| Unit name | Drylands in a Changing World |
|---|---|
| Unit code | GEOG30039 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Professor. Michaelides |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
Student will find completion of GEOG20027 Floods and Flows in River Basins useful. |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None. |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None. |
| School/department | School of Geographical Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
Why is this unit important?
Drylands are regions of the world where annual rainfall is low and potential evapotranspiration is high, leading to inherent water scarcity. Drylands occupy ~41% of the global land surface, support around 2 billion people and are major climate change hotspots. Despite their global coverage, drylands are often misunderstood to be lifeless, static environments and tend to be under- researched and under-appreciated. There is a humid-zone bias in how we think about the world and this is reflected in models, data collection, and research focus. This unit will teach all about environmental processes in drylands, ranging from the climate, controls on the water balance, processes of landscape change, water-plant interactions, desertification, droughts and floods, climate change impacts and human-environment interactions.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
This unit explores topics in the Water and Environment theme.
An overview of content
This unit aims to provide students with an in-depth understanding of dryland environments, to dispel myths associated with them, and to address the questions: what makes drylands unique? Why are they special? What will the impacts of climate change be in drylands and how will they affect both environment and society? The unit content will cover all the key components of dryland environmental dynamics highlighting their uniqueness relative to their humid counterparts along the way. We will cover the following major themes: I) Drylands: what and where; II) Drylands: how and why; III) Drylands: Climate Change Hotspots. Students will be introduced to new data and methods and how to interpret data and figures in publications. The unit will draw on the Unit Convenor’s expertise in drylands and will provide up-to-date research on all the topics.
How will student, personally, be different as a result of the unit
Students will have an informed and researched awareness of the importance of dryland regions in the context of a changing world. They should be thinking about these regions differently than before and have an educated perspective on the challenges facing these regions under climate change, and the implications for development, disaster risk reduction, and climate adaptation. After this unit they’ll have a totally different reaction to watching a western movie or travelling through a desert – it will open their eyes to the beauty, resilience, fragility and importance of these environments.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the unit, a student should be able to:
You will learn through a combination of lectures, individual reading, seminars and discussion groups. An important skill is to learn how to critically evaluate evidence from different papers and present an informed idea about an aspect of drylands in this changing world. So we will discuss papers critically on various aspects of dryland environments. In preparation for the summative assessment, you will be asked to present orally your ideas and you will be given verbal feedback (formative task) which should be used towards your essay assignment. This unit will present new environments, processes and ideas, so in the remaining hours allocated to this unit, you will be required to study and gain knowledge on those aspects. There is an expectation of willingness to learn something completely new, and spend the requisite time reading diverse literature (from climate, hydrology, geomorphology, ecology etc), studying and interpreting graphs and data.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
There will be reading and discussion seminars (small group teaching) in which you will learn how to read critically and construct a discussion piece. In these seminars, you will all informally and orally present ideas in preparation for your summative assignment, and receive verbal feedback.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Coursework essay (100%) [ILOs 1-4]. The summative assessment will be one essay (to be written individually) which aims to critically evaluate an aspect of drylands in the context of climate change. Several essay titles will be provided to choose from. The essay will be in the format of a brief journal paper and assess a range of existing evidence. It will be expected to include figures, tables and up to date references. The preparation for this will be formative tasks in the form of oral presentations and discussions.
When assessment does not go to plan
If a student is not able to complete either of the assignments they will be required to complete an alternative essay assignment, of the same length, at a later date.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. GEOG30039).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
