Geology 101 Syllabus

Physical Geology

Spring 2017

Section 1T, T/Th 7:30 – 8:50

Beauregard 104

Instructor: Adam Beyer

Phone: 985-448-4254

E-mail:

Office: Beauregard Hall, 164

Office Hours: Monday/Wednesday/Friday 2-4, Tuesday/Thursday 3-5, *By appointment

Office Location: South end of Beauregard Hall

Department Phone Number: 985-448-4502

Course Description: 3-3-0. Study of the earth, its constituents, agents, and processes modifying it; also geologic structures and landforms. (40.0601)

Prerequisites: N/A

Required Text/Materials:

·  Textbook: Earth: An Introduction to Physical Geology, 12e, Tarbuck/Lutgens/Tasa

·  Online: Access to Modified Mastering Geology, www.pearsonmylabandmastering.com, for above textbook (must be 12th ed.)

·  Other: i-clicker response device

Purpose of Course: To create an interest in geology while building a general knowledge and understanding of the geologic principles that govern Earth and its processes. I would like each of you to leave this course having understood a little more about our planet.

Student Outcome Objectives: Geology 101 is a Core Curriculum course that fulfills three hours of general education requirements in the area of the natural sciences. The goal is for students to be able to comprehend and apply the basic principles of science and methods of scientific inquiry. The student will understand the processes occurring on Earth both now and in the past, be able to classify rocks and minerals on a basic level, and be able to identify landscape features and associate them with known processes.

Course Content: Grades will be based off of:

·  Assignments: Online assignments will cover material discussed up to the current point in the lecture. Assignment point values TO BE DETERMINED. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO CHECK MODIFIED MASTERING GEOLOGY FREQUENTLY AND BE AWARE OF POINT VALUES. These will be posted on the Mastering Geology website and will have a time period to be completed. These are mandatory and will count toward your final grade. If you do not do the homework assignments, you may fail this course. At this time, I am planning for homework to account for ~20% of the overall course grade.

·  Lecture Exams: Lecture exams will cover material discussed in lecture as well as material covered in the textbook. It is in your best interest to read the textbook on your own time as we cover the material in class. If you have questions regarding the reading, feel free to stop by my office hours. Exams will be given during a specified lecture period. Students will need to bring a number 2 pencil and eraser. Lecture exam times to be announced. Exams will be worth 100 points each. I plan for exams to account for ~80% of the overall course grade.

·  I-clicker points: I-clickers will be used in lecture as a method of keeping attendance and awarding extra credit points toward exams. It is in your best interest to attend lectures. There will be several opportunities to use the i-clicker. See extra credit section for details. I-clicker point values to be determined.

Grading Procedure: Grades will be determined by a weighted 80/20 scale (exams and homework, respectively). You will have point values on Moodle (exams), Mastering (homework), and through me (i-clicker). Please e-mail me if you would like to know your i-clicker bonus points at any point throughout the semester. To calculate your current % in either the exam or homework categories, take your current points and divide by the total possible (at that time).

DO NOT EMAIL ME ABOUT EXTRA CREDIT or EXTRA HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS TO BOOST YOUR GRADE. I will not respond to these emails.

.8(Exam %) + .2(Homework %) = Percentage in Course

Grading Scale:

100-90 = A

89-80 = B

79-70 = C

69-60 = D

< 60 = F

Tentative Lecture/Exam Schedule:

Lectures / Topics
Introduction, Modified Mastering Geology
1 / An Introduction to Geology
2 / Plate Tectonics
Exam 1
3 / Matter and Minerals
4 / Magma, Igneous Rocks and Intrusive Activity
5 / Volcanoes and Volcanic Hazards
Exam 2
6 / Weathering and Soil
7 / Sedimentary Rocks
8 / Metamorphism and Metamorphic Rock
Exam 3
9 / Geologic Time
10 / Groundwater
11 / Earthquakes
Final Exam / Date to be announced, NOT CUMULATIVE

Lecture Schedule: Lecture schedule is tentative at this point. Assignments/Exams will be announced in lecture. Some topics may require more/less time for learning to occur, and I do not want any confusion as the result of a set hard-copy of a class schedule. This will be discussed in class as the semester progresses. Exam schedule is also tentative. This depends on how quickly the course moves. Expect to have at least 4 exams (this includes the final exam).

Make-up Work: EXAMS ONLY! Make-up exams will be available to students ONLY with valid emergencies AND proper documentation. Make-up work will not be given for homework/i-clicker points as these are attendance/online-based. Students will have a time period to complete online assignments.

Extra Credit: Throughout the week, at various points during the lectures, I may offer i-clicker questions for bonus points. At the end of the semester, these points will be added to your exam point total.

Academic Honesty Policy: See Code of Student Conduct handbook for full procedures. Cheating in any form will not be tolerated. Penalties for academic dishonesty fall under the discretion of the course instructor.

