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| Title | Survey of Biology |
| Instructor(s) | LYNDA A. RANDA |
| Location | Online |
| Day and Time | None |
| Textbook(s) | The Living World (ed. 4) by George B. Johnson, published by McGraw Hill. |
| Prerequisite(s) | Mathematics 0481 with a "C" or better, or a qualifying score on the Math Placement Exam |
| Starting Date | 6/11/2007 |
| Ending Date* | 8/5/2007 |
BIOLOGY 1100 (IAI L1 900L)
Survey of Biology
4 credit hours
This course is designed for non-science majors and students interested in learning about biology. It surveys the organization, function, and evolution of life from behavioral, ecological, and hereditary perspectives. In addition, we will explore contemporary human-related issues in biology such as environmental concerns and genetic engineering. The scientific process is integrated in readings and lab activities.
General Course Objectives
Upon successful completion of this course the student should be able to do the following:
The primary text for this course is The Living World (4th edition) by George B. Johnson, published by McGraw Hill, copyright 2006.
You will need access to a computer with a CD-ROM drive and Internet/e-mail capability. You must have a browser (Netscape or Internet Explorer) that is version 4.0 or better. (Internet Explorer is the preferred browser.)
All College of DuPage students are assigned an email address by the college. On the first day of class, a message will be posted to your course message center about your email address.
How to Obtain Required Course Materials
You may purchase the textbooks and the optional course support materials from the COD Bookstore on the Glen Ellyn campus, or have them delivered by UPS to your home or office by calling (630) 942-3883. Learn more about ordering books from the COD Bookstore.
After completion of this course, you should expect to have a better understanding of the nature of scientific investigation and thought. Hopefully, this will help you to evaluate the claims of commercials, news articles and others who call on the support of "scientific" evidence to advance their causes. You should also expect to have a better understanding of some
of the key "public" areas of biology — those which are most likely to directly
affect your life, and those which are of the most interest to most people. What to expect from this course
Index
Exam Projects:
Unit Quizzes:
Unit Assignments:
Lab Exercises: Important note: you are restricted
to no more than one unit's worth of work submitted during any given week (maximum = 2
assignments and 2 lab exercises per week).
Summer session is only 8 weeks, so staying close to
schedule is very important.
Message Center: Each student also has a personal message center. Use this to send individual communications to other students and to your teacher.
Never submit work to be graded to the instructor's message center. Some work can be sent via email, but not through the message center.
To submit assignments, labs, and/or course projects, you may direct your submissions
as follows (in order of preference):
Your Unit quizzes are submitted only through the Anlon exam function.
Note that your Exam Projects are not submitted this way--only the quizzes.
Some assignments have text submission boxes. If this option is available,
you must use it. These assignments won't be accepted via other avenues.
randal@dupage.edu
You may leave work in my mailbox in the Natural and Applied Sciences
Division Office, IC 3028. Give the work to an assistant in the office, and
be sure that he/she logs the date and time received on the assignment. Work
that comes in via snail mail or in person is subject to the same notes as
FAXes and may even experience a greater delay. Don't forget that e-mail communication and communication through the Anlon
Message Center is always available to you. Your instructor's office telephone
number is (630)942-2706.
You will be expected to complete three major assessment projects during the semester.
These are designed to be research, reasoning, problem solving and/or synthesis
projects. Each of these projects will be worth 100 points toward your final point
total. Note that deadlines for these projects are firm;
you will not be permitted
to submit them late.
Each unit requires that you answer two quiz questions. These will be selected by the instructor
from several questions which are provided to you for preparation. Each of these
is an essay-style question, and responses are expected to be written in well
formed sentences, with attention to grammar and spelling. These are accessed
through the "Exam" function of IntraKal. You may do as much preparation as you
wish, but once you access the exam function, you must complete your response
before you leave the Exam area, and you won't be able to reaccess that question.
Each quiz question is worth 15 points. Deadlines for quizzes are firm; you will
not be permitted to take them late. If you are asked for an access code for a quiz, you should enter "unit1," "unit2," as appropriate for the unit.
