PRINCIPLES OF NUTRITION AND HEALTH - 2023/4

Module code: BMS1055

Module Overview

The module introduces some essential nutrition and health concepts and their practical application. Students will learn those concepts at an introductory level through pre-recorded content, live lectures, online sessions and panel discussions, which will be further developed in subsequent modules throughout level 4 to level 6. The module also focuses on developing students' professional skills, such as teamwork and communication skills, through interactive practical sessions and team-based activities. 

Module provider

School of Biosciences

Module Leader

JEARY Caitlin (Biosciences)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 4

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Overall student workload

Workshop Hours: 6

Independent Learning Hours: 70

Lecture Hours: 34

Practical/Performance Hours: 5

Guided Learning: 30

Captured Content: 5

Module Availability

Semester 1

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

none

Module content

Indicative content includes:




    • Healthy Eating Principles

    • Food sources of nutrients and the food groups

    • Introduction to public health nutrition

    • making use of digital platforms to promote health and nutrition

    • Health promotion

    • Health inequalities 

    • Come Dine with Me activity and presentation

    • Ethnic diets panel discussion

    • Food labeling

    • Supermarket activity

    • Plant-based diet





    • Physical activity and health

    • Development of professional skills




Assessment pattern

Assessment type Unit of assessment Weighting
Coursework Assignment 1: Digital Nutrition Writing 40
Coursework Assignment 2: Creating A Food Label for A Recipe and Food Labelling Discussion (1000 words) 60

Alternative Assessment

N/A

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding of the course content. Students will need to apply all the knowledge in real practice scenarios critically.

Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of:

• Assessment 1: Digital Nutrition Writing (40%)

The ability to translate nutritional knowledge into easily understood information for the public is an essential skill for dietitians, nutritionists and food scientists.

The modern world is ever-changing, with information being more accessible through social media and online. In your future career in food and nutrition, you will likely be working on projects that need you to communicate through social media. This task allows you to gain such experience and develop an evidence-based resource for the public while considering your target audience.

In this assessment, you are asked to work as a team and write an online blog-style article with the theme "vegan diet" and focus on one of the elements that have been covered in the module so far. You will then generate an Instagram post based on the article you have written.

Support for this coursework includes in-class Q&A and online discussion board.

Learning outcomes assessed: LO1, LO3

 

• Assessment 2: Creating A Food Label for a Recipe and Food Labelling Discussion (60%)

As a dietitian/nutritionist/food scientist, it is essential that you understand food labels and how they are created according to the food labelling legislation. We also need to know how religion may play a role in dietary habits.

The coursework is for each individual student. You are asked to create a food label based on a recipe we provide and  critically discuss why you created the food label in this way. This recipe is an ethnic recipe, and you will also need to discuss the ethnic diet critically. 

Learning outcomes assessed: LO2, LO4

 

Formative assessment:

Formative assessments for this module include two pub-quiz style activities and a Come Dine with Me activity followed by a team presentation. Formative assessments are designed to help students test all the learning outcomes and also help develop their professional skills through a series of team-based activities.

 

Module aims

  • Help students gain an appreciation of current nutrition guidelines and campaigns in the UK and how they may apply the guidelines in practice nationally and globally
  • Enable students to gain a thorough understanding of food labelling and its relevant elements such as nutrients and portion size
  • Enable students to understand ethnic diets and how cultures, religions and diversities can contribute to different food choices and eating habits
  • Encourage students to start to develop professional skills such as team working, communication and professional skills through a series of team-based activities
  • Encourage students to make use of digital platforms, including social media, to promote nutrition and health in the digital era

Learning outcomes

Attributes Developed
001 You will be able to advise the key sources of nutrients in different types of diets and how they are related to the UK healthy eating guidelines and people's dietary preferences through different communication channels such as digital platforms and social media KCPT
002 You will be able to interpret food labels and design food labels according to the legislation KCPT
003 You will understand the importance of professional skills (e.g. communication skills, team working skills, time management skills etc.) at university and beyond and start to demonstrate those skills in individual and team-based activities and assessments PT
004 You will be able to demonstrate the ability to cook ethnic recipes and discuss the influences of food choices in different ethnic groups and how they may affect health behaviours KCT

Attributes Developed

C - Cognitive/analytical

K - Subject knowledge

T - Transferable skills

P - Professional/Practical skills

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy are designed to:


  • Introduce the students to a few concepts such as nutrients, a plant-based diet,  portion size, and food labeling. Students will then further develop the knowledge in later modules such as BMS1034, BMS2040, BMS2039, and BMS2049

  • Enable the students to develop team working and communication skills through a series of team-based activities, including but not limited to in-class practical sessions and formative and summative assessments.

  • Enable the students to apply the knowledge taught in practice through in-class discussion activities, facilitator-guided breakout room practicals in small teams, outside class activities, presentation, and formative and summative assessments. Those activities are designed to mimic actual practice, which will help future employability.

  • Enable the students to develop cultural awareness and appreciate how cultures and religion can play a role in dietary habits. This is also achieved by students working in teams with members from different backgrounds and using outside class social events and peer-teaching to enable students to understand ethnic diets.

  • Enable the students to experience and develop digital literacy, which further develops the student's ability to utilize digital platforms for professional work in the digital era



 

The learning and teaching methods include:


  • Interactive lectures and seminars

  • Team-based activities, both inside and outside the class

  • Self-directed learning

  • Peer-assisted learning and presentation

  • Online panel discussion

  • Interactive formative assessments and authentic summative assessments



 

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: BMS1055

Other information

This module is designed to enable students to acquire knowledge for their professional practice and develop professional skills for the workplace.

The first half of the module is around public health nutrition. All sessions will contribute to the overarching theme, with the first summative assessment allowing the students to apply the knowledge in a real work scenario critically. In a digital era, the students need to be able to work on digital platforms, including digital writing and appropriate use of social media. The workshops delivered by internal and external lecturers, and the academic skills team from the library, will equip the students with digital capabilities, and students will demonstrate those skills in their first summative assessment for this module.

The module's second half is around food labeling, ethnic diets and communication skills. A few activities, such as the supermarket, Come Dine with Me activity followed by student presentations and panel discussions, will allow students to explore and understand food labels and ethnic diets and how cultures and religious beliefs can affect dietary habits. They will help students understand working with clients and patients from those ethnic groups. The students will then work on the second coursework to demonstrate a thorough understanding of food labeling.

Communication skills are fundamental to ensuring an effective consultation with clients/patients. The module will introduce different techniques when communicating with people and allow students to practice in teams in class.

Students are allocated to teams with members from different backgrounds, including ethnicity, nationality and/or religious beliefs. Students can learn and respect each other and develop the ability to work in a global and multi-cultural environment. Through team-based activities, including inside- and outside-class practicals, and summative and formative assessments,  students will start to build up team working skills and develop other professional skills such as communication, leadership, organizational and time management skills. The academic facilitators will then deliver a structured and guided session for the students to critically reflect on the process and use the learning to plan for a project similar to an assignment in BMS1034 in semester 2.

With a focus on professional skills development and their application in practice, students can directly apply those skills in their current and future employment.

 

Programmes this module appears in

Programme Semester Classification Qualifying conditions
Food Science and Nutrition BSc (Hons) 1 Compulsory A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module
Nutrition and Dietetics BSc (Hons) 1 Compulsory 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 2023/4 academic year.