PLANT SC 2510WT - Foundations in Plant Science II
Waite Campus - Semester 1 - 2020
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General Course Information
Course Details
Course Code PLANT SC 2510WT Course Foundations in Plant Science II Coordinating Unit School of Agriculture, Food and Wine Term Semester 1 Level Undergraduate Location/s Waite Campus Units 3 Contact Up to 6 hours per week Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y Prerequisites BIOLOGY 1101/1101ND or BIOLOGY 1202 or BIOLOGY 1401 or BIOLOGY 1001 Incompatible ENV BIOL 2500 Assessment Exam, reports, lab quiz & project work Course Staff
Course Coordinator: Associate Professor Beth Loveys
Lecturing and Support Staff
Prof. Amanda Able
Location: Room GN12, Waite Building
Telephone: 8313 7245
Email: amanda.able@adelaide.edu.au
Prof. Matthew Gilliham
Location: Room 2-30 Plant Research Centre
Telephone: 8313 8145
Email: matthew.gilliham@adelaide.edu.au
Ms. Helen Brown
Location: Charles Hawker Building G03
Telephone: 8313 7305
Email: helen.brown@adelaide.edu.au
Course Timetable
The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from .
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Learning Outcomes
Course Learning Outcomes
1 Describe the photosynthetic pathway and explain the role of environmental controls on photosynthetic rates 2 Discuss the factors that determine water use efficiency 3 Explain how plants acquire, transport and use mineral nutrients 4 Describe and identify characteristics of important nutrient disorders 5 Describe the life cycle of plants and of some of the important environmental controls of growth and development 6 Demonstrate the role of plant hormones in growth and development 7 Identify the basic anatomy of plants as it relates to the physiology of water and nutrient transport and photosnthesis 8 Explain the physiological responses to mycorrhizal infection and rhizobium symbiosis 9 Design and manage experimentation, develop and test an hypothesis and to analyse and present the data clearly University Graduate Attributes
This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:
University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s) Deep discipline knowledge
- informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies
- acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1
- accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)
1-8 Critical thinking and problem solving
- steeped in research methods and rigor
- based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development
- demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment
9 Teamwork and communication skills
- developed from, with, and via the SGDE
- honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies
- encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning
9 Career and leadership readiness
- technology savvy
- professional and, where relevant, fully accredited
- forward thinking and well informed
- tested and validated by work based experiences
NA Intercultural and ethical competency
- adept at operating in other cultures
- comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts
- able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes
- demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges
NA Self-awareness and emotional intelligence
- a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal
- open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers
- able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate
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Learning Resources
Required Resources
There is no single textbook that is used for the course but the ones listed below are useful reference books:
Taiz L, Zeiger E (2010) Plant physiology. (Sinauer Associates Inc.: Sunderland, Massachusetts). [additional on-line material is found at
Atwell B Kriedemann P, Turnbull C (1999) Plant in Action: Adaptation in Nature; Performance in Cultivation (MacMillan Education Australia: Melbourne) [available online at:
Lambers H, Pons TL, Chapin FS (2008). Plant Physiological Ecology (Springer: New York) [available as an e-book through the library catalogue]
Marschner H (1995) (2nd edition) Mineral nutrition of plants. Academic Press; London.
A useful website on abiotic stress (salt, drought, heat, frost, mineral nutrient stress) is: Plant stress:
You may also find the following website useful for preliminary information on some aspects of plant science: .dtl
A useful iPad App that will help you to study for the plant anatomy pracs is ‘Plant Histology’ ($4.99 from iTunes).
Communication and report writing
Cargill M and Bellotti M (2004) Written Communication in the Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences, The 成人大片.
Visit http://www.usyd.edu.au/learningcentre/wrise/ to see how to write reportsOnline Learning
Foundations in Plant Sciences uses MyUni as the primary route of commumication with students. Announcements will be posted to alert students of any changes to course timetable and information about assessment items. TURNITIN is also used for the submission of assignments.
Online tests within MyUni are also used to assess students knowledge after practical classes.
