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Course DESCRIPTION
A multi-disciplinary course for non-science majors designed to improve student
scientific literacy and process skills. Students are introduced to fundamental
principles and processes of astronomy, biology, chemistry, geology, and physics.
The course will focus on the scientific method and critical thinking, and will
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Topics List:
The Nature of Science (Week 1&2)
o Identifying Science, Scientific Process, Impact on Society, Making Decisions
Patterns in the Natural World (Week 1&2)
o The Night Sky, Natures Patterns, Mathematics as the Language of Science,
Making Inferences
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COURSE REQUIREMENTS
A. Labs & Assignments
LABS will be in class using materials provided, and online using
award-winning Interactive applets from the University of Colorado
Boulder. The activities are called PhET simulations and can be explored
at the following link:
https://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulations/category/new
Labs and assignments are due ON THE DUE DATE. Late assignments
will not be accepted.
Safety during lab activities will be strictly enforced. For many of our labs
this will not be a major issue. However, for the chemistry based labs, and
for other labs that use chemical reagents, food, candy, and drink of any
kind, whether opened or not, is not allowed in the classroom during the lab
time.
Any student not following the safety guidelines for a given lab will receive
a grade of zero for the lab for that day.
Your grade for each laboratory activity will be based on the following criteria:
1. Lab Participation (50%). This is a subjective grade given by the instructor based on how well
you are prepared for lab, how well you listen to and read directions, on your overall
understanding of the purpose of the lab, and your lab cleanup.
2. Lab Results (50%). This will be based on your experimental results, your lab write-up, and
your answers to the laboratory questions.
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Evaluation
Tests: There will be 5 Unit Exams/Assessments (1 approximately every 2 to 3 weeks)
Labs: There will be weekly lab investigations/projects
Discussions: Online and in-class discussions will be very useful to this course as
we get to come together as a class and show what we are learning, as well as
get assistance from our peers.
Quizzes: May be given on a regular basis to monitor student progress. Some will
be announced well in advance, and some will be given after a discussion or
activity
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Grading
Assessments
Laboratory Exercises/ Research/Course Portfolio
Assignments/Quizzes/Discussions
1 Comprehensive Final Examination
30%
30%
30%
10%
Your grade for the course will be determined as a percentage of the total points available, based
on the following scale: A = 90-100%, B = 80-89%, C = 70-79%, D = 60-69%, F < 60%.
Please Note:
The dates for exams, lab exercises, and projects will be announced online.
All students are expected to present in-class, therefore no one should
miss an important date
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Student Expectations
Respect the class time
Arrive on-time and prepared for the days activities
Stay on-task during class.absorbing every opportunity to
explore.
Respect the Course and the Scholarly Environment
Push your mind to the limits in each discussion, reading
assignment, activity, investigation, etc. Think of yourself as being
in training and becoming better and better at being a scholar
We will all work together to become the best students that we can be.
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Attendance Policy
As you should know, attendance is essential if you wish to do well any class. Many
lectures will include additional material not found in your textbook. I expect you to arrive
to class on time. Arriving late disrupts the lecture, distracts everyone in the room, and is
basically unfair and rude to those in the class.
Attendance is counted from the first scheduled class meeting of each semester.
Three (3) tardies or early departures equal one (1) absence for the course(s)
involved. In order for a student to receive credit for a course, a student must
attend 80% of the scheduled instructional time.
Arriving late or leaving class early means that you are missing part of the
required instructional time. This will be noted on the attendance sheet and will
count toward an absence.
Three (3) late arrivals or early departures will constitute an absence.
You are allowed to miss up to three (3) days of class without penalty. When you
miss the 4th day you will receive a 10 point Final Grade deduction. (This also
applies to 3 absences and 3 tardies.) This also will eliminate your chances of
having any grades dropped out of mercy
WHY is coming to class important? If you miss 4 or more days..I drop NO
GRADESyou keep what you earn. If you miss 3 daysI only drop one
lowest grade. If you miss 2 daysI drop the 2 lowest grades. If you miss 1 dayI
drop the 3 lowest grades. HOWEVERPerfect Attendance = 4 Dropped
Grades!
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Make-up Policy
There are no make ups for missed exams, no matter what the excuse. Instead, your lowest
exam grade will be dropped at the end of the semester. Understand that, since you are
never sure of what may happen in the future, it is very important that you do as well as
you can on EACH exam!! THIS DOES NOT APPLY IF YOU HAVE EXCESSIVE
ABSENCES
There will be no make-ups for missed quizzes, no matter what the excuse. These are used
to provide quick feedback on progress and have no purpose if taken after the fact. The
times for assignments are announced ahead of time and you have more than a week to
complete each of them at your own pace. There will be no make-up lab
investigations. These take me too long to prepare. In some cases, an alternative
project may be assignedbut only if you are active in class, complete
assignments, AND are present the majority of the time.
DONT ASK for EXTRA CREDIT if you do not COMPLETE ALL ASSIGNMENTS
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Help, except by the instructor, on any graded work will result in academic
dishonesty and failure of the course. The Vice President for Academic Affairs will
be notified. CHEATERS are BAD
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Course Withdrawal Policy Statement: Students are responsible for their own
academic progress. Decisions regarding withdrawal from courses should only be
made after consultation with an academic advisor. Before withdrawing from a
course, students must meet with a Financial Aid representative to discuss their
personal financial aid situation. More information regarding withdrawal from
courses can be found in the EGC catalog at
http://www.ega.edu/registrar/catalog/Catalog0809.pdf
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A scientific calculator and internet access will be needed for this course.
Please plan on a Meeting with Mr. Lee during the first couple
of weeks of class. This will allow me to answer questions and get to
know each student a little better.
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Each student will have a user-id and password to enter the D2L site for this class. Once
logged on, students will have access to the course schedule, syllabus, announcements, email, abbreviated class notes, laboratory exercises, discussions, and links to useful web
sites. Students will also be able to access exam keys and their current course grades.
Students are expected to access the courses D2L site on a regular basis to check for
announcements from the instructor. Likewise, the instructor will log on throughout the
week to check and respond to any e-mail received from students.
I will be posting D2L Material each weekend and then throughout the week I will be
monitoring discussions, grading assignments, helping with labs, etc.
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