The Life Sciences BSc is largely co-taught with students on the Biomedical Sciences BSc (Hons), , Environmental Sciences BSc (Hons), Psychology BSc (Hons), Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences BSc (Hons) and Computer Sciences BSc (Hons). There is one module on Bioinformatics in R which will be delivered online.
For students studying and being assessed with Biomedical Sciences BSc (Hons) students:
Teaching provision:
Teaching in the Biomedical Sciences BSc will be delivered with a combination of high-quality material provided online (asynchronous), interactive on-line ‘live’ sessions (synchronous) and in-person teaching delivered on campus.
On a typical week, students will have in-person, on campus teaching sessions on two days. These on-campus sessions will be a combination of lectures, seminars, tutorials and lab-based practical classes. For practical classes, students will be allocated a specific day and time to attend. For lectures, seminars and tutorials, students will have the opportunity to book a place in the session in advance.
On the remaining days, students will have timetabled online ‘live’ sessions and self-directed learning periods, where they will be required to engage with asynchronous teaching materials. These teaching materials will be provided to students at the start of each week in the form of pre-recorded short videos, podcasts, narrated lecture recordings, reading material and online interactive resources. Also, students will often be given tasks and formative activities to aid their learning. All this material will allow students to engage in guided and well-structured self-directed learning remotely and in their own time.
Practical classes:
Practical skills will be taught using a combination of online resources, video demonstrations, online exercises and lab-based practical work (in-person and on campus) throughout term 1 and term 2. It is expected that students will have a minimum of 4 practical classes in term 1 and 2 practical classes in term 2, provided government restrictions allow it.
In the case of another lockdown, we may repeat the practical sessions towards the end of term 2 and term 3 to ensure all students have the opportunity to attend them. We will offer catch-up sessions in week 0 of the 2022/23 academic year. if practical sessions are severely disrupted.
Assessment:
The format and online submission of coursework assessments, such as essays, journal articles, case reports and reflections will remain unchanged. The schedule of these will be communicated to students at the start of the academic year and lecturers will provide guidance on how they will work in their sessions. All exams will be taken on campus, via WISEflow or Blackboard, our digital assessment platforms.
Assessments involving face-to-face presentations, (e.g. oral abstract-style or poster presentations individually or in groups) will take place in-person, on campus. These assessments will be scheduled and communicated to students at the start of the academic year.
All teaching blocks will also include opportunities for formative, self- and peer-assessment. These will offer students and staff the opportunity to monitor students’ learning and provide extra support if necessary.
For students studying and being assessed with Computer Sciences BSc (Hons) students:
COVID-related constraints permitting, as a broad guidance the Department aims to deliver up to 50% of teaching sessions (e.g. lectures, labs, seminars, tutorials) in-person across the programmes. The Department may seek to offer more than 50% of sessions in-person where restrictions allow. Priority may be given to the delivery of in-person lab-based sessions, given the nature of the subject area. Timetabled teaching sessions that are not delivered in-person on campus would normally be delivered synchronously online, or exceptionally asynchronously online. The balance between class types (e.g. lectures, labs, seminars, tutorials) is expected to remain unchanged.
As would normally be the case, the aim is to provide learning resources such as lecture slides, live lectures and lecture recordings (where provided) through the university’s virtual learning environment/s. Any in-person teaching will be delivered on the Uxbridge Campus and in accordance with government and university guidelines that apply at the time.
There are no planned changes to assessment. With the exception of vivas and presentations, all of the department’s coursework and examinations are assessed using a digital platform and this will continue. If vivas and presentations cannot be held in-person on campus, they will be undertaken online.
For students studying and being assessed with Environmental Sciences BSc (Hons) students:
All of the curriculum that the Life Sciences BSc students take with the Environmental Sciences BSc (Hons) students will be taught on-campus (typically over three days per week). On-campus teaching may include lectures, seminars and workshops. Where teaching takes place on-campus, asynchronous viewing and/or reading materials will also be provided. Some lectures may be broadcast live online, but most classroom teaching will not be replicated directly online
At Level 6 all of the curriculum that the Life Sciences BSc student take with the Environmental Sciences BSc (Hons) students will be taught on-campus (typically over two days per week). On-campus teaching may include lectures, seminars, and workshops. At Level 6, there will not be laboratory practical sessions, unless these are part of your Final Year Project. The Final Year Project runs throughout Term 1 and Term 2. Data collection may take place on-campus or off-campus, depending on the chosen project. Supervisory meetings will take place either on-campus, online, or both, depending upon the nature of the project being undertaken. In Term 2, all module-based teaching will take place on-campus.
