General Faculty Policy on assessment submission deadlines and late submissions: 

Online quizzes, in-class activities, or scheduled tests and exam must be undertaken at the time indicated in the unit guide. Should these activities be missed due to illness or misadventure, students may apply for Special Consideration.

All other assessments must be submitted by 5:00 pm on their due date. Should these assessments be missed due to illness or misadventure, students should apply for Special Consideration.

Assessments not submitted by the due date will receive a mark of zero unless late submissions are specifically allowed as indicated in the unit guide or on iLearn.

If late submissions are permitted as indicated in the unit guide or on iLearn a consistent penalty will be applied for late submissions as follows: 

A 12-hour grace period will be given after which the following deductions will be applied to the awarded assessment mark: 12 to 24 hours late = 10% deduction; for each day thereafter, an additional 10% per day or part thereof will be applied until five days beyond the due date. After this time, a mark of zero (0) will be given. For example, an assessment worth 20% is due 5 pm on 1 January. Student A submits the assessment at 1 pm, 3 January. The assessment received a mark of 15/20. A 20% deduction is then applied to the mark of 15, resulting in the loss of three (3) marks. Student A is then awarded a final mark of 12/20.

Note: Late submissions will be accepted for all assessments in this unit with penalties. 

Extensions will be granted in cases of documented illness or extenuating circumstances, and when applied for BEFORE the assessment deadline. Applications for assessment extensions are now to be applied online via the student portal. Please follow the instructions outlined at https://students.mq.edu.au/study/my-study-program/special-consideration. Extension requests received via email or after the due date will not be processed.

Please be aware that there is a minimum processing time of 2 working days for all extension requests. If you submit your request on the due date of the assessment item, we cannot guarantee that you will receive a response by the assessment deadline. Where possible, please factor this in when submitting your extension application.

Submission of assignments and progress tasks 

All students are required to keep a backup of the submitted version of their assessments. 

Assignments should be in a MS Word or PDF file format. All maps and tables associated with the assignment must be incorporated in the MS Word document or PDF. 

Students are not permitted to email their assignments or submit them in a softcopy format. Assignments are to be submitted via the Turnitin/online link provided in iLearn by the date and time specified.

Return of marked assignments 

Your assignments will be returned via iLearn within two teaching weeks of the submission, and will include written feedback. 

ENVS2364 is an introductory course to Geographic Information Systems (GIS). It provides students with a comprehensive introduction to geospatial technologies, including GIS, Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and Remote Sensing. Students will learn core concepts and principles of GIS, and develop technical skills in data acquisition and management, mapping, spatial sampling and analysis. Students are trained using the latest commercial geospatial softwares.

ENVS2364 lectures cover a range of topics which are key to one becoming competent in Geographic Information Science. These include a background on how the shape of the earth impacts on mapping, also referred to as coordinate systems and map projections, creating and collecting GIS data, spatial analysis using different GIS data types, the art of map making, remote sensing and working with three-dimensional features or data. The practical classes are designed to expose students practice and apply standard GIS concepts and techniques to a range of disciplines, including environmental science and management, physical and human geography, urban planning, biodiversity conservation, archaeology, health, business, and marketing.

Delivery 

This unit is offered in weekday attendance and fully online modes.

Off-shore students

Off-shore students must email the convenor as soon as possible to discuss study options.

COVID Information and on-campus classes

On-campus teaching continues to be scheduled for Session 1, 2022. Masks are compulsory for all classes in indoor spaces and social distancing will be implemented wherever possible. Students will also be required to sanitise surfaces before and after use.

Students are requested to minimise the risk of spreading COVID to themselves and others in accordance with the university and NSW Health guidelines: https://www.mq.edu.au/about/coronavirus-faqs andhttps://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/stay-safe.

Any further requirements or changes to units in relation to COVID will be communicated to students via iLearn.

Lecture program and location 

There is one 1 hour lecture per week. Please check lecture times at the Macquarie University timetables website (www.timetables.mq.edu.au). Lectures are recorded and posted on the iLearn via Echo360. Students are expected to attend lectures virtually/online via the links provided on the iLearn. Lecture recordings will also be made available on the iLearn. 

Practical program and location 

Weekday attendance: Students are enrolled to one 3 hour practical class per week. Please check practical times and rooms at the Macquarie University timetables website (www.timetables.mq.e du.au). Practical class sizes are limited by the number of available computers. You must use the online enrolment system to change the time/day of your practical class. Practical classes begin in Week 1.

Fully online attendance: You must have a home computer with a Windows operating system (Windows 7 or above). Please note that ArcGIS software is NOT supported by Mac or Linux operating systems. Also, we don't provide IT support for installation to Mac or Linux platforms. A copy of the ArcGIS software will be provided to external students. You must install this software on your computer. Internal students may also request a copy of the software and license to install to their personal computers. ArcGIS can also be accessed remotely on Appstream platform. More information on accessing GIS software on Appstream platform is provided on the iLearn.

