BOTN19001 - Australian Botany

General Information

Unit Synopsis

In this unit, you will learn about Australian plants, their taxonomy, distribution and economic uses. Emphasis will be placed on plant identification, so you can apply this knowledge in vegetation surveys, biodiversity conservation, and selection of plant species for economic development. The specimen collection as well as practical sessions and field visits that are scheduled during compulsory residential school will enable you to gain practical skills in plant identification and vegetation surveys.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 2
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Pre-requisites

BIOL11099 Living Systems or BIOL11100 Functional Biology or BIOL11102 Life Science Laboratory

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School Compulsory Residential School
View Unit Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2023

Term 1 - 2023 Profile
Mixed Mode
Term 1 - 2024 Profile
Mixed Mode

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Online Quiz(zes) 15%
2. Practical Assessment 45%
3. Online Test 40%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2022 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 77.78% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 32.14% response rate.

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Source: Have your say
Feedback
The residential school was the most valuable aspect. It brought together the theory and made the concepts clearer. Everything was explained in a way we could all understand and the field trip gave us experience in observing the natural landscape. The resources provided for this unit were also well thought out and useful.
Recommendation
Similar comments are received every year regarding residential school. Field experience is an "essential requirement" of this unit, so field trips are recommended to be continued.
Action Taken
Residential school was run early in the Term. This had helped students score better marks in specimen collection assignment
Source: Have your say
Feedback
Ashwa was very enthusiastic about this unit. He was also very keen to help everyone learn and share his knowledge. His teaching methods and explanations of difficult topics in simple ways made learning botany easier.
Recommendation
Thank you. I enjoy being with native plants and telling all about their biology, ecology and practical uses. I hope the Australian Botany students will apply the botanical skills gained in this unit in every thing they do.
Action Taken
Students were reminded to recognise the importance of native plants and they were also inspired to do their best to utilize these plants where possible
Source: Have your say
Feedback
Students should be asked to pay more attention on dissecting flowers and drawing floral diagrams during the first few weeks of the term.
Recommendation
A study schedule has been provided to highlight the activities to be undertaken every week. Students should also be reminded about this during tutorial sessions.
Action Taken
Tutorial sessions and weekly emails will be used to emphasize this aspect
Source: Have your say
Feedback
Avoid scheduling lectures on Mondays as this day coincides with public holidays.
Recommendation
Scheduling of lectures on Mondays should be avoided where possible.
Action Taken
Time tabling staff were requested to take note of this requirement.
Source: Have your say
Feedback
The residential school needs before and after briefing, so students will come prepared, and they will have an idea of what is being studied.
Recommendation
Additional tutorial sessions should be held to address this issue. Residential school time table should be made available in advance.
Action Taken
Students were encouraged to collect specimens prior to attending the residential school and they were assisted to key them out during evening (voluntary) sessions
Source: Have your say
Feedback
IT issues with quiz and power points.
Recommendation
The Moodle site was upgraded in 2021. This had caused glitches, but they have been rectified. Further issues should be dealt with promptly.
Action Taken
Moodle links were checked and the connections were re-established on time.
Source: Have your say
Feedback
Study material is overwhelming and this can be streamlined, where possible, to align with learning objectives.
Recommendation
The unit contents should be reviewed and surplus materials removed, where possible.
Action Taken
Some materials were removed, or reduced emphasis placed (eg soils, and GIS and remote sensing)
Source: Have your say and verbal comments
Feedback
It would be good if the residential school could be extended to 5 days, so more time can be spent on plant identification.
Recommendation
Similar suggestions are made consistently. However, extending the residential school to 5 days would have implications on resource allocation and timetabling. Residential school length should continue to be considered as appropriate.
Action Taken
No action was taken, as this would increase workload and cause difficulties in time tabling
Source: SUTE
Feedback
"You are doing a brilliant job at teaching botany, I now look at plants and flowers in a new and exiting light"
Recommendation
This unit focuses on learning plant diversity and understanding why certain plant communities occur only on certain habitats. This focus will be continued to be supported.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
The contents of the quizzes to be aligned with the lectures
Recommendation
Quizzes will be re-written to reflect upon the contents covered in lectures
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Clear instructions to be provided re: the materials to be brought to the residential school and the in-class test
Recommendation
Detailed instructions that will highlight the materials needed for the residential school will be provided to the students prior to residential school
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Access plant identification videos to be streamlined
Recommendation
The video display style will be improved using modern technology
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Further instructions on what plants to collect and what resources to use to identify them would greatly benefit students
Recommendation
One tutorial session will be devoted to demonstrate what type of plants to be collected and how they can be identified
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
"Overall field trip was awesome and really enjoyed it, gained great real world experience"
Recommendation
Field trip is the core activity of this Unit as this will help us relate theory to the practical aspects of natural resource management. This activity will be continued.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Define selected botanical terms
  2. Collect and curate native plant specimens, and use taxonomic keys to identify native plants
  3. Examine characteristic features of Australian flora, and discuss the uses of native plants in conservation, vegetation management and economic development
  4. Describe how native flora respond to environmental disturbances, and explain the ways by which this knowledge can be applied in revegetation and restoration programs
  5. Undertake vegetation surveys, interpret data and explain the use of GIS and remote sensing techniques in vegetation management.

N/A

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Online Quiz(zes) • • •
2 - Practical Assessment • • • •
3 - Online Test • • • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
2 - Problem Solving • • • •
3 - Critical Thinking • • • •
4 - Information Literacy • • • •
5 - Team Work • •
6 - Information Technology Competence •
7 - Cross Cultural Competence •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 - Online Quiz(zes) • •
2 - Practical Assessment • • • • •
3 - Online Test • • •