Dr. Mark C Gardener
Open University Associate Lecturer: S216 Environmental Science and U316 The Environmental Web
Mark's Open University Student Page
Welcome:
If you are reading this then the chances are that you have been allocated me as your tutor for S216. I have written this as a form of introduction and to give you a bit of background information about me. The Open University sends me very little information about you, generally name and address and scant details of past courses are all I get. So please drop me a note and tell me a little bit about yourself.
Link to my research page.
Link to the Open University Science pages.
See my Amazon Author Profile
Visit my Publications page
My Publishers:
A bit about me:
I started out as an Optician - trained in Bristol and the West Country - and had a variety of jobs in that industry. I was a Dispensing Optician and Practice Manager for many years before becoming a Contact Lens Consultant. I have also done stints as a sales rep and technician.
Then I decided upon a career change and began study with the Open University. I ended up with a degree in Biological Sciences and studied: S102 Science Foundation; S203 Biology: Form and Function; S236 Geology; S330 Oceanography; S327 Living Processes; S324 Animal Physiology; S365 Evolution and S328 Ecology. After that I worked in Conservation for a while as a Ranger for the London Borough of Sutton.
In 1999 I began a PhD at Walton Hall. I worked with Mike Gillman and Jonathan Silvertown. My research was entitled "The Role of Amino Acids in Floral Nectar". This involved looking at the composition of nectar from many species of plant as well as examining the responses of some animal species to differing nectar types. See My Research Page for more details. I have worked in many habitats in the UK as well as abroad. I have studied in the US and Australia. Most recently I worked on the pollination of some endangered plants in Hawaii.
Since returning to the UK I have been teaching with the Open University, as an Associate Lecturer (currently only S216, Environmental Science) and also at Residential Schools. I used to teach on S328 (Ecology) and U316 (The Environmental Web). I also teach data analysis for conservation biologists and am currently writing textbooks in ecology and statistics.
Statistics for Ecologists is available now from Pelagic Publishing.
Beginning R will be available wherever great books are sold in June 2012. Vist Wrox the publisher or see the entry on Amazon.co.uk.
I have more projects in hand - visit my Publications page from time to time.
The Field Studies Council promotes "environmental understanding for all" at its Field Centres.
Link to information on all Open University Residential Schools.
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Students at Nettlecombe, Field Centre, Somerset (during the S328 course).
There's nothing like doing practical science to aid your understanding of it. The Open University has been running residential schools in collaboration with the FSC for over 20 years. I have been involved for a bit less than that but have still seen hundreds of students peering into quadrats and trays of freshwater invertebrates.
The course mentioned below is now not running; I will post details about the replacement soon.
The SXR216 residential school is separate from the S216 course although it is closely linked to it. The emphasis is on practical methods; you will get to look at water flow, vegetation types, soil and landforms. At the end of the week you get to have a go a a small project in small groups. Many students find that the time they spend on this week helps enormously with their own environmental investigation as well as helping to consolidate understanding of S216. So, if you haven't booked yet, what are you waiting for? Book here.
My phone number is: 01 271 858751
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eTMAs must go to the OU via the eTMA system on your StudentHome page (you will need to login).
Make sure documents are in .doc format (or .xls), which is Word 97/XP type.
Assignments:
Most assignments now are delivered via the OU eTMA system. You need to save files in DOC format (that is XP/97 format) as the newer versions of Microsoft Office are not compatible with the old versions! As of 2011 I believe that the system will refuse to accept DOCX files but it is still possible that the odd one will slip through. You can easily set the default for Word and Excel to save files in the olde format. Click on the Office button at the top left of the program then select Options. You can then change the default. Of course if you want to save a file in the new format you can still do so from the save options but altering the default saves last moment hitches!
If you do not have Microsoft Office then the Open Office program is a good alternative. This will save files in DOC or XLS format and works fine. You can go the the options and set the default to Office XP/97 format quite easily and then know that your files will be readable!
When the course is up and running you will have the opportunity to send a "test" TMA using the system. This is labelled TMA00. I will login from time to time and if I see any test TMAs I'll collect them and have a look. I will return them in the usual way and you will see the result. This will permit both of us to test that the system is working! If there are any problems then don't hesitate to contact me - is a good method.
Mistakes/queries:
Of course I never make mistakes <ahem> but if you do have a query then please do not hesitate to contact me - is good. If something needs to be altered then you can send the assignment back to me and I will look at it again, no problem.
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Contact:
I am here to help! So, if you have a query then get in touch, is good as I am often teaching in the field and will be able to answer email sometime or other. It's a good idea to prefix the message title with your course code (makes it easier for me to prioritize). If that's not okay then give me a ring.