Each unit of the course also has two required assignments. The value
for each of these assignments is 20 points. These assignments have suggested completion dates, but no late penalties will be assessed if they are not
turned in by those dates. To stay on schedule, you should try to complete two of these every
1.5 weeks.
There are a total of 10 lab exercises. The reports for these assignments are
worth 20 points each. You should plan to complete two of these every 1.5 weeks. These lab assignments have suggested completion dates, but no late
penalties will be assessed if they are not turned in by those dates.
All students in the class will be expected to sign onto the class Message Center. Important information from your instructor will be posted in the message
center, and you are responsible for knowing that information. Also, students will be discussing issues related to the assignments in the course, and it
will be very beneficial to participate in these discussions. Topics for dicussion may be suggested,
but students should use the Message Center to discuss any concerns or issues
that come up during the completion of the course. The Message Center will be
available for all students all of the time, and everyone is encouraged to make
a substantive appearance at regular intervals. The Message Center is an important
avenue of communication between you and the other students in the class, and between the students and the instructor. Take
advantage of your course "community."
Via Anlon Exam function:
Via Anlon:
Via e-mail:
This email address is to be used for submitting assignments and
course-related communication.
Many assignments may be submitted as attachments. The only attachments I will accept will be .doc, .txt, .xls and .pdf files. Microsoft Word versions
of the data sheets for labs may be accessed from your instructor's
web
site.
Via FAX:
FAX number: (630)858-9399
FAXes come to Staff Services at the college, which means that there is often a delay of 1 or more days between the time you send them and the time I
receive them. I will post a report whenever I pick up FAXes letting you know what arrived.
Via snail mail:
Lynda Randa
Division of Natural and Applied Sciences
College of DuPage
425 Fawell Blvd.
Glen Ellyn, IL 60137
In person:
Index
Point values for the work required in this class will be: 3 Exam Projects 100 points each; 300 points total 10 Quiz Questions 15 points each; 150 points total 10 Unit Assignments 20 points each; 200 points total 10 Lab Exercises 20 points each; 200 points total
Your final grade will be based upon your total points earned, applied to a standard grading scale:
|
90-100% |
A |
|
80-89% |
B |
|
70-79% |
C |
|
60-69% |
D |
|
<60% |
F |
Please note that the instructions given for your various projects are important. Paying attention to instructions is part of what contributes to your grade!
| Date | Event | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Wed June 20 | Unit 1 Assignment - Essay Explanation |
20 |
| Wed June 20 | Unit 1 Assignment - Internet Site Critique |
20 |
| Wed June 20 | Unit 1 Lab - Metric System |
20 |
| Wed June 20 | Unit 1 Lab - Nuts-n-Bolts |
20 |
| Wed June 20 | Unit 1 Quiz Questions |
30 |
| Mon June 25 | Exam Project I - The Kaibab Plateau (Part 1) |
20 |
| Mon July 2 | Exam Project I - The Kaibab Plateau (Part 2) |
50 |
| Wed July 4 | Unit 2 Assignment - Species |
20 |
| Wed July 4 | Unit 2 Assignment - Ecosystems |
20 |
| Wed July 4 | Unit 2 Lab - Predator-Prey |
20 |
| Wed July 4 | Unit 2 Lab - Mark & Recapture |
20 |
| Wed July 4 | Unit 2 Quiz Questions |
30 |
| Mon July 9 | Exam Project I - The Kaibab Plateau (Part 3) |
30 |
| Fri July 13 | Unit 3 Assignment - Carrie Buck |
20 |
| Fri July 13 | Unit 3 Assignment - Internet Site Critique |
20 |
| Fri July 13 | Unit 3 Lab - Molecular Clocks |
20 |
| Fri July 13 | Unit 3 Lab - Genetic Drift |
20 |
| Fri July 13 | Unit 3 Quiz Questions |
30 |
| Mon July 16 | Exam Project II - How did we get here? (Part 1) |
40 |
| Mon July 23 | Exam Project II - How did we get here? (Part 2) |
60 |
| Wed July 25 | Unit 4 Assignment - The Cell as a Community |
20 |
| Wed July 25 | Unit 4 Assignment - Down the Hatch! |
20 |
| Wed July 25 | Unit 4 Lab - Surface Area and Volume |
20 |
| Wed July 25 | Unit 4 Lab - Biological Membranes |
20 |
| Wed July 25 | Unit 4 Quiz Questions |
30 |
| Fri Aug 3 | Unit 5 Assignment - Blood Types |
20 |
| Fri Aug 3 | Unit 5 Assignment - Internet Site Critique |
20 |
| Fri Aug 3 | Unit 5 Lab - Mr. and Mrs. George Gene |
20 |
| Fri Aug 3 | Unit 5 Lab - Virtual Fly Lab |
20 |
| Fri Aug 3 | Unit 5 Quiz Questions |
30 |
| Fri Aug 3 | Exam Project III - Genetics |
100 |
| Fri Aug 3 | Final deadline for all work |
Note: All quiz and exam project deadlines are set for noon on due date
Satisfactory/Fail (S/F) Grade Option
This course qualifies as a general graduation requirement course. If this is your reason for taking Biology 1100, you must think very carefully before choosing the S/F option. Very few transfer schools will accept the S grade for a general graduation requirement course, and COD's associate programs do not.
