Group project

The main goal of the course is to teach students how to carry out a group project and present its results in an appropriate manner. Students learn how to use their knowledge on the selected topic, acquired during their studies, in practice and are able to provide expert advice on possible solutions of an environmental problem. They develop their critical thinking skills, as they have to assume a critical approach yet in the stage of information/literature search related to the problem, as well as in the process of problem solving in practice. Moreover, students develop specific writing, speaking and presenting skills (report writing; preparing and delivering oral presentations) – by doing this they also develop their foreign language communication skills, as they have to deliver oral presentations of projects in English. While searching for and providing expert solutions of actual problems students develop their negotiation skills (they learn how to justify their suggestions, to accept the opinions of other group members as well as the opinions of other experts as well as of the general public; and the ability to view the problem from another perspective) and the ability to make expert decisions.

This course is an upgrade of the 1st‐year mandatory course Introduction to Group Work, therefore it is expected from the students to have the essential knowledge of the content covered by that course (literature search, report writing, adequate vocabulary in the selected field, the fundamentals of group work/team work and the basic oral presentation skills etc.).

Group Project work is a core unit in the School of Environmental Sciences. Through its holistic approach to the discipline Group Project Work requires scientific rigour in field exploration and/or laboratory experimentation, team building skills, scientific report writing and the oral delivery of results to peers and professionals.
Students work in groups, each group works on a selected project topic based on an actual environmental issue. Part of group project activities are carried out during contact hours, while the rest are to be performed by students in the form of their autonomous work under the supervision of their mentors. The solutions of the problems studied are presented in the form of public oral presentations of the project. Other students of the study programme Environment are invited to attend the presentations in order to acquaint them (as future experts in the field of environmental sciences) with the latest findings and possible solutions of existing environmental problems. The presentations are assessed by a three‐member committee, consisting of experts from various fields.
At the end of the first semester students provide an interim report and an oral presentation, while in the second semester they provide a final report on the
project and a final public oral presentation. Final reports and presentations are to be sent electronically, burnt on a CD, to be deposited in the UNG Library.

On the basis of the acquired knowledge and the experience in carrying out a group project, students will be able to plan their research activities and set the goals
of the process of problem solving related to a specific environmental problem in practice; they will be able to gather, select and process the data obtained from
literature and the results of their own research; to provide project documentation (and take into account the basic principles of intellectual property rights), present the results in an appropriate manner and present them (also to general public, also in a foreign language) and thus bring together the elements of basic,
development and applicative research. The knowledge obtained shall serve students in their future careers, in particular in project work and/or team work activities. Students will be able to justify the suggested solutions of an environmental problem in a professional manner.

For each project an individual selection of literature is made, based on the topic of the project.

• Participation in Group Meetings & Activities (i.e. Field and Lab work) 60% • Interim report and oral presentation 20% • Final report and final oral presentation 20% All these components are compulsory, if a student misses 2 Group meetings plus 1 Field or Lab exercise they fail.

Mentors of individual projects act as principal lecturers of this course – all mentors are experts in the selected fields, they have adequate academic titles and adequate references.