BIOL11102 - Life Science Laboratory

General Information

Unit Synopsis

Understanding the evolution, anatomy and identification of plants and animals is critical in tackling the scientific study or management of organisms, ecosystems and animal or plant production. In Life Science Laboratory, you will study evolution and phylogeny, and the anatomy of the most common vertebrate and invertebrate animals, plants, algae and fungi, to support the development of your practical skills, which include specimen collection, preparation and curation; microscopic and macroscopic identification; and animal and plant dissection. This unit includes field work where you will use the knowledge and skills developed to study organisms in both terrestrial and marine ecosystems. On conclusion of this unit, you will understand the important role that biology plays in research and innovation in the fields of science, environmental science and agriculture.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 1
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Anti-requisite BIOL11099 Living Systems

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School Compulsory Residential School
View Unit Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2025

Term 1 - 2025 Profile
Mixed Mode
Rockhampton
Term 1 - 2026 Profile
Mixed Mode
Rockhampton

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Written Assessment 20%
2. Practical Assessment 30%
3. Laboratory/Practical 0%
4. Online Quiz(zes) 50%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2025 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 71.43% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 8.86% response rate.

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Source: SUTE UNIT COMMENTS REPORT - T1, 2024
Feedback
Exceptional engaging subject and residential school.
Recommendation
Continue to develop residential school assessments/activities that are engaging and relevant to students.
Action Taken
Continue developing and refining residential school assessments/activities that are engaging and relevant. This is challenging as the unit has students spread across four different courses (CA42-11%, CC13-28%, CU18-28%, CV85-33%).
Source: SUTE UNIT COMMENTS REPORT - T1, 2024
Feedback
Lecture videos should have subtitles.
Recommendation
Ensure students are familiar with the captions and transcripts functionality in Echo.
Action Taken
The functionality of Echo and capacity to generate captions and transcripts was highlighted during the first lecture.
Source: SUTE UNIT COMMENTS REPORT - T1, 2024
Feedback
The size of the residential school attendance was to high, this impacted the ability to see demonstrations.
Recommendation
Residential schools require a higher staff-to-student ratio than is currently provided. Laboratories require more/better placement of audio-visual equipment.
Action Taken
One extra staff member was attendant at residential schools and assisted with student support.
Source: SUTE UNIT COMMENTS REPORT - T1, 2024
Feedback
The lecturers and technical staff are supportive and offered extra assistance when required.
Recommendation
Staff to continue providing extra support when required.
Action Taken
Staff continue to provide extra support when required and where possible.
Source: Personal reflection
Feedback
Students are seeking more detailed feedback on assessments, understanding that this contributes significantly to future learning.
Recommendation
Increased marking capacity is needed if students are to receive useful feedback on written assessments.
Action Taken
The Unit Coordinator and Head of Course will continue to monitor marking capacity to ensure quality feedback is provided to students.
Source: Personal reflection
Feedback
Increase the clarity of expectations regarding residential school assessments.
Recommendation
Develop more detailed rubrics for residential school assessments.
Action Taken
Detailed rubrics have been developed for each residential school assessment.
Source: 2025 SUTE Evaluations
Feedback
Staff fostered an inclusive and interactive learning environment. Building on this, greater attention to the diversity of student backgrounds could further strengthen engagement.
Recommendation
Staff should continue to build on the inclusive environment established in this unit by more deliberately integrating diverse student perspectives and experiences into learning activities and resources.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Distinguish between major taxa of plants and animals using morphological features
  2. Discuss evolution and the Hierarchy of Classification in relation to the diversity of living organisms
  3. Safely perform laboratory activities, including the use of microscopes and aseptic techniques, and the dissection of plants and animals
  4. Collect and curate plant specimens
  5. Use dichotomous keys to identify flowering plants and insects.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Written Assessment • •
2 - Practical Assessment • • •
3 - Laboratory/Practical • • •
4 - Online Quiz(zes) • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Communication • •
2 - Problem Solving • •
3 - Critical Thinking • •
4 - Information Literacy • • •
5 - Team Work •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 - Written Assessment • • • •
2 - Practical Assessment • • • •
4 - Online Quiz(zes) • • • •
3 - Laboratory/Practical • • • •