Course Coordinator:Dilber Kurtboke (ikurtbok@usc.edu.au) School:School of Science, Technology and Engineering
UniSC Sunshine CoastUniSC Moreton Bay |
Blended learning | Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online. |
Please go to unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
This course introduces you to the world of microbiology, the basis of higher life forms. You learn the fundamental theory and laboratory skills needed to understand microbial isolation, growth, diversity, reproduction, physiology, metabolism and identification. You also study the distribution of microorganisms in nature, their relationship to each other and to other living things as well as their beneficial and detrimental effects. Gain of ethics and laboratory skills is an essential component of the course as well as understanding the theory behind each experiment.
| Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
| Blended learning | |||
| Learning materials – Asynchronous learning materials | 1hr | Week 1 | 12 times |
| Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Online Tutorial/Workshop | 2hrs | Week 1 | 12 times |
| Laboratory 1 – On-campus Laboratory every fortnight | 3hrs | Week 2 | 6 times |
The Big Picture; Microbiology and its place in science and the world
Evolution of Earth and microorganisms
Detecting and isolating microorganisms
Microbial diversity, physiology, genetics and metabolism
Microbiological terminology and microbial systematics
Microbial interactions with higher organisms
Beneficial and detrimental effects of microorganisms
Laboratory skills, ethics, communication and professionalism
200 Level (Developing)
12 units
| Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... | Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming... | |
| 1 | Demonstrate and apply theoretical and foundational knowledge of microbiology and microorganisms | their occurrence, distribution, growth, life cycles, diversity, genetics, relationships and effects on humans, plants and animals |
Knowledgeable Empowered |
| 2 | Demonstrate knowledge and interpret and analyse data and other information related to identification of micro-organisms, their nutrition requirements and issues related to growth and control of microbial growth |
Empowered Ethical |
| 3 | Apply ethical codes of conduct to work safely while gaining laboratory skills and collecting data |
Knowledgeable Ethical |
| 4 | Communicate scientific findings in a laboratory report | Empowered |
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
SCI100 or SCI103 or LFS100 or LFS103
Not applicable
MEP263 or MBT263
Introductory laboratory skills and scientific report writing
Not applicable
Standard Grading (GRD)
| High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
The exam will take place in week 4 covering the first 3 weeks of learning material of the course, this early assessment item will prepare students to the mid-term exam. In addition, in the early stages of the trimester students will be provided additional information on the laboratory report writing
| Delivery mode | Task No. | Assessment Product | Individual or Group | Weighting % | What is the duration / length? | When should I submit? | Where should I submit it? |
| All | 1 | Quiz/zes | Individual | 5% | 1 hour |
Week 4 | Online Test (Quiz) |
| All | 2 | Examination - not Centrally Scheduled | Individual | 25% | 2 hours |
Week 7 | In Class |
| All | 3 | Practical / Laboratory Skills | Individual | 45% | a] 30 min online multiple-choice quizzes (20%) b] Laboratory report constructed in week 12 during the laboratory session (25%) (1.5hrs) |
Throughout teaching period (refer to Format) | In Class |
| All | 4 | Examination - Centrally Scheduled | Individual | 25% | 2 hours |
Exam Period | Online Test (Quiz) |
| All - Assessment Task 1:Early Assessment Quiz | |||||||
| Goal: | This task is designed to give you early feedback on foundational theoretical knowledge and to give you an early progress indication for the course.This quiz will help you in preparing for the mid-term exam and it will cover the first 3 weeks of learning materials of the course. |
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| Product: | Quiz/zes | ||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||
| Format: | Multiple choice questions covering the contents of the learning material from the weeks 1-3 |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Information literacy |
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| All - Assessment Task 2:Mid-term Exam | ||||||||||
| Goal: | You will demonstrate your understanding of the theoretical knowledge you gained related to the origin of microorganisms, their ecology, isolation and their laboratory growth as well as introduction to medical microbiology and microbial growth control. |
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| Product: | Examination - not Centrally Scheduled | |||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||
| Format: | In class written exam with multiple choice and short essay questions covering the contents of the learning material from the weeks 1-6. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Information literacy |
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| All - Assessment Task 3:Laboratory Portfolio | ||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | This assessment has been designed for you to specifically develop your competencies in the laboratory – which is an essential skill for Biomedical and Science students and related majors and minors that include microbiology and biotechnology as well as for students who will use laboratory components in their careers like school teachers. |
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| Product: | Practical / Laboratory Skills | |||||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||||||||
| Format: | Laboratory responses: a) Online laboratory quizzes: 30 min MCQ quizzes taking part after completion of each practical: weeks 4,6,8,10,12. Only students who actively participated in the laboratory activity can take these quizzes as a quiz cannot be taken in absentia, it is a skill based learning activity. Due to the resource issues catch ups cannot be provided for the missed lab sessions. b) Laboratory report: A report on practical number 3 (week 6), Part A (TESTING ANTIBACTERIAL MEDICINES) will be constructed in the final practical (week 12). Guidelines will be provided by the course coordinator. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation, Information literacy |
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| All - Assessment Task 4:Final Exam | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | Demonstrate and apply theoretical and foundational knowledge of microbiology and microorganisms taxonomy, diversity, metabolism, genetics, relationships and effects on humans, plants and animals |
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| Product: | Examination - Centrally Scheduled | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Format: | 2 hour online final exam covering the contents of the learning material from the weeks 7-12 |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication, Applying technologies, Information literacy |
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A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.
Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.
You need regular access to the resource(s) below. Many texts are available as ebooks through the Library at no additional cost.
| Required? | Author | Year | Title | Edition | Publisher |
| Required | Gerard J. Tortora, Berdell, R. Funke, Christine L. Case | 0 | MICROBIOLOGY | Latest Global Edition | Pearson Education Ltd. |
| Required | John Lammert | 0 | Techniques for Microbiology: A Student Handbook | Latest edition | Pearson Education Ltd. |
| Recommended | Michael T. Madigan,Kelly S. Bender,Daniel H. Buckley,W. Matthew Sattley,David A. Stahl | 2018 | Brock Biology of Microorganisms | Latest Global Edition | Pearson Higher Education |
| Recommended | James G. Cappuccino, Chad T. Welsh | 0 | Microbiology | Latest Edition | Pearson Education Ltd. |
Protective clothing for laboratory and strict adherence to the laboratory safety guidelines. Students fail to adhere the code or do not present a hard copy of their online laboratory safety quiz results in the first laboratory practical will not be admitted to the laboratory.
Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.
Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.
In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.
Eligibility for Supplementary Assessment
Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying:
(a) The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4%; and
(b) The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale
Late submissions may be penalised up to and including the following maximum percentage of the assessment task’s identified value, with weekdays and weekends included in the calculation of days late:
(a) One day: deduct 5%;
(b) Two days: deduct 10%;
(c) Three days: deduct 20%;
(d) Four days: deduct 40%;
(e) Five days: deduct 60%;
(f) Six days: deduct 80%;
(g) Seven days: A result of zero is awarded for the assessment task.
The following penalties will apply for a late submission for an online examination:
Less than 15 minutes: No penalty
From 15 minutes to 30 minutes: 20% penalty
More than 30 minutes: 100% penalty
For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:
For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching
UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.
For course-specific questions, contact your teaching staff or Course Coordinator.
For other enquiries or to access support, please contact Student Central: