UNDERGRADUATE SEMINAR

Transcription

1 UNDERGRADUATE SEMINAR CHE (1 st -time registrants) and (2 nd -time registrants) Spring Semester 2012, Wednesday 4:00 p.m., CP-137 Instructors CHE Prof. Mark D. Watson. CP-318, Office Hours: for an appointment. CHE Prof. Robert Grossman. CP-339, Office Hours: for an appointment. Course Description CHE 572 Communication in Chemistry. Reports and discussions on recent research and current chemical literature in seminar format; literature searching methods; resume construction; preparation of effective presentations, abstracts, and visual aids. May be repeated for a total of two credits. Seminar Titles and Outlines Please discuss your seminar title with your instructor during office hours or by appointment. Have some alternate titles in mind. Submit in writing (paper or ) your name, section number, the approved title, and the seminar date before the class meeting on Wednesday, January 25. In the case of duplicate topics, the first approved topic handed in has priority. Grading Policy CHE : Abstract = 15%, short seminar = 55%, literature search = 10%, Departmental seminar evaluation = 5%, speaker introduction = 5%, class participation = 10% of the overall course grade. CHE : Abstract = 10%, long seminar = 55%, literature search = 10%, résumé = 5%, Departmental seminar evaluation = 5%, speaker introduction = 5%, class participation = 10% of the overall course grade. Class participation: Attendance: Students are expected to attend every class, and to be on time for the start of the class. Support your classmates. In a seminar class, habitual non-attendance and tardiness are rude to the presenters. Attendance will be taken. Each two unexcused absences will lower your course grade by one full letter grade. Policies related to official University excused absences may be found in the Student Rights and Responsibilities manual. [See Section ] Excused absences must be discussed with and approved by your instructor as early as possible. Tardiness will also be penalized. Discussions and question/answer sessions: Instructors will monitor participation in class discussions. Students are expected to ask at least five non-trivial questions during the semester. Please state your name clearly when asking a question of a seminar speaker. Exams: There are no exams in this course. CHE 572 Communication in Chemistry 1 Syllabus Fall 2010

2 Seminar Length Short seminars (CHE ) are about 12 minutes in length. Long seminars (CHE ) are about 22 minutes in length. An additional 3 minutes will be allowed for questions from the audience. Abstracts You must prepare and distribute a one-page paper abstract for your talk. The abstract will be graded on clarity, conciseness, appropriateness, English usage, grammar, and adherence to the required format. You must prepare enough copies to distribute to the entire class, including the instructors. Make 2-3 additional copies in the event of unexpected guests. You may either (1) give a clean, high-quality printed copy of your abstract to the Undergraduate Staff Support Associate (Justin Atkinson) in CP-117 by noon on Monday of the week of your seminar and pick up copies on the day of your seminar, or (2) make enough copies of the abstract yourself and bring them to class. Include 3 to 6 key citations to literature articles that you consulted in preparing your talk, formatted according to Table 14-2 in: Dodd, J. S.; Solla, L.; Bérard, P. M., Chapter 14: References. In The ACS style guide: effective communication of scientific information, Third ed.; Coghill, A. M.; Garson, L. R., Eds. American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 2006; pp Two copies are on reserve in the Science Library. Please include the article title for journal articles. Visual Aids Computer-based (e.g., PowerPoint) presentations have become the de facto standard for professional presentations. If you wish to supplement your talk with additional visual aids, including overhead transparencies, please make arrangements at the class meeting before your presentation. Up to ten black-and-white overhead transparencies will be made for you free of charge by the. You must submit your final printed material to the Undergraduate Staff Support Associate no later than noon on Monday of the week of your seminar. If you are late, the material will not be accepted and it will be your responsibility to have the overheads prepared. You may make color or additional overheads at your own expense. Films for laser or ink-jet printers or pens and write-on films may be purchased at office supplies stores. Commercial copy centers can print overhead transparencies. Video Camera Another student will record each student s presentation on video. You may be assigned to obtain and set up the camera before class starts. See the assignment sheet and the video camera instruction sheet for further details. Seminar Review and Conference Pick up the DVD or your seminar from the Undergraduate Staff Support Associate in CP- 117 on Thursday after your seminar. Review the video of your seminar on your own computer or in a campus computer lab by Friday after your seminar. After viewing your presentation, use a student evaluation form for self-evaluation. Bring the DVD and form when you meet with your instructor, during office hours or by appointment, for a brief conference before the following class meeting. CHE 572 Communication in Chemistry 2 Syllabus Fall 2010