For all students at Level 5 and Level 6, assessment will take place online, with all coursework and exams being submitted digitally. Exams will be open-book (not invigilated) and can be taken from home, or at a computer on campus if you prefer. The one exception to this will be the field course notebook and journal that will be submitted as a hard-copy. In some weeks of term assessment will be the sole focus of student time, allowing students to focus on their assessment without having teaching concurrently.
Student support will take place on-campus and online. Academic staff leading your modules and your Personal Tutor will be available for 1:1 and group meetings either on-campus or online.
Where possible, all learning resources will be provided digitally but some textbooks may be available in hard-copy only via the Brunel University Library.
For students studying and being assessed with Psychology BSc (Hons) students:
The balance between ‘scheduled contact hours’ and ‘independent study’ remains the same, and accordance to the Block Outlines.
Teaching includes lectures, seminars, workshops (includes team-based learning), practicals, computer labs, and tutorials. The aim is to have a blended approach to teaching and learning across all levels/years.
Asynchronous (online) Teaching
High quality asynchronous (online) material will be provided to students to support their learning and their engagement with the live (online or in-person/on-campus) teaching sessions. This material includes:
• There is a set reading each week, as provided in the Talis Aspire reading list (e.g. journal articles, e-books etc.).
Additional digital resources for study blocks/modular blocks are provided on Blackboard Learn (e.g. didactic short videos, TED talks, YouTube videos, web-links, discussion forums, quizzes, etc.) to support student teaching and learning.
• Some study blocks/modular blocks may include asynchronos (online) tutorials to further support students in their learning – these will be ‘how-to’/’step-by-step’ recordings.
Live (synchronous) Online Lectures
• When a big cohort is involved (100+), live (synchronous) online lectures will be used to teach lecture material accompanied by lecture slides (where applicable) and will take place on a weekly basis. Lectures normally take place before any relevant in-person, on-campus seminar(s), workshop(s), practical(s), computer lab(s).
In-person on-campus Lectures/Seminars/Workshops/Practicals/Computer Labs
• When a small cohort is involved (30 or less), in-person, on-campus lectures will be used – if safe and with appropriate social distancing – to teach lecture material accompanied by lecture slides (where applicable) and will take place on a weekly basis. Lectures normally take place before any relevant in-person, on-campus seminar(s), workshop(s), practical(s), computer lab(s).
• For each study block/modular block, there is a variety of interactive activities designed to complement the lecture and to put the learning into practice. Each block will have a combination of in-person, on-campus activities such as seminars, workshops, practicals, computer labs, quizzes, Q&As with opportunity for students to interact with their peers and lecturer(s) – if safe and with appropriate social distancing. The cohort will be divided into smaller groups where appropriate.
Other Support/Resources
• Tutoring and Pastoral Care – Personal Tutors will hold weekly tutoring hours (one hour/week) for tutees who have questions or would like to discuss issues/concerns and seek pastoral care. Students who are unable to attend these set tutoring hours can contact their Personal Tutor to make an appointment outside of these set hours. This appointment can take place online or in person/on campus (if safe and with appropriate social distancing).
• Feedback and Consultation Hours – Academic staff will hold weekly Consultation and Feedback hours (two hours/week) where they will be available for students who have questions or would like feedback. Students who are unable to attend these set Consultation and Feedback hours can contact the academic member of staff to make an appointment outside of these set hours. This appointment can take place online or in person/on campus (if safe and with appropriate social distancing).
• Students with Additional Needs – Recordings will include captions; this applies to materials created by the lecturer(s). This may not be possible for other recorded material (e.g. TED talks, YouTube videos), but we will endeavour to provide captions whenever possible. Live (synchronous) online sessions will use platforms which allow for live captions.
