You will need to access the specific requirements, dates, and resources published on our unit Moodle site (click on the appropriate link in the 'Assessment' box there), however a general description is published here.

In each fortnight of term, beginning Week 1, you are invited to participate in an online discussion that will relate to some aspects of each fortnight of lecture content in the unit. The fortnightly 'assessable questions' forum tasks and topics will differ each time - you might be invited to critique a media article for its scientific content, to provide some solutions to a mock environmental problem, or to explore and apply your environmental science knowledge and life experience to a current environmental issue. Other times you will be asked to respond to questions that allow you to demonstrate your knowledge of the unit content. Occasionally, you will be asked simply for your reasoned personal opinion.

Each new fortnightly forum will open only for one week. You are well advised to attempt your best answer since this assessment activity will provide learning opportunities, skills training, and good practice for the examination. Only 'constructive participation' will be rewarded.

A 'model answer' and other feedback will be posted for each forum assessed once the period for student posts has closed. Consequently, any student posts appearing after the 'model answer' cannot be counted towards a student's grade.

Past experience and research indicated a strong relationship between unit participation (especially forum participation) and student success.

In recognition of the range of new experiences that these forums will provide you, you will be assessed on your 'constructive participation'.

'Constructive participation' is defined here as providing a logical, reasoned rationale based on relevant environmental science principles and concepts (not just stating agreement or disagreement with an earlier post or the topic question) and means a post must include some new (to the discussion) relevant information (not simply restating or paraphrasing views expressed in earlier posts in the forum that week).

Note the Week 1 forum is not graded but please contribute just the same. You should participate constructively and within the relevant time frames in the remaining 5 forums to score full marks (i.e., at 2 marks per forum for a maximum 10% of total unit marks).

•  0.5 mark — typically response(s) marred by multiple simple spelling or grammatical mistakes and/or is disorganised without clear points made or obvious reasoning and/or is a brief and superficial treatment of the issue or shows little relevance;
• 1 mark — typically response(s) marred by several spelling or grammatical errors and/or by no citation of sources, and only a few relevant points or arguments made (or more made but insubstantially) often not integrated well;
  
• 1.5 marks — typically response(s) displaying only a few spelling or grammatical errors, otherwise well-organised and considered/reasoned, exploring the issue adequately but sources are limited and only textbooks and generalist websites and the like; and
• 2 marks — typically response(s) display only a couple of spelling or grammatical errors, excellent organisation of clear, salient and reasoned points and arguments of significant length exploring the issue considerably, citing numerous scientific sources and in the proper manner.

Please note there is a minimum achievement level set for this assessment task, i.e., you must equal or exceed the set minimum achievement level for this assessment in order to be considered for a passing grade for the course overall (irrespective of your achievement level in other assessment activities).

You will need to access the specific requirements, dates, advice and resources published on our unit Moodle site (click on the appropriate link in the 'Assessment' box), however a general description is published here.

Your broad task is to speak online to your PowerPoint presentation on a topic of your choice (but within the specific requirements prescribed on our unit Moodle site for this activity) delivered online in real time (i.e., live) to an audience of fellow students from ENVR11012 and a member of the teaching team, and to be a member of the audience whilst fellow students are presenting.

There are two requirements:

Task 1:Submission of your completed PowerPoint slides, and nomination of your preferred session (from options provided), by 2345 hours (11.45 pm) AEST Wednesday 1 August (Week 4); and

Task 2: Attendance at your nominated preferred presentation session in the audience, and speaking to your PowerPoint presentation (for three minutes ± 10 seconds (see unit Moodle site for other requirements)), in Week 5.

You will be able to nominate (from a list of available sessions published online, via our unit Moodle site) your preferred presentation session in which you would like to present (there will be a range of them to try to accommodate your other commitments), however, numbers permitted in each session will be limited so choose early to avoid disappointment.

You will be required to be in attendance in your session some 10 minutes before the published start time, and to remain in attendance for the maximum allocated duration (typically, around two hours). In order to present your work and otherwise participate in a session, you will employ an online conferencing system known as Zoom, entering your presentation session via a link published on our unit Moodle site). The session will be recorded.

