Course Title: The Atmosphere

Part A: Course Overview

Course Title: The Atmosphere

Credit Points: 12.00

Terms

Course Code

Campus

Career

School

Learning Mode

Teaching Period(s)

ENVI1011

City Campus

Undergraduate

135H Applied Sciences

Face-to-Face

 Sem 1 2006,
Sem 1 2007,
Sem 1 2008,
Sem 1 2009,
Sem 1 2010,
Sem 1 2011,
Sem 1 2012,
Sem 1 2013,
Sem 1 2014,
Sem 1 2015

ENVI1011

City Campus

Undergraduate

171H School of Science

Face-to-Face

 Sem 1 2017,
Sem 1 2018,
Sem 2 2019,
Sem 2 2020

Course Coordinator: Dr Samantha Grover

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3

Course Coordinator Email: samantha.grover@rmit.edu.au

Course Coordinator Location: 003.02.029

Course Coordinator Availability: by email appointment


Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

You should have satisfactorily completed the courses CHEM1015 and ENVI1146 before you commence this course.

Alternatively you may be able to demonstrate the required skills and knowledge before you start this course.  Contact your course coordinator if you think you may be eligible for recognition of prior learning.  For further information go to Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) in Higher Education.


Course Description

The air we breathe; understanding the atmosphere. The atmosphere is all around us, all the time. Our lives and the lives of all living things depend on it, yet few of us understand how the atmosphere functions. In this course, you will develop a solid scientific understanding of how the earth’s atmosphere works and its interactions with the earth and oceans. Learning about the atmosphere during the Anthropocene, global warming takes centre stage. Local weather and Indigenous knowledge of seasons, climate extremes and air pollution provide real-world examples of atmospheric science theory that will position you ideally to apply a scientific understanding of the atmosphere to diverse careers.


Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

This course contributes to the development of the following Program Learning Outcomes at AQF level7:

PLO 1: Understanding science: Demonstrate a coherent understanding of environmental science.
PLO 2: Scientific knowledge: Exhibit depth and breadth of environmental science knowledge.
PLO 3: Inquiry and problem-solving: Critically analyse and solve problems in environmental science.
PLO 4: Communication: Be an effective communicator of environmental sciences.
PLO 5: Personal and professional responsibility: Be accountable for individual learning and scientific work in environmental science.



Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs)

After successfully completing this course you should be able to:

CLO 1 Understand and explain how the atmosphere functions
CLO 2 Recognise local weather patterns and Indigenous seasons in their bioregion
CLO 3 Critically evaluate sources of information about atmospheric processes and phenomena
CLO 4 Work with others to solve problems associated with mitigating and adapting to climate change
CLO 5 Communicate a scientifically-grounded analysis of atmospheric science issues to a range of audiences in a written and oral format



Overview of Learning Activities

This course is an online course combining interactive online workshops and discussion forums, independent study and group activities. As part of this course, you will:

  • regularly access online learning resources via Canvas
  • explore your local bioregion and local sources of scientific and indigenous knowledge about meteorology
  • undertake independent research and private study, working through the course material each week and developing independent learning skills
  • actively participate with your classmates in online workshops, discussion forums and small group activities
  • develop critical academic research skills by exploring library resources to create an Annotated Bibliography on a topic of your choice
  • hone your oral and written science communication skills by completing Authentic Assessment tasks


Overview of Learning Resources

This course is delivered via online learning resources that you will access through Canvas and weekly teacher-guided tutorials via Microsoft Teams. Your learning resources include essential concept videos, and the open-source online textbook “The Habitable Planet: A Systems Approach to Environmental Science” podcasts and authoritative written materials.



Overview of Assessment

Note that: This course has no hurdle requirements.

Assessment for this course are

Assessment Task 1: Local weather and Indigenous Seasons Authentic Assessment
Weighting 15%
This assessment task supports CLOs 1, 2, 5

Assessment Task 2: Atmospheric function weekly quizzes
Weighting 30%
This assessment task supports CLOs 1, 3

Assessment Task 3: Annotated Bibliography Authentic Assessment
Weighting 35%
This assessment task supports CLOs 3, 5

Assessment Task 4: Case study Authentic Group Assignment
Weighting 20%
This assessment task supports CLOs 1, 3, 4, 5