General Environmental Science II

General Environmental Science II

ENV 122 – Fall 2013 – 4 credits

Lecture: Mondays 4:30-7:10pm, Bisdorf 277

Lab: Wednesdays 4:30-7:10pm, Bisdorf 395

Instructor: Dr. Christine Bozarth

Office: Bisdorf 352

E-mail:

Website: http://blogs.nvcc.edu/cbozarth/

Office hours: M&W 11am-12pm; T&R 11am-1pm & 5pm-7pm; or by appointment

What You Will Learn

Welcome to General Environmental Science II. This course is the second half of the General Environmental Science series. In General Environmental Science I, you explored basic concepts in biology, chemistry, and earth science that are necessary to understand and address environmental issues. In ENV 122, you will apply these concepts to the human population’s interactions with the environment. The material you learn will progress you in your studies, allow you to converse with fellow scientists, and give you a greater appreciation of the natural world.

What I Expect of You

Come to class ready to learn! This means that you must arrive on time, keep off electronic devices, actively participate in class, and respectfully listen to me and to your fellow students. If you are having difficulty with a concept or assignment, you are encouraged to contact me. This is a challenging course with a lot of material, but you are all serious students who can take the initiative to succeed.

What You Can Expect of Me

I will present the material to you in a clear and engaging manner. I will make myself available to you electronically and in person to clarify concepts. I will do my best to teach so that students with all learning styles who desire to succeed in this course can succeed. I will always treat you with respect.

How to Succeed

·  Come to class on time and stay for the duration.

·  Take notes during lectures using an outline style so that you can fill in details later using the textbook, consulting with fellow students, or communicating with me.

·  Set aside at least 4 hours per week outside of class each week to study the material. It helps some students to have a regularly scheduled time to study outside of class.

·  Prepare for exams early. Work on understanding the material by the end of each week so that you will only be left with reviewing it just prior to the exam.

Prerequisites

You should be able to express yourself both orally and in writing at a college freshman level as measured by a college English competency exam (ENG 111 or by my permission). Completion of ENV 121 is recommended.

Required Text

Textbook: Principles of Environmental Science: Inquiry and Applications (Cunningham & Cunningham, 7th ed.)

·  Buy from NOVA bookstore for $170

·  Rent the ebook from www.coursesmart.com for $90

·  Rent from chegg.com for $38

·  Borrow a copy on 2-hour reserve at the library.

Lab Manual: available on BB

Required Technology

The use of Blackboard (BB) is required for this class. You can log in at https://nvcc.my.vccs.edu/jsp/home.jsp or from the myNOVA homepage. I use BB to post announcements, study guides, and grades. You will use BB extensively to participate in the class blog.

Since you are all in the same lab section, I will only use the BB site for the lecture, not the site for the lab, to post course materials.

Class Blog

Part of the purpose of this course is to relate course materials to current events. To accomplish this, you are required to participate in the class blog on BB. Each week (beginning after a lecture and ending right before the next lecture), you are required to submit at least one post and one comment to the blog on the topics covered in class that week. Examples of appropriate posts are links to current environmental news/events (text, images, videos) and informed opinions of current environmental news/events. You will be graded on relevance, content, and grammar of your post. Each week’s blog is worth 10 points. You may drop one week. The class blog is worth a total of 120 points.

Just like any social media, the blog is more fun if you post often!

Quizzes

At the beginning of each lecture, I will administer a 10-point quiz on the previous lecture’s material. If you are tardy, you must arrive before the all of your classmates turn in the quiz. Quizzes will not last longer than 10 minutes. These quizzes are intended to measure your understanding of the material and to keep you on task as we progress through the semester.

If you are absent or tardy on the day of a quiz, you may not take the quiz. If you notify me in advance* of tardiness or absence, then you may take a make-up quiz during my office hours within a week of the missed quiz. You may only make up two quizzes in this manner.

You may drop one quiz. Quizzes are worth a total of 100 points.

Case Studies

During the last hour of class, I will divide you in to small groups to answer critical thinking questions about an assigned case study. Each group will turn in one set of answers. All members of the group will receive the same grade. However, if a member of the group is not participating, I reserve the right to deduct points from his/her grade. Each Case Study assignment is worth 10 points.

If you are absent on the day of a Case Study assignment, you may not make up the assignment. If you notify me in advance* of your absence, then you may complete a make-up assignment within a week of the missed assignment. You may only make up one assignment in this manner.

You may drop one Case Study assignment. Case Study assignments are worth a total of 110 points.

Term Paper and Presentation

Since ENV 122 deals with the application of environmental science concepts to real world issues, it will be beneficial for you investigate one of these issues in detail. To accomplish this, you will write a term paper on a topic of your choice and then present your research to the class. You and I will work together throughout the semester on this project. You are also required to have the NOVA writing center review your work. The paper is worth 50 points. The presentation is worth 10 points.

Exams

I will administer a Mid-Term Exam and a Final Exam, each worth 100 points. Exams will be composed of multiple choice, true/false, labeling, short answer, fill-in-the-blank, and a choice of essay questions. You will need a scantron. I will provide you with a study guide before each exam. Make-up exams will not be given unless arranged in advance*.

Class Cancellations

If class is cancelled, we continue with lecture as if the cancellation did not occur. If you are unsure what will happen if class is cancelled, check BB for announcements.

Honor Code

Northern Virginia Community College expects the highest standards of academic honesty. Academic dishonesty is prohibited in accordance with subsection II of the Student Conduct Rights and Responsibilities. You are prohibited from cheating on exams and assignments, unauthorized access to exams and course materials, and other activities detailed in your student handbook. Students that violate the honor code will receive a failing grade and will be expelled from this course at my discretion.

