Textbooks (1 Viewer)

[pointepink]

Hi everyone,

I was just wondering if anyone has done/is doing any of these units and knows which texts are required.

LAW 114-Jurisprudence
BIOL 108-Human Biology
CBSM 101- Introductory Chemistry
PHIL 137- Critical Thinking
ENGL 120- Introduction to English

Thanks in advance

p.s Has anyone done any of these units before? Any information on what they are like/assessments involved would be much appreciated.

 

[MaryJane]

I did juris in 2004, but I doubt it would have changed much.

There is no textbook for it, only two volumes of course notes, which will make it a nice, cheap semester for you in that department. Relish it while you can

Assessments consisted of one mid-term essay on one of 4 topics, and the final is a takehome of two essays of a possible 4 again. The percentages go something like 30% mid-term, 20% tutorial participation and 50% final. Its a pretty cruisy topic, but you have to be patient with the theoretical arguments which can sometimes rub you up the wrong way. And be prepared to argue in your tute.

You're pretty brave doing 5 subjects in one semester - good luck keeping up with the workload!

 

[Cyan_phoeniX]

Hi everyone,

I was just wondering if anyone has done/is doing any of these units and knows which texts are required.

LAW 114-Jurisprudence
BIOL 108-Human Biology
CBSM 101- Introductory Chemistry
PHIL 137- Critical Thinking
ENGL 120- Introduction to English

Thanks in advance

p.s Has anyone done any of these units before? Any information on what they are like/assessments involved would be much appreciated.

---------------------------
I did law114 last year and it is what MJ said, though we also had to get 2 smaller books (and still have the prices on them.lol):

-Australian Guide to Legal Citation (2nd edition)
and $17.25c
-Understanding the Australian Legal System (4th Edition- John Caravan)
$34.95c

These texts might actually be good for law in general (i.e. good reference books).
----------------------

I also did phil137. There was one book that is 'recommended' when i did it:

-'Thinking Clearly: A guide to critical reasoning' Jill LeBlanc

i STRONGLY recommend you get this book as i found it very helpful and very easy to read. Probably also a good reference for future philosophy courses as it has some similar concepts to PHIL134: formal logic.

What i remember of this course

TWO 25% exams in lectures
ONE 30% Assignment
ONE 10% online Quiz
ONE 10% Particiption and Attendance mark for tuts.

 

[Tabris]

Assessments consisted of one mid-term essay on one of 4 topics, and the final is a takehome of two essays of a possible 4 again. The percentages go something like 30% mid-term, 20% tutorial participation and 50% final. Its a pretty cruisy topic, but you have to be patient with the theoretical arguments which can sometimes rub you up the wrong way. And be prepared to argue in your tute.

I dont think any other law schools in NSW uses a take home exam for finals. I know people in other law schools who have open book tests and theres an immense amount of stuff to get down. Is it harder and more complicated than what the name implies?

 

[pointepink]

Thanks for your replies guys.

MaryJane: I'm not sure if I will be allowed to carry 5 units (SES said I would have to get academic approval at enrolment) but I want to at least attend a few lectures and, if there are text books, read them to get an idea of what the subject may be like before I choose final 4. This is mainly because I haven't done philosophy or biology before and don't want to enrol in a unit I won't enjoy. Thanks for the Jurisprudence info- it's nice to have some form of outline before you start uni!

Cyan phoneix: Thanks for the information on philosophy. Did you enjoy the unit? What does critical thinking invole? History of philosophy? Methods of philosophical inquiry? And did formal logic involve "maths style"reasoning?

p.s Would either of you be interested in selling course notes/textbooks? Does the library have copies?

Thanks again

 

[MaryJane]

I know UNSW does because my ex-boyfriend goes there, and when I was still in contact with him, both himself and his friend in second year had a take home. I thought it was quite commonplace, but not nearly as common as open books (which rock!).

Personally, I find take homes worse because you have them for three days, and you know they are expecting more from you because you can edit it, need correct grammar and it has to be coherent! And sometimes its made even worse because they give it to you, and on one of those three days you have another exam (it happened to me with Crim last semester).... But most lecturers seem to be aware of this, and give it to you in the week before finals.

They are apparently more forgiving in open books - you can abbreviate cases and legislation, and they forgive any statements/sentences which really dont quite make grammatical sense. And its better for the student because you only have three hours, and while those three hours might be extremely stressful, it only lasts a short period of time.

One tip for any open book - dont physically use the book. Its stupid. I dont see why people even contemplate doing it, a few of my friends have and havent done that well. I make "case book" and "legislation books" for all my open book exams with a table of contents and everything. You know exactly where all the info is, and its so succinct, you know exactly what everything is referring to, and it just makes the whole process so much easier. I finished my one for contracts at 3am the morning of the exam!

 

[xeuyrawp]

You're pretty brave doing 5 subjects in one semester - good luck keeping up with the workload!

You said that in such a girly way.

Just to clarify, 5 subjects = very heavy workload. Then again, I hope the academic adviser told you this?