S216: It's a requirement of the course to have a computer and internet access. The OU provides all students with an email address that can be accessed via the First Class conferencing system. You can arrange for the messages to be forwarded to your 'regular' email account (very handy). There are a number of conferences set-up for S216 so go and have a look a them. If you are not already using First Class then contact the OU and get it sorted out! On your FC desktop there ought to be a 'special' conference for our Tutor Group - I will put messages in there from time to time so keep an eye on that.
Tutorials:
As soon as I have tutorial details I will post them here - check the dates carefully as last year's may still be listed!
The number of tutorials varies between courses. You should have been sent details of tutorials by the OU when they sent your tutor details out. However, here is a list of my tutorials. Anyone from other tutor groups/regions is welcome to attend. find details of the venue from your studenthome page (in the region section?).
S216 Region 13 South East
All tutorials are at Coulsdon Sixth Form College. Check back here and the Tutor Group Forum every once in a while because the dates and even the venue can change!
Saturday, Mar. 24th, 2012 10am - 12pm
Field trip, Saturday June 9th 2012 10am - 2pm (at Buchan Park, Crawley).
Saturday, Sep. 22nd, 2012 10am - 12pm (Revision Tutorial)
Online activities:
S216 has a number of online activities. This is new since 2008.. You will find a link to your Tutor Group forum on the S216 website (it will appear late Jan). This is for the use of you and your tutor and the rest of the students in the tutor group (as the name implies). You can use this to introduce yourselves to me and each other (please); a little bit about who you are, what you've done in the past in the way of study and what you hope to get out of S216 would be handy. Your geographical location would be nice too. If you want to give out your address, phone number or whatever then feel free. The information will be seen only by me and the others of our tutor group.The TG forum will be used to introduce the online activities and to disseminate information/data and so on.
Field trips:
S216 has a field-trip allocated. The date will be Saturday 9th June 2011 at 10am (until 2pm). Since my tutorial venue changed in 2009 (to make it more central for students in the region) I have a new site. I will use Buchan Country Park, which is close to Crawley. I have a new tutorial venue in South London from 2010 but decided that Crawley is easy enough to get to for everyone and a lot easier than me trying to find and check out a new venue.
I usually focus on ideas for projects. Due to Health and Safety reasons the OU requires participants to sign a waiver form. The regional office like this to be done in advance but that is not always easy to accomplish. I usually send forms to all students in my tutor group with their TMA01 so please return this asap. I will post a form on the First Class conference that can be printed and posted to me please (but here is a link to a Word file now). I will have some spares on the day but it would be nice to have all the forms back in advance if possible. The trip is open to other students so I will 'advertize' as appropriate (on First Class). However, it's not really suitable for partners, kids, dogs etc. (as they are not students).
This is where you get to collect some data for yourself and carry out a small investigation.
Click here to get help with choosing which stats test to use.
If you are doing S216 then you may decide to use secondary data, e.g. from the internet.
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Your Project/Investigation:
During your study of S216 you will carry out a small project or investigation. Most students find this part the most rewarding element of the course as it allows you the freedom to do whatever you want (more or less)! I encourage everyone to think about their project as soon as possible, contact me with a few vague thoughts and we'll soon have you up to speed. I'd like to stress that this is supposed to be a small investigation. We are not after a major thesis here. If you are going to collect data from the field then aim for a solid 'day' out: 6 to 8 hrs is plenty. There are word limits (1500 words for S216). This project is also supposed to be 'fun' so don't get too worked up about it. Often the hardest part is deciding what to do - the world is your lobster so you will need to focus a little. I am here to help so please do contact me with your preliminary thoughts. As you progress through the course things will become easier. Selecting which statistical test to use is something you should plan right from the outset.
Deciding how you are going to analyze your data is important and should be part of the planning process. I will help you with that aspect of your project but there are materials sent out to you that will guide you. The old S328 course used the OU Project Guide and this may still be obtained from the FSC. For S216 we expect a smaller range of statistical tests and you will be sent information about these with your course materials.
S216: In this course you collect some environmental data for a small investigation. Unlike the old S328 course the data does not have to be your own - you can use information from the internet for example as secondary data. There are 2 main TMAs associated with this (in TMA03 you are asked to say what you are going to do, there are no marks for this and I'd hope to know from you already), in TMA04 you give a bit of an outline of what you are going to do (this is rather less formal than the 'pilot' in S328), this is just one part of the TMA. The main write-up comes in TMA05 when you present your findings. The format is broadly like a scientific paper.
Course Links:
These might be a bit out of date!
For general information about S216 Environmental Science
For general information about U316 The Environmental Web.
For general information about SXR216 Environmental Science in the Field
U316 Course Website (you will need to login)
S216 Course Desktop (you will need to login)
SXR216 Course Website (you will need to login)
Information on all Open University Residential Schools
Book a place on SXR216 Environmental Science in the Field