Environmental Biology (Biol 1100) Spring 2006
Terry Brown, ST 319, 285-7222
Office Hours T 10:00-1:50
W 2:00-2:50
This is a one-semester course for non-majors. It introduces students to the concepts of ecology, systems, interrelationships among organisms and their physical environment, and current issues in environmental studies. Students will examine humans’ role in the natural world and the impact of the growth of the human population and the increase in humans’ technological ability to make changes in the world. Students will be encouraged to explore societal, political, economic and personal value systems with regard to environmental issues. CT, PN, NS
Prerequisites: none
12th grade reading and writing skills required (A score of at least 26 on the ASAP test, or equivalent)
TEXTS:
Environmental Science: Active Learning Laboratories and Applied Problem Sets, Wagner, Travis and Sanford, Robert, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2005.
This course will be conducted in an active participation style, thus attendance in class is essential. Students are required to come to class prepared for discussion. Assigned materials must be read and written exercises completed prior to class.
GENERAL COURSE OBJECTIVES
Students will be expected to:
1. Use the scientific method to explore course information and research results.
2. Create and interpret graphical representations of data.
3. Think critically about ideas and situations presented.
-Remember and understand details and concepts.
-Organize information into learnable “chunks.”
-Analyze information to find the component parts, and see similarities and differences between related concepts.
-Synthesize ideas by finding relevant items upon which to build relationships and predictions.
-Evaluate information to determine most plausible causes and/or outcomes, and develop their own judgments regarding issues.
Attendance at lecture may have points assigned. Any work due at or completed during class-time cannot be made-up or turned in late, unless exceptional conditions exist. It is the student’s responsibility to obtain any information or materials missed from classmates, not the instructor. Laboratory sessions may not be missed. It may be possible to make-up some of the lab exercises, but not all. Unless the student is gravely ill, and in the hospital, it is the student’s responsibility to contact the instructor BEFORE missing the lab, to see whether s/he has an acceptable excuse for missing (illness, family emergency) and what arrangements can be made. ONE missed session, with valid excuse, will not be penalized if the lab is made-up within the agreed upon timeframe, a student may receive credit for work completed through make-up if possible. The instructor shall not re-teach missed material. ONE missed session without a valid excuse will not be allowed to be made-up, and will result in loss of the points assigned to the laboratory activities. The SECOND laboratory absence (without an instructor-approved reason for the absence) will result in no points for the laboratory activities and in a final grade reduction of 10%. THREE nonmade-up (without prior approval) absences will result in the student failing the course. If a student has outside commitments (athletics, drama, musical performances, child-care issues, etc.) that will cause him/her to miss class time or laboratory sessions, the student should drop this course immediately. These are not valid excuses for missing class or more than one lab.
Students will achieve success by:
2. Being an active, thinking, questioning participant of each class.
3. Studying regularly in an active, focused, questioning, thinking manner (about 8 hours per week can be expected).
5. Using the study tools incorporated with the text (on-line Web Site with Learning Objectives, Quizzing, Virtual Field Trips, Interactive Environmental Debates, Regional Case Studies, Critical Thinking Readings, Glossary and Flashcards, and Web Links to Important Data and Research in the Field of Environmental Studies—www.wiley.com/college/botkin).
6. Working with classmates in study groups.
7. Asking the instructor for assistance, immediately as needed, for clarification and deeper understanding.
STUDENT CONDUCT
Students will participate in this class in a manner that is courteous and respectful to all other members of the RCTC community (staff, faculty, administration and other students). All students at RCTC and in this class are expected to exhibit the highest degree of academic honesty. Cheating in any form (copying from other students, books, web-sites, magazines, looking at others’ tests, etc) is not acceptable. Students shall arrive at class on-time and leave after class is over. On occasion, if circumstances require late arrival or early departure, the student should sit near the door so as not to disturb others. Students should have cell phones off or on vibrate. Cell phones may only be answered in class or lab for an actual emergency, and the student should leave the classroom to take the call.
SPECIAL NEEDS
Any student with special needs should speak to me as early in the course as possible to arrange any appropriate accommodations. Students are encouraged to work closely with the Student Support Services Program.
