Ecologically Engineered Systems

Notes for Assessments:

1. Exam: You cannot pass this course unless you achieve a mark of at least 50% in the final exam.

2. Assessment submission: All assignments must be submitted by the due date via Learn electronically. A penalty will be applied to late assignments. The penalty for this course has been set at 20% per day of the actual marks available for the item of assessment. If a student does not submit an assignment by the deadline due to personal circumstances beyond their control they should discuss this with the lecturer involved as soon as possible (and ideally within 24 hours).

3. Dishonest behaviour and Academic Integrity:  All students are expected to be familiar with the University’s codes, policies, and procedures including but not limited to the Student Code of Conduct, Campus Drug and Alcohol Policy, Copyright Policy, Disability and Impairment Policy, and Equity and Diversity Policy. It is the responsibility of each student to be familiar with the definitions, policies and procedures concerning academic misconduct/dishonest behaviour. More information on UC’s policies and academic integrity can be found in the undergraduate handbook as well as at:
https://www.canterbury.ac.nz/about-uc/corporate-information/policies
https://www.canterbury.ac.nz/about-uc/what-we-do/teaching/academic-integrity

4. Special Considerations: Any student who has been impaired by significant exceptional and/or unforeseeable circumstances that have prevented them from completing any major assessment items (worth ≥10%), or that have impaired their performance such that the results are not representative of their true level of mastery of the course material, may apply for special consideration through the formal university process. The applicability and academic remedy/action associated with the special consideration process is listed for each assessment item below. Please refer to the University Special Consideration Regulations and Special Consideration Policies and Procedures documents for more information.

The alternative assessments for the final exam in this course will be held on-campus in person during the week of 7 July 2025. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are available for these dates if you want to benefit from the offer of an academic remedy for your approved special consideration.


Statement on Generative AI use in ENCN 405

Generative AI (e.g., ChatGPT) is a new technology with clear implications for civil and natural resources engineering practice. In this course, the use of generative AI is permitted providing it adheres to the guidelines of responsible practice described below.

Generative AI can be used to help understand technical terms and definitions. It can help improve your writing and provide editing feedback. When using AI to alter your writing, it is important to check that the substantive message of the text has not been altered. It is recommended that your prompt end with “…and explain the changes that you made” so that you can gain feedback to improve your own writing. It is not recommended to use AI to generate original text as this can clearly be recognised as plagiarism. Rather, it is safer to place yourself in the role of author, and AI in the role of editor, so that it is only improving the communication of your original ideas.

AI can be used to find, gather and summarize knowledge on a subject that is outside your expertise. However, it is important that you verify any information produced by AI. AI output can be convincingly wrong on technical matters. AI output can be incomplete, potentially omitting alternative hypotheses or views. AI output can be contradictory, offering concluding statements that are incoherent with arguments given earlier. Thus, it is important to verify AI-generated output. This includes checking source material, asking or reprompting an AI for alternative views, and challenging it to justify its statements. Verification may only possible when you are a subject matter expert, i.e., a competent engineer.

An AI is not a substitute for a creative, problem-solving engineer. It cannot match the complex reasoning or emotional intelligence of a human. Relying on an AI to solve problems for you may prevent you from achieving course Learning Outcomes. Being unable to demonstrate your mastery of Learning Outcomes during an invigilated assessment (test or exam) when AI is unavailable could lead to you failing the course.

If you decide to use AI to complete a course assessment, then it is important that you are transparent about this use. If you use AI to edit the text of your submission, then you should disclose this formally on your submitted assignment. Use of AI that falls within the permissible guidelines described here will not result in a penalty.
Use of Generative AI in course assessments:

Assignments: You may use generative AI to complete assignments 1, 2, 3 and 4. Permitted use of AI in these assessments are only for editing the final text of your submission. You may NOT use AI to complete technical calculations or generate the text, sketches or tables or for original composition in any form.

Consequences of misuse of AI:
Students suspected of using AI outside the specifications of this document will be reported to the department Academic Integrity Officer. As part of their investigation, students may be invited to attend an interview, during which they may be asked to describe how the assessment was completed or to demonstrate their knowledge of the subject. If it is determined that a student is likely to have misused AI, then disciplinary action may be taken, including partial or full denial of credit for an assignment or course, X-mark on transcript denoting breach of academic integrity, suspension, fines and expulsion.

Further reading:
Academic Integrity at the University of Canterbury. https://www.canterbury.ac.nz/about-uc/what-we-do/teaching/academic-integrity

Engineering NZ guidelines on ethical use of Generative AI. https://www.engineeringnz.org/programmes/engineering-and-ai/appropriate-safe-and-ethical-use/ \