If you are contemplating requesting this option, check with your chosen transfer school and make sure that, for the program you wish to enter, it is acceptable that this class receive an S grade. If you decide that this is what you want to do, the S/F grade option form must be filled out and signed by both student and instructor, then submitted by the instructor with the grade sheets at the end of the semester.
Note that the S grade is for "Satisfactory." This is not the same as "Passing." In this class, the S grade will be assigned only for work at the C level or better. (In other words, a D is passing but not satisfactory.)
Index
The purpose of an Incomplete grade is to accommodate a student who
is
unable
, for some unavoidable reason,
to complete the requirements of the course in the normally allotted time period. Note that this excludes awarding an I grade for low achievement in completed course work. If a student is granted an Incomplete, the student and the instructor will agree upon a reasonable period of time for the completion of the course, and will list the work still required to fulfill the course requirement. It is the student's responsibility to arrange for the completion of the necessary work. Failure to meet that time restriction results in the I becoming an F.
The student and instructor must sign a "Contract for Incomplete Grade" before an I grade can be awarded. The student must have received permission from the instructor, have satisfied minimum completion requirements (see below), and have completed this form by the final Tuesday of the semester. Refer to the college catalog for more information about the I grade.
In order to qualify for in Incomplete in this class, the student must have completed at least two Exam Projects, three Unit Quizzes, six Unit Assignments, and six Lab Assignments. The work completed must be at least of C quality. Quizzes and Exam Projects whose deadlines have passed at the time the Incomplete agreement is made may not be made up as part of the work to be completed. An incomplete is not a device to circumvent those deadlines.
Special Note: For students working on self paced courses, the Incomplete is a dangerous trap waiting to be sprung. A high percentage of students who attempt this style of course have difficulty completing the work on time — not because there is too much work, but because time management is difficult without the stimulus of facing your teacher three or four times a week. Plan your time intelligently so you don't end up in this snare.
Up to the eighth calendar day following the mid-term date in any semester, a student may withdraw from a class simply by contacting the Registrar, and without consulting with or informing the instructor (though courtesy suggests informing the teacher is only polite). Once that date passes, the student must have signed permission from the instructor to withdraw. That signed permission must be presented to the Registration office prior to the end of the semester. Once the semester is over, it is impossible to withdraw from a class.
Some special cases exist: Students with medical reasons to withdraw may do so by contacting the Health and Special Services office. Verification from a physician or medical institution is required. Also, if a student is not actively pursuing the completion of course objectives, some instructors may opt to perform an administrative withdrawal for that student.
All work submitted for credit must be completed by the student who is registered for the course. Students found guilty of plagiarism will fail the course and might be excluded from other alternative delivery courses. Disciplinary action will be pursued in all instances in which it is determined that academic dishonesty has occurred. Academic dishonesty can include the dishonest use of course materials such as student papers and exams.
Click Here to see a list of Frequently Asked Questions for this course. (Link will open in a second browser window.)