Requirements to complete this unit satisfactorily 

1. Attend online lectures and face to face/online practical classes;

2. Complete all assignments and the final exam; and

3. Acquire a pass grade or above. 

Grades for the unit as a whole will be awarded according to the following general criteria (course rubric): 

	Developing	Functional	Proficient	Advanced
General description of the level of attainment	Has not yet reached the desired standard. Limited understanding of required concepts and knowledge.  A fail grade (or under some circumstances a conceded pass) would be given	Has reached basic academic standards. Work has limited translation of concepts and procedures to new contexts unless aided.  A pass grade would be awarded	Has completely reached the standards expected. Can work independently in new contexts, adapting procedures to meet the context. Demonstrates awareness of own limitations.  A credit grade would be awarded.	Has gone beyond the expected standards. Exhibits high levels of independence and can use concepts to generate new ways of completing procedures. Can engage in critical reflection.  A grade of distinction or high distinction would be awarded.

Resources 

Technology used 

This unit will use the online platform of Echo360 and iLearn, ArcGIS, Google Earth, MS Excel software, GPS, and online resources for the practical exercises. Other ESRI software and open source GIS software may also be used.

You will require access to a computer and broadband internet to complete this unit. The library computers and computer labs are available for casual use outside scheduled practical classes. 

Internal students who have a home computer with a Windows operating system may obtain a copy of the ArcGIS software from the unit convenor. The ArcGIS software is NOT supported by Mac or Linux operating systems. It is not essential for weekday students to have ArcGIS installed on their home computer as the computers in the computer labs are available for casual use outside scheduled practical classes. However, students registered as fully online must have ArcGIS installed on their home computer. We are also trialing the remote access of ArcGIS by external students via Appstream. More information will be provided regarding this service.

Unit web page 

This unit’s webpage will be available on iLearn. Information about how students can access iLearn can be found at: http://www.mq.edu.au/iLearn/student_info/index.htm

The iLearn page uses Macquarie University’s standard interface and has links, access to lectures (as audio files through Echo360, and as downloadable PDF presentations) and practical instructions. Important announcements will be made through iLearn, so check the ENVS2364 page regularly. 

Information about how to access lecture recordings through the Echo360 EchoCenter page in iLearn can be found at: http://mq.edu.au/iLearn/student_info/lecture_recordings.htm

Recommended texts/materials 

Highly recommend a fast USB Flash Storage Drive (4GB is adequate) for GIS Practicals; if your computer supports USB3 then I would further suggest a USB3 storage drive as the GIS Lab PC's support USB3. 

Access to required and recommended resources, plus past central exam papers, is available at the Macquarie Library website (https://www.mq.edu.au/about/campus-services-and-facilities/library/multi-search/multisearch).

GIS Desktop Software. The University has a site license for ESRI's ArcGIS (www.arcgis.com) which may be installed on a Windows PC with reasonable specs (i.e. 4GB RAM and 2.2 GHz CPU). 

Chang, K. 2008. Introduction to geographic information systems. McGraw Hill, New York.

Jensen J. & Jensen R. (2012) Introductory Geographic Information Systems, Pearson Higher Ed. 

Longley, P., Goodchild, et al. (2005) Geographical Information Systems and Science.

Burrough PA, McDonnell RA, and Lloyd C. 2015. Principles of Geographic Information Systems. Oxford University Press, UK. 

Huisman O, de By RA (Eds). Principles of Geographic Information Systems: An Introductory Text Book: Available online at:https://www.itc.nl/library/papers_2009/general/PrinciplesGIS.pdf 

The Khan Academy has many short instructional videos on a range of topics; the statistics (Maths) and SQL (Computing, Programming) provide background learning relevant to GIS.

http://www.khanacademy.org

Week	Description	Practical
1	Introduction to Geographic Information Science: what is GIS, what is it used for?	Assignment 1
2	Types of GIS data: Vector and Raster data	Assignment 1
3	Planet Earth is not, in fact, perfectly round: Coordinate systems and map projections	Assignment 2
4	Spatial Analyses using Vector data	Assignment 2
5	Spatial Analyses using Raster data	Assignment 2
6	Capturing physical features on earth surface using GIS	Assignment 2
7	GIS applications and career in GIS	Assignment 2
	Semester Break
8	Starting a GIS Project: Data Flow Diagrams, ModelBuilder & Spatial analyses with ArcGIS Pro	Assignment 3
9	Remote Sensing: Surface elevation and Terrain products, raster and TIN, 3D	Assignment 3
10	Remote Sensing of the Environment	Assignment 3
11	Application of GIS for environmental solutions	Assignment 3
12	Application of GIS for environmental solutions	Assignment 3
13	Unit summary	No practical

Course Changes as informed by Previous Student Feedback 

Geo-scripting using R software in Weeks 11 & 12 has been replaced with case study on solving GIS problems.