Diploma in Nature Management

Purpose

The purpose of this career orientated qualification is to meet the needs of the industry by providing qualifying learners with advanced knowledge of and competence in the application of modern management principles in the Nature Management industry. The learner will be able to independently carry out necessary duties, make decisions and solve problems in the context of a game ranch/reserve/natural area, including in situations other than those in which they were trained. The learner will be able to assess situations, decide between options and competently carry out those options.

Rationale

Privately-owned natural areas are becoming increasingly important as the state's ability to maintain and expand protected natural areas becomes more and more limited. This is therefore an urgent, growing need for well-trained, practically-orientated managers to manage these areas. The Advanced Diploma in Nature Management is specifically designed to address this need.

The key to modern African conservation is the sustainable development and utilization of natural resources. This programme particularly emphasizes the concept of wise use rather than the inappropriate preservationist ethic championed by first world European and North American countries.

The involvement of local communities in modern conservation in South Africa is essential, due to the important role of sustainable use and ecotourism in the national government's approach to addressing poverty and rural development. Land reform is and issue that nature managers from previously disadvantaged groups much present or potential conservation land is going to revert to other forms of land use or be catastrophically mismanaged. The Department of Nature Management has a medium to long-term strategic plan in place to address this issue, of which the Advanced Diploma in Nature Management forms an integral part (see also: Access to the programme).

In addition, biodiversity is presently acknowledged as a global priority. South Africa is the third most biodiversity country in the world, and South African managers schooled in the new biodiversity ethic will contribute crucially to the identification and conservation of global biodiversity. Much of South Africa's biodiversity is not found in the conserved areas controlled by the state but on private land: appreciated of the importance of biodiversity and responsibility for its conservation lies largely in the hands of private landowners.

The tourism industry has been identified as a national priority for economic growth in South Africa. So-called "ecotourism", based on natural areas, has in the past been a cornerstone of both local and international tourism, and is likely to remain so.

South Africa has a long and enviable international reputation for its scientific and conservation excellence. For South Africa to remain at the forefront of applied wildlife management advanced training in this field is essential.

This outcome-based qualification is designed to satisfy the needs outlined above. We combine sound, modern theory with an outstanding practical component, to produce diplomates who can independently manage natural areas using the most tools and techniques available.

The Advanced Diploma is specifically designed to take the broad-based qualification of the Diploma to a higher cognitive level. In the third year students are taught a variety of the most advanced modern techniques of management available, and to apply independently in a variety of situations. A combination of strict supervision and independent work ensures that the students properly learn the various techniques and are able to make independent decisions about their applicability and application.

Experience has shown that many students with nature management or conservation-related qualifications possess the necessary knowledge and skills but are lacking in their ability to actually apply them in and independent manner, particularly in situations different to those under which they were trained. This is not only the case with our present qualification, but also with graduates of other institutions. Our Advanced Diploma is specifically designed to meet this challenge. A needs analysis was conducted by a current member of staff which illustrates this point in particular. This needs analysis is available on request.

As the focus of this qualification is on advanced, practical, applied management, employment opportunities are specifically intended to be the following:

• Higher level management of a commercial game farm.
• Higher level management of a nature reserve (private of state) can enter the private sector, for example environmental consultancies.

Another target group for the Advanced Diploma is qualified people who feel that their knowledge and skills are lacking, or that their knowledge and skills are outdated and would like to become updated with the most modern approaches.

It is assumed that learners accessing this programme will have passed Grade 12 and demonstrated competence at the previous level against the standards on that level (i.e. NQF Level 4). It is assumed that learners are competent in the provider's language of instruction (the language primarily used for instruction is Afrikaans. However, due to the profile of the learners entering the programme and the nature of some of the material presented in the programme, the programme is accessible to English learners in a dual medium approach).

Admission into the 1st year

• Grade 12 Senior Certificate or Matriculation Certificate with Biology recommended.
• Any other certificate regarded by the Matriculation Board as being equivalent to the above.

Any appropriate qualification at NQF Level 4

• Learners with appropriate prior learning credits may be exempted from parts of the programme after a process of RPL, subject to the other admission requirements.
• Relevant experience without formal training may also be acceptable after a process of RPL, subject to all other admission requirements.

Direct admission into the 2nd year

• Learners with the first year of an appropriate qualification may be admitted to the second year provided that the first year is the equivalent of our first year, and may be subject to RPL. First year credits may need to be made up in the second year. Such a learner will also be subject to all other admission requirements.

Direct admission to the 3rd year

• Admission in to the third year is possible with an appropriate prior qualification at NQF Level 6. Credits may need to be made up in the third year. Such a learner will also be subject to all other admission requirements.

A department RPL policy detailing these requirements is available on request.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

One of the objectives of the National Qualification Framework is to facilitate access to mobility between and progression within learning paths. This includes moving from one qualification or institution to another or re-entering a learning path. Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) is one way of achieving this.

