UFA Geology classes at the University of Hull.

Tutor - Mike Horne.

Information for students about the geology courses:

Venue - indoor meetings are held in the Earth Science Teaching Laboratory in the Geography Department, Cohen, Building, University of Hull, Cottingham Road. This is on the Ground Floor in the southeastern corner of the building. The building is kept locked on an evening and weekends and there may not be a porter available to let you in. Please make an effort to arrive on time - I will ensure that the front door is 'manned' for the ten minutes before the start of the class. If you arrive late and the door is locked please walk around the building and knock on the window of the room and we will let you in.

Sometimes we will be in the small lecture theatre on the ground floor in the north eastern corner of the building.

There is no 'phone number for contacting the tutor and class in the Department.

Refreshments -a tea room in the building and we can use it. There is drinking water and a kettle - if you wish to make a hot drink then bring your own mug and tea/coffee/milk/sugar. The class may decide to have a break in the middle of the meeting. You should not eat and drink in the laboratory or lecture theatre. Smoking is not allowed anywhere in the building.

Meetings - course meetings are usually on Wednesdays from 7-30 pm until 9-30 pm. Courses usually run for ten consecutive weeks and we do not normally stop for half-term.

For security reasons the doors to the building are kept locked, so please arrive on time. If you arrive late please knock on the window and we will let you in.

Safety -

Fire Alarm - if you hear the fire alarm (it is loud!), leave the building immediately by the front door or back door. Do not go home, but assemble on the grassy space in front of the Postgraduate Centre (old boilerhouse) to the north of the Cohen Building - we will need to check that everyone has left the building safely and does not need rescuing!

If you have a disability and feel that you would have difficulty in exiting the building in an emergency then you must complete a form requesting a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan.

Handling specimens - some specimens are dangerous. Some minerals are poisonous, may be contaminated with biohazards or may be sharp. So handle all specimens with care and always wash your hands afterwards. Do not eat or drink in the laboratory. Read the risk assessment for laboratory classes.

Smoking is not permitted in any University building.

Centre for Lifelong Learning -

The Centre is on Salmon Grove, close to the main campus. The people there are very helpful and can provide you with information about other courses, the UFA, the library, the students Union, help with disabilities, etc.

Resources for geology classes -

Specimens in the Department - there is an excellent teaching collection that we can use. But treat specimens with care and ensure that they are returned to the correct drawer in their labeled specimen box.

Book box - there are books available for loan by students on the course, provided by CLL. All you have to do use fill in the card in the front of the book with your name and the date and leave the card in the envelope in the box. When you return the book write the return date on the card and put it back inside the book box. You can borrow and change the books at the meetings; please do not keep books for a long time without allowing others to borrow them. You will be invoiced for books that you do not return. Students cannot borrow books directly from CLL.

University Library - part-time students can borrow books form the Brynmor Jones Library. You will need to visit the CLL on Salmon Grove to get a library card. There is a good selection of books in the Library and I do urge you to make use of them.

Hull Geological Society - class members can attend the meetings of the Society.

Hull Central Library - there are geology books in the lending library and the reference library.

Hull Museums - there is a small display about local geology in the Hull and East Riding Museum.

Your own collection - you are welcome to bring in specimens that you have collected yourself to study in the practicals or show to fellow students and the tutor.

Fieldwork - some courses include fieldwork, on other courses a two hour fieldwork session could be used in place of one of the practicals if the students wish. Fieldwork dates are usually arranged with the agreement of the students, but may be around appropriate tides.

Home Experiment Kits - two of the courses have a collection of specimens in a box for the students to study at home. These specimens have been bought by the University, collected by the tutor or donated by friends and cannot be replaced - so please treat them with care.

The World Wide Web - here are huge amounts of geology on the Internet, so if you have access then have a search around or start from the tutor's links page.

The Tutor and fellow students - ask for help if you do not understand things. I am willing to help and answer questions (though to get hints about assessed work you will have to ask the right question!). If enough students have access to e-mail we may use that as a means of communication between sessions on fieldwork courses.

Equipment -

The following things would be useful for lab based classes - paper/notebook, pens, pencils, ruler, penknife, grain size chart, hand lens (or magnifying glass)

In addition for the Microfossils course - you will need a good quality fine ("00" or "000") artists paint brush, a bottle lid, and a picking tray (instructions will be given by tutor).

For fieldwork courses you will need appropriate outdoor clothing, hard hat, notebook, etc. Instructions will be given by the tutor and must be followed. You may borrow a hard hat from the University if you do not have your own, if you ask the tutor in advance..

Costs -

There are few extra costs for the courses. Transport for fieldwork courses is in students vehicles - we will make an effort to share lifts, so please offer to contribute towards the fuel costs. There will be some extra photocopying costs involved in the fieldwork techniques course so that students can share fieldwork data. You will have to buy a paintbrush and make a 'picking tray' for the microfossils course. If you borrow notes from the tutor or fellow students for sessions you miss you will have to pay for any photocopying involved.

For the fieldwork sessions we usually share lifts - if you accept a lift from a fellow student please offer to contribute to the fuel costs and any parking or toll fees.

If you miss a session -

Please try to let the tutor know if you are going to be on holiday or will miss a meeting for some other reason. This is very important for fieldwork courses so that the rest of the students are do not wait for you at the meeting point. You can also ask what you will be missing in case you want to do some background reading.

Some of the course notes are available on the world wide web <http://walk.to/zen>. Ask the tutor if there were any handouts. Ask fellow students if you can look at or copy the notes they made. A copy of the overheads from the session will probably be available for you to borrow, copy and return.

Taking notes -

Most indoor meetings will consist of about an hour of practical work and an hour of teaching. I tend to use an overhead projector (OHP) a lot, partly to remind me what to say and partly to pass on information to the class. This does not mean that I expect students to copy down everything displayed on the OHP word for word. Some things are important, in which case I will tell you and allow enough time for you to copy them. Mostly you will have to use your own judgment and decide what notes to take from what I am saying and what is on display. Learning how to take notes for yourself is an important skill; also in geology, drawing specimens and diagrams for yourself is a vital part of practical work. If there is something you do not understand then please ask. If you would like me to display an overhead again then please ask and I can show it during the practical session.

Nothing can substitute for your own note-taking and the part this plays in your learning. Tutors' handouts, books, fellow students' notes, etc. represent the information that someone else thinks is important - this is not the same as deciding what is important for yourself.

Jargon -

Scientists use scientific words (or jargon) to communicate with each other. This saves spending a lot of time having to describe things every time you want to talk about them - but it is also very effective at excluding people who do not understand the jargon. I try to use as little jargon as possible, but one aim of these courses is to help you understand the jargon that you will find in books. If there is something you do not understand then please ask me to explain it.

Study skills -

University of Hull Study Skills web-pages

Study skills for dyslexic part-time students.

updated 9/1/5