FACULTY OF SCIENCE

School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences /

Climate Change Research Centre

CLIM1001 / GENS0401
Introduction to Climate Change

SESSION 1, 2018
1. Information about the Course

Year of Delivery
2018
Course Code
GENS0401 / CLIM1001
Course Name
Introduction to Climate Change
Academic Unit
BEES/CCRC
Level of Course
General education or first year
Units of Credit
6UOC
Session(s) Offered
S1, S2
Assumed Knowledge,
Prerequisites or Co- None
requisites
Hours per Week
6 HPW
Number of Weeks
12 weeks
Commencement Date
26th February 2018

Summary of Course Structure (for details see 'Course Schedule')

Component HPW Time Day Location

Online – Moodle
6
(recommended)
TOTAL 6
2. Staff Involved in the Course

N.B: Please use the Discussion board rather than email for all enquiries with teaching staff unless
the issue is of a personal nature

Staff Name Contact Details Consultation Times

Dr. Gabriel Abramowitz Room 467, CCRC, Level 4 By appointment,
(coordinator) Mathews Building (F23), 9385 8958 either virtually or in
Facilitators gabriel@unsw.edu.au person.

Dr. Angela Maharaj Room 444, CCRC, Level 4

Mathews Building (F23), 9385 0593
a.maharaj@unsw.edu.au

Lecturers
All material is delivered Use discussion
online via course Moodle boards on Moodle
site. for all enquiries
regarding lecture
content.
Tutors
No face-to-face tutorials.
Check each week’s
material on Moodle for
consultation times with
each week’s ‘expert’.

Other Support BEES admin BSB Student office 9:00am- 4:30pm

Staff (for non course specific Room G27
issues) Biological Science Building
3. Course Details

Increases in atmospheric greenhouse gases since the Industrial Revolution are

changing our climate in dramatic ways. Climate change is now an issue
Course Description confronting many disciplines, from architecture, engineering and business through
(Handbook Entry) to environmental science, public health, law, economics and policy. This online
course will draw on the expertise of a broad collection of senior active researchers
to cover the basics of climate change science, as well a selection of key related
areas from psychology, law, politics, economics, energy supply, ethics and health.
A range of perspectives on the nature of these challenges will be treated with a
critical analysis approach, encouraged through online problem solving exercises.
This course is an online-only offering.

This course aims to give students an understanding of the fundamentals of climate

Course Aims change science, an appreciation for the multi-disciplinary nature of the climate
change problem, and the need for a critical analysis approach to problem solving in
this area.

Learning outcomes are the skills and capabilities we hope this course will help you
Student Learning to attain – what we have in mind while we’re teaching. They include the ability to:
Outcomes 1. Outline the key drivers of the climate system, interactions between climate
system components and the mechanisms involved in anthropogenic climate
change.
2. Critically analyze relevant material from a range of scientific and public
information sources.
3. Describe the scientific method, the peer review process and explain how these
are embodied in Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change best practices.
4. Evaluate examples of climate change mitigation strategies and describe how
these affect climate change impacts.
5. Work effectively as part of a problem solving team in a digital environment.

Graduate Attributes Developed in this Course

Science Graduate Select the level Activities / Assessment

Attributes of FOCUS
0 = NO FOCUS
1 = MINIMAL
2 = MINOR
3 = MAJOR
3 Activities: Group work, discussion boards, peer review
Research, inquiry Assessment: Group and individual peer review exercises,
and analytical discussion boards
thinking abilities
3 Activities: Group work, discussion boards, peer review
Capability and Assessment: Group and individual peer review exercises,
motivation for discussion boards
intellectual
development
3 Activities: Online video and written content, recorded lectures,
Ethical, social and group work, discussion boards
professional Assessments: Group and individual peer review exercises,
understanding discussion boards, multiple choice tests
3 Activities: Group work, discussion boards, peer review
Communication Assessments: Group and individual peer review exercises,
discussion boards
 3 Activities: Group work, discussion boards
Teamwork, Assessments: Group peer review exercises, discussion boards
collaborative and
management skills
3 Activities: Online video and written content, recorded lectures,
Information literacy discussion boards
Assessments: Group and individual peer review exercises,
discussion boards, multiple choice tests
1. Climate change psychology
Major Topics 2. Scientific method, peer review and the IPCC
(Syllabus Outline) 3. The Earth’s energy budget and the greenhouse effect
4. Observations of the climate system and extremes
5. Global circulation and climate variability
6. Past climate variations
7. Climate change law
8. Climate models and future projections of climate change
9. Climate change impacts
10. Energy systems

Relationship to This is a first year climate science course and a general education course
Other Courses
within the Program Equivalent: CLIM1001/GENS0401
Excluded: CLIM1001/GENS0401, MSCI3501
4. Rationale and Strategies Underpinning the Course

This course strongly focuses on inquiry, critical analysis and communication

Teaching Strategies based on substantiated, robust and expert information. The teaching strategies
used to reflect this premise and develop associated graduate attributes are:
1. Content drawn from a large number of research-active experts in their field,
who lead online tutorial discussions on their topic
3. Some assessments focused on undisputed information
4. Some assessments focused on contentious information
5. Some assessments focused on communication, group work and participation.

