COURSE SYLLABUS SCI 181 Introduction to Environmental Science Lecture A; Lab A Spring 2017 Office Location/Office Hours: C207J / Mon 10am - noon; Mon and Wed 1-2pm, Tues 11amnoon Phone Number: 518-736-3622 x8935; text me at: 518-768-1876 (GoogleVoice number) Email: lfreeman@apps.fmcc.edu Website: http://faculty.fmcc.edu/freeman/ All Assignments, due dates, handouts, powerpoint slides, audio recordings of lecture, pdfs of notes and all other course materials will be accessible through this site. Course Hours and Locations: Lecture: Monday and Wednesday 2-2:55pm C133 Lab: Thursday 2-4:55pm in C133 Materials: Required Text: Neff, Jason. REVEL for A Changing Planet. Pearson, 2015. Web. ISBN: 9780134081175 This is an ebook that you are REQUIRED to do homework in. There is a 2 week free trial. After that you are REQUIRED to have paid-for access. Copyright Statement Some of the materials of this course may be copyrighted. They are intended for use only by students registered in this course and only for instructional activities associated with and for the duration of the course. They may not be retained in another medium or disseminated further. They are provided in compliance with the provisions of existing copyright laws. Course Description SCI 181 Introduction to Environmental Science 2-3-3. This course serves as an introduction to environmental concepts and issues. Topics include issues that span the study of ecology, social sciences, economics, ethics and governmental policy. Emphasis is placed on the scientific tools and techniques needed to understand and analyze environmental topics related to resource depletion, pollution and waste disposal. Prerequisites: None. General Education: N. Course Student Learning Outcomes Students will demonstrate the following: Understanding of the methods scientists use to explore natural phenomena, including observation, hypothesis development, measurement and data collection, experimentation, evaluation of evidence, and employment of mathematical analysis. Application of scientific data, concepts, and models in environmental science. State University of New York General Education Learning Outcomes Natural Science
Students will demonstrate the following: Understanding of the methods scientists use to explore natural phenomena, including observation, hypothesis development, measurement and data collection, experimentation, evaluation of evidence, and employment of mathematical analysis. Application of scientific data, concepts, and models in one of the natural sciences. Student Responsibilities Attendance Policy It is highly advisable to attend all classes. There is NO MAKEUP for material missed in class. It is my experience that attendance is positively correlated with final grade. Material covered in class will appear on quizzes and/or exams. Reading and REVEL homework: You must read and complete the assignment by the due date listed in the course calendar. For each question you will receive 3 points for correct on the first attempt, 2 points for correct on the 2 nd attempt, and 1 point for correct on the 3 rd attempt. Addition attempts will not receive credit. You can go back and look at the material before answering a question. Assignments will not be accepted late. Material from your text will appear on quizzes and exams. You will earn the following points on REVEL homework If you REVEL score is this: Your grade for the homework is this: 80-100 100 65-79 80 55-64 70 50-54 60 0-49 The same as the REVEL grade You are responsible for all individual technical issues. Either contact your instructor of the software technical support. If there is a technical problem with the website, it is your responsibility to document that problem IMMEDIATELY when it happens and send your instructor an email describing the issue. It is VERY helpful to have a screenshot of the problem. If the problem is system wide, the instructor will work with you to come to a reasonable solution. Assignments/Projects: There are assignments/projects associated with this class. Information about these will be distributed in class. Classroom Etiquette Policy: Proper classroom etiquette makes for a productive learning environment for all students. Classroom expectations are as follows:
No sound on mobile devices. No earbuds in. No texting or other e-behavior that takes your attention away from the class. No talking unless group work is in progress or the instructor has asked you to speak. No distracting behaviors. These include o Entering the class late in a distracting way o Leaving the class when it is in session o Harassing other students in any way Consequences for not abiding by classroom etiquette: o The first offense for violating classroom etiquette will be a verbal warning. o The second offense will result in being asked to leave the class. You will not be allowed back into the class until you have spoken to your instructor at least 24 hours preceding the next class. o The third offense will result in being asked to leave the class. You will not be allowed back into the class until you have spoken to the Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences. o The fourth offense will result in your receiving an F in the class. You will not be allowed to withdraw from the class. Your name will be turned in to the Provost and Vice President of the College. Use of any mobile device during an exam or quiz is strictly prohibited. Use of such a device during an exam or quiz will result in a grade of zero for that quiz or exam and constitutes a violation of Academic Integrity (see below). Exam Policy: There are 4 exams during the semester. Each exam covers approximately 1/4 of the course material. There are NO MAKE-UP EXAMS. If you miss an exam, you will receive a 0. Only 3 of the 4 exam grades will be counted toward your final grade (in other words the lowest will be dropped). You may elect not to take the last exam if you have taken the first 3 exams and are satisfied with your grade at the time of the 4 th exam. Quiz Policy: There will be a quiz at the beginning of classes (lectures and/or labs) with "quiz" indicated on the lecture and lab calendar. There are NO MAKE-UP QUIZZES. The quiz will start at the beginning of class. You will have 10 minutes to complete the quiz. Therefore, if you are late, you will not have the full time to take the quiz! It is to your benefit to be on time! The quizzes will be based on your REVEL assignments. Each quiz is worth 10 points. The lowest quiz grade will be dropped. Course Content and Outline See Blackboard for detailed lecture and lab outline Topics Covered in lecture and lab: Agriculture Human Health and the Environment