EXAMS
Exams must be completed as scheduled unless arrangements are made with the instructor IN ADVANCE, unless it is physically impossible (the student is in the hospital and unable to make a phone call). Students missing an exam without a PRE-APPROVED excuse will receive a 0 for that exam. Exams may be any combination of multiple choice, true/false, matching, short answer, essay, graphing and problem solving. Make-up exams are likely to be all essay, graphing and problem solving. Be sure to bring a number 2 pencil and a calculator to exams. Sit in every other seat during exams.
ALL ASSIGNED WORK
All work submitted for credit must be appropriately labeled:
Full Name (legible)
Biol 1100, Sp 06
Lab Section (01 or 02 or 03)
Title of Assignment [or Exam Number (I, II, III,) and Exam Form (A or B, etc.)]
PIN Number for exams only
All submitted work must be legible, preferably typed. All multiple pages MUST be stapled. Buy yourself a stapler, one WILL NOT be provided. I will not be responsible for pages that separate during processing and thus do not get graded, or get lost.
Initially, points will be deducted from papers that do not meet the above requirements, but after the first two weeks of class, any assignments that are not properly labeled or presented will earn ZEROES.
Assignments will be accepted ONLY at the official time and place. No late or make-up assignments will be accepted unless there are extraordinary circumstances (lengthy hospitalization, military or emergency summons, etc.). Do not even ask to turn in late work unless you are confident that your explanation is truly extraordinary (I left it at home, in the car, I was sick, I got called in to work, etc. do not count as extraordinary circumstances).
**The schedule that follows is subject to change to best meet the needs of the students and the course.
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITY
Students should take responsibility for their own success in college courses. If a student is having difficulty scoring as well as s/he would like on assignments and/or tests, the student should contact the instructor as soon as possible for help and suggestions.
GRADES
Students should record their scores on the grid provided with this syllabus to compute their standing in this course at any point. Assignments will be normalized to 60 points at the end of the semester, and thus will count for approximately ¼ to 1/3 of their grade. Assignments are intended to help students understand and reinforce main concepts as well as derive deeper meaning from the material. Because help is available (text, classmates, tutors, instructor, etc.), students should be able to attain high scores on assignments. The combination of the assignments and probable offerings of extra credit will allow all students who work diligently at this course to achieve a high grade. Final grades are strictly based on points earned, with 90% and above = A, 80-90% = B, 70-80% = c, 60-70% = D, and below 60% = F.
A grid is provided on a last page to record your scores. Use the following formula to calculate your test or assignment percentage, at any time during the semester.
YOUR (Test or Assignment) SCORE
__________________________ X 100 % = YOUR Test (or Assignment) PERCENTAGE
TOTAL (Test or Assignment) POINTS POSSIBLE
Environmental Biology (Biol 1100) Sp 2006
|
DAY |
DATE |
TOPIC |
CHAPTER |
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M |
1/9 |
Course Introduction |
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W |
1/11 |
Population Dynamics |
4 |
Lab |
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No Lab This Week |
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M |
1/16 |
Holiday—Martin Luther King Day |
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W |
1/18 |
Banette Kritzky—Speaker on GIS |
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Lab |
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No Lab This Week—Holiday |
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M |
1/23 |
Frank Babka—Speaker on Human Population Growth |
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W |
1/25 |
Human Population Trends |
4 |
Lab |
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Graphing Lab I (Linear and Introduction to Semi-log)
Population Lab I |
Provided and Prob Set II (p. 151 # 1-8) Provided |
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M |
1/30 |
Science and the Scientific Method |
2 |
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W |
2/1 |
Science/Scientific Method/Critical Thinking |
2 |
Lab |
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Graphing Lab II
Population Lab II |
Provided
Provided |
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M |
2/6 |
Key Theories in Environmental Science |
1 |
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W |
2/8 |
Ecosystems and Ecosystem Processes |
3 (pp. 46-49), 6 |
Lab |
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Environmental Hike—Wear Sturdy Hiking and Weather Appropriate Clothing: We will go outside regardless of the weather!!!!!!!