A multi-media approach to content delivery will cover a variety of climate related

Rationale for learning disciplines. Each course section will be guided by short video snippets from
and teaching in this leading UNSW researchers active in the area. This will expose students to
course different research foci and priorities and underscore the necessity and
effectiveness of multi-disciplinary problem solving. Online assessments are a
mixture of peer assessment and challenging (but open-book) multiple choice.
Peer assessment using thorough, guided, rubric-based marking will form the
core of both individual and group based assignments, with a strong focus on
students understanding the nature of the peer review process in science.
Interactive discussion between students and course staff are aimed at
personalising feedback in addition to peer assessment and feedback.
CLIM1001/GENS0401 Course Schedule Online-only delivery
Assignment and Submission dates
Date Topic Consultant ‘expert’ Tutorial Activities (see also 'Assessment Tasks &
Feedback')
Week 1 Introduction to course Dr Gab Abramowitz General discussion board
26 Feb – 2 Mar structure
Week 2 Climate change psychology Prof Ben Newell Topic-specific moderated discussion
5-9 Mar board
Week 3 Scientific method, peer review Prof Steve Sherwood Topic-specific moderated discussion
12-16 Mar and the IPCC board
Week 4 The Earth’s energy budget Dr Gab Abramowitz Topic-specific moderated discussion Group peer review practice:
19-23 Mar and the greenhouse effect board 1. Writing a critical summary (5%)
Week 5 The Earth’s energy budget Dr Gab Abramowitz Topic-specific moderated discussion
26-29 Mar board Multiple choice quiz 1 (10%)
and the greenhouse effect
30 Mar – 8 Apr MID-SEMESTER BREAK
Week 6 Observations of the climate A/Prof Lisa Alexander Topic-specific moderated discussion Individual peer review exercise:
9-13 Apr system and extremes board 1. Writing a critical summary (15%)
Week 7 Global circulation and climate Prof Matt England Topic-specific moderated discussion
16-20 Apr variability board
Week 8 Past climates A/Prof Katrin Topic-specific moderated discussion Group peer review practice:
23-27 Apr Meissner board 2. Writing peer reviews (5%)
Week 9 Climate change law TBA Topic-specific moderated discussion
Multiple choice quiz 2 (10%)
30 Apr – 4 May board
Week 10 Energy systems A/Prof Iain MacGill Topic-specific moderated discussion Individual peer review exercise:
7-11 May board 2. Peer reviewing (15%)
Week 11 Understanding future Prof Andy Pitman Topic-specific moderated discussion
14-18 May projections of climate change board
Week 12 Impacts – sea level rise and Dr Ben McNeil & Topic-specific moderated discussion Group peer review practice:
21-25 May ocean acidification Prof John Church board 3. Addressing peer reviews (5%)
Week 13 No new content Topic-specific moderated discussion
28 May – 1 Jun board Multiple choice quiz 3 (10%)

Individual peer review exercise:

Before 8 Jun 3. Final submission after addressing
peer reviews (15%)
6. Assessment Tasks and Feedback

Knowledge & abilities Date of Date of

Task assessed Assessment Criteria % of total mark release submission
Three online multiple choice tests See learning Understanding of core course material 30% (10% See course See course
outcomes 1,3,4 each) schedule schedule
Discussion board participation See learning Assessed on frequency and constructiveness 10% Ongoing Ongoing
mark outcomes 1,2,3,4,5 of discussion posts
Group peer review practice See learning Peer marking - assessed on constructiveness, 15% (3 tasks, See course See course
outcome 5 civility, and responsiveness (rubric based) 5% each) schedule schedule
Individual peer review exercise: 1. See learning Peer marking - marking rubric and instructions 15% See course See course
writing an article summary outcomes 1,2,3,4 provided schedule schedule
Individual peer review exercise: 2. See learning Peer marking - marking rubric and instructions 15% See course See course
writing a peer review outcomes 1,2,3,4 provided schedule schedule
Individual peer review exercise: 3. See learning Graded by course staff – ability to respond 15% See course See course
Responding to peer reviews outcomes 1,2,3,4 constructively to peer reviews schedule schedule

