PERM20002 - Creating Permaculture Solutions

General Information

Unit Synopsis

In this unit you will explore solutions to some of the major socio-cultural and environmental challenges presented by current economic, political and institutional structures, along with the contributions that permaculture can make to addressing such issues. You will expand on the seven different domains highlighted by permaculturalists as in need of transformation in the transition towards and beyond sustainability, discussing permaculture design principles in further detail and focusing on solutions. Specific examples and case studies will be used to illustrate the finer points.

Details

Level Postgraduate
Unit Level Not Applicable
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Co-requisite: PERM20001

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 No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2024

There are no availabilities for this unit on or after Term 1 - 2024

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 Postgraduate 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. Presentation 50%
2. Written Assessment 50%

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

To view Past Exams,
please login
Previous Feedback

Term 2 - 2017 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 4.4 (on a 5 point Likert scale), based on a 43.75% 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: Online student course feedback.
Feedback
It was noted that while the materials were engaging, the Moodle site took too long to load, especially in remote areas with poor bandwidth.
Recommendation
We will remove all embedded videos from the Moodle sites to reduce loading time prior to the next delivery of this unit.
Action Taken
Embedded videos were removed.
Source: Online student course feedback.
Feedback
Some issues were also raised with regards to the bandwidth requirements for the online platforms for tutorials. However, this was prior to the shift to newer technologies, which was well received by students.
Recommendation
We have now switched to Zoom which has substantially reduced bandwidth requirements and improved student experience.
Action Taken
We switched to Zoom.
Source: Online student course feedback.
Feedback
Some concerns were raised with regards to clarity of expectations for the assessments. However, this is to be expected with a pioneer cohort.
Recommendation
Subsequent cohorts will benefit from being able to see the marking criteria for all assessments across the different units upfront, as well as viewing example assessment items from previous cohorts.
Action Taken
Example assessment items were provided with criteria for subsequent assessments available on request.
Source: Online student course feedback.
Feedback
A few students made some suggestions with regards to the order and timing of the units for this course to increase practical and peer engagement from earlier in the course.
Recommendation
Consideration should be given to revisiting the order and timing of the units, as well as how to increase practical engagement earlier in the course. We could also consider introducing a short non-compulsory residential school earlier in the course. However, it may take some time to implement these changes. In the meantime, the shift to Zoom, and changes discussed above, should assist with community building and peer engagement, which most students identified as already very strong and one of the best features of this course.
Action Taken
An optional field trip was introduced earlier in the course and changes to timing of the units were made to enable the Graduate Certificate to be completed over two terms.
Source: Student feedback.
Feedback
Students enjoyed the guest lectures and the collaborative environment created through the student presentations but also felt they would like even more time to hear from the unit coordinator.
Recommendation
Consider providing some guest lectures in advance so tutorial time can focus on discussions with the coordinator.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: Student feedback.
Feedback
Students loved the content and range of materials provided each week which they felt helped shape their learning and projects.
Recommendation
Continue to provide the same range of resources and content.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: Student feedback.
Feedback
Students indicated that the feedback was received on their assignments was thorough and helpful. However, the feedback scores suggest assignment feedback may be beneficial even earlier.
Recommendation
Consider including early submission of a logic skeleton for the written assignment as part of the written assessment piece so students can receive feedback earlier in the unit.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

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

  1. Evaluate specific global and local challenges for sustainability across the seven permaculture domains.
  2. Analyse the potential for and formulate plans to address specific global and local challenges using permaculture ethics and principles.
  3. Investigate and critically assess local and global examples of the application of permaculture.
  4. Formulate a plan for effective implementation of a permaculture solution through your capstone project.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Presentation • • • •
2 - Written Assessment • • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Advanced Level
• Professional Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Knowledge • • • •
2 - Communication • • •
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills • •
4 - Research • • • •
5 - Self-management •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Advanced Level
• Professional Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1 - Presentation • • • • •
2 - Written Assessment • • • • • • •