What types of assessments are going to be used in this unit of study?

Students will be assessed upon their performance in a series of written assignments and class discussions. For assignments they will usually work in small groups to solve problems, documenting their work in technical reports and at oral presentation sessions.

How much weighting will each assessment have on the student’s final grade?

Written and verbal assignments – 100%

Laboratory sessions – 0%

Keynote lecture and tutorial sessions – 0%

How will the assessment methods build on the graduate attributes students developed in their previous UoS?

The graduate attributes stressed here emphasise that conceptual knowledge be integrated, that students learn how to simultaneously work both independently and in small groups, that they learn how to face novel (often uncertain) situations, and that they take responsibility for the results and recommendations they produce. The diversity of the assessments (and the weightings chosen) will strongly encourage the development of these graduate attributes.

What is the assessment schedule?

Refer to to UoS outloine.

How should students expect to receive feedback in this UoS?

Students will receive written and verbal feedback on their performance in the assignments, as well as upon their participation in class and group exercises. In particular, this feedback will enable students to distinguish their ongoing performance in the unit of study from their peers during group work exercises.

How will students give feedback on unit of study teaching, learning and other student concerns.

There will be a continuous teaching/learning evaluation that will allow students to voice their concerns during the semester. Students will be encouraged to share their learning approaches with staff and the rest of the student body.

What is the duration of the final exam?

There will be no final exam.

In most cases we expect students to work in teams to explore the underlying issues, but prepare an individual report for assessment. In addition, with each assessment item, students will be required to complete a peer and self-assessment, during which they quantitatively and qualitatively rated their own contribution and the contributions of their peers during the project.

A satisfactory peer- and self-assessment includes the following sections:

1. a short paragraph documenting what contribution(s) the student has made to the project;
2. a mark (out of 100) for the students’ technical achieve- ments;
3. a mark (out of 100) for each of the other students’, non-technical contributions (e.g. attendance at group meetings, overall preparedness, initiative, team spirit, etc);
4. short paragraphs documenting the contributions of the other group members to the project;
5. a mark (out of 100) for the technical achievements of every other member of the group;
6. a mark (out of 100) for the other, non-technical contributions of every other member of the group;
7. the students’ signature and date at the bottom of the document.

The numerical scores from these assessments are then factored into the final project mark.