 

[MaryJane]

p.s Would either of you be interested in selling course notes/textbooks? Does the library have copies?

Thanks again

We're all happy to help here!

The library does have copies of the textbooks for all units, some are available for loan, and they have copies in reserve (so you can only borrow them for 3 hours during the day, or just overnight). Sometimes its best to wait a few week before buying the text because some units just dont use them, which is frustrating when you've just spent all this money on them! Plus, if you do need one page desperatly, you can just photocopy it!

Course notes you will have to buy - they change them every year, and so I personally wouldnt buy them second hand. And they are cheap as chips, so you wont be grabbing much of a bargain by getting them second hand.

Ooh, and another thing with text books, check how many years are between the editions. Its horrible learning that the book you've just spent $100 on is now old and no one will buy it second hand. It really pays off

You said that in such a girly way.

I'd rather sound like a girl than a guy - "oh crap mate, thats pretty sick fully dude, tops bro, good luck with it mate"

... I so cant be a guy - that was pathetic!

 

[Tabris]

I was afraid u might say that, more time means more expectations, higher standards and more competition. In the end, paranoia might hit in and it will cause more trouble than what it is really worth.

Normally when there are massive amounts of reading, i usually make summaries, chop 6-7 pages down to 1 if i can, then use those as sources for my studies.

How are the lectureres and tute leaders? I hope its far different compared EFCS department, asians with dodgy english!

 

[xeuyrawp]

I'd rather sound like a girl than a guy - "oh crap mate, thats pretty sick fully dude, tops bro, good luck with it mate"

... I so cant be a guy - that was pathetic!

You're more manly than I.

 

[MaryJane]

I was afraid u might say that, more time means more expectations, higher standards and more competition. In the end, paranoia might hit in and it will cause more trouble than what it is really worth.

Normally when there are massive amounts of reading, i usually make summaries, chop 6-7 pages down to 1 if i can, then use those as sources for my studies.

How are the lectureres and tute leaders? I hope its far different compared EFCS department, asians with dodgy english!

Haha, yeah, the standard of English might not rise much, especially when you're reading things from the C.12th, or translations... or witness statements! Same sometimes goes for the course notes - bad photocopying, or them just dictating it word-for-word from the original, but actually missing words. Always good for a laugh! Text books are fine though, well, they better be for the price we pay!

If you're doing summaries like that, you should be set - in the end, its just being able to cut your paperwork down so you dont have so much to wade through (and those exam tables are tiny!), and being able to understand everything you've written.

The actual tutors and lecturer's are fantastic though, they tend to be really clear and patient. Although, you might have Archana Parashar for juris, who is Pakistani. She's great, a really lovely person, but you cant understand her. We'd sit in the tute, and she'd say something. Everyone would sit there in silence until someone asked "was that a question, or a statement?"

You're more manly than I.

... So, does that mean you'd sexy sex me?

(I wanted to use the face, but didnt want to repeat it, so opted for the stoned shy face)

... Ignore the fact I repeated it regardless.

 

[pointepink]

MaryJane: Just wondering what you mean by "make caseboooks and legislation books." Do you mean that you make your own set of notes and they let you take those into the exam (I thought you were only allowed a copy of the Acts)?

 

[MaryJane]

Yep, thats what I mean.

At MQ, when there is an open book exam in law (not sure about other subjects), there is only one restriction on what you bring in: it cannot be a library text book (although the convenor can alter this). Apart from that, you could bring in anything - even a novel to read if you finish early! They are really flexible because they know people have different learning styles: some people use the text, some make their own notes. Plus, its an open book, and it would kind of defeat the purpose of an open book exam if they only let you bring in legislation.

 

[pointepink]

Yep, thats what I mean.

At MQ, when there is an open book exam in law (not sure about other subjects), there is only one restriction on what you bring in: it cannot be a library text book (although the convenor can alter this). Apart from that, you could bring in anything - even a novel to read if you finish early! They are really flexible because they know people have different learning styles: some people use the text, some make their own notes. Plus, its an open book, and it would kind of defeat the purpose of an open book exam if they only let you bring in legislation.

So you can even bring your own copy of the textbook as long as it's not the library copy? Personally I think using your own notes would definitely be easier but I just wanted to check.

 

[MaryJane]

Yeah, your own copy of the text is fine... And yeah, your own notes are fantastically better.

 

[AsyLum]

Cyan phoneix: Thanks for the information on philosophy. Did you enjoy the unit? What does critical thinking invole? History of philosophy? Methods of philosophical inquiry? And did formal logic involve "maths style"reasoning?

PHIL137 uses logic, and yes it resembles the 'simple' (although seemingly simple in concept its application is quite complicated ) system of statements et al. It is highly useful for virtually anything which uses some form of reasoning (which is mainly everything )

PHIL132 is more of a morality/ethics based unit which focuses on a timeline of theories and gives you an introduction.

PHIL131 does the same but with metaphysics at its core.