Joint Honours Degree Programme

COUNTRYSIDE MANAGEMENT

Ecology of the Peak District

6OU002

MODULE TUTOR

Dr. Linda Birch

Email: Lbirch@derby.ac.uk

Tel: 01332 594793

MODULE HANDBOOK 2008

ECOLOGY OF THE PEAK DISTRICT

Credit Value: 15

Level:  6

Pre-requisites:  None

Co-requisites:  None

MODULE DESCRIPTION

The use of countryside resources for outdoor recreation can ofte 22122k102w n put pressure on the already threatened ecological balance of the Peak District landscape. This module aims to enable potential recreation managers to examine the ecological systems of the Peak District landscape and evaluate the impact of a range of existing recreational uses in order to gain an understanding of the need to use the countryside in a sustainable manner.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

On completion of this module the student will be able to:

Demonstrate an understanding of the ecological principles and existing ecology of the Peak District Landscape.

Evaluate the impact of a variety of recreational activities on the existing ecology and consider the implications of sustainable policies for the recreation activity manager.

INDICATIVE CONTENT / AREAS OF STUDY

The general principles of ecology; water and nutrient cycles; habitat structures - succession and communities/population cycles; ecological pyramids and competition. History and development of the Peak District landscape. Landscape assessment. Role and function of organisations with ecological responsibilities in the Peak District. Evaluation of ecology of woodland, wetland, upland and grassland habitats and assessment of the impact of chosen recreational activities. Sustainability policies.

TEACHING AND LEARNING STRATEGIES

30 hours of lectures

6 hours of seminars

114 hours of directed study

150 total learning hours

Students will be encouraged to gain an understanding of ecological principles and the ecological value of the Peak District through lectures, directed study and survey work. They will be able to develop their communication, presentation and team skills through group analysis of the impact of chosen recreational activities on habitats within the Peak District and evaluation of the implications of sustainability policies.

ASSESSMENT

Rationale

The assessment of this module involves both report writing and group research and presentation skills. The students will be expected to demonstrate ecological knowledge gained from directed study, assess the impact of recreational use in the Peak District and evaluate their findings in relation to national sustainability policies. Students will work in groups to look in some depth at the relationship between human recreational needs and the ecological balance and evaluate the implications for recreational activity managers.

Criteria

The students will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of ecological principles by evaluating human impact of on the ecological balance of habitats.

Method

Assessment 1 Working in groups the students will evaluate the human impact on the ecological balance of a specified habitat type within the Peak District National Park. A peer group presentation of the research results will follow.

Assessment 2 Students will individually produce a summary report of their findings.

Weighting

100% coursework

Assessment 1  (40%) Outcome 1

Assessment 2  (60%) Outcome 2

Group presentations will commence on or after week 7 on a date to be agreed with the group.

Individual Reports are to be handed in 3 weeks after the presentation date.

During Week 3 guidelines and recommendations for the group work will be discussed.

RESOURCES - ECOLOGY OF THE PEAK DISTRICT

Anderson, P. & Shimwell, D. (1982) Wild Flowers and Other Plants of the Peak District - an Ecological Study. Moorland Pubs. Derbyshire.

**Backshall, J., Manley, J. & Rabane, M (eds). (2001). The Upland Management Handbook. English Nature. Peterborough.

Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee (2003) Countryside and rights of way Act 2000 : fifth report of session 2002-03 London : Her Majesties Stationery Office

Elkington T and Willimot A (1996) Endangered Wildlife in Derbyshire, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust

Kormondy E J (1984) Concepts of Ecology, Prentice Hall , London

C. Tonga, M.G. Le Duca, J. Ghorbania, and R.H. Marrsa, (2006) Linking restoration to the wider landscape: A study of a bracken control experiment within a upland moorland landscape mosaic in the Peak District, UK. Landscape and Urban Planning 78 (1-2) 115-134.

Welsh, D. (1998) Response of bilberry 'Vaccinium myrtillus' L. stands in the Derbyshire Peak District to sheep grazing, and implications for moorland conservation. Biol, Conservation 83 (2) 155-164.

Wolverston-Cope F (1976) Geology of the Peak District Explained, David and Charles, London

** Recommended resources for assignment work.

e-resources

UK biodiversity site

https://www.ukbap.org.uk/lbap.aspx?id=389

Peak District National Park Policy Guidelines

https://www.peakdistrict.org/protected-species.pdf

TURNITIN

ALL students are required to submit their work to 'Turnitin' - an electronic plagiarism detection system, before handing their work in to the Customer Information Centre. The system compares your submitted work to billions of internet pages, student essays and journal articles etc. By using this system you will be able to identify if your essays contain sections that are worded very similarly to other articles or essays.

