Instructor Contact

Linda McPheron

• Email:  lmcpheron@santarosa.edu
• Office Hours: Thur., 5:00 - 5:30 or by appt
• I will respond to all course email within 24 hours Monday-Friday, exclusive of school holidays. Once the course begins, I prefer to get messages through the Canvas Inbox.

Communication Plan

• I will respond to your messages within 24 hours during the workweek (Monday-Friday) excluding holidays or if you are notified otherwise.
• Your work will be reviewed and I will comment on it within 48 hours of the due date unless you are informed otherwise. Please note that you will receive private comments on your discussion posts, your course journal entries, and your project and final exams. Your weekly quizzes also contain feedback for your own self-assessment. You should check the feedback as it will help you succeed in future assignments.
• I will participate in the weekly discussions, but will not respond to each individual student.
• Office hours are: Thur., 5:00 - 5:30 

Building Community

 The discussion forum is important  for sharing thoughts on biology topics and for remaining connected. Several times in the semester you and your classmates will analyze and discuss the issues that come up in the material. Each time this class is offered, I enjoy the thoughtfulness of all of your posts and your responses to each other; they help inform my understanding of the topics. We learn from each other, from our varied experiences, from our different world views. I look forward to participating in discussions with you.

Instructor Announcements 

I will post announcements on the “Instructor Announcements” page in Canvas throughout the semester. Canvas notifies students according to their preferred email -please look in your settings /  notifications to make sure you have an email listed that you check regularly. 

Q&A Discussion

• The “Q&A Discussion” is located in Module 0. This discussion is for you to ask for assistance of your classmates or of the instructor. Please feel free to answer your fellow students if you know the answer or have thoughts on their questions.

Fundamentals of biology for the non-major: Scientific inquiry, biological chemistry, cell structure and function, DNA and genetics, evolution and ecology, and an overview of living organisms. Includes lab exercises designed to complement lectures.

Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of the course, students will be able to:

1.  Explain the core concepts of biology (evolution and adaptation, structure and function,

    systems and biology, flow of information, flow of energy and matter) as they apply to

    appropriate topics of cell and molecular biology, organismal biology, genetics, evolution and

    ecology.

2.  Integrate related core concepts.
3.  Demonstrate skill in core competencies.

Class Meetings

Class:  Lecture Tues & Thurs:  5:30 – 7:00, 1809 Baker Hall

Lab:  Tues / Thurs 7:00 – 10:00, 1869 Baker Hall 

Office hours:  Thur. 5:00 – 5:30 pm or by appt.

Course Web Site

Students will use the Canvas Learning Management system for assignment instructions, submitting assignments, viewing classmates' work, sharing resources, and viewing grades.  I can help with the course material and with some Canvas issues. But, if you need help uploading an assignment or with the mechanics of Canvas, Canvas help is the number to call.
Textbooks

• Required Text:

  Campbell Biology, Concepts and  Connections. 9th ed. Taylor, Martha and Simon, Eric and Dickey Jean. Pearson. 2018;  earlier editions are also ok.

  Or, Concepts of Biology. Fowler, Samantha and Roush, Rebecca and Wise, James. OpenStax. 2016;  https://openstax.org/details/books/concepts-biology

  And, Biology 10 lab manual

Canvas

Students will use the Canvas Learning Management system for assignment instructions, submitting assignments, viewing classmates' work, sharing resources, and viewing grades.  I can help with the course material and with some Canvas issues. But, if you need help uploading an assignment or with the mechanics of Canvas, Canvas help is the number to call.

For 24/7 help with Canvas call: (844) 303-0344.

Required Software

• Adobe Reader (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
• Update your browser (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

Important Dates

 Jan. 30:  Last day to drop without paying tuition

Feb. 6:  Last day to add with permission #

Feb. 6: Last day to drop class with refund and without “W”

Feb. 27: Last day to file for pass/no pass                      

Apr. 24: Last day to drop class with a “W”

Dropping the Class

If you decide to discontinue this course, it is your responsibility to officially drop it to avoid getting no refund (after 10% of course length), a W symbol (after 20%), or a grade (after 60%). Also, for several consecutive, unexplained absences, the instructor may drop a student.

Attendance

Students who fail to attend the first class (face-to-face courses) or do not log-in to an online class after the second week and participate in a learning activity will be dropped from the class. It is strongly advised that if you need to miss more than one class/homework deadline in a row that you contact me to avoid being dropped from the class.

Late Policy

All assignments are due at 11:59 p.m. PST on the due date. A late submission will receive a 20% penalty. Submissions more than one week late are not accepted without prior arrangement. 

Methods of Evaluation

Assignments must be either a word doc or a pdf. Googledocs can be converted easily to a pdf.  It is highly recommended that you  complete Assignments and Quizzes after attending the Zoom sessions, reading the textbook assignments and viewing the content modules. Each week there will be a combination of Assignments, Quizzes, or a Discussion. The work required is posted at the end of each module.

Exams

There will be online quizzes throughout the course and an online final exam. The material comes from the textbook, class lectures and supplemental materials. If any exam is missed, a zero will be recorded as the score. It is your responsibility to take the online exams by the due date. 

Grading Policy

Visit the “Grades” in Canvas to keep track of your grades. I grade frequently and post grades and comments on the online Canvas gradebook.

If taking Pass/No Pass you need at least 70% of the total class points and complete the midterm exam and the final exam to pass the class.

An “F” grade indicates that a student attended, participated and completed the course but failed to master the course curriculum.

An “FW” grade indicates the student stopped attending a course after the “last day to withdraw” deadline and subsequently did not submit any work or participate in any exams. Please check with your counselor and financial aid advisor for possible implications of the FW grade on residency and financial aid status.

If you need classroom or testing accommodations because of a disability, or have emergency medical information to share with me, or need special arrangements in case the building needs to be evacuated, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible.

Students seeking disability-related accommodations are encouraged to also register with the Program for Students with Disabilities;  2nd Floor, Room 261; Mon–Fri, 9 AM - 5 PM  (510) 981-2812 or (510) 981-2813

Student Expectations

You will succeed in this course if you meet the following expectations:

• Complete the assigned activities and labs. Please let me know as soon as you can concerning difficulties that you may have in getting assignments in on time. 
• Complete the discussion posts and replies within the given window of time. Our discussions are much more vibrant when we all participate!
• Complete the quizzes, assignments, and the final exam on time.
• Think critically about the weekly topics. Is something surprising? Is it new to you? How does it contrast with what you know about XYZ or how does it compare to ABC? 
• Do your own and your best work. 

Instructor Expectations 

Here is what you can expect of me:

• I will respond to your email or message within 24 hours during the week unless I inform you otherwise.
• I will treat you and your ideas with respect.
• I will grade your Discussion posts and replies most often within 48 hours. (If you have posted late work, it may take longer.) Grades on assignments will be completed as early as possible.
• You will see your grades in the Canvas Gradebook.
• I will work hard to make this a great class!