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ESC-30078 - Module Specification
School of Geography, Geology and the Environment
Faculty of Natural Sciences

For academic year: 2024/25 Last Updated: 23 November 2024

ESC-30078 - Frontiers in Environmental Geoscience
Coordinator: Stuart Egan Room: WSF29 Tel: +44 1782 7 33174
Lecture Time: See Timetable...
Level: Level 6
Credits: 15
Study Hours: 150
School Office: 01782 733615

Programme/Approved Electives for 2024/25

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

No

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2024/25

Students will explore the "cutting-edge" research literature on environmental geoscience, critically evaluating these articles in terms of their strengths, weaknesses and significance for both the discipline and society. This module will be based on a combination of practical classes and workshops covering computer aided literature searching, reviewing research manuscripts, web authoring techniques, and writing an article for a popular scientific magazine, as well as independent research. By the end of the module students will have further developed their research skills, have acquired in depth knowledge of environmental geoscience topics at the forefront of the discipline, will have acquired the necessary skills to design and produce a web site to a professional standard and will have further developed their scientific communication skills.

Aims
The module aims to encourage students to explore and critically evaluate the "cutting-edge" research literature on environmental geoscience in terms of its strengths and weaknesses as well as its significance for the discipline and society. The module also develops scientific communication skills.

Intended Learning Outcomes

extract, evaluate and synthesise information from the current research-based literature on specific topics in environmental geoscience using computer-aided literature searching facilities: 2,3
communicate scientific information effectively: 2,3
author a set of self-contained Web pages to provide an overview of a contemporary topic in environmental geoscience as well as critically evaluate the importance of the topic to both the discipline and society: 3

Study hours

- 7 x 3-hour practical classes.
- 1 x 3-hour oral presentation session
- 126 hours independent study

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment

1: Oral Presentation weighted 30%
Oral presentation on one specific paper in Environmental Geoscience at the forefront of the discipline.


2: Short Paper weighted 35%
Article based on a detailed literature review on a specific environmental geoscience topic.


3: Website weighted 35%
Web site based on a detailed literature review on a specific environmental geoscience topic.


The University undertakes a continuous review of its teaching and research provision to ensure programmes are of a high quality and changes may be made to modules where it is necessary and reasonable to do so. Please be aware that minor changes to modules, such as a change to an individual assessment, can occur up until enrolment, although we endeavour to give you as much notice as possible of any changes. Details about the circumstance in which changes are made to programmes can be found in the Student Agreement, available at: https://www.keele.ac.uk/legalgovernancecompliance/governance/actcharterstatutesordinancesandregulations/studenttermsconditions/

Last Updated: 23 November 2024