Economics and Value Energy Use Renewable Energy Nonrenewable Energy Land Use Waste Management Ecosystems and Biomes Biodiversity and Evolution Freshwater The Atmosphere and Air Pollution Climate Grading Method and Grading Scale Weights Final grade determination 25% - lecture exams 93.4-100% = A 25% - quizzes 90-93.3% = A- 25% REVEL homework 86.7-89.9% = B+ 25% - assignments 83.4-86.6%= B 80-83.3% = B- 76.7-79.9% = C+ 70-76.6% = C 60-69.9% = D 0-59.9% = F Grading Philosophy: The following gives a summary of the quality of work that warrants award of each grade: A- Along with all of the requirements for a B, the following demonstrates A work. A student has superior understanding of the material. A student understands the relationship between different topics in the course. A student connects their knowledge from other courses (not necessarily environmental science) with the topics in this course. In assignments, a student clearly goes above and beyond answering the question. Some examples of this are: asking appropriate follow-up questions, speculating on how
concepts used in answering of the question may bear on other topics, or bringing in additional (beyond coursework) relevant material to elaborate the student s reasoning. B- Along with all of the requirements for a C, the following demonstrates B work. A student can recall the majority (80%) of the facts presented in the course. A student can apply concepts learned in class in novel ways. A student can communicate their understanding of concepts in the course in at least 2 different ways. In assignments, a student has an answer that clearly follows from logic and/or justification that stems from concepts learned in class. C- Along with all the requirements for a D, the following demonstrates C work. A student can recall at least 70% of the facts presented in the course. A student can communicate their understanding of concepts in the course. In assignments, whether a student has a correct answer or not, it is clear they have attempted to show the logic and/or justification for their answer. C- A student can recall at least 60% of the facts presented in the course. A student demonstrates making an effort to learn the material by completing assignments in a thoughtful manner. F- A student fails to demonstrate the ability to learn the facts presented in the course. A student does not demonstrate making an effort to learn the material. A final note on grades: A student earns their grade through completing material as laid out in the course outline. There is no extra credit. There is no bargaining for grades. Students with Disabilities Policy: Fulton-Montgomery Community College is committed to providing reasonable accommodations, including core services, to qualified students with disabilities. For additional information, go to: http://www.fmcc.edu/admissions/students-with-disabilities/ Academic Integrity Policy: Academic integrity refers to a code of values that support and direct the education process. This code is based on legal, ethical, and educational concerns. Education in large part consists of the acquisition and demonstration of knowledge according to acceptable standards. Students must be familiar with these standards and will be held accountable for their use. Not being familiar with these standards is not an excuse for their breach. http://www.fmcc.edu/academics/programs/academic-integrity-policy/ I expect you to follow the Fulton-Montgomery Community College Academic Integrity Policy. All work that you submit must be your own. You will often work in groups during class time and your collaboration on projects is encouraged. This does NOT mean that you can turn in joint assignments. Every assignment (unless otherwise stated by your instructor) must be submitted by individual students and no 2 assignments should be identical (or even significantly similar)
to each other. Likewise, all work on exams and quizzes must be your own. There are no "openbook" or "open-note" exams or quizzes (unless otherwise stated by your instructor). If you violate this policy, I will penalize you as specified in the policy I expect that you will be doing some research (online and in your text). You are not allowed to cut and paste or copy directly from ANY source. Such behavior is plagiarism. Definition of Plagiarism Plagiarism is the use of someone else s ideas or words and passing them off as one s own. The word comes from the Latin plagiarius, meaning kidnapping. In an academic context, plagiarism is intellectual thievery. It is unethical and intolerable. It also means that if the source is paraphrased, i.e. the ideas are rewritten, the original source must be given credit. Using another student s paper is plagiarism. Allowing another student to hand in a paper you wrote is condoning plagiarism and will be dealt with in the same manner as plagiarism and cheating. Consequences for violating academic integrity: First offense: Student will receive a 0% grade on that assignment, test, quiz, practical, project, presentation, etc. Second offense: Student will receive a grade of F in the course and will not be allowed to withdraw. The student s name will be reported to the Provost and Vice President of the College as well as the Dean of Liberal Arts and Science Campus Civility Statement: FM is committed to fostering an environment of civility. All members of the FM community and visitors have the right to experience and the responsibility to create and maintain an environment of mutual respect and support that is civil in all aspects of human relations. Civility facilitates professional growth and achievement and promotes an environment where each person can reach his or her full potential. FMCC Writing Center: The Writing Center is an academic center, located in FM s Learning Commons (Evans Library, first floor), where students can develop their college writing skills. Students may work with peer and professional tutors on any phase of the writing process: brainstorming a topic, preparing an outline, drafting and revising, and using specific documentation styles, like MLA, APA, and Chicago. Tutors will not edit students writing, but they will help students to identify their surface errors and/or consistent patterns in their own writing. Tutors are available to review grammar and citation rules and to guide students in their own writing processes. The Writing Center is a drop-in tutoring center, staffed Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m.-6:00 p.m. and Friday, 8:30 a.m. 4:00 p.m. Online tutoring is also available through www.etutoring.org
Students have online access to tutorial support in Writing, Math, Statistics, Accounting, Information Literacy, Chemistry, Biology, and Anatomy and Physiology: Echat: virtually interact with an etutor in real time Equestions: submit a question and get a response within 48 hours Ewriting lab: submit a draft and receive in-text comments and a written response (within 48 hours) about your writing Student can access etutoring directly from any web browser or through their Angel courses, which have an embedded link (under the Resource tab) and a brief video on how to login and navigate etutoring. Technical assistant is available online through the Helpdesk (support@cdlc.org) and on-campus through Colleen Sanders, The Writing Center Coordinator.