Course Title: Collect and classify plants

Part A: Course Overview

Program: C5161 Diploma of Conservation and Land Management

Course Title: Collect and classify plants

Portfolio: SEH Portfolio Office

Nominal Hours: 120

Regardless of the mode of delivery, represent a guide to the relative teaching time and student effort required to successfully achieve a particular competency/module. This may include not only scheduled classes or workplace visits but also the amount of effort required to undertake, evaluate and complete all assessment requirements, including any non-classroom activities.

Course Code	Campus	Career	School	Learning Mode	Teaching Period(s)
AGRI5008C	City Campus	TAFE	155T Vocational Health and Sciences	Face-to-Face	Term1 2011, Term1 2012

Course Contact: Nevil Schultz

Course Contact Phone: +61 3 99254221

Course Contact Email: nevil.schultz@rmit.edu.au

Course Description

This course is designed to provide opportunities for the development of plant classification, identification, collection and preservation skills. Learning opportunities are provided to acquire underpinning knowledge for these skills, and include study in:
fundamentals of biological taxonomy, evolutionary and taxonomic hierarchies, binomial classification, major phyla, common exotic plant families, common native plant families, vegetation associations, ethical and legal requirements before collection, collection in the field, plant hygiene, safety considerations, recognition of key features of common genera, field herbarium construction, field herbarium applications, correct choice of herbarium materials, preservation techniques, herbarium sample maintenance, hand-lens & stereomicroscope use and plant dissection, herbarium practises such as plant sterilisation, mounting, labelling, ordering of species specimens, type specimens, use of field guides, use of botanical keys, sub-species & varieties, authorities used in nomenclature.

The course will run in the first year of the diploma over the first two semesters
 

Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

There are no prerequisites

National Competency Codes and Titles

National Element Code & Title:	RTC5011A Collect and classify plants
Elements:	1. Prepare for plant collecting. 2. Collect plant specimens 3. Identify plant specimens 4. Preserve specimens

Learning Outcomes

This is a competency based program. Details of the competencies are provided above.

Overview of Assessment

Assessment for this course may include a Plant Collection, reports, practical assessments and tests.