Undergraduate Programme and Module Handbook 2011-2012 (archived)
Module GEOL4061: FRONTIERS IN EARTH SCIENCE
Department: Earth Sciences
GEOL4061: FRONTIERS IN EARTH SCIENCE
| Type | Open | Level | 4 | Credits | 20 | Availability | Available in 2011/12 | Module Cap | None. | Location | Durham |
|---|
Prerequisites
- Dynamic Earth I (GEOL3011) OR Dynamic Earth II (GEOL3181) or Earth Structure and Dynamics (GEOL 3151).
Corequisites
- None.
Excluded Combination of Modules
- None.
Aims
- To provide an introduction to some of the advanced current concepts, problems and controversies that are at the forefront of Earth Science and to obtain a view of how the different parts of the Earth behave and interact.
- To provide practice in formal seminar presentation.
Content
- will vary from year to year depending upon student demand and experience and staffing.
- Potential topics will be chosen by the student from areas of solid earth and surface process of geoscience.
Learning Outcomes
Subject-specific Knowledge:
- Understand the properties, behaviour and interplay between the different Earth Systems - use combinations of data, concepts and hypotheses in explaining the behaviour of Earth Systems.
Subject-specific Skills:
- By the end of the module students will be able to: assimilate complex and varied information on Earth Science problems and provide a concise written and oral summary in the form of oral and poster presentations.
- Will have acquired intellectual and practical skills in order to apply geological principles and methodologies to the solution of familiar and unfamiliar problems.
- Will have acquired intellectual and practical skills to formulate and test concepts and hypotheses.
- Will have acquired intellectual and practical skills to synthesise information/data from a variety of sources.
- Will have acquired intellectual and practical skills to analyse, evaluate/interpret geological data.
- Will have acquired intellectual and practical skills in citation and appropriate use of the literature.
Key Skills:
- Receive and respond to a variety of information sources.
- Communicate effectively to a variety of audiences in written, verbal and graphical forms.
- Use the internet critically as a means of communication and a source of information.
Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module
- Students' will be presented with current topics in geodynamics and will learn by a combination of self research - literature review to provide an initial understanding followed by formal lectures to convey key concepts and facts.
- The student will be required to demonstrate their understanding of a topic by presenting a seminar summarising a particular aspect.
- Students will also learn by attending other student seminars.
- A Students' level of understanding and performance will be assessed by the seminar presentations.
- The seminar format allows the level of understanding to be explored in much more detail, via questioning, than a formal examination route.
Teaching Methods and Learning Hours
| Activity | Number | Frequency | Duration | Total/Hours | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lectures | 19 | 1 per week | 1 hours | 19 | ■ |
| Seminars | 19 | 1 per week | 3 hours | 57 | ■ |
| Preparation and Reading | 124 | ||||
| Total | 200 |
Summative Assessment
| Component: Continuous Assessment | Component Weighting: 100% | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Element | Length / duration | Element Weighting | Resit Opportunity |
| seminar 1 | 40% | ||
| seminar 2 | 40% | ||
| seminar 3 | 20% | ||
Formative Assessment:
Assessment of the first seminar, term 1.
■ Attendance at all activities marked with this symbol will be monitored. Students who fail to attend these activities, or to complete the summative or formative assessment specified above, will be subject to the procedures defined in the University's General Regulation V, and may be required to leave the University