• The online multiple choice tests are aimed at reinforcing key ideas from lesson material. They are taken from the each week’s lesson material (not the
additional material). There are three of them, each covering material from the preceding few weeks of lesson material (see course schedule). They may be
taken as an open-book test - you can look at your notes if you wish, but note that rules regarding plagiarism (see 11 below) are strictly enforced. They must
be your answers.
• The discussion board participation mark is based on your engagement in online discussions in Moodle. Marks are not awarded for knowing a lot about a
topic nor are they lost for being wrong about anything in particular. Students who constructively and critically engage in discussions regularly can expect to
receive a full mark.
• Group peer review practice. The purpose of the group-based peer review exercise is to familiarize you with the process that will form the basis of the
individual peer review exercise. Groups will be formed and articles assigned in Week 3. Each group will then produce a short article summary (around 1
page), peer review article summaries from other groups, and then amend their own article summary based on the peer reviews they receive. For each of
these three phases, group members will rate each other’s role in the group task (3 x 5%). Detailed instructions will be on the Moodle course page.
• Individual peer review exercise. Each stage of this assessment directly follows each stage of the group peer review exercise. However, this time, tasks
are completed by individuals rather than groups, and grades are assigned as follows: initial article summary grades (15%) are the average of the three
grades given by student peer reviewers of the article; peer review grades (15%) are the average of the grades given by article authors, according to a rubric;
final article summary grades are given by course staff, based on a the ability of the author to effectively respond to the peer reviews they received. Detailed
instructions will be on the Moodle course page.
7. Additional Resources and Support

Text Books There is no required textbook.

Course Manual
There is no course manual.

Reading material will be prescribed for each week on Moodle, from online
Required Readings material. As students in this course are from a wide range of academic
backgrounds, some students will require more background reading in particular
areas than others. Each week’s material has core lessons that utilise a
glossary, and also has additional reading material for those that want more
detail and those needing further explanation. Please check Moodle regularly as
updates to additional content may be posted throughout the course. There is a
list of useful general references below.

With these and all materials you read throughout this course, we strongly
encourage you to critically analyse their content, purpose and motivations. If
you’re not sure what that means, please read the following brief explanations to
get an idea:
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/onlib/critrev.html
http://unilearning.uow.edu.au/critical/1a-2.html
https://airport.unimelb.edu.au/gate1/writing/analysis.php
http://www.deakin.edu.au/students/studying/study-support/academic-
skills/critical-analysis
Useful books:
Global Climate Change: Turning Knowledge Into Action by David E Kitchen,
Pearson
Global Warming: The Complete Briefing by John Houghton, 2004
(free download from library)
The Climate Crisis by David Archer and Stefan Rahmstorf, 2010, Cambridge
University Press

Additional Readings See Moodle for additional readings

Recommended Please see the Course Information module in Moodle for an up to date list of
Internet Sites useful internet sites.

Societies N/A
Computer Laboratories Not specific to this course.
or
Study Spaces
8. Required Equipment, Training and Enabling Skills

N/A
Equipment Required
N/A
Enabling Skills Training
Required to Complete this
Course
9. Course Evaluation and Development
Student feedback is gathered periodically by various means. Such feedback is considered carefully with
a view to acting on it constructively wherever possible. This course outline conveys how feedback has
helped to shape and develop this course.

Mechanisms of Last Comments or Changes Resulting from Reviews

Review Review
Date

Major Course This is the second semester that CLIM1001 has been online-only.
Review While feedback was generally positive from S2 2017, we have tried
to respond to suggestions that the layout and explanation of the
assessment tasks could be clarified.

Last time we ran video-based discussions with each week’s expert,

but very few students engaged with these, so we removed them from
the course.

We have also tried to put in place clear mechanisms for students to

provide feedback on any aspect of the course and actively
encourage constructive criticism. If no pathway seems obvious to
you, please contact us directly.

2016
MyExperience MyExperience evaluation will be undertaken every year for this
course.

Feedback from students in CATEI and tutorials from the previous 6

Other years of face-to-face delivery have been integrated into this new
format where possible. The new approach was developed in
consultation with several senior academics in relevant subject areas
as well as the Science Faculty and central Learning and Teaching.
10. Administration Matters

Students are expected to complete all relevant lessons in a timely manner and participate in
Expectations of Students online discussions through the course's Moodle website. Students are expected to participate
in and submit all assessments except in the event of extenuating and unforseen circumstances
(see below). Students are expected to conduct themselves in an ethical and professional
manner at all times. Students can also expect this of all teaching and support staff and their
peers.