Assessment – Level 5/Year 2 and Level 6/Year 3
• There are no changes to coursework assessments. Examinations will be in person on campus using WISEflow,
PY3600/PS33001 Dissertation
• If face-to-face research with human participants is not permitted, all empirical projects will be carried out without such contact. A wide range of options are available including remote research with human participants such as online survey studies (using Qualtrics) or online experiments (using Testable), and also meta-analyses, secondary data analyses, etc. In a typical year, a large proportion of UG projects are already carried out without face-to-face contact with human participants – so we have a lot of experience in this area.
• There will be a programme of regular lectures, briefings and workshops running from Week 1 until Week 25 (three weeks before submission date), following the guidelines above. These will cover a range of topics including project planning, research methods, research ethics, data analysis, and dissertation writing.
• Dissertation supervisors will hold regular group/individual supervision meetings with groups of their dissertation students. These meetings can take place online or in person/on campus (if safe and with appropriate social distancing).
For students studying and being assessed with Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences BSc (Hons) students:
Teaching will combine in-person activities with sessions delivered online. In-person teaching will consist, amongst others, of: interactive lectures, small classes tutorials, seminars, workshops and lab-based practical sessions. All in-person sessions will take place on the Brunel University London campus, in Uxbridge.
Online activities will consist of synchronous (e.g. live lectures, tutorials, seminars) and asynchronous activities (e.g. pre-recorded lectures, virtual labs, online quizzes).
Asynchronous online Lectures/seminars/tutorial/practical
Asynchronous activities offered online will vary across modules, depending on intended learning outcomes. When a high percentage of online content is delivered through asynchronous methods (such as pre-recorded videos), follow-up interactive activities (e.g. discussion forums, application exercises, collaborative tasks) will be planned to support student learning.
Synchronously online Lectures/seminars/tutorial/practical
The amount of synchronous activity will vary across modules, depending on intended learning outcomes. In some modules, up to 100% of online activities will be delivered synchronously. Where appropriate, synchronous sessions will be recorded and uploaded to our virtual learning environment platform (i.e. BlackBoard Learn), so that student can access the content in their own time.
In-person on campus Lectures/seminars/tutorial/practical
For modules taught by the Division of Sport, Health and Exercise Sciences, students will typically have in-person, on-campus teaching sessions on one to three days a week. These on-campus sessions will include a combination of lecturers, seminars, tutorials and lab-based practical classes. For lectures, seminars, and laboratory session, where possible, students will have the opportunity to choose in advance, to attend in-person on campus classes or select an on-line alternative; selection to attend in-person on-campus classes may however, be on a first come, first serve basis. (Note. Laboratory-based practical sessions are best delivered in-person).
Depending on circumstances, in person laboratory skills classes for
SP2605 ‘Physiology of Sport and Exercise’, SP2604 ‘Biomechanics of Human Movement’ and SP3701 ‘Biomechanics Analysis Techniques’ may be moved to Term 3.
SP2609 ‘Social Issues in Sport’ will run over both terms to allow the Media Training Centre to support students with their film editing.
SP3721 ‘Media, Sport and Communication’ will run in Term 1 only.
Throughout the week, students will also have timetabled online ‘live’ sessions and self-directed learning periods, where they will be required to engage with asynchronous teaching materials.
To promote active learning, communication and team collaboration, regular team-based activities will take place primarily on campus although online alternatives may be available for those who cannot attend on campus.
Support/resources
Recorded synchronous and asynchronous sessions, as well as other teaching resources (incl. e-textbook chapters, articles, podcasts, video, online quizzes, etc.) will be available online (on BlackBoard Learn) prior to and/or following timetabled sessions. Post-session recording availability will depend on the nature of the taught content and the tasks set within the sessions.
For academic guidance and pastoral care, timetabled individual and small group tutorials will be delivered through a mix of in-person on campus and online sessions delivered by Personal Tutors.
During term time, all SHES lecturers will be available for in-person or online one-to-one meetings during their weekly ‘Consultation and Feedback Hours’.
Assessment
No changes to assessment have been made. Examinations will be taken on campus during the winter and the summer examination periods. Assessed oral presentations will take place either on campus (for SP3813 ‘Human Performance Synoptic’) or using an online platform (for SP2720 ‘Developing Research Methods and Data Analysis Skills ’and SP2602 ‘The Psychology of Sport, Exercise and Physical Activity: Theory and Application’). For those students who are unable to attend on campus presentations due to COVID-19 movement restrictions, online presentations will be available.