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BLAR11033 - Building Materials 1

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit will develop your knowledge on the physical and chemical properties, usage, durability, innovation, and disposal of building materials. You will explore and understand environmental impacts of building materials, their roles in contributing to sustainable design and a circular economy, and innovative building materials and systems through examining real-world practical examples i.e. case study buildings. You will also learn about: relevant Australian Standards; quality control procedures for the manufacture, testing, and handling of materials; and life cycle assessments and conditions through recycling, re-use, by-products synergy, and resource efficiency. International standards will be introduced selectively where relevant to support comparison and professional awareness, while maintaining Australian Standards as the primary reference point

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 There are no pre-requisites for the unit.

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 No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2026

Term 1 - 2026 Profile
Online

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

This information will not be available until 8 weeks before term.
To see assessment details from an earlier availability, please search via a previous term.

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 16.28% 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: Students
Feedback
The MS Team provided quick access to the lecturer and allowed students to discuss matters together.
Recommendation
The MS Team will continue to be actively used. Many students are increasingly using MS Teams at work, which has become a transferable skill in teaching.
Action Taken
MS teams was continued to be used across the unit.
Source: Student
Feedback
Teams could be utilised for the whole course and links through to Moodle as required
Recommendation
Moodle must remain the core system, but the team is increasingly used in support functions and engagement improvement.
Action Taken
MS teams was continued to be used across the unit.
Source: Student
Feedback
The quality of the pre-recorded lectures could be improved.
Recommendation
Lectures are to be reviewed and renewed. They do not simply read from textbooks but expand on the core issues and ideas.
Action Taken
The lecture videos were improved, and more examples were provided for students.
Source: Student
Feedback
Thanks to the lecturer for their help and feedback, which ensured that the tutorials were an essential source of information and understanding.
Recommendation
All students have direct, quick access to the lecturer via the MS Team, and they remain the focus of the unit.
Action Taken
MS teams was continued to be used across the unit and the recordings are provided to the students.
Source: Student Feedback
Feedback
Students noted that some of the reading material is UK-based, which creates challenges given the differences in terminology, and practices compared to the Australian context.
Recommendation
Future offerings should prioritise the inclusion of Australian-based reading materials to ensure alignment with local standards, terminology, and industry practices.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Student Feedback
Feedback
Students indicated that the criteria for the research assessments were not clear, making it difficult to determine exactly what content was required to meet the expectations and successfully pass.
Recommendation
Assessment criteria should be reviewed and refined to provide clearer guidance on expectations. Additional examples and explanatory notes should be considered to help students better understand the required content and standards for successful completion.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Student Feedback
Feedback
The unit is well-structured, and the content is clearly organised on Moodle. Learning resources are easy to access, logically sequenced, and support students in navigating the unit effectively, which enhances the overall learning experience.
Recommendation
The organisation of unit content on Moodle and the clarity of learning resources should be maintained. Future offerings should continue to ensure that materials are structured to support easy access and effective engagement with the content.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes
This information will not be available until 8 weeks before term.
To see Learning Outcomes from an earlier availability, please search via a previous term.