For each module, you will be able to upload your work (as a doc. File) and you will receive a report indicating where (if anywhere) your work is similar to other pieces of writing. Clearly, there will always be some similarity - do not be concerned if some short phrases are identified. Please also note that this system does not make a judgement as to whether any particular essay is plagiarised, it just provides a report showing how much of any essay is similar to other work which aids the tutor in identifying plagiarised work.

TURNITIN INSTRUCTIONS

Step 1: Log into www.submit.ac.uk

Step 2: click on register as student

Step 3: You'll need the following:

Your login for this module is: the 5 digit code provided by your tutor

Your password is : 6OU002 (remember password is case sensitive)

Step 4: You'll need your email address! And you're in!

Remember

It may take 48 hours to run your report;

You can overwrite it up until your very last one.

Unless you submit your Turnitin receipt together with your final work, you will not receive a grade and you will be treated as NWS (No Work Submitted, thus receiving an automatic referral).

Any problems contact your module tutor, don't leave it until the last hour before Student admin closes!

MODULE SUMMARY - Ecology of the Peak District

N.B. The following lectures and seminars may be subject to change dependent on guest speakers and fieldwork

RULES AND REGULATIONS

STUDENT PARTICIPATION POLICY

The University expects students who have enrolled on a module to participate fully in the learning activities associated with that module and, except in the case of Associate Students who have elected not to do so, to undertake the assessment attached to it. To this end the completion and signing of the Enrolment and Registration Form includes a commitment to the following Participation Contract:

"Unless I have specifically elected not to do so at the time of enrolment, I undertake to participate fully in those activities which are described in each module as essential and that I will inform the Module Leader if circumstances oblige me to miss any of these essential activities. I also confirm that I wish to have my performance assessed according to the approved procedures and that I will observe the deadlines and timetable prescribed for each module. I recognize that failure to participate adequately in these essential activities may lead to termination of my enrolment in the module(s) concerned. I understand that I will be invited to explain my failure to participate before termination on the module(s)

occurs."

The participation contract will be considered as breached in either of the following circumstances, unless the student has negotiated alternative acceptable arrangements with the Module Leader.

1. Students have missed any 3 consecutive weeks of a module (or failed to meet the attendance requirements specifically described in the module details provided to students) without good cause. They will be given one week to confirm their intention to continue studying on the module. If there is a nil response, or a negative response, their enrolment in the module will be terminated.

2. Students who have intermittently missed 3 or more weeks (or sessions of one of the components of a module, e.g. tutorial or studio-based class), without approved extenuating circumstances and who are giving cause for concern. They will be given one week to take appropriate action. If this action is not forthcoming, enrolment in the module may be

terminated.

Plagiarism

An assignment may be prepared from a variety of sources e.g. books, journals, magazines, newspapers, interviews. When gathering information it is advisable to take full details of references and to identify and acknowledge any material which is reported verbatim from the source in order to avoid plagiarism. That is, the unacknowledged use of other peoples work or using some one else's ideas and passing them off as your own.

All sources should be cited and all quotations from the works of other authors clearly identified as such.

Presentation

All work should:

be double-line spaced (except for extended quotes, see Reference Handbook).

be printed single sided on A4 paper.

normally use 11 point font (Ariel)

be submitted in a wallet or folder with a front sheet (available from Student Admin)

For longer assignments it may also be appropriate to use the following:

contents page

list of tables

list of figures

Grammar, punctuation and spelling

You should make every effort to ensure high standards of grammar, punctuation and spelling.

Poor presentation will detract from the quality of your work.

read your work through

be prepared to do rough drafts and make alterations

ask a colleague to read your work through

read newspapers, books and periodicals as much as you can!

SUBMISSION OF ASSESSMENT WORK

It is vital that submission deadlines are met as late work without an ECF (extenuating Circumstances Form) will receive a maximum of a D- grade. If students have genuine reasons for being unable to submit work by the due date they should speak with the module lecturer and Programme Leader who will advise on the procedures for claiming Extenuating Circumstances. This information is also available electronically.

Lecturers are not allowed to accept assessment work handed directly to them. Students must hand in assessment work to Student Administration where they will receive a dated receipt. Non-receipt of an assessment will be recorded as a Non-Submission.

Students can hand in to Student Administration between

9am and 5.00pm Monday to Thursday and

9am and 4pm on Friday

Please do not be last minute as there may be queues on a Friday!

Extenuating Circumstances Form

If students hand in later than the 7-day deadline without an ECF then the assessment will not be marked. There is a guide to the four categories of extenuating circumstances which come under the headings of:

NOT ACCEPTABLE

MINOR (but beyond the reasonable control of the student)

SERIOUS (claims that would normally warrant a deferral)

ONGOING/VERY SERIOUS (severe or prolonged circumstances beyond the student's control)

The 3 acceptable categories all require supporting documentary evidence.