Assignment of “Science and the Media” |
Ch.2 (p. 21 # 1-10 |
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M |
2/13 |
EXAM I (Populations, Environmental Science, Scientific Method/Critical Thinking, Graphing) |
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W |
2/15 |
Ecosystems and Ecological Succession |
6,7 10 (pp. 180-190) |
Lab |
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Start Landfill Lab
Research for “Science and the Media” |
Provided
Ch.2 (p. 21 # 1-10 |
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M |
2/20 |
Holiday—President’s Day |
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W |
2/22 |
Ecosystems and Biodiversity |
7 |
Lab |
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No Lab This Week—Holiday |
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M |
2/27 |
Biogeochemical Cycles, Mineral Resources |
5, 26 |
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W |
3/1 |
Biological Productivity and Energy Flow |
9 |
Lab |
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Reports on “Science and the Media” |
Ch.2 (p. 21 # 1-10 |
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M |
3/6 |
Energy and Energy Flow |
9, 16 |
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W |
3/8 |
EXAM II (Ecosystems, Biodiversity, Biogeochemicals, Energy) |
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Lab |
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Energy Conservation |
Ch. 26 |
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3/13-3/17 |
Spring Break |
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M |
3/20 |
Biomes and Natural Areas of the Earth |
***** |
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W |
3/22 |
Biomes and Natural Areas of the Earth |
***** |
Lab |
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Aquatic Species Diversity—Wear Sturdy Hiking and Weather Appropriate Clothing: We will go outside regardless of the weather!!!!!!! |
Ch. 12 |
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M |
3/27 |
Human Effects on the Environment (HEE) |
###### |
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W |
3/29 |
HEE |
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Lab |
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Water Quality Testing I and II—Initial Values |
Provided |
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M |
4/3 |
HEE |
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W |
4/5 |
HEE |
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Lab |
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Water Quality Testing I and II—Analysis of Water SamplesLocal Wetland Mitigation—Research the Mississippi River Flyway |
Provided Ch. 15 |
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M |
4/10 |
HEE |
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W |
4/12 |
Faculty Duty Day—No Classes |
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Lab |
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Writing Lab Reports Use Data Provided to Write Lab Report |
Part I pp. 4-7 Ch. 8 (not the statistical analysis) |
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Th |
4/13 |
Last Day to Withdraw |
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M |
4/17 |
HEE |
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W |
4/19 |
HEE |
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Lab |
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Environmental Forensics |
Ch. 13 and Provided |
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M |
4/24 |
HEE |
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W |
4/26 |
HEE |
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Lab |
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Bioremediation |
Provided |
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M |
5/1 |
HEE |
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W |
5/3 |
HEE |
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Lab |
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Video—“Waste Not, Want Not”Analysis of Landfill Lab |
Provided |
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M |
5/8 |
HEE |
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W |
5/10 |
EXAM III (Biomes of the Earth, Human Effects on the Environment) |
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Lab |
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Discussion of HEE and Production of HEE concept maps |
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*****Biomes and Natural Areas: Various Terrestrial Biomes: including but not limited to types of Grasslands, Deserts, Forests, etc. and Various Aquatic Biomes: including but not limited to types of Lakes, Rivers, Wetlands, Oceans, etc.
#####Human Effects on the Environment: including but not limited to air, water, land, light, and sound pollution, radioactivity/nuclear energy, acid wet deposition, global warming, ozone hole, loss of biodiversity, destruction of habitat, soil erosion, water depletion, etc. This information can be found scattered in a variety of chapters in the text, including: 11, 12, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 28, and 29.
RECORD OF SCORES:
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EXAM |
I |
II |
III |
SUB-TOTAL TESTS |
SUB-TOTAL TEST PERCENT (Current test Subtotal) |
FINAL
TEST TOTAL (FTT) |
FINAL
TEST % |
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Points Possible (PP) |
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100 % |
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Points Earned (PE) |
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ASSIGN MENT
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Points Poss-ible |
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Points Earned
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ASSIGN MENT (A) SUB- TOTAL |
SUB-TOTAL ASSIGN MENT % (A%) |
Final A % |
Final A Score= Final A % X 60 (FAS) |
Final Test Total (FTT) |
Final Score: FAS + FTT |
Final Per-cent |
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100 % |
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60 |
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100% |
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