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ZOOL13015 - Environmental Physiology of Animals

General Information

Unit Synopsis

In Environmental Physiology of Animals you will study the physiological adaptations of animals that enable them to inhabit a range of environments and how animals can respond to environmental challenges such as climate change. You will also conduct independent literature research and examine a range of procedures and technologies used to research the environmental physiology of animals.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 3
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

BIOL11100 or BIOL12112

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).

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Residential School Compulsory Residential School
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Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2020

Term 1 - 2020 Profile
Mixed Mode
Term 1 - 2021 Profile
Mixed Mode
Term 1 - 2022 Profile
Mixed Mode
Term 1 - 2023 Profile
Mixed Mode
Term 1 - 2024 Profile
Mixed Mode
Term 1 - 2025 Profile
Mixed Mode
Term 1 - 2026 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. Written Assessment 40%
2. Practical Assessment 20%
3. Examination 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

No previous feedback available

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: Personal reflection
Feedback
Creating an industry relevant applied research project within the unit has been extremely effective, in particular the project has increased engagement, created a cooperative learning environment and students have developed a sense of project ownership.
Recommendation
The real-world applied research project embedded within the residential is extremely important to students and should be continued and developed.
Action Taken
Student-led project design is an embedded component of the unit and provides opportunity for students to initiate, plan, resource, and then undertake a project centered on a real-world problem.
Source: Personal reflection
Feedback
Students require more assistance and guidance with the use and application of audio-visual recording software for research seminar assessments.
Recommendation
Provide detailed instructions and tutorial sessions on the use of audio visual technologies.
Action Taken
Tutorials and Open Q&A sessions provided detailed coverage of AV technologies, giving students a better understanding of the technologies available.
Source: Personal reflection
Feedback
Students appear to struggle with the use and application of statistical software for data analysis.
Recommendation
Consider including sessions on the use of SPSS for data analysis with particular reference to the residential school.
Action Taken
Residential school featured an in-house session that provided assistance in dealing with experimental data and the use of non-parametric statistics.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
The research project during residential school has been well received.
Recommendation
The research project should continue to be a central focus of the unit, providing students with the opportunity to engage with a real world applied research project.
Action Taken
The research project continues to be a central focus of the unit.
Source: T1, 2025 SUTE Teacher Evaluations
Feedback
More allocated time on quizzes in the future would be advantageous.
Recommendation
Review the time allocated to complete online quizzes and adjust accordingly.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: T1, 2025 SUTE Teacher Evaluations
Feedback
The unit provided great real world examples and excelled in challenging students to think in an inclusive environment during the residential school.
Recommendation
Continue to explore Environmental Physiology within a real-world context, and provide the opportunity for increased student participation, teamwork, and engagement.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

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

  1. Describe the functioning and control of physiological systems in a range of animals
  2. Explain the physiological responses of animals to a range of environmental challenges
  3. Present, analyse and interpret physiological data
  4. Demonstrate a range of practical skills relevant to the study of environmental physiology.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Written Assessment • •
2 - Practical Assessment • • • •
3 - Examination • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Communication • • • •
2 - Problem Solving • •
3 - Critical Thinking • • •
4 - Information Literacy • •
5 - Team Work • •
6 - Information Technology Competence • • •
8 - Ethical practice •
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 10
1 - Written Assessment • • • • •
2 - Practical Assessment • • • • • •
3 - Examination • • •