The document outlines a research assignment focused on marine plastics pollution, requiring students to summarize peer-reviewed literature and compile an annotated bibliography. Students must evaluate significant issues related to human interactions with the ocean, emphasizing the physical and biological features influencing pollution. The assignment includes a 500-word summary per case study and mandates the use of five peer-reviewed sources with concise annotations that highlight the paper's importance.

1. Learning Outcome
Characterise the interactive relationships between the physical and biological nature of the ocean
and humanity.
Assessment task #1 (25%)
Ocean research summary and annotated bibliography
Research peer-reviewed literature (including textbooks and reference books) on the issue of marine
plastics pollution . Coherently summarise your research and information gained in relation to marine
plastics pollution. Evaluate your information to identify the most important issue(s) relating to the
case study and the most important feature(s) of the physical and biological nature of the ocean
which affect this issue. Demonstrate your capacity to identify peer-reviewed and relevant sources of
information by compiling an annotated bibliography in support of your summary document that
synthesises the information gained from your research in the context of information formally
presented in classes. This background assignment will be help you relate human interaction(s) with
the ocean to identify potential and actual pollution issues that arise.
One page per case study summary (500 words ± 50) in your own words. The word limit excludes
references.
Five references to support each case study. Each reference is to have an annotation (written in your
own words) that succinctly describes the paper and its importance in NO MORE than 100 words.
References are to be peer-reviewed or from other objectively reliable sources (such as government
and university websites, textbooks) and to be fully and correctly detailed in the reference list (the
annotated bibliography).
AIMS FOR THIS ASSIGNMENT:
1. Students will summarise and collate information and then identify, with evidence, what
is/are the most important issue(s) relevant to the case studies and the most important
biological and/or physical feature of the ocean which influences the issue(s) identified. This
should be the focus of the 500 word summary and when you critically evaluate the source,
then the connection to your knowledge of oceanography is one thing that I will particularly
assess.
2. Students will prepare a concise (note the word limit) annotated bibliography of the
references used in the summary.
CRITERIA
1. Access, collate and evaluate information on a human activity in the ocean and the physical
and biological nature of the ocean as it pertains to the specified human activity.
2. Synthesise the most important factors of the human activity and the most relevant features
of the ocean that affect the human activity in a concise, referenced summary that
characterises the interactive relationship of the ocean and the activity.
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2. Name: Annotated Bibliography and Summary
criteria HD (High distinction) DN (distinction) CR (Credit) PP (passing grade) NN (fail)
In this task you:
1. Bibliography
Access, collate and evaluate
information on a human
activity in the ocean and the
physical and biological nature
of the ocean as it pertains to
the specified human activity.
50%
Wrote the annotations and the summary synthesis in your words.
Provided > 5 sources of relevant
scholarly literature, mostly of
peer reviewed primary
literature, per case study.
Provided 5 sources of relevant
scholarly literature, including
examples of peer reviewed
primary literature, per case
study.
Provided 3 or 4 sources of
relevant scholarly literature,
including an example of peer
reviewed primary literature,
per case study.
Provided 3 sources of
relevant scholarly
literature.
Provided less than 3
sources of scholarly
literature.
•Consistently demonstrated that
you could locate, accurately
describe and evaluate highly
relevant knowledge, data &
information on specific topics.
•Demonstrated that you could
locate, accurately describe and
evaluate significant knowledge,
data & information on specific
topics.
•Demonstrated that you could
locate, accurately describe, and
summarise with some critical
evaluation relevant data &
information on specific topics.
•Located, accurately
described, and summarised
some data &/or information
on specific topics.
• Located some
information.
• Coherently & correctly
summarised the most significant
concept(s) &/or fact(s) in concise
annotations for all references.
•Coherently & correctly
summarised significant
concept(s) or fact(s) in
annotations for all references.
•Correctly summarised relevant
concept(s) or fact(s) in
annotations.
•Briefly summarised some part
of the sources.
• Commented on sources
provided.
•Correctly and fully listed all
references with no mistakes.
•Correctly and fully listed all
references with only 1 or 2 minor
formatting mistakes.
•Correctly and fully listed all
references with only formatting
mistakes.
•Listed all references fully. • Omitted references or
components of the
publication details.
2. Critical Evaluation (the
summary)
Collate and discuss the most
important factors of the human
activity and the most relevant
features of the ocean that
affect the human activity in a
concise, referenced summary.
50%
•Insightfully synthesised
significant, relevant concepts,
facts and/or examples in the
literature in your summary that
clearly characterises the
interactive relationship of the
ocean and the activity.
