MAN AND THE ENVIRONMENT - 2021/2
Module code: BMS3091
Module Overview
This module considers the impact of human beings on the environment, including negative aspects such as habitat destruction and pollution, and positive aspects such as conservation. It will also consider our ethical and legal responsibilities with regards to the environment and biodiversity conservation.
Module provider
School of Biosciences and Medicine
Module Leader
BREDE Eddie (Biosc & Med)
Number of Credits: 15
ECTS Credits: 7.5
Framework: FHEQ Level 6
Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A
Overall student workload
Workshop Hours: 7
Independent Learning Hours: 99
Lecture Hours: 1
Seminar Hours: 2
Tutorial Hours: 8
Guided Learning: 17
Captured Content: 16
Module Availability
Semester 1
Prerequisites / Co-requisites
N/A
Module content
Indicative content includes:
- The healthy planet
Biodiversity: genetic diversity, species diversity, & ecosystem diversity
Community ecology: relationships & change within ecosystems - The Anthropocene Period: Human environment interactions
Habitat loss
Feeding the world: over-harvesting & the impact of farming
Introduced species
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Risk
Climate change
A sixth mass extinction? - Conservation Biology
The History of Conservation
Measuring human impact
Environmental Law
Approaches to conservation: population conservation
Approaches to conservation: land management & restoration
Fieldtrips to Millennium Seed Bank (Wakehurst Place) & Surrey Wildlife Trust - Case studies: students will present case studies in addition to those incorporated into lecture content
- Plus tutorial sessions
Assessment pattern
| Assessment type | Unit of assessment | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Case study on a current topic | 50 |
| Coursework | Investigative video and report | 50 |
Alternative Assessment
Portfolio includes a public information film (IS2) and a literature review (IS1).
Assessment Strategy
The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to integrate content from across the module in order to consider ecological problems and their solutions. They will be expected to integrate practical and ethical considerations with an element of investigative thinking.
The summative assessment for this module consists of the following elements:
- IS1 – Case study on a current topic: 50% - A 3000 words report on an issue that you think is relevant to the content covered in the course, providing the appropriate references and showing critical analysis of the reported fact.
- IS2 – Investigative video and field report: 50%: A investigative-type 3-4 minutes linked to the topic chosen in the first assessment, which will include an interview to person(s) relevant in that field, reporting facts and opinions in a non-bias way; a report on the field trip about land management.
Formative assessment and feedback
Students can obtain formative feedback from a variety of sources:
- Tutorials and drop in sessions where students can discuss their progress
- Class debates in which all students will participate.
- Individual feedback provided on one draft of the report submitted in SurreyLearn
Module aims
- Revise the concept of biodiversity, at the population, community and planetary levels and consider the relationships between species within a dynamic ecosystem
- Consider the nature of man's influence on the environment, using case studies to illustrate the impact of habitat loss, farming, globalisation, ecotoxins and global warming
- Consider our responsibiltiy to the planet in terms of restorative and conservation ecology
Learning outcomes
| Attributes Developed | ||
| 1 | Evaluate the relative importance of biodiversity at the level of genes, species and ecosystems | KC |
| 2 | Discuss the roles of species interactions, energy/mass transfer and nutrient cycling, disturbance and succession in defining a healthy ecosystem | KC |
| 3 | Categorise the various ways in which man impacts upon his environment | KC |
| 4 | Define the approaches used by conservation biologists to measure the effect of man on his environment | KC |
| 5 | Compare and contrast strategies for protecting individual species and whole communities from human impact | KC |
| 6 | Argue the relative merits of strategies to evaluate and mitigate against a specific environmental threat | KC |
| 7 | Identify suitable sources of information and critically evaluate them in order to address a specific environmental concern | PT |
| 8 | Précis information both orally and in writing in a manner appropriate to both lay and scientific audiences | PT |
Attributes Developed
C - Cognitive/analytical
K - Subject knowledge
T - Transferable skills
P - Professional/Practical skills
Methods of Teaching / Learning
The learning and teaching strategy is designed to:
Stimulate engagement with both the practical and ethical aspects of environmental science. The lecture component of the module will introduce some of the basic principles underpinning this topic, however the use of case studies to illustrate these principles and debates in which students can explore their own ethical ideals are both integral to the module. This module is intended to promote “blue skies” thinking as students identify and consider solutions to the issues raised by the conflict between mankind’s needs and the environment in which we live.
The learning and teaching methods include:
• Lectures: 25 h
• Field Trip: 10 h
• In class and online debates: 4 h (plus online time)
• Seminars (case studies): 2 h
• Plus tutorials / drop in sessions
Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.
Reading list
https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: BMS3091
Programmes this module appears in
| Programme | Semester | Classification | Qualifying conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Veterinary Biosciences BSc (Hons) | 1 | Optional | A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module |
| Biological Sciences BSc (Hons) | 1 | Optional | A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module |
Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2021/2 academic year.