Academic misconduct will not be tolerated in any form in this course. Substantiated
instances of cheating or plagiarism may result in a failure grade. Please go to
http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/plagiarism/ and see Section 11 below if you are in any way unsure
of what constitutes plagiarism.
Assignment Submissions All assessments in this course are in class or during official university exam period.

Occupational Health and N/A

Safety1
UNSW Couselling offers a free and confidential service to students. Find out more at
Heath and Wellbeing https://www.counselling.unsw.edu.au/ or call 9385 5418.

The learning centre can offer personalised, confidential help with writing and a range of other
Academic Help academic skills. Contact them at http://www.lc.unsw.edu.au/student.html or call 9385 2060.

In the even to illness or misadventure please contact the course coordinator in the first
Assessment Procedures instance. The BEES administation staff can also provide valuable information and assistance
(contact details provided earlier).
UNSW Assessment
Policy2 See http://www.gs.unsw.edu.au/policy/documents/assessmentpolicy.pdf

Equity and Diversity Those students who have a disability that requires some adjustment in their teaching or
learning environment are encouraged to discuss their study needs with the course Convenor
prior to, or at the commencement of, their course, or with the Equity Officer (Disability) in the
Equity and Diversity Unit (9385 4734 or
http://www.studentequity.unsw.edu.au/http://www.studentequity.unsw.edu.au/ ).

Issues to be discussed may include access to materials, signers or note-takers, the provision
of services and additional exam and assessment arrangements. Early notification is essential
to enable any necessary adjustments to be made.

Student Complaint School Contact Faculty Contact University Contact

Procedure3
NB: In all cases you should first try to A/Prof Chris Tisdell Student Conduct and
The UNSW Grievance resolve any issues with the Associate Dean (Education) Appeals Officer (SCAO)
Policy can be found at course coordinators. cct@unsw.edu.au within the Office of the
http://www.gs.unsw.edu.au/ Tel: 9385 6792 Pro-Vice-Chancellor
policy/documents/studentc Otherwise you can contact (Students) and Registrar.
omplaintproc.pdf and the BEES student help or
procedure for the resolution beesinfo@unsw.edu.au Telephone 02 9385 8515,
of complaints about student Dr Gavin Edwards email
experiences at the If this is unsatisfactory, you Associate Dean (Academic studentcomplaints@uns
University can be found at should contact the Director of Programs) w.edu.au
https://my.unsw.edu.au/stu the Climate Change Research g.edwards@unsw.edu.au
dent/atoz/Complaints.html . Centre (A/Prof. Katrin Meissner: Tel: 9385 4652
k.meissner@unsw.edu.au ).

1 UNSW OHS Home page

2 UNSW Assessment Policy
3 UNSW Student Complaint Procedure
11. UNSW Academic Honesty and Plagiarism

What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism is the presentation of the thoughts or work of another as one’s own.

*Examples include:
• direct duplication of the thoughts or work of another, including by copying material, ideas or concepts from a book, article,
report or other written document (whether published or unpublished), composition, artwork, design, drawing, circuitry,
computer program or software, web site, Internet, other electronic resource, or another person’s assignment without
appropriate acknowledgement;
• paraphrasing another person’s work with very minor changes keeping the meaning, form and/or progression of ideas of
the original;
• piecing together sections of the work of others into a new whole;
• presenting an assessment item as independent work when it has been produced in whole or part in collusion with other
people, for example, another student or a tutor; and
• claiming credit for a proportion a work contributed to a group assessment item that is greater than that actually
contributed.†

For the purposes of this policy, submitting an assessment item that has already been submitted for academic credit elsewhere
may be considered plagiarism.

Knowingly permitting your work to be copied by another student may also be considered to be plagiarism.

Note that an assessment item produced in oral, not written, form, or involving live presentation, may similarly contain
plagiarised material.

The inclusion of the thoughts or work of another with attribution appropriate to the academic discipline does not amount to
plagiarism.

The Learning Centre website is main repository for resources for staff and students on plagiarism and academic honesty.
These resources can be located via:

www.lc.unsw.edu.au/plagiarism

The Learning Centre also provides substantial educational written materials, workshops, and tutorials to aid students, for
example, in:
• correct referencing practices;
• paraphrasing, summarising, essay writing, and time management;
• appropriate use of, and attribution for, a range of materials including text, images, formulae and concepts.

Individual assistance is available on request from The Learning Centre.

Students are also reminded that careful time management is an important part of study and one of the identified causes of
plagiarism is poor time management. Students should allow sufficient time for research, drafting, and the proper
referencing of sources in preparing all assessment items.

* Based on that proposed to the University of Newcastle by the St James Ethics Centre. Used with kind permission from the University of
Newcastle
† Adapted with kind permission from the University of Melbourne