Attendance Policy: The Bulletin states: Class attendance is regarded as an obligation and as a privilege, and all students are expected to be punctual and to attend all classes in which they are enrolled. Failure to do so may jeopardize a student's scholastic standing and may lead to suspension from the university.

Absences from this course will result in missing homework announcements, exams, extra credit opportunities, etc. Because this is a large lecture course, it is your responsibility to bring all of the necessary materials to complete your responsibilities as students. I-clicker points cannot be made up for any reason.

Drop Date: The final date for automatic W when dropping a course or resigning from the university: March 24, 2017 (full semester classes).

Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA): Students with documented disability are entitled to classroom accommodations under the ADA. To receive accommodations, contact the Office of Disability Services at (985) 448 - 4430. Additional information can be found at: www.nicholls.edu/disability

Academic Grievances: The proper procedure for filing grade appeals or grievances related to academic matters is listed in Section 5 of the Code of Student Conduct and the following link:

http://www.nicholls.edu/documents/student_life/code_of_conduct.pdf

Continued Learning following an Extreme Emergency:

Students are responsible for:

·  Reading regular notifications on the NSU website;

·  Knowing how to use and access Moodle (or university-designated electronic delivery system);

·  Being familiar with emergency guidelines;

·  Evacuating textbooks and other course materials;

·  Knowing their Moodle (or designated system) student login and password;

·  Contacting faculty regarding intentions for completing the course;

Faculty is responsible for:

·  Their development in the use of Moodle;

·  Having a plan for continuing their courses using only Moodle and e-mail;

·  Continuing their course in whatever way suits the completion of the course best, and being creative in the continuation of these courses;

·  Making adjustments or compensations to a student’s progress in special programs with labs, clinical sequences or the like only in the immediate semester following the emergency.

Classroom Conduct: If there is an emergency, excuse yourself from class and take care of the matter. Put phones on silent and do not use them during class. If your neighbor can hear it, it is a disruption. Let's be fair to our peers and myself as an instructor, and keep these devices put away. Talking, reading the newspaper, excessive noise, arriving late/leaving early, etc. are all disruptions to the class. Reminders regarding this policy may result in dismissal from the class and grade penalties.

Moodle: The preferred browser is Mozilla Firefox. Moodle can be accessed from the Nicholls website. Enter your username and password. Your username is the first part of your Nicholls email address before the @. Your password is your N-number; you must use a capital N.

Technical Problems: If you are having problems with the technology involved in this course, you can e-mail me or

Library: The Library Home Page has a link to a specific webpage dedicated to distance education students. This webpage contains tutorials on accessing the library from home, finding and using electronic books, using the electronic research databases, emailing a reference librarian, and other useful information. This page also offers a direct contact with a reference librarian through e-mail or telephone: http://www.nicholls.edu/library/

Counseling: Nicholls Counseling Center provides professional assistance for students dealing with a range of mental health, wellness, and adjustment issues through individual, couple, and group counseling; consultation; and various forms of outreach, you can go to the following website: http://www.nicholls.edu/counseling/

Tutoring: Questions concerning academic tutoring can be sent to: . This e-mail is usually staffed during normal business hours. In addition, www.homeworkla.org and www.brainfuse.com have tutoring available for students.

Assistance with Studying and Assignments:

· The Tutoring Center at143 Peltier Hall. Call985-448-4100, email: , or visithttp://www.nicholls.edu/academic-enhancement/

· The Writing Center at144 Peltier Hall. Call985-448-4100, email: , or visithttp://www.nicholls.edu/academic-enhancement/

· Online Tutoring through Moodle.Look for the Brainfuse log-in link on the home page, http://moodle2.nicholls.edu/moodle/

Assessment Statement: Nicholls State University is committed to continuous improvement of student learning. To achieve this goal, the University has adopted a web-based assessment and e-Portfolio system called LiveText. With LiveText, students will have the ability to track their own growth and organize their college coursework while at the same time helping the university provide the best education possible now and in the future. Students will enjoy (1) space in the LiveText cloud to upload and store documents, presentations, and other files, (2) a single electronic place to organize and download projects from all courses for preparation of portfolios and other presentations to future employers and graduate school admissions, and (3) access to their personal assessment data as generated by the university.

Use of LiveText is a university requirement, and you will be required to upload assignments from this class as specified by the instructor. Therefore, unless you already have an account to use LiveText, you must purchase a license for LiveText for this class. Licenses for LiveText are paid through the University as an “Electronic Assessment License” and will be charged only once to each student. If you don’t already have an account, you will receive a “Key Code” through email at the beginning of this course that will permit you to establish one. You may use your LiveText account for up to five years. If you do not yet have a license to use LiveText, please contact within one week of the beginning of this course.