UQx: Denial101x Making Sense of Climate Science Denial

1. What is a self-paced course?

In a self-paced course, students can complete the coursework and assignments as quickly or as slowly as they want. This means that you can go beyond the basic lectures and activities to spend more time on the bonus materials suggested after each unit of work without having to worry about looming deadlines.

Since this is a self-paced course, one thing to be aware of when in the forums is that other students will not necessarily be at the same point in the coursework as you are. For example, when in the forum there will be occasions where it will be easier for others' understanding if you make it clear where you are in the course by identifying the lecture you are referring to or the week you are on.

2. When are the assignments due?

All of the assignments (weekly quizzes, pre and post course surveys, peer assessment and participation checks) must be completed by the end of the course, which is currently set quite far into the future - 30 June 2016 by 11:00pm UTC (to find out the day/time where you are, see time zone converter). 

3. How can I check my current grade in the course?

The easiest way to see your current mark in the course is by visiting the Progress tab found at the top of every page. When you visit that tab, you will see a chart at the top of the page that shows your progress in all graded assignments in the course. You will also see a vertical listing of all of the sections of the course, activities and graded assignments. Items labeled as Practice Scores do not count toward your final grade in the course, but they do give you opportunity to practice and apply what you've learned in lectures. Items that do contribute to your final mark in the course are labeled as Problem Scores and have a due date within the vertical list on the page.

4. Why doesn't my progress show up on my progress page, even after I've answered the questions or completed assessments?

Make sure you selected an answer for ALL the questions on the page AND clicked the "final check" button. Your progress is not recorded until you answer all the questions and hit "final check." If you click the "save" button, your answers will be saved for later and you can return to them, but you don't need to save your answers in order for them to be graded.

5. How do I receive a certificate? Do I have to pay for it?

As this is a self-paced version of the course, certificates will be processed approximately every three months. If you have received a score of 70% or higher in the course by the date certificates are run, you will receive a certificate. This is a free certificate. If you are interested in pursuing a verified certificate, please read the edX FAQ page for more information.

edX is also in the process of implementing a way for students to generate certificates on their own once they have reached the passing mark. We hope to have that activated for Denial101x quite soon, and we will email the course and post an announcement when that process is available to you.

6. When will I receive my certificate?

If you received a certificate, it will be available for download through your edX account several days after the date it is processed. For more information, please see the edX FAQ page.

7. Will the actual time for the course be sent to us based on where we live (time zone)?

There are no actual times during which you have to "attend" the sections of the course. They will be live once they are launched and remain open until the end of the course. 

8. Can I edit my response on an assignment after I submit it?

Once you submit your final response it is recorded in the system and it cannot be edited. You can, however, save quizzes and return to submit them later. This course is all about your own learning, so if you would like to revise your responses and keep them elsewhere for your own records, we encourage you to do so.

9. What is the little alarm clock next to the item on the left-hand menu?

It means that the section contains an assessment that contributes to your overall mark in the course. All Denial101x weekly quizzes, surveys and participation checks are, however, untimed – you do not have to submit any of them until the course ends. 

10. Can I download the videos?

Yes. Please do and share them with others. You can also view all of the full playlists for the course on our YouTube channel.

11. Can I download the subtitle/captions text from the videos?

Yes. Under each  video, you should see a link that says 'transcript'. This allows you to download the subtitle text as a .srt file or .txt file. Choose the version you would like and then click Download Transcript for it to begin downloading. You can also copy/paste the captions that appear to the right of the video when you have the closed captioning button selected within edX.

12. What do you mean when you use the terms "denial" and "misinformation"?

In this course, we use the term denial to refer to a process, and we do not use it as a label. Specifically, we're talking about the psychological process of denial, and in the course we look at the scientific research into what drives people to reject scientific evidence. This allows us to explore how cognitive biases result in the various techniques of science denial. Only then can we develop a framework of the different fallacies appearing in the most common myths about climate change. The biases and the framework we use are discussed in detail within Week 1 of the course.

In this course, we also talk about misinformation, which refers to factually incorrect information. However, in psychology, misinformation does not necessarily imply intent to deceive. This course will examine the psychological processes that can lead to a person genuinely believing misinformation. Misinformation is to be distinguished from disinformation, which is false information created intentionally to deceive people.

13. In the week 2 temperature tool exercise, for question 5 I need to use the 'random subset' button. But nothing happens!

Some pop-up blocking software causes this feature (and also the 'rename experiment' feature) not to work. You will need to adjust your popup blocking settings (or use a different browser).

We will try and produce a new version which avoids this problem, but it isn't a simple fix.

14. What is the process I should follow for the debunking peer assessment found in Week 6?

There are a number of steps to follow to complete the full peer assessment process.

To begin, read the instructions and rubric carefully. This will help you understand the type of writing you are being asked to complete and how it will be marked. It might also help to re-watch one of your favourite lectures to solidify your understanding of the Fact-Myth-Fallacy structure.

Once you feel that you understand the assignment instructions, complete the two practice peer assessments. This gives you the opportunity to read two different example essays and mark them using the rubric. Because the purpose of the practice is to help you apply the rubric to responses to the essay prompt, you may attempt this part of the assignment until you get it correct. Be sure to read the explanations for each of the parts of the rubric.

Once you’ve completed the practice, it is now time to write your own response. We would strongly recommend that you review the assignment instructions before writing. We would also recommend that you compose your essay using your favourite word processing program so that you can proofread, edit and revise before submitting it for marking.

When you have written your essay, you input it into the peer assessment assignment by pasting it or typing directly into the response box.

After submission, you will then be able to mark the writing of your peers. You will need to mark 5 essays in order to complete the assignment, but do note that you can mark additional responses by clicking the peer assessment box and selecting to mark additional responses. Your grade for your response will be the median score of the marks given by 3 of your peers.