3 Introducing a Speaker Obtain background information from the person you are going to introduce at least one week ahead of his or her seminar. Suggestions: Welcome the audience. Give the speaker s name, home town, academic year, other interests, general plans after graduation, and finally the title of the seminar. The time for the introduction should be one minute or less. Introduce the speaker with the same level of professional style and care with which you would like to be introduced yourself. Remind audience members to silence their cell phones and other electronic devices. Literature Search CHE students will prepare a 20- to 25-item bibliography on the topic of their seminar using the format specified above under Abstracts. CHE students will search the chemical literature and write a report on the synthesis and physical properties of a compound that is assigned to them. Further information on this assignment is contained in a class handout. Submit search reports to Ms. Jan Carver, the Chemistry-Physics Librarian, in 310d Science Library or at the checkout desk of the Science library in an envelope addressed to Ms. Carver by Wednesday, February 22. Departmental Seminar Evaluation Both CHE and CHE students will attend two Chemistry Departmental seminars and turn in completed evaluation forms for the talks. The speakers must not be affiliated with the. A listing of Chemistry Departmental Seminars is at: Evaluations should be submitted to your instructor as soon as possible after the seminar you attend. All evaluations are due before class on Wednesdays, March 7 and April 18. About Departmental Seminars. If you are a Chemistry major, you should try to attend all Chemistry Department seminars. If you are not a Chemistry major, you should attend the seminar program in your home department. Seminars often present the latest knowledge about a particular subject. Attending seminars will teach you something, show you how much you don t know about a particular field, and allow you to mark your development as you learn. With some effort on your part, you will begin to understand the seminars much better. Be patient. You will be able to think back to when you didn t understand the content very well. At some point you might do some Chemistry research. A history of seminar attendance will help you in making the right choice of research topic. Seminar attendance now will make you a better educator if you go into teaching or more scientifically literate in any profession you choose. Résumés CHE students are required to prepare a résumé according to guidelines presented by the representative from the Careers Office. The résumés are due in class on Wednesday, March 21. Assessment CHE students will participate in a written Departmental Assessment exercise on April 25. Guidelines for the assessment will be distributed on April 11. Aside from attendance at the assessment, the anonymous exercise will not affect students grades in CHE 572 or any CHE 572 Communication in Chemistry 3 Syllabus Fall 2010

4 other course. The Department uses the results of the assessment to determine whether our graduating seniors are making progress toward our stated learning outcomes Other Class Activities As time permits, other activities related to oral-communication skills will be undertaken by the class. These could include one- to two-minute extemporaneous talks. Seminar Behavior, Decorum, and Civility In addition to a scholarly demeanor and civility to all, common courtesy is expected of everyone involved in CHE 572, including the instructors. Arrive on time or a few minutes early. It is disruptive to and disrespectful of your fellow students when people arrive late. If you carry a cell phone or beeper, ensure before the class starts that it is off or in silent mode. If a cell phone or beeper goes off during a lecture or lab, it shall be turned over to the instructor immediately. It will be returned at the end of the period the first time this happens. If you actually answer the phone call, it will be confiscated and turned over to the Dean of Students to deal with. Finally, please clean up after yourself in the seminar room so that the space remains clean for other users. Absences and Make-ups Students who miss class because of a documented, University-approved excuse will not be penalized. We will build some flexibility into the schedule to allow for students who cannot deliver their seminar at the appointed time due to a University-approved excuse. Interviews for graduate or professional school do not count as University-approved excuses, but we will grant excused absences for students whose interviews are scheduled during our class time, as long as you notify us in advance. If you discover that an interview or a religious observance has been scheduled for the same date as your seminar, we expect you to arrange to switch your seminar date with another student in your section. Please inform us as well if you need to do this. Academic Dishonesty Fortunately, there is very little reason for academic dishonesty in our undergraduate seminar course, and consequently extremely few instances have arisen over the years. Junior and senior science majors are professionals in training. We will treat you as aspiring professionals, and we expect you to behave like professionals. The considers any type of academic dishonesty cheating, plagiarism, representing the work of others as your own, drylabbing, etc. a very serious offense, and we will respond appropriately to any academic dishonesty. The minimum, required penalty for proven academic dishonesty (cheating) is a grade of zero for the assignment if the offense is a student s first at the University. Additional penalties may be imposed by the instructor for a first offense depending on the degree of severity of the transgression and other factors. These can include extra work, reduced letter grade, or a failure of the course. For a penalty less severe than a failure of the course, a letter of warning, which is destroyed on graduation if there are no subsequent offenses, is placed in the student s official record. The minimum penalty for a second offense is failure of the course (which can be subject to the Repeat Option) or suspension, depending on the penalty imposed for the first offense. A CHE 572 Communication in Chemistry 4 Syllabus Fall 2010

5 penalty more severe than failure of the course may be imposed for a first or second offense, subject to approval of the Department Chair and the Dean. The rules, including rights of appeal, are available from: The current version of the Student Rights and Responsibilities manual The Senate Rules most pertinent to academic dishonesty are in Sections Instructors in the carefully follow the required procedures. If you have questions about what may constitute academic dishonesty in this course, please ask. CHE 572 Communication in Chemistry 5 Syllabus Fall 2010