Articulate Storyline activities are used for pre-practical engagement. These can be accessed via the My Uni course. -
Learning & Teaching Activities
Learning & Teaching Modes
The course is delivered using lectures, practials and tutorials.
Lectures: 2 hours per week for 12 weeks
Practicals: 2 hours per week for 9 weeks
Tutorials: 2 hour per week for 12 weeks
A Small Group Discovery Experience (SGDE) is also provided for our students. The students will undertake an independent group research project guided by an academic mentor. Both tutorial and practical time slots are used for the SGDE.Workload
The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.
The contact time for Foundations in Plant Science is 6 hours per week. It is expected that a student will spend a further 6 hours outside of this contact time preparing for the next weeks classes, revising the previous weeks material and preparing reports for assessment.Learning Activities Summary
The course is made up of lectures, tutorials (face-to-face and online), practicals and a small group discovery experience in the form of a research project.
Tutorials prepare students for project work and develop research skills.
The four set practicals through the semester give students the opportunity to learn new laboratory skills and gain exposure to the types of measurements commonly performed in plant science research. The skills learnt in the set practicals can then be used by the students in their research projects.
Students gain experience in presenting their work in the form of reports, laboratory note books and oral presentation.
Small Group Discovery Experience
The Small Group Discovery Experience in Foundation in Plant Science takes the form of a group research project. Groups of 5-6 students are asked to select a research area from a variety of options. The project topics vary from year to year depending on the availablity and research areas of staff involved. Topics offered may be:
Plant hormones, growth and development
Drought
Phosphorus nutrition
Salinty
Legume nitrogen fixation
Water logging tolerance
Extreme soil pH and aluminium toxicity
Students work together with a mentor to design a novel research question. They are then given time to develop an experimental design to help answer their research question. Feedback from their mentor will help to refine their experimenal plan and design. The students are provided with plant material and equiment to undertake their experiment over a four week period. At the conclusion of their experiment the students must analyse their data and present it to the rest of class by way of a seminar. -
Assessment
The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:
- Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
- Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
- Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
- Assessment must maintain academic standards.
Assessment Summary
Due to the current COVID-19 situation modified arrangements have been made to assessments to facilitate remote learning and teaching.Assessment Task Task Type Due Weighting Learning Outcome Practical report on potassium uptake mechanisms Formative and Summative week 8
15% 3 Practical exams Formative and Summative throughout semester 20% 1,2,3,7 Group research project Formative and Summative throughout semester 20% 9 Final examination Summative TBA 45% 1-8 Assessment Detail
Assessment Task Task Type Due Weighting Practical report on potassium uptake mechanisms Formative and Summative week 8
15% Practical exams Formative and Summative throughout semester 20% Group research project Formative and Summative throughout semester 20% Final examination Summative TBA 45% Submission
Practical reports will be submitted via Turnitin through MyUni.Course Grading
Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:
M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme) Grade Mark Description FNS Fail No Submission F 1-49 Fail P 50-64 Pass C 65-74 Credit D 75-84 Distinction HD 85-100 High Distinction CN Continuing NFE No Formal Examination RP Result Pending Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.
Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.
Final results for this course will be made available through .
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Student Feedback
The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.
SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
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Student Support
- Academic Integrity for Students
- Academic Support with Maths
- Academic Support with writing and study skills
- Careers Services
- Library Services for Students
- LinkedIn Learning
- Student Life Counselling Support - Personal counselling for issues affecting study
- Students with a Disability - Alternative academic arrangements
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Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
- Academic Credit Arrangements Policy
- Academic Integrity Policy
- Academic Progress by Coursework Students Policy
- Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy
- Copyright Compliance Policy
- Coursework Academic Programs Policy
- Intellectual Property Policy
- IT Acceptable Use and Security Policy
- Modified Arrangements for Coursework Assessment Policy
- Reasonable Adjustments to Learning, Teaching & Assessment for Students with a Disability Policy
- Student Experience of Learning and Teaching Policy
- Student Grievance Resolution Process
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Fraud Awareness
Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student鈥檚 disciplinary procedures.
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