Expectations:  

Students will review and comprehend the readings, attend all classes, and participate in class and lab discussion and activities. Students are expected to put the reading and writing for this course as a high priority for this semester. I as the instructor will provide a schedule and framework of activities and assessment but students have the ultimate responsibility for learning in this course!

 

Grading:

Individual Grades

Midterm Exam:(20 %)

Final Exam:(25 %)

Discussion + Paper Summary (7.5%)

Discussion Lead (2.5%)

In-class Activities (10%)

Ecology Research Proposal : (5%)

Final Paper (and Drafts) (10 %)

Class Participation / Group Contributions:(5 %)

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Group Grades

CHANS project and paper (15%)

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Course grades will be based on the following criteria:

Anyone with a score of 60% or more is guaranteed at least a grade of ‘D-’, 70% or greater a grade of ‘C-’, 80% or greater at least a grade of ‘B-’, and 90% or greater an ‘A-’. However, since final grades are based on the total number of points scored on all exams and laboratory exercises, they cannot be computed precisely until the end of the course (i.e., the grading scale may be lowered, but this will NOT be determined until the end of the course). You will of course be able to monitor your progress based on scores throughout the semester. Do not wait until the second exam to discover you are not doing as well as you expected. Graduating seniors should be especially aware of this. There is no extra credit in this course.  

 

At the discretion of the instructor, grade criteria may be relaxed slightly, based on natural gaps in the class grade distribution.  However, you should not expect large deviations from the cutoffs above.  Do not wait until the final exam to decide you are not doing as well as you expected.  There is no extra credit in this course.

 

Grade discrepancies: You are responsible for checking your grades throughout the semester. If you feel that an assignment was not graded properly, you must: Submit a copy of the assignment with written justification as to why the grade is inaccurate in person to me no more than 7 days after the grade returned.

 

Lecture Periods: Active Learning Approach

Ideally, listening to lectures is interesting and informative, but it’s a passive way to learn.  In this course, we will use a combination of lecture and collaborative group learning to encourage you to be proactive in taking responsibility for learning course material.  Here’s how our time will be spent during a typical lecture period.  We’ll start with about 15 minutes of lecture to provide an overview of the day’s topic.  Then I’ll pose a short question to the class, such as a multiple choice or short free-response question.  Each student will then have about 1-2 minutes to answer the question on their own.  Then, students will work in groups of 3-4 to discuss their answers and come to a group consensus.  I will then call on groups to explain their answer.  We’ll discuss the answer to the question as a whole class and then cover some additional material.  Groups may be asked to turn in written answers to the daily question from time to time.

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Writing and Data Interpretation Assignments

Among the most important skills you will learn in this class relate to scientific writing, understanding biological data, and learning how to do research in biology. These are tools everyone must have, regardless of their area of specialty within biology. To do this effectively takes practice. Thus, in this course you will have many opportunities to write and have your work evaluated. Furthermore, you’ll gain experience in planning, implementing, and analyzing biologically based projects through yet more assignments. These assignments will emphasize how the aforementioned skills relate to all forms of biological research, and will thus be invaluable to you as you progress in your study of biology. Specific details on these assignments and their due dates will be presented in class.

 

Attendance

Experience has shown that attendance in class correlates positively with grades earned in the course. This also stands for arriving on time Also, the group-learning aspect of this course requires that all members of each group be present each day and that they participate fully in the exchange of ideas.  If written materials are collected from discussion groups during lecture and you are absent for an unexcused reason that day, you will not receive credit for participation in your group’s work.   Failure to arrive on time, attend class, and to participate in class discussion will reduce one’s class participation grade.

 

Social engagements will not count as excused absences!  It is your responsibility to present evidence of illness or any other extenuating circumstances for missing class.  If you have a special situation that will require you to miss several classes, let me know beforehand.   Also, if you miss class, it is your responsibility to find out what you missed. Ignorance of an announcement made in class is not an acceptable excuse for failure to meet a course requirement. Make-up exams will only be offered for documented, excused absences. My attendance policy reflects that of Furman University as stated in the catalogue. “Freshman will be withdrawn from a course if absent, for any reason, 15 percent of the class meetings. Sophomores, juniors, and seniors will be withdrawn from a course if absent 25 percent of the class meetings. In both cases, a failing (F) grade will be recorded unless the absences were due to providential reasons, in which cases a withdrawal (W) grade may be assigned after consultation with the Associate Academic Dean.”

 

Class Preparation

Effective participation in group learning and class discussion requires that you are prepared each day for class.  Preparation for learning will require reading of the text and/or supplemental materials. If you don’t understand the material, you need to come prepared with specific questions.

 

Both lectures and reading assignments are fundamental parts of this course.  While the lectures and reading assignments will overlap, they will not be identical.  Some of the information covered in lecture will not be in the readings.  Likewise, very important information may be presented only in the assigned readings. 

 

The group learning strategy of this class is intended to have students help each other learn and understand the course material.  Nonetheless, you will still have to study and prepare outside of class.  It is recommended that you spend about two hours studying and reviewing material for every one hour attending lecture.  Don’t put off studying to the last minute!!

 

Exams

You are expected to take the exams when scheduled.  The availability and scheduling of make-up exams is solely at the instructor’s discretion.  Note that make-up exams may consist primarily of short essay questions which are more difficult than questions on the original exam.  NOTE: Any changes in the scheduling of the final exam must have the prior approval of the Associate Academic Dean.

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Disability Accommodations

Students with disabilities who need academic accommodations should contact the Office of Disability Services (Gina Parris, Coordinator, Admin Bldg 207, phone: 294-2322).  After meeting with the Disability Services, contact me right away.  Don't procrastinate - do this early in the term.

 

Academic Integrity

Integrity gives the educational enterprise its legitimacy.  Honesty, respect, and personal responsibility are principles that guide academic life at Furman, in and out of the classroom.  Academic misconduct in any form (plagiarism, cheating, inappropriate collaboration, and other efforts to gain an unfair academic advantage) threatens the values of the campus community and will have severe consequences.  In this course, I will assume that when you put your name on an exam that this is your bond to say that you have done your own work.  At a minimum, a grade of 0 will be given to an assignment containing plagiarized material or to an exam involving cheating.  Furthermore, plagiarism could lead to failing the entire course.

 

If you have any question about what constitutes plagiarism or any other form of academic misconduct, it is your responsibility to consult with me so that you will fully understand what I expect of you.  If you have any doubts, ask!  Furman’s policy on academic integrity and academic misconduct can be found at the website “Academic Integrity Information” (http://www.furman.edu/integrity/index.htm).