BI4ZEE1: "Seminars in Zoology, Ecology and Evolution"

Module code: BI4ZEE1

Module provider: School of Biological Sciences

Credits: 20

ECTS credits: 10

Level: 7

When you’ll be taught: Semester 1

Module convenor: Dr Louise Johnson, email: l.j.johnson@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2026/7

Available to visiting students: No

Talis reading list: No

Last updated: 25 March 2026

Overview

Module aims and purpose

This module will help you gain specialist knowledge in evolutionary biology, zoology and ecology, by attending seminars on recent research and by finding and studying relevant peer-reviewed literature. The assignments assess and develop skills in scientific writing and critical thinking. The module will expose you to new research ideas and techniques, and diverse presentation styles. You will gain experience in learning from the seminar format; develop communication skills; critically assess research and place studies in wider context; and synthesise information from multiple seminars to answer an essay question. You will also develop skills in literature searching and time management.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Describe a range of current research programmes in ecology, evolution and zoology, and identify the investigators leading these programmes of research.
2. Take informative notes during seminars and summarise them effectively.
3. Find publications relevant to presented research in the scientific literature and cite them appropriately.
4. Conduct background study through further reading of the primary literature to critically analyse research presented at seminars.
5. Critique the content of a research seminar, and assess the importance and relevance of its conclusions.
6. Synthesise information from multiple seminars to discuss a question about the process of scientific enquiry.

Module content

Students will attend research seminars presented by academic staff and early career researchers each of which will be followed by a class exercise, discussion or Q&A guided by the speaker or another academic. Students may also choose additionally to attend relevant research seminars that are part of Reading’s seminar series or elsewhere (e.g. seminars at NHM or Kew or online videos of scholarly conference talks).

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

Seminars on primary research in life science topics; guided study on statistics and experimental design; independent study to find and understand relevant primary and secondary scientific literature. Introductory lectures, and ongoing guidance where needed, will be provided by the module convenor.

Study hours

At least 20 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

The student must obtain an overall module mark of 50% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each calendar day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three calendar days;
• where the piece of work is submitted up to three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in you Individual Learning Plan), the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three calendar days of the deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three calendar days after the original deadline (or a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment indicated in your Individual Learning Plan): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

Where a piece of work is submitted late after a deadline which has been revised owing to an extension granted through the Assessment Adjustments policy and process (self-certified or otherwise), it will be subject to the maximum penalty (i.e., considered to be more than three calendar days late). This will also apply when such an extension is used in conjunction with a DAS-agreed extension as a reasonable adjustment.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

The discussion and Q&A sessions will provide multiple opportunities for students to gain ongoing informal formative feedback on their ideas.

Reassessment

Additional costs