| Class Meets:
T&R 1:10 - 2:25
pm; Zoom link sent by email |
Required book purchase ($0.00):
Biology For Life <-- You must have |
| Lab Meets: Zoom link sent by
email; T 8:15 - 10:55 am OR W 8:30 - 11:20 am |
Office
Hours: W: 2- 3
pm; and R: 10- 11 am; also by appointment any day; email me |
| Office: Wall
327 but email first |
macampbell@davidson.edu_Phone: 704-894-2692 |
Introduction
This is my first time to teach
non-majors biology. Bio105 is a brand new course so you cannot find it
on RateMyProfessor.com. I am excited to help you learn to be more
proficient at reading data and extracting key points from graphs.
Because no book existed to use, I wrote one for you, along with my
coauthor Alexis McDonnell, Davidson class of 2023. I also welcome your
constructive criticisms. I need your feedback so I can improve the
course each year.
You will (re)learn about
argument maps. You have a template to use (My Life Book) so you can
construct Argument Maps for each day's reading. You will be allowed to
use My Life Book to help you with the exams. Therefore, the more
effort you put into your Life Book, the better you will do on the
exams. Plus, I will be grading your Life Book 4 times this semester to
correct any errors and to make sure you are keeping up.
The lab is 100% remote. I
figured it made no sense to have you dissect a frog or look through a
microscope because you are unlikely to do either after you graduate.
Therefore the labs focus on Microsoft Office applications, with an
emphasis on Excel. We will have about 3 hours to work on these
together. You will be in small lab groups periodically. Some of you
are already experts in Excel, PowerPoint or Word. That's great. You
can teach your labmates and me. Plus, the assignments won't be hard
for you.
You will spend a lot time in
the lab and I want you to share your new knowledge with the world.
Plus, you might get a job that requires you to use Twitter. Therefore,
everyone has to have a Twitter account (either a real one for you, or
a temporary one just for this course - your choice). I am @amalcolmcampbel
and we will use the hashtag #Bio4Life. I will follow all of you
and this hashtag and I hope you will do the same. It is an experiment
and you will help me decide at the end of the semester if it is worth
repeating in the future. To encourage your participation, you can earn
one point per week if you tweet within 24 hours of lab ending. You
cannot retroactively tweet, so the timestamp will determine if you get
11 bonus points added to your lowest exam score. I really want
everyone to get a good grade in this class.
Learning Goals
Upon successful completion of this course, students will...
Graded Assignments
All assignments must be submitted on time unless you have made prior
arrangements with me. You will lose one letter grade for each 24
hours your assignment is late. Your grades are based on 4 types of
assignments (see
schedule for dates):
| A = 100 - 94 | A- = 93 - 90 | |
| B+ = 89 - 87 | B = 86 - 83 | B- = 82 - 80 |
| C+ = 79 - 77 | C = 76 - 73 | C - = 72 - 70 |
| D+ = 69 - 66 | D = 65 - 60 | |
| F = < 59 |
Campus Support for Your Learning
The
college welcomes requests for accommodations related to
disability and will grant those that are determined to be
reasonable and maintain the integrity of a program or
curriculum. To make such a request or to begin a
conversation about a possible request, please contact the
Office of Academic Access and Disability Resources, which is
located in the Center for Teaching and Learning in the E.H.
Little Library: Director
Beth Bleil,
bebleil@davidson.edu, 704-894-2129; or
Assistant Director Alysen
Beaty, albeaty@davidson.edu, 704-894-2939. It is
best to submit accommodation requests within the drop/add
period; however, requests can be made at any time in the
semester. Please keep in mind that accommodations are
not retroactive.
Religion: Please look carefully at the syllabus
during the first week of class. If any of the assignments
conflict with a major religious holiday for your faith, then
please let me know in advance. I will make appropriate
accommodations.
The
Math & Science Center (MSC) offers free assistance to students
in all areas of math and science, with a focus on the introductory
courses. Trained and highly qualified peers hold one-on-one and
small-group tutoring sessions on a drop-in basis or by
appointment, as well as timely recap sessions ahead of scheduled
reviews. Emphasis is placed on thinking critically, understanding
concepts, making connections, and communicating effectively, not
just getting correct answers. In addition, students can start or
join a study group and use the MSC as a group or individual study
space. Located in the Center for Teaching & Learning (CTL) on
the first floor of the College Library, drop-in hours are Sunday
through Thursday, 8-11 PM, and Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, 4-6 PM,
beginning Sunday, August 25. Appointments are available at other
times. For more information, visit
https://www.davidson.edu/offices-and-services/center-teaching-and-learning/student-resources/math-science-and-economics-center,
or contact Dr. Mark Barsoum (mabarsoum
or ext. 2796).
The
Writing Center @ Davidson
College is
free of charge for everyone. You can schedule appointments
through Moodle.
It opens January 31. The Center's trained peer consultants offer
support on class assignments and co-curricular writing at any
stage of the writing process, from invention to fine-tuning a
finished draft. The Center also offers workshops through our
Moodle site (available to all students). This semester,
all sessions will be conducted remotely, and students have two
options for synchronous and asynchronous sessions: (1) book a
set time/day using the Real-time Consultation Schedule, or (2)
submit materials and questions for a consultant to read and
reply to using the Asynchronous Consultation Request Schedule.
Attendance policy
I
will take attendance each day to facilitate a more objective means
for assigning the participation grade. You may not miss any class
without a legitimate reason. Legitimate reasons include illness
requiring physician’s care, family emergency, etc.
Unacceptable reasons include over-sleeping, exam in another class,
social function, etc. I will be flexible about religious
holidays if you communicate with me in advance.
Honor Code
All of your graded
assignments are covered by the Honor
Code. If you violate my trust in you and the Honor Code,
we will have to reevaluate how you are graded in this course. The
entire system will break down when individuals make exceptions to
the rule in order to spare their friends. I was a student at
Davidson, so I know how important the Honor Code is. The best place
to read
about plagiarism is on this writing page (scroll down to
plagiarism header).
References