This is an archived handbook for a previous year. The current undergraduate and postgraduate handbooks can be viewed using the links above.
Undergraduate Handbook 2010-2011 (archived)
Module GEOG1081: PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY
Department: Geography
GEOG1081: PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY
| Type | Level | Credits | Availability | Module Cap | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tied | 1 | 20 | Available in 2010/2011 | None. | Durham |
Tied To
- CFG0: Natural Sciences
- F800: Geography
- FR89: Geography (European Studies) (see Undergraduate Handbook 2009-2010 for details)
- L702: Geography
- LMV0: Combined Honours in Social Sciences
- LR79: Geography (European Studies) (see Undergraduate Handbook 2009-2010 for details)
- X1F8: Education Studies - Geography
Pre-requisites
- None
Corequisites
- None
Excluded Combinations
- None
Aims
- The module introduces students to a broad range of concepts and approaches in physical geography, using scale, from global to local, as the organising framework
Content
- The module provides an integrated framework for the study of the environment systems of the Earth
- The module examines five important themes in physical geography through a variety of scales, from global to local: 1) Climate change: Quaternary glaciations to global warming; 2) Water and water resources; 3) Active tectonics; 4) Sea-level change; 5) Our World: monitoring Earth from space and modeling 21st century change
Learning Outcomes
Subject-specific Knowledge
- On successful completion of this module students will be able to:
- understand the importance of time and rates of change through a consideration of contemporary earth processes and longer-term environmental change
- understand how humans have effected these processes and changes
- apply these themes at a conceptional level and with reference to selected case studies provided in lectures and student readings
Subject-specific Skills
Key Skills
Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module
- The module is based on a programme of lectures
- These provide the context in which facts and introductory concepts, contributing to building knowledge and understanding, are conveyed
- Lectures are complemented by small group tutorials in which concepts introduced in lectures can be explored in more detail
- Full reading lists provide students with the means to undertake independent study and learning
- Formative assessment and 50% of summative assessment is set, marked and returned in tutorial groups.
- Three essays (two summative) provide students with scope to explore in greater detail selected themes drawn from module
- The remainder of the summative assessment is based on an unseen examination paper designed to assess student's acquisition of the interdisciplinary nature of the learning outcomes
- Tutorials also provide a forum enabling active acquisition of skills
Teaching Methods and Learning Hours
| Activity | Number | Frequency | Duration | Total Hours | Attendance Monitored |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lectures | 19 | Weekly | 2 hours | 38 | |
| Tutorials | 5 | Five times annually | 1 hour | 5 | Yes |
| Preparation and Reading | 157 | ||||
| Total | 200 |
Summative Assessment
| Component | Component Weighting | Element | Length/Duration | Element Weighting | Resit Opportunity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Examination | 50% | unseen written examination 2 questions | 2 hours | 100% | |
| Tutorial Essays | 50% | tutorial essay 1 (max 4 x A4 sides) | 50% | ||
| tutorial essay 2 (max 4 x A4 sides_ | 50% |
Formative Assessment
One formative essay (max 4 x A4 sides) plus feedback given on the two summative essays
Students who do not attend monitored activities shown under Teaching Methods
and Learning Hours, or who fail to complete the summative or formative
assessment(s) specified above, may be subject to the Academic Progress
procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be
required to leave the University.