Syllabus

Biology 2017-2018

Clovis High School

Mrs. Kaitlin Rolen

CONTACT INFORMATION

Room: N-14

School phone: 327-1000 ext. 1446

E-mail:

I. Course Introduction

Biology is the study of living organisms and their relationships to each other and their environment. To enable students to digest the information related to this scientific material, our focus will be on studying key biological concepts in depth rather than attempting to address the great breadth of the subject in the limited time available to us. This class will place a special emphasis upon student SUCCESS! In order to succeed, a student must PARTICIPATE in all class activities, COMPLETE all work on time and, most importantly, turn in QUALITY work. Students will also be challenged to take a scientific approach to problem solving in laboratory exercises; they will be taught to interpret, analyze and evaluate scientific results.

II. REQUIREDMATERIALS

  1. TEXTBOOK: Biggs, Alton et al. 2005. Biology: The Dynamics of Life. Glenco and McGraw-Hill Inc., Ohio. 1119 pp.
  2. The textbook is a reference to be used for reading assigned sections and completing homework/classwork. Students are NOT required to bring their textbook to class every day; if students need to bring the book to class they will be notified in advance.
  3. NOTEBOOK/BINDER:

In order to be successful, it is recommended that all students have a spiral bound notebook (examples shown in class) – or a binder DESIGNATED to science. All of our work will be done in the notebook/binder to promote organization. All assignments will eventually be in the notebook to be used for review and study purposes prior to exams. I will keep a running table of contents to ensure students are placing assignments in the correct order. Any questions or concerns with notebooks/binder PLEASE COME SEE ME THE FIRST WEEK OF SCHOOL

SUGGESTED MATERIALS

  1. WRITING UTENSILS (PENS or PENCILS): I strongly encourage students to do classwork and homework in pencil in the event that they need to erase an answer. Making mistakes is a part of the learning process!
  2. HIGHLIGHTERS/COLORED PENCILS: These items are essential to take notes or mark on reading material during class. Each group will have a few for students to use, however I strongly recommend bringing your own.

*Consistently coming to class without the materials needed to participate may lead to an assigned detention!

III. ELECTRONIC RESOURCES

  1. Students will need to join my Google Classroom by visiting classroom.google.com and signing in with their CUSD provided Google account. Each class will have a unique class code; I will provide the appropriate code for each class period. A weekly schedule with links to class notes, classwork, make-up labs and homework can be found on the Google Classroom page. You will need to refer to this page often. THIS CAN BE UTILIZED BY STUDENTS AND PARENTS
  2. Links will be uploaded to Google Classroom for extended learning within our curriculum. If you are interested in learning more about a subject, maybe for college or career, feel free to checkout these links! There will also be links to great study tools to help prepare for exams.

IV. STUDENT EXPECTATIONS

  1. Students are expected to be in class and on time every day, with a willingness to give their best effort.
  2. Students must adhere to the dress code and technology policies established by CUSD – ALL SCHOOL POLICIES WILL BE ENFORCED.
  3. Students are expected to show courtesy and respect for other students, teachers, administrators and equipment at all times; I will extend the same courtesy and respect to my students.
  4. Students are expected to be prepared for class, proactive in their education and on task while in the classroom – the participation portion of your grade will depend upon this!
  5. Students must be in their seats when the bell rings and are not allowed out of their seats without permission. Pencils should be sharpened at the beginning of class, preferably before the tardy bell rings.
  6. Eating, drinking or chewing gum in class is NOT allowed!
  7. Students may not leave the classroom without a pass and must sign out/in when they leave/return. Students leaving for the restroom may be asked to leave their cell phone in class; phones can be picked up after students return to class.
  8. Inappropriate behavior(s) will result in a phone call home and possible referral to the office for discipline.

V. POLICIES

HOMEWORK POLICY:

The main purpose for classwork/homework is to give students independent practice on the material being covered. The following are expectations for ALL classwork/homework that you turn in for a grade:

  1. HOMEWORK IS DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF CLASS! Homework submitted after the beginning of class on the date the work was due will only be worth half credit.
  2. Work must be easily legible (I must be able to read it to grade it).
  3. Paper must be free of doodling and not be crumpled or torn.
  4. All assignments must have the following information at the top of the paper, clearly marked: First and Last Name, Date, Class Period and Assignment Title.

LATE WORK:

  • Due dates for classwork/homework will be announced on the day that the work is given to students. Students can generally expect to receive a few homework questions each Friday that will be due the next time the class meets. Remember: HOMEWORK IS DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF CLASS!
  • Late work will not be accepted. Homework assignments will be structured such that review questions on a current assignment will allow students to make up half of the points that were lost by failing to turn in an assignment from the previous week.
  • Late homework will be accepted, without penalty, for excused absences. The number of days for this grace period is determined by the number of days the student was excused from class.

