Course Syllabus

Course Syllabus

Advanced Fieldcraft: Prairies and Rainforests

EVHM 3350-H01

Spring 2015

Class Meeting Time: T-Th 11 – 12:20, E&P Rm 300

Instructor: Dr. Mark McGinley

Room 215, McClelland Hall

mark.mcginley@ttu.edu

Office Hours: T-Th- 10-11 or by appointment

I encourage you to make an appointment to meet with me if you need to see me. The easiest ways to do this are (1) to talk to me either before or after class or (2) to send me an email listing times when you are available to meet with me and then I will let you know which works best for me.

Course Outline

This course will examine how the physical environment influences the ecology, history, society, and environmental issues of a region. We will contrast two distinctly different parts of the world, our local region, the semi-arid High Plains of Texas, with the wet, tropics of South East Asia.

This course is writing intensive. Students will work to develop educational materials that will be on public display by participating in the Encyclopedia of Earth's (EoE http://www.eoearth.org/) Student Science Communication Project. See an example of published student work at http://www.eoearth.org/article/Rivers_of_Texas).

Student Absence for Observation of Religious Holy Days

A student who is absent from classes for the observation of a religious holy day shall be allowed to take an examination or complete an assignment scheduled for that day within a reasonable time after the absence if, not later than the fifteenth day after the first day of the semester, the student had notified the instructor of each scheduled class that the student would be absent for a religious holy day.

Academic Integrity

Texas Tech University faculty strive to foster a spirit of complete honesty and high standards of integrity. Any attempt by students to present as their own work any work not honestly performed is regarded by faculty and administration as a most serious offence and renders offenders liable to serious consequences, possibly suspension from the university. “Scholastic dishonesty” includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, collusion, falsifying academic records, misrepresenting facts, and any act designed to give an unfair academic advantage to a student. A detailed list of offenses is available in the Code of Student Conduct, found in Part IX, pp. 20-21 in the current Student Handbook, available on line at:

http://www.studentaffairs.ttu.edu?publications/SA_handbook_2005-2006.pdf.

Any student who, because of a disability, may require special arrangements in order to meet the course requirements should contact the instructor as soon as possible to make any necessary arrangements. Students should present appropriate verification from Student Disability Services during the instructor’s office hours. Please note instructors are not allowed to provide classroom accommodations to a student until appropriate verification from Student Disability Services has been provided. For additional information, you may contact the Student Disability Services office at 335 West Hall or 806-742-2405.

Expected Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, a fully-engaged student will be able to:

1. Discuss basic concepts in population, community, and ecosystem ecology and environmental issues. Assessed by performance in class discussions/activities and written assignments.

2. Compare and contrast the physical environment, history, characteristics of organisms, and environmental issues in prairie and rainforest ecosystems. Assessed by performance on in-class discussions/activities and written assignments.

3. Communicate effectively about history, culture, sustainability, organisms, ecological communities & ecosystems, and environmental issues to a general audience. Assessed by performance on written papers.

4. Critique and evaluate the writing of others. Assessed on performance in writing workshops.

5. Identify, articulate, and reflect critically on ethical issues in personal, professional, and/or civic life from their own perspective as well as that of others.  Assessed through performance in in-class discussions and reflection portfolio.

Grading

15 %  Participation in class discussion, writing workshops, class activities

50 % Writing Assignments

            -     Short Essays

-          Students will participate in the Encyclopedia of Earth’s Student Science Communication Project in order to write an article suitable to be submitted for publication in the Encyclopedia of Earth

35 %  Reflection Portfolio

It is extremely important that all assignments be turned in on time!!!

Course Blog

I have created a blog for this course. This blog will be an important means of communication between us so I encourage you to check the blog early and often. The blog is located at http://evhm33502015.blogspot.com/. Hopefully, most of your questions about the details of the class will be answered somewhere on the blog. In addition, I will list specific “expected learning outcomes” for each lesson to help you focus your study efforts. Please regularly check the blog to learn about upcoming readings, activities, and assignments.

Required Reading

There is no required textbook for this course. I will assign readings throughout the semester on the course blog http://evhm33502015.blogspot.com/.

Books About Writing

Writing well is important for effective communication. Thus, improving your writing skills is an important component of this course. Here are a couple of references that would be useful for you to have on your shelf (and use) throughout your college career. (these books are not required).

The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White.

Eats, Shoots & Leaves. The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation. By Lynne Truss.