This module continues the development of high quality field skills. These relate to the field identification of rock types; the distinction and recognition of adjacent rock units and their relationships; the quantitative measurement of bedding structures, and understanding the significance of their relationships; sedimentary and structural logging methods; an introduction to 1:10,000 geological and geomorphological mapping. Approaches to producing high quality reports based on field observations and interpretations are introduced. Fieldwork comprises 8 days in Semester 2 in SW Wales with a range of formative and summative assessment methods.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the module students should be able to:
To recognise and identify a variety of common rocks;
To recognise and interpret various kinds of geological contact;
To systematically record geological data in the field, using both notes and field sketches;
To work effectively in the field, with your own safety and that of your colleagues in mind;
To produce high quality field notes and reports based on personal observations and their interpretation;
To appreciate that observations made on the structures found in rocks can help understand their environment of formation, often by comparison with modern analogues.
Assessment: Submitted coursework from individual exercises including (1) Sedimentary logging exercise, (2) Geological Mapping exercise, and (3) Structural Geology exercise. After the fieldwork students will submit (4) a short (1 page A4) synthetic summary relating to a selected aspect of the trip, and (5) completed field notebook. The weighting of these remains flexible in response to changing fieldwork situations on fieldwork, but in general the longer time spent on an individual exercise the greater the weighting assigned.
Reassessment: Short replacement data analysis and literature-based tasks equivalent to 800 words each on: (1) geological mapping and cross section construction; (2) Structural geology data analysis and interpretation, (3) Sedimentary geology literature evaluation and synthesis, and (4) Geological history of an specified area.