MAKE-UP POLICY:

  • MAKEUP LABS: Labs can be made up, by appointment, during lunch time or after school Monday through Friday. Students must come in to make up a lab the week after their absence, as they require set up. If a student does not come in to make up their lab, they will receive a zero for that lab. A few labs will have alternate assignments (usually requiring more writing) instead of coming into class to physically make-up the lab.
  • MAKEUP EXAMS: Exams can be made up, by appointment, during lunch or after school Monday through Friday. Late exams may also be completed in the Testing Center (Room D-08) on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 2:50 – 4:00 pm.

GRADING POLICY:

Traditionally, I have tried to give students points for almost every activity they completed in class. That approach does not provide actual insight into how much my students are learning and I want my students to value learning rather than the accumulation of points. Much of the work we do in class will be focused on learning and practicing specific skills and the application of scientific principles. During these activities, students should feel that it is okay to struggle or even fail. Those are critical parts of the learning process; scientists frequently learn more from unexpected results than they do from a successful experiment! If everything a student does is collected and graded, students will not have the freedom they need to learn and, as a result, not everything that a student does in my class will be graded. Ungraded assignments are designed to help students practice and hone skills which will be assessed later in a unit of study.

Assignments that are graded will be evaluated using a 4-point scale that accounts for a student’s mastery of the course content. Scores on assignments (or elements of an assignment) can be interpreted as follows:

  • 4 = advanced
  • 3 = proficient
  • 2 = intermediate
  • 1 = novice
  • 0 = beginner (student did not demonstrate knowledge/ability – assignment was not completed)

The use of a 4-point grading scale does not mean that every assignment will only be worth a total of 4 points! Instead, the various elements of an assignment will each be evaluated using the same 4-point scale. For example, a laboratory report that has 5 sections would be worth 20 points and might have the following entries in the gradebook:

  • Enzyme Lab: Hypothesis/Claim
  • Enzyme Lab: Data and Graphing
  • Enzyme Lab: Analysis of Results
  • Enzyme Lab: Conclusion
  • Enzyme Lab: Spelling, Grammar, & Scientific Writing Norms

Student grades will be determined by a point system (total points earned/total points possible) and the points possible in this class will be distributed as indicated below:

Classwork, Homework, Labs: 50%

Assessments/Tests: 50%

Students will be allowed a single chance to retry an assessment to better their original score; if students can show that they have an improved mastery of concepts they previously struggled on they can earn half of those points back and have them added to their original test score.

While student assignments will be measured via a 4-point scale, total points earned divided by total points possible will be used to determine 6-week, 12-week and semester grades for each student. Grades will be determined using the grading scale below:

89.5-100% = A 79.5-89.4% = B 69.5-79.4% = C 59.5-69.4% = D 59.4% and below = F

GRADES WILL BE POSTED WEEKLY AND STUDENTS WILL ALSO RECEIVE A NOTIFICATION IF THEY ARE IN DANGER OF FAILING. GRADES CAN BE CHECKED VIA ZANGLE PARENT CONNECT or STUDENT CONNECT.

VI. CHEATING:

Cheating will result in a zero for the test, assignment, or lab the student cheated on. Copying another student’s work is considered cheating. Plagiarism of another’s work will result in a failing grade.

VII. SAFETY:

Students are expected to act in a safe manner during all labs and follow lab directions carefully and completely. Inappropriate and/or unsafe behavior during a lab will result in the student being banned from actively participating in further experiments.

Please read over the class expectations, fill in the information on the following page, and return this form to Mrs. Rolen by Friday, August 25th. This is your first homework assignment!

Parents,

Please read over the class policies and sign below. If you have any questions, concerns, or comments, please feel free to contact me at school 327-1000 ext. 1446, or e-mail me at . You may also write comments in the space below your signature. I look forward to working with you and your student.

Student Name:

Student Signature:

Parent/Guardian Name:

Parent/Guardian Signature:

Parent/Guardian Contact:

-Email:

-Phone:

In our study of biology and its various disciplines, including genetics, ecology, evolution, cells and cellular processes, and the physiology/anatomy of organisms we may view a video or parts of a video. The intent of these videos is to help students make connections between standards and real life situations or examples; sometimes these films are associated with scientific articles and news stories that can be used to enhance learning in the classroom. I am requesting your permission to show films to your student that have a PG or PG-13 rating; all films used in my curriculum have been pre-screened and will be edited for relevant content.

Biology films MAY include, but are not limited to Gattaca (genetics & bioethics), Jurassic Park (genetics & evolution), The Day After Tommorrow/An Inconvenient Truth (ecology),Osmosis Jones (human body systems), Planet Earth (ecology), Life (ecology) and Supersize Me (human body systems).

Please indicate below whether or not you will allow your student to see the films. If you decline, I will provide an alternative assignment. Thank you very much for your consideration. Please contact me if you have any questions.

By signing below, I give my student, ______, permission to view selected PG or PG-13 rated films.

Signature ______

By signing below, I DO NOT give my student, ______, permission to view selected PG or PG-13 rated films. I am requesting an alternative assignment.

Signature ______