SOIL 520: Agricultural Watershed Management Course
This course runs from:
September 2012 to December 2012
Course Overview | Course Prerequisites | Course Requirements and Grading | Certificate Program | Information Access | Instructional Team | Registration
Course Overview
This web-based distance learning course offers a comprehensive approach to water and international development. It is intended for community leaders, professionals and graduate students interested in integrated water resource management and international / rural development. It is offered as a distributed learning course using a multi-media web textbook which contains the course material, and WebCT-Vista for class discussions, updates and assignments. The course is equivalent to a 3-credit graduate level course and students can register for UBC academic credit as SOIL 518, on a professional development basis, or for credit towards the UBC Watershed Management Certificate program.
Course Prerequisites
A Bachelor’s degree in a related field, such as environmental sciences, engineering, planning, geography or biology is recommended. Academic or professional experience related to land and water resource management in an urban context is desirable.
Course Requirements and Graded Assignments
This is a distributed learning course and the students are expected to read all the material in the electronic text book (See Lesson Plan). There are two written assignments, required participation in discussions over the internet, and a final examination.
| Component | Grading |
|---|---|
| Assignment #1: Term paper | 25% of final mark |
| Assignment #2: Term paper | 25% of final mark |
| Final Examination | 40% of final mark |
| Course Participation | 10% of final mark |
Questions will be posted on the bulletin board every month and we expect the students to take an active role and respond to each question on a regular basis (within 2-3 weeks). All responses will be posted on WebCT Vista and all participants can read and respond to the contributions.
All assignments will be marked using the UBC % scale. Dr. Hans Schreier and Dr. Sandra Brown will review and mark the assignments. Final Mark for UBC graduate credit, professional credit or certificate = 3 credits.
Relation to the Watershed Management Certificate Program?
The Faculty of Land & Food Systems also offers other distance-learning courses in Watershed Management. These include: Integrated Watershed Management, Urban Watershed Management, and Agricultural Watershed Management. Together these courses cover most aspects of water management and land use impacts on water.
Those with limited knowledge are encouraged to first take the Integrated Watershed Management course, which is an introduction to the topic. The Urban Watershed course focuses on urban issues and the role of community groups and local government, while the Agricultural Watershed course covers all aspects of water use and pollution in agriculture. For more information on the Certificate Program, please visit: http://landfood.ubc.ca/courses/soil/wmcertificate/
Information Access
The classroom is open 24 hours per day but access to the Discussion Board (via WebCT Vista) is restricted. Each professional will receive a Campus Wide Login name to access the discussion board on WebCT Vista to post information and to participate in the discussions. UBC students can use their existing CWL accounts to login. Every week we will post new information on the discussion board and/or the website and you should access the classroom at least once a week to get the full benefit of the course. We will also post selective websites weekly that provide new and exciting information covering general aspects of watershed management and specific information on the topic to be covered that week. Announcements will be posted frequently as well - check that section of WebCT Vista often.
Instructional Team
Dr. Sandra Brown
Prof. Hans Schreier
Registration Information
Please contact the Watershed Management Program Coordinator at hans.schreier@ubc.ca or 604-822-4401.