| Unit name | Independent Project (Spring-fed Streams) |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EASC30088 |
| Credit points | 40 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Alcott |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
Successful completion of a Year 2 Earth Sciences programme. |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
Independent Project (Geophysical site survey). |
| School/department | School of Earth Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
Why is this unit important?
Earth Science is the application of chemical, biological, physical and mathematical techniques to understanding the Earth from local to planetary scales. This unit is an independent investigation into a real-world application where students can apply and build upon knowledge learned in other units to tackle a scientific problem. You will develop your skills in making observations, taking field measurements and sampling as part of a team, and in data analysis, presentation and interpretation working individually. You will be required to immerse yourself in the primary scientific literature. The aim of the unit is to produce a professional scientific report presenting key results, analyses, and interpretations.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
The unit builds on many of the skills learned in the first two years of the programme and integrates them. Importantly the project provides the opportunity for independent project work, which is an essential skill for many professional careers. Consequently independent project work is required for the professional accreditation of the degree programme. The work will allow you to apply existing skills to make quantitative inferences about real observational data and produce a professional report concisely summarising your findings. The experience of the project work will help put in new context the information learned in previous and subsequent units.
An overview of content
In this unit you undertake and experience the process of conducting an independent research investigation into an real world problem requiring you to integrate your understanding of physical, chemical and biological processes. Projects involve fieldwork, laboratory work, data analysis, processing, data collection, and numerical modelling. Some aspects of the project work will be conducted as a small group, including selection of field area, desk study and design of project work, field and laboratory work), but each student will develop their own hypotheses and complete their literature review, analysis and data synthesis, computational work, and write-up.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit?
You will grow in competence, confidence, and independence during the project. You will develop an ability to work collaboratively within a group to design and plan a field-based hydrological and geochemical investigation, to collect, critically evaluate, and analyse data and to communicate key results in poster and report formats. These skills are essential for a future career in earth science and beyond.
Learning Outcomes
Independent work with supervised components.
In discussion with your group and staff, you will select your field area, formulate research questions, work out what types of data you want to collect to understand the processes controlling the hydrology and geochemistry of your chosen system. You will receive training through lectures, support in planning and execution of a reconnaissance day through small group meetings with staff and formative feedback on this group work. Reconnaissance data collected as a group will form the foundation for independent work to prepare and present a scientific poster ensuring you are fully aware of the science behind your project and have identified hypotheses you wish to focus on.
Your main sampling will be undertaken as a group, allowing you to collect a solid set of physical, chemical and biological observations and data, analyse a suite of samples in the lab. and benefit from peer-discussion. You will receive formative feedback on preliminary analysis work and guidance on development of key diagrams as part of your final report.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative)
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative)
Word and/or page limits and strict formatting will apply to the report, details of which will be made available on Blackboard. Penalties for exceeding the specific word and/or page limit will be applied.
When assessment does not go to plan
The University's Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes outline the requirements for progression on and completion of degree programmes. Students who miss an exam and self-certify their absence may complete a supplementary assessment for an uncapped mark as if taken for the first time. Resit and supplementary exams are habitually taken during the reassessment period later in the summer. As far as is practicable and appropriate, resit and supplementary assessments will be in the same form as the original assessment but will always test the same intended learning outcomes as the initial missed or failed assessment. In the case of group work, failure by a whole group would result in an appropriate group task being set and reassessed for all group members. If a single student fails a group assessment or is unable to participate for an evidenced reason, an individual reassessment will be set.
There are rigorous and fair procedures in place to support students who are ill or whose studies and assessments are affected by exceptional circumstances.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. EASC30088).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
