toward the word limit. Do not put it in the appendices
· The school you visit should only be included as the case study section of your paper, all other discussion of SBPs should refer to Australian SBPs in general, with references.
o Yes, the case study counts toward the word limit (suggested case study length 250w)
o The case study section of your assignment does not need citations, but should described using 3rd person (eg, -Brookman SBP has...-, -staff stated...- etc)
o Write about the program, not your visit
· As this is a written assessment, you will be graded on your ability to report findings in context, summarise evidence, form conclusions and make your points clearly and succinctly
o Write in 3rd person, and check spelling and grammar carefully
o Refer to the Curtin Learning Centre’s Online Courses, including “Better Essays”, “Better Sentences” and “Better Grammar” for assistance
o See the marking guide provided in Blackboard for details on how you will be graded
References
· In order to support your briefing paper you may need to include additional references to those listed above
o Apply Academic Integrity skills from Foundations for Professional Health Practice to locate credible resources, and then cite, reference and format correctly
· Ensure all of your references are credible, recent and relevant. Use peer reviewed journal articles or Australian government or industry reports. No websites should be used except the Australian Bureau of Statistics website (check with teaching staff if you are uncertain).
o You will lose marks if the resources you use are not appropriate, too old, not relevant or not credible. Resources should be less than 10 years old and Australian.
· Ensure you cite thoroughly and include a reference list at the end using APA 7th style. Please note the reference list provided above is not entirely set out in APA 7th style. In 2020 you may use APA 6th without penalty, however APA 7th is encouraged.
Formatting and submission
· Refer to the Curtin Health Academic Study (CHAS) guide for formatting guidance (link in Bb)
· Format your assignment according to CHAS guidelines, including a cover page (including student declaration), contents page, word count and reference list
o Word count = 1300 words (+/- 10%). Penalties will be applied for going over this limit (=1431 words). Refer to p7 of the CHAS for what is/n’t included in a word count
o Please include an accurate word count in brackets after the conclusion.
o Conform to all other formatting requirements that you have demonstrated in first year, such as correct page numbering, line spacing, numbered headings, font etc.
· Submit this assignment as one document to the Turnitin submission point in Blackboard
o Use Turnitin to check for any inadvertent text matching by submitting drafts and reviewing the originality report
o Submit your assessment to Blackboard by the due date and time. Late penalties will apply unless an extension has been granted (refer to your unit outline)
NUTR2000 Assignment 1 Page 3 of 3 2020