Centurion Akademie recognizes that potential students may have previous training or experience for which they feel they can be given credit. It recognizes that it may receive applications from students' studying towards other qualifications who wish to change qualification or institution or who are working in the industry and wish to either study for a new qualification or study further. The prior learning or experience for which they receive credit however has to be assessed and credited in a formal and Credited way. The process of RPL addresses this requirement of formal assessment.

A departmental RPL policy detailing these requirements is available on request.

Access to the Programme

Access to the programme can be gained in a variety of ways. One of Centurion Akademie's goals is to increase access to students who do not necessarily have the correct qualifications to gain access to other institutions of higher education. This widens access to higher education. This particularly true in practical, applied filed such as Nature Management, where academic achievement does not necessarily determine the quality of the manager in the filed.

We aim to accommodate students from outside who wish to equip themselves with advanced nature management knowledge and skills above their current qualifications. This includes current students of other institutions/recently qualified people and managers in the field who wish to upgrade and modernize their abilities.

The Department of Nature Management, through its involvement in agricultural learnership via the national Skills Development Programme, has a medium to long-term strategic goal of training previously disadvantaged people through Levels 1-4 to allow potential access to our qualifications at Level 5-7. The first of these students will be able to enter our programmes in 2007.

Entry routes into the programme are thus flexible from the present Diploma, an RPL policy that includes credit transfer from other institutions and people from outside with appropriate previous qualifications, with RPL as part of the process. We are currently giving serious attention in the RPL policy to the situation of managers with relevant experience but no relevant previous qualification.

Credit values for fundamental, core and elective components

• Fundamental Component: 19 Credits (Must be at the level of the qual).
• Core Component: 341 Credits.
• Elective Component: 8 Credits.

Total: 368 Credits.

Fundamentals - All fundamentals must be at the level of the programme

• Computer Literacy 115; Must be at NQF Level 6; 6 Credits.
• Business Communication 115; NQF Level 6; 6 Credits.
• Introductory Statistics 215; NQF Level 6; 7 Credits.

Sub-total: 90 Credits.

Core

• Biology 115; NQF Level 5; 10 Credits.
• Plant Studies 115; NQF Level 5; 15 Credits.
• Animal Studies 115; NQF Level 5; 15 Credits.
• Game Farm Management 115; NQF Level 5; 6 Credits.
• Introduction to General Management 115; NQF Level 5; 7 Credits.
• Introduction to Functional Management 125; NQF Level 5; 6 Credits.
• Plant Studies 125; NQF Level 5; 15 Credits.
• Animal Studies 125; NQF Level 5; 15 Credits.
• Microbiology 125; NQF Level 5; 10 Credits.
• Taxidermy and meat processing 125; NQF Level 5; 5 Credits.
• Conservation information systems 216; NQF Level 5; 6 Credits.
• Game Farm Management 125; NQF Level 5; 6 Credits.
• Soil Science 216; NQF Level 5; 6 Credits.
• Geographic Information Systems 216; NQF Level 5; 5 Credits.
• Mammals: Structure and Function 216; NQF Level 5; 11 Credits.
• Wildlife Diseases 216; NQF Level 5; 11 Credits.
• Veld Management 216; NQF Level 5; 13 Credits.
• Wildlife Diseases 216; NQF Level 5; 7 Credits.
• Entrepreneurship 216; NQF Level 5; 6 Credits.
• Wildlife Management 216; NQF Level 5; 11 Credits.
• Conservation Genetics 216; NQF Level 5; 11 Credits.
• Management Plans 226; NQF Level 5; 8 Credits.
• Human Dimension of Wildlife Management 226; NQF Level 5; 10 Credits.
• Entrepreneurship 226; NQF Level 5; 6 Credits.
• Game Farm Management 307; NQF Level 6; 114 Credits.
• Geographic Information Systems 317; NQF Level 6; 6 Credits.

Sub-total: 341 Credits.

Elective (one is to be chosen)

• Elementary Lodge Studies 226; NQF Level 5; 8 Credits.
• Tourism and travel destinations 226; NQF Level 5; 8 Credits.

Sub-total: 8 Credits.

Total for the programme: 368 Credits.

A detailed programme outline is available on request.

Another target group for the Advanced Diploma is qualified people who feel that their knowledge and skills are lacking, or that their knowledge and skills are outdated and would like to become updated with the most modern approaches.

On achieving this qualification the learner will be able to

1. Identify, plan and conduct research necessary for carrying out management task.
2. Be able to apply modern technology to nature management.
3. Classify and identify local animals and plants for management purposes.
4. Understand biology of living organisms as this relates to their environment, and how this impacts management of those organisms.
5. Demonstrate an understanding of social issues, including for example the impact of HIV/Aids in the industry, the role of local communities in modern conservation.
6. Manage the common and important diseases of wildlife.
7. Apply knowledge of game nutrition in the management of game.
8. Understand the influence of veld type on management, and manage various veld types.
9. Have an understanding of the theory and application of conservation genetics in nature management; manage the infrastructure of a game ranch or reserve.
10. Understand the principles of veld management and the application of those principles, foe example, fire and erosion.
11. Understand the principles of game management and the application of those principles, for example game capture and population monitoring.
12. Be able to compile management and monitoring plans.
13. Understand the principles of business management and their application in the nature management industry.

