LSC-20076 - Learning & Memory

Coordinator: Simon Trent

Lecture Time: See Timetable...

Level: Level 5

Credits: 15

Study Hours: 150

School Office: 01782 734414

Programme/Approved Electives for 2020/21

None

Available as a Free Standing Elective

Co-requisites

None

Prerequisites

None

Barred Combinations

None

Description for 2020/21

How we learn and remember events is a complex process that we often take for granted.
Learning is critical to how we adapt our behaviour in an ever-changing, and often challenging, environment. Memories allow us to draw from our experiences and come to define who we are. In fact, they are so crucial it would be extremely difficult to function with any kind of impairment to our learning or memory. The human brain is highly plastic, changing significantly following experience and can support many different types of learning and memory. Understanding how the brain encodes, stores and recalls information is a huge, and important, challenge in neuroscience.
This lecture-based module will explore many of the fascinating behavioural, cellular and biological aspects of how we learn and remember. The in-course assessment comprises a comprehension exercise, where you will learn how to critically evaluate relevant journal articles ż a core skill for all scientists.

Aims

The aim of this module is to provide students with a fundamental understanding of the physiological and molecular mechanisms underlying the acquisition, consolidation, retention and recall of knowledge and information.

Intended Learning Outcomes

differentiate between different types of learning and memory in humans and animals (e.g., declarative versus non-declarative memory): 1
explain the contributions of the hippocampus and parahippocampal cortices to spatial learning and memory: 1
discuss the role of the prefrontal cortex in short-term working memory: 1
describe how the brain acquires new information; including fear memory and motor skills: 1
critically evaluate a primary source journal article and answer questions related to the content of the paper: 2
explain learning and memory with reference to the underlying physiological mechanisms (e.g., synaptic plasticity): 1
explain the molecular mechanisms underlying learning and memory: 1
explain how learning and memory can be impaired in disorders and diseases of the brain: 1

Study hours

- 19 hours of lecture
- 1 hour tutorial for preparation of ICA
- 130 hours of private study

School Rules

None

Description of Module Assessment

1: Open Book Examination weighted 70%
Online open book exam
The paper will be released on KLE as a Word document at 9 am on the morning of the exam. 2 essay style questions from a choice of 4. Students should answer each question using Word, clearly labelling each question as they provide their answers. Work will be submitted to Turnitin no later than 5 pm on the day of release. International students will be asked to notify the School if they need an extension due to different time zones. Although students have been given significant time to complete this exam script, we expect most students to spend no more than 2 hrs. Answers should be as accurate and concise as possible. For essay-based questions, typical answers would be in the range of 500-750 words per question. We recommend that students do not exceed 750 words per essay-based question as we will be assessing the quality of your answer, not the quantity.

2: Online Tasks weighted 30%
Journal Comprehension Class Test
A journal paper relevant to the assessment will be released 2 week prior, on the KLE. The paper (in the form of SAQs) will then be released to students as a timed test on the KLE (link to test will be available on the KLE on the day of the assessment at 9 am). Once started, students will be given 8 hrs to complete, although we recommend that 2 hours should be sufficient. International students will be asked to notify the School if they need an extension due to different time zones. For these short-answer questions, students should pay careful attention to the number of points that each question is worth. In general, we would expect only one or two sentences for each point.

LSC-20076 - Module Specification School of Life Sciences Faculty of Natural Sciences

LSC-20076 - Module Specification
School of Life Sciences
Faculty of Natural Sciences