• Synthesised relevant concepts,
facts and/or examples of some
importance in the literature in
your summary that
characterises the interactive
relationship of the ocean and
the activity.
•Collated relevant concepts, facts
and/or examples of some
importance in the literature in
your summary that describes
the interactive relationship of
the ocean and the activity.
•Described relevant facts of
lessor importance in the
literature in your summary
that describes aspects of the
ocean and the activity. May
have errors of fact.
•Did not summarise
information or did so
with significant errors or
omissions.
•Are crystal clear, concise &
precise in your writing, with
neither irrelevancies nor errors.
•Are clear and concise in your
writing, with only a few minor
errors or irrelevancies.
•Sometimes write with clarity,
but have grammatical or
spelling mistakes or awkward
sentences.
•Write with awkward sentence
structures that obscure
meaning. Basic grammar &
some spelling errors.
•Write with many errors
that obscure meaning.
•Correctly cited all required references in text. •Correctly cited most required
references in text.
•Correctly cited some
references in text.
• Cited no or few required
sources correctly.
Comment:
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3. Advice on writing an annotated
bibliography.
See Summarising for Understanding.
This short document explains why it is important to summarise for understanding (ie that the writer
understands the content of the material that they are summarising and can thus pick out the most important
and relevant issues). It then offers a method for taking notes from a source and how to subsequently write the
summary.
What is an annotated bibliography.
It lists the source fully and correctly.
It provides a concise summary or overview of the source, with a focus on the major points or concepts
addressed in the source.
It may also provide a critical evaluation of the source, which could comment on the data or information used; or
the logic of the source; or the style of writing (e.g. clear, concise, aimed to general audience or experts) or all of
these things.
What makes a good annotation?
A good annotation:
a) Is associated with an accurately listed reference.
b) Is concise.
c) Is clearly understandable. (Has been proof read and is logically sound).
d) Provides an overview in your own words of what the paper is about.
e) Answers the reader’s question: “Why should I read this paper?”
f) Gives a clear indication of the importance (or possibly otherwise) of the paper.
g) Will state if a reference is a review paper (that is, it is secondary not primary literature) or not (and may
include the number of papers reviewed).
h) May comment on the style of a paper (e.g. “assumes a good background in economics”. “Is a technical
paper” etc).
i) Is NOT a summary of the paper. This makes it too long and likely too complex to easily answer the
question “why should I read this paper?”
j) Does not copy sentences from the paper, because this almost certainly removes context thereby
reducing understanding.
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4. When I have graded annotated bibliographies in previous deliveries of other classes, I identified some faults that
were commonly seen in the class’s bibliographies and provided them to the class as feedback. Here are the
faults that I identified. Use the list to see what you should AVOID doing.
Specific comments indicating faults in the bibliography:
1. References are not in alphabetical order
2. References are incomplete.
3. References have incorrect information (e.g. the volume of publication).
4. Formatting of references is not correct.
5. Annotations do not describe the paper.
6. Annotations contain incorrect information.
7. Annotations do not highlight the most significant point.
8. Annotations do not evaluate the paper.
9. Annotations are insufficiently specific (e.g. states: “a relationship was demonstrated”, without saying
what the relationship was.)
10. Annotations are too long.
11. Annotations are direct citations. (To explain: if you copy a sentence directly out of the source, even if
you cite it correctly, then it is highly likely that it will sit badly in the logic and context of the rest of your
annotation. I have never seen a good annotation that contains a direct quote.)
12. Annotations show poor syntax or grammar (and become difficult to understand).
13. Annotation does not relate to the reference.
Further advice on annotated bibliographies.
Please note that these links suggest annotations may be up to 500 words. However, I think that this may make a
reader less likely to actually read the annotation (if there are 10 annotated references with 500-word
annotations, that is 5,000 words. You’d want to be seriously interested to read that amount of material). I think
much shorter annotations are more useful because they are more likely to be read. This is why I have limited
your maximum words per annotation to 100 words (I will strictly check this). Writing a shorter annotation may
be more difficult than a longer one because every word must count to the meaning that you want to convey.
Delete any extraneous words. For example, the urls below suggest starting the annotation with: “This paper
describes ....etc”. I would delete the first two words and start with the verb: “Describes ..... etc.” Given that the
annotation is written directly below the reference, it is obvious which paper it is referring to.
See these URLs:
http://www.une.edu.au/current-students/resources/academic-skills/fact-sheets
And go to; Writing essays, reports and reviews – guides on both summarising and annotated bibliographies.
http://scu.edu.au/teachinglearning/
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5. And go to: Student Quick Guides – Writing an annotated bibliography.
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6. And go to: Student Quick Guides – Writing an annotated bibliography.
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