A varied assessment process, encompassing different forms of assessment, assesses all aspects of the outcomes of the programme. It gives the student the opportunity to display knowledge and skills in various ways that better reflect what they truly know and can do. Formative assessment is emphasised, so that the student and the trainer always know exactly where they are relative to where they should be in the learning process, enabling a developmental approach to teaching and learning.

Integrated Assessment

Integrated assessments assess specific outcomes as well as critical cross-field outcomes together, and so assess outcomes of different modules together.

Assessment has moved away from a process where the student simply regurgitates what has been learned at the end of the year. In an outcomes-based system, in which the student has to be able to do things and not just know things, the approach to assessment has had to change. A varied assessment process, encompassing many different forms of assessment, should assess all aspects of the outcomes of a qualification. It must give the student opportunity to display knowledge and skills in ways that better reflect what they truly know and can do. Both formative assessment and continuous assessment are emphasized, so that the student and the trainer always know exactly where they are relative to where they should be in the learning process, allowing for a developmental approach to teaching and learning.

Learner assessment must be a true reflection of the understanding of the content by the learner. The required theoretical background of the offering must be thoroughly understood, but in such a way that its relevance to its practical application in the field of nature management is grasped. The practical nature of the programme is such that all material must be applied in the real world of nature management-learner assessment is directed towards evaluating not only the learner's theoretical grasp but the ability to apply that knowledge. Each aspect of the programme is therefore designed to teach particular knowledge and /or skills. Assessment is designed to test the theoretical grasp of the theory underlying those skills, and the ability to apply them. The application of skills is tested in practical situations, and then finally in work-related situations. In this way the application of individual skills as they integrate with other skills in the workplace is also assessed. Assessment is therefore an integral part of the teaching and learning process. We also have a responsibility to teach the student more than simply what necessary in a particular field; there is a responsibility to contribute to teaching the student life skills and how to become a proper and useful member of society. The assessment of those skills must be integrated into the overall assessment process.

This is all detailed in a departmental assessment policy which is available on request.

Formative assessment

Theory

Class tests assess the level of theoretical knowledge during the course of a unit of learning. Essays, projects and presentations assess the level of theoretical knowledge during the course of a unit of learning.

Practical

Practical write-ups, practical tests and projects assess the level of practical knowledge during the course of a unit of learning.

Summative assessment

• Semester tests and final examinations assess whether the desired theoretical outcomes have been reached.
• Practical examinations assess whether the desired practical outcomes have been reached.
• Projects and presentations assess the integration of theoretical and practical knowledge and skills.

The third year management plan provides an integrated assessment of all theoretical knowledge and practical skills gained during the three years of the programme.

Outcomes and Assessment of experiential learning

Year 1 and Year 2.

Duration - 4 weeks

Expected learning outcomes

Students are expected to undertake four weeks per year vacation work on reserves/game farms. The expected out comes of this vacation work are as follows:

• To experience how their theoretical and practical training is applied in a real situation.
• To learn ho to interact with other people in a working environment.
• To be exposed to and gain experience of the working of a ranch/reserve by working with experienced people in the field.
• Completing the logbook requires the learner to investigate a wide range of aspects concerned with a ranch/reserve.

Assessment methods

• The logbook must be completed and the journal kept. The logbook and journal of all work in which the learner was involved must be signed off by the employers/supervisor when completed to their satisfaction (rules in this regard are found in the logbook).
• The logbook and journal must be submitted at regular intervals throughout the period of study. The logbook and journal are evaluated as to meeting the required outcomes. A questionnaire on the performance of the learner given to the employer/supervisor must be completed to Centurion Akademie to be evaluated.

Year 3.

Duration- 4 months

Expected learning outcomes

Students have to compile a management/monitoring plan for a reserve/game farm. Students will have a week of theory classes per month for 10 months of the year and they will gather data on the reserve/game farm for 2 weeks at a time during 8 of these months.

The expected learning outcomes of this experiential learning are as follows

• To apply theoretical training and techniques in a real situation.
• To understand the need and value of an ecological management/monitoring plan for a reserve/game farm.
• Be able to compile a management/monitoring plan in an orderly manner.
• Be able to understand and use a scientifically based management plan in a real situation.

Assessment methods

• Learners are expected to write up and hand in the relevant chapter after each two-week data gathering session. The lecturer will evacuate each chapter in relation to the required outcomes. The final management plan is assessed.
• A questionnaire on the performance of the learners and satisfaction of the manager/owner of the reserve/game farm must be completed and returned to Centurion Akademie to be evaluated.