CH 115 – Introduction to Physical Inorganic Chemistry 2
Spring 2010; MWF 8-8:55 AM, BAC B200 (lab VLCS 2019, M or W 1-4:50 PM)
Prof. Diane L. Nutbrown Office Hours
2039 VLCS MWF 10-11:30 AM
Th 4-5 PM in VLCS 2011
x3718
Course Overview and Goals
This course offers environmental science, geology, and engineering POEs a foundation in general chemistry. As such, the concepts covered throughout the class parallel content from a stereotypical “freshman chemistry” course at the college level. For instance, topics this semester include acids and bases, light, bond energies, solid state chemistry, and electrochemistry. These concepts, however, will be discussed within the context of environmental science, geology, and engineering as much as possible to reinforce their relevance and application.
In addition to learning chemistry concepts, this course is designed to advance students’ skills in the areas of problem-solving, communication, and teamwork. Activities and assignments will move you and your group members from completing simple exercises to solving complex problems. Critical thinking is a primary outcome of a liberal arts education; thinking like a scientist is thinking critically! CH 115 will give you ample opportunities to improve your communication skills through oral discussion, written assessments, and lab reports, as described below. To strengthen your ability to work in a team, collaborative learning will be emphasized throughout the course.
Required Text
Bell, J.A. Chemistry: a project of the American Chemical Society; W.H. Freeman: New York, 2005.
Technology
E-mail communication will be sent to your juniata.edu account only, and correspondence sent to course instructors/TAs should contain “Chem 115” in the subject line. Please take advantage of this tool, but do not expect instantaneous responses. Messages in by 5 PM to Prof. Nutbrown will have a reply by 8 AM the following morning. Messages in by 8 AM will generally have a response by 5 PM.
The CH 115 Moodle course primarily operates as a repository of course materials. Reading assignments, on-line homework problems, weekly problem sets, laboratory procedures, learning objectives, answer keys, and practice exams will be posted through this management system. You may also occasionally submit lab reports through this medium. Be sure to register and check the course page regularly.
Clickers will be used in class to check how well you and your peers understand the material, or simply to gather data about an activity. Your answer will always be anonymous to the rest of the class and your honest response helps inform the pace of the lesson. You are expected to participate with your clicker during each lesson.
Learning and Assessment
In order to learn chemistry (or any subject/skill), you need to actively engage in the material and spend time on task. CH 115 is structured to help you do this.
Active Learning – 10% - This part of your course grade encompasses the on-line homework problems, homework journal problem sets, class attendance, and bonus opportunities.
On-line homework – To help students stay current with the work in the class, a problem will be due before each Monday and Wednesday lecture on Moodle. Each problem is worth one point. Your lowest two on-line homeworks will be dropped from your final score.
Homework journal problem sets - All homework problems must be kept in a sewn-bound journal (no spiral-bound, no three-ring binder, no loose leaf). This journal must have an up-to-date table of contents. Journals will be collected at the beginning of each Friday’s lecture. No late journals will be accepted. It will be your responsibility to compare your answers to the solutions posted on the class Moodle site and to come talk with Prof. Nutbrown if you do not understand how to arrive at a correct answer for each assigned problem. Suggested problems should also be completed in your homework journal, but worked from the back of the notebook forward so as to not interfere with the problem sets in the front. Never come to class, office hours or problem-solving sessions without your homework journal. Most problem sets will be worth 10 points. Your lowest two problem sets will be dropped from your final score.
Attendance – For every three classes that you miss, your active learning grade will drop a letter grade (i.e. 10%). Hence, at the end of the semester, if you earned a 95% for active learning overall, but missed four classes, you will have an 85%.
Bonus opportunities – any bonus opportunities offered during the semester will be applied to the active learning portion of your grade.
Quizzes -10% - Learning objectives will be provided in advance for each in-class quiz. The quizzes will be given on Fridays beginning January 22 as noted on the attached schedule. Quizzes are designed to quickly assess your skill in applying the tools taught in class and will take no more than 15 minutes to complete. Each quiz is scored out of 10 points; your lowest quiz score will be dropped. You may not make up a quiz unless you will be missing class for a documented Juniata event or have an excuse from the Dean or Health & Wellness Center.
Laboratory – 20% - Chemistry is an experimental science, which makes the laboratory portion of the course an essential component for learning. Although the lab should be a chance to explore and have fun, you are expected to exercise common sense and professional behavior. Safe lab practices should be followed, including: wearing appropriate clothing and personal protective equipment, disposing of chemicals properly, and maintaining a clean workspace.
Attendance policy - Lab attendance is mandatory. Unless you have an official excuse from an authority on campus (coach, Health & Wellness Center, Dean, etc.) e-mailed to Prof. Nutbrown, you will accept a zero for missing lab.
Notebook - A hardback, sewn notebook is required for use as a laboratory notebook. It is your choice whether the paper is lined/ruled or graph/quad. Your laboratory notebook will be checked for preparation, completeness, and overall organization during each session. Hence, your notebook should contain a title, experimental objective, background/calculations, outlined procedure, and pre-organized data tables (if appropriate) when you arrive to lab. As you experiment, take notes in real time...and take them in your notebook, not on scraps of paper! Maintaining an accurate, up-to-date record of your actions in the lab can sometimes be a challenge, so it is a good idea to begin developing excellent habits from the beginning. Be sure to reserve the first few pages at the front of the notebook for a table of contents, number all pages, and only write on one side of the page to leave room for feedback from instructors.
Exams – 60% - Four 75-point out-of-class exams will be administered after the completion of each unit. Exam objectives and a practice exam will be posted in the Moodle course to help you prepare for each test. The fourth exam will simply be given during the final exam time. Although there will not be a comprehensive end-of-semester exam, each test may contain questions that assess knowledge and skills from the previous units because chemistry concepts build upon one another.
Exams are scheduled for the following dates/times:
1 = Thurs. 2/11/10, 7-10 PM 2 = Thurs. 3/4/10, 7-10 PM
3 = Wed. 3/31/10, 7-10 PM 4 = TBD
These blocks of time allow you to take the hour exam in 1.5 h individually and then re-take the exam with your group. Your total exam score will be calculated as (0.75*indiv.) + (0.25*group).
Grades
Total grade = (0.10*Active Learning) + (0.10*Quizzes) + (0.20*Lab) + (0.60*Exams)
Letter / A / A- / B+ / B / B- / C+ / C / C- / D / F% / 100-92 / 92-90 / 90-87 / 87-82 / 82-80 / 80-77 / 77-72 / 72-70 / 70-55 / 55>
Learning Support and Special Concerns
Any student with a documented disability who needs to arrange reasonable accommodations to enable their success in this course is encouraged to contact the Office of Academic Support Services (x3161) at the beginning of the semester. You are also encouraged to schedule an appointment to discuss your learning with Prof. Nutbrown.
Ethics
The Pathfinder (http://services.juniata.edu/pathfinder/honesty.html) states Juniata’s policy on academic honesty. Academic dishonesty will result in failure of the course and a report to the Assistant Provost.