Academic dishonesty shows a lack of respect for your professor, your fellow students, your school, and yourself.

Drop/Withdraw/Audit/Incomplete

It is your responsibility to drop or withdraw from this course if you choose. I will not drop or withdraw you merely because you stop coming to class. If you wish to audit the course, you must be given my permission and you must begin the course as an audit. You may not take the course for a grade and then switch to audit. I will only grant incompletes if you are in dire circumstances. The division dean and the provost must approve incompletes. You must have documentation for any health claims from a medical professional.

For details, please see: http://www.nvcc.edu/academics/academic-calendar/#s13.html.

Last day to drop with tuition refund: 9/7

Last day to withdraw without grade penalty: 10/31

Students with Special Needs

If you are a student with special needs, please contact disability services at http://www.nvcc.edu/depts/disability. Please then contact me to provide me with documentation from disability services and to discuss special accommodations you need. This should all be done at the beginning of the semester.

Grading

The lecture portion of this course is worth 570 points based on exams, core case studies, quizzes, and the class blog. Your lab grade is worth 290 points based on exams and quizzes. You must pass (>60%) both lecture and lab to pass the course.

I may curve exams to account for questions that all of the class missed or that were unintentionally poorly worded. I do not curve exams so that the top grade in the class becomes a 100%. I do not curve case studies, quizzes, term papers or the class blog at all.

Grading Rubric

Graded Material / Points
Lecture Exams (2 @ 100 pts each) / 200
Case Studies (10 @ 10 pts each) / 100
Quizzes (9 @ 10 pts each) / 90
Class Blog (12 @ 10 pts each) / 120
Term Paper and Presentation / 60
Total Lecture / 570
Lab Exams (2 @ 100 pts each) / 200
Graded Assignments (9 @ 10 pts each) / 90
Total Lab / 290

Lecture Schedule

DATE / CHAPTER / LECTURE TOPIC / TODAY IN CLASS
8/26 / 7.1-7.4 / Review of ENV 121
Food and Agriculture
9/2 / No Classes – Labor Day
9/9 / 7.5-7.8 / Food and Agriculture / Quiz 1
CS 1 (Ch. 7 “Farming the Cerrado”)
9/16 / 8.1-8.7 / Environmental Health and Toxicology / Quiz 2
CS 2 (Ch. 8 “How Dangerous is BPA?”)
9/23 / 9.1-9.4 / Climate
Movie – “Evidence of Change” / Quiz 3
CS 3 (on BB)
9/30 / 10.1-10.2 / Air Pollution
Movie – “The Milagro Project” / Quiz 4
CS 4 (Ch. 10 “The Great London Smog”)
Paper Topic Due
10/7 / 10.3-10.5 / Air Pollution
Movie – “Tracking Air Pollutants” / Quiz 5
CS 5 (on BB)
10/14 / No Classes – Fall Break
10/21 / Mid Term Exam
10/28 / 11.1-11.5 / Water: Resources and Pollution / CS 6 (Ch. 11 “When Will Lake Mead Go Dry?”)
List of Sources for Paper Due
11/4 / 11.6-11.8 / Water: Resources and Pollution
Movie – “The Nitrate Dilemma” / Quiz 6
CS 7 (on BB)
11/11 / 13.1-13.3 / Energy / Quiz 7
CS 8 (on BB)
11/18 / 13.4-13.9 / Energy
Movie – “Cellulosic Ethanol” / Quiz 8
CS 9 (Ch. 13 “Renewable Energy in Europe”)
11/25 / Movie - TBA / Quiz 9
CS 10 (on movie)
12/2 / 14.1-14.3 / Solid and Hazardous Waste / Quiz 10
CS 11 (Ch. 14 “A Waste-Free City”)
Draft Reviewed by Writing Center Due
12/9 / Term Paper Presentations
12/16 / Final Exam / Term Paper Due

Lab

Attendance

You must be on time for labs. If you are more than 10 minutes late for lab, I reserve the right to deny you entry to the lab. You will not be permitted to make up the lab. Since there is only one lab section of ENV 122, there will not be an opportunity to make up missed labs.

Grading

In order to pass ENV 122, you may miss no more than three labs during the semester, regardless of your lab grade.

I will grade a 10-point assignment for each lab. This assignment may be a worksheet, presentation, or quiz (given at the end of lab). You may drop one 10-point assignment grade.

I will also administer a lab Mid-Term Exam and Final Exam, each worth 100 points.

Lab Safety

I will go over lab safety with you during the first lab. Throughout the semester, please be especially aware that you must wear appropriate footwear and clean up after each exercise.

Lab Schedule

DATE / LAB / Graded
(10pts)
9/4 / Soil Composition / Quiz
9/11 / Farmers Market Visit (on your own)
Presentations (in lab) / Presentation and Worksheet
9/18 / Virtual Disease Lab / Quiz
9/25 / Carbon Sequestration – OUTDOOR LAB / Worksheet
10/2 / Air Pollution – Measuring Particulate Matter / Quiz
10/9 / Lab Mid-Term Exam
10/16 / Water Quality Lab – OUTDOOR LAB / Worksheet
10/23 / Wastewater Treatment – AlexRenew Tour (OFF CAMPUS) / Worksheet
10/30 / Virtual Energy Lab / Quiz
11/6 / Oil Spill Lab / Quiz
11/13 / Garbage Lab – Tour of AWRF? / Worksheet
11/20 / Lab Final Exam
11/27 / No Classes – Thanksgiving Break
12/4 / Student Term Paper Presentations

Classmate contact info: ______

______

*IN ADVANCE MEANS MORE THAN AN HOUR BEFORE CLASS BEGINS

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