Module Information
Course Delivery
Assessment
| Assessment Type | Assessment length / details | Proportion |
|---|---|---|
| Semester Assessment | Practical Workbook | 80% |
| Semester Assessment | Forensic Geoscience Assessment 15 Minutes | 20% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Practical Workbook | 80% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Forensic Geoscience Assessment Presentation slides and accompanying written script that equates to a 15 minute oral presentation. | 20% |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
Describe and classify igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary Earth materials at both macro- and micro-scale
Use the petrological microscope to identify the typical rock-forming minerals and use optical tests to determine mineral composition (where appropriate)
Analyse and interpret geological data to answer problem-based geoscience exercises
Evaluate the economic and societal value of Earth materials as resources including their responsible, equitable, and sustainable use
Brief description
Geoscientists hold a key role in tackling some of the grand challenges facing our planet and are key to achieving the sustainability solutions necessary for our society. These include understanding where to find valuable freshwater aquifers and reservoirs for carbon storage, how to tackle the growing problem of plastic pollution, and exploration of minerals needed for green transport, green energy, and global communications. This module will develop vital skills in understanding our planet’s natural resources, including how to analyse them, where to find them, and how to use them responsibly, and will explore the important contributions geoscientists can make towards achieving a sustainable and equitable world.
Content
• Earth resources and responsible consumption
• Sedimentology and society
• Minerals for the energy transition
• Geoscience and the Sustainable Development Goals
Practical exercises will provide opportunities to apply methods and concepts introduced in lectures to the analysis of real Earth materials. Techniques will include macro-scale analysis of igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks and minerals, crystallography, and optical mineralogy. Students will have the opportunity to apply their geological knowledge to a forensic geoscience mock crime scene investigation at the end of the course.
Module Skills
| Skills Type | Skills details |
|---|---|
| Application of Number | The practical element of the course may include a variety of numerical exercises which will improve the application of number skills. |
| Communication | Oral and written communication skills will be developed throughout this course via group-working during practicals, written practical workbooks, and the small group forensic geoscience exercise. |
| Improving own Learning and Performance | Formative feedback will be provided on practical workbooks throughout the semesters to allow students to gauge their learning and, hopefully, improve their performance. |
| Information Technology | The forensic geoscience assessment on this module will require the use of presentation technology such as Powerpoint. A proportion of the marks awarded for the presentation will be based on the appropriate use of IT. |
| Personal Development and Career planning | Module will explore the important contributions professional geoscientists can make towards achieving a sustainable and equitable world. Using case studies will highlight the importance of the practical examples to problems and challenges students may face in their future employment. The forensic geoscience assessment will use a wide range of the practical skills from the course to solve a problem and will help to develop personal/interpersonal skills. |
| Problem solving | The strong practical element of this course will develop problem solving skills such as using advanced rock and mineral analysis techniques to answer problem-based geoscience exercises. The final assessed exercise for this module will consist of a ‘forensic geoscience problem’ in which small groups of students will be given a range of pieces of geological evidence to solve a simulated crime and collate a body of supporting evidence to present to a (mock) legal team. |
| Research skills | Throughout the course the students will research sources of information to support the taught element of the course. Specific reading/research topics will be set to enhance the examples used in lectures and practicals so that the students assemble a broader range of examples and case studies. |
| Subject Specific Skills | This core module will develop vital subject specific skills and enhance the employability of graduates by learning and applying a range of practical techniques employed by professional geoscientists. |
| Team work | Collaborative team-work and peer-learning in small groups will form and integral part of both the practical and group forensic geoscience exercise. Students will be expected to play an active part in group activities. |
Notes
This module is at CQFW Level 5