You will not transmit video during your presentation (thus we won't be able to see you), only audio and your PowerPoint slides will be shared (thus your computer system will need to be equipped with microphone and speakers), hopefully helping to reduce your anxiety.

I will be measuring your achievement using the following four (4) criteria (with a maximum of 10 marks available for each):

1. Describes the species / population / community / ecosystem / biome in detail and identifies essential requirements of the area/species in question.
2. Correctly identifies and explains the consequences of environmental threats/problems.
3. Correctly identifies and explains the scientific basis of the environmental threats and problems described (the ‘science behind the story’). *If time permits, describes management options for the species/environment in question.
4. Presentation quality – engaging speech (incl. not reading), appropriate slide format, referenced slide material, time management, handles questions well (incl. evidence of research beyond content).

* This is an optional part of this criterion (Criterion #3), and students should consider the following before attempting to satisfy the criterion:

• You will be awarded more marks if you have chosen a topic specific enough to allow you time to satisfy the first three criteria well AND describe management options.
• You still can obtain full marks for Criterion #3 if you do not address management options but describe a more complex environmental problem comprehensively.
• Addressing the primary part of Criterion #3 less than comprehensively, and then spending time discussing management options is not an adequate strategy - taking this strategy will result in low marks for Criterion #3.

Please note a minimum achievement level is set for this assessment task (i.e., you must equal or exceed the set minimum achievement level for this assessment in order to be considered for a passing grade for the unit overall, irrespective of your achievement level in other assessment components of the unit).

You will need to access the specific requirements, dates, instructions, and resources published on our unit Moodle site (click on the appropriate link in our 'Assessment' box), however a general description is published here.

During your ENVR11012 residential school (combined block practicum), you will undertake the following:

1. participate in a field trip to visit locations displaying environmental degradation,
2. make observations at, and take plant, soil and water samples from, these sites,
3. spend time in the laboratory analysing these samples, and
4. spend time writing up the results for later submission of your findings as an 'advisory technical report'.

To assist you with the task of writing up the results as a technical report, general assistance in interpreting results will be provided at the end of the laboratory sessions, and a day during our combined block practicum (CBP) is set aside for you to use for writing with a staff member available to provide advice.

Additionally, you will be provided with information regarding expected purpose of the sections of a technical report in environmental science and a report 'template' (and other resources) to guide you. Guidance will be provided before our combined block practicum as to which areas of environmental science relevant to your report to research, allowing you to write an outline of an introduction and the research methods you'll employ in the field to ensure efficiency and accuracy on the field trip. This should make for meaningful environmental study during our CBP, and easier writing during and after our CBP.

Only those students attending the CBP will be able to submit a report.

While report length will vary according to a student's writing style, experience has demonstrated it is unlikely an adequate report would be less than 1 200 words in length and commendable reports have been up to 2 000 words in length.

While field and laboratory work will be undertaken in teams, each report is to be an individual's written report. That is, whatever your role in your team or the comparative degree of your contribution to the work of the team, the writing up and presentation of the methods and findings is to be your own, original work culminating in your individual report. (Note though it is expected data within a team, and class data required to be shared, will be common to reports as appropriate, and there might be literature cited commonly at times.) Plagiarism, and the weak paraphrasing of the work of another, even that of a fellow team member, will not be acceptable, tolerated, or treated lightly.

The more detailed criteria published on our unit Moodle site are summarised here as the following three (3) broad criteria:

1. preparing a technical report of appropriate structure with appropriate functionality of report sections for a general audience interested in environmental issues (60%);
2. description, explanation, interpretation and critique of scientific data and the drawing of reasonable conclusions from these data (25%), and
3. the communication of environmental science through acceptable presentation format and good concise written expression (including accepted treatment of sources) (15%).

The report template provided on our unit Moodle site will clarify and assist you with meeting these assessment criteria.

Please note a minimum achievement level is set for this assessment activity (i.e., you must equal or exceed this set minimum achievement level for you to be considered for a passing grade for this unit overall, irrespective of your achievement level in other assessment components in this unit).