Fs101 Backyard Biology

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Fall 2004

last update: September 30, 2004

In this class, we will explore the biological relationships unfolding in our immediate environs. We will reflect on our connection to the organisms that surround our daily activities and on the way humans choose to live within the natural world. Students will practice written and oral description, exploration, and summary while educating each other about the communities of plants and animals living in our yards.

Grading:    Below is a list of the planned assignments with their point values.  Depending on our progress in class, we may add small assignments to the list below or change point values to reflect changes in the assignments.  Any such changes will be announced in class and posted on the syllabus website, so you should check back here throughout the term.

Optional Assignments:

Watch here for optional assignments to be added throughout the term. Optional Assignments will add to the number of total points you can earn in this course. This means that these are NOT extra credit assignments. However, completing them is likely to improve your grade because they increase the proportion of assignments for which you receive full credit.

Translating Point-percentages into Grades:

You can calculate the grade you have earned in this course by determining the percentage of total possible points you have earned. To do this, add up the maximum point number possible for each mandatory assignment and any optional assignments you may have done. Then add up the points you have earned for each of these assignments, divide this number by the first one, and multiply by 100. You should get a number between 0 and 100, which you can use to look up your grade in the table below:

Criteria for Grading Class Participation:

A participation is marked by its active nature, its consistency, and its quality. An A participant doesn't wait to respond to questions that the professor poses but initiates discussion by coming prepared with questions, ideas, observations about the reading assigned that day. This participant will also be consistently engaged in class discussion, always letting us know that she/he has engaged the reading thoroughly and thoughtfully. Finally an A participant will not try to substitute quantity of participation for quality (being consistent is not the same thing as dominating a discussion). To earn the highest grade for your participation, you will want to make it possible for others to participate productively too (this is not a competition); thus, habits such as interrupting others and taking up too much conversational space will not enhance your grade. It will also do you no good to participate if you haven't done the reading. I expect participation to be firmly grounded in careful and thoughtful reading. As the A reader reads, she or he prepares to participate in a class discussion with other readers.

A B discussant is less consistent than an A in initiating discussion but is active in responding to questions or problems posed by the teachers and other students. To get a B in participation, you will need to be in class and talk regularly--more, certainly, than once a week or so. This level of class participation will also communicate clearly to me that you have done all the reading for the day and that you have done it thoughtfully. This level will also include productive discussion habits, such as engaging the ideas of others, not dominating, listening carefully, etc.

A C grade for participation means that you have contributed in an average way to the discussion. Your contributions have been less frequent than those of the B participant or have let me know that you are not always keeping up with the reading or have, in some way, interfered with good discussion. In short, you have not been silent or absent or altogether uninvolved, but your involvement did not work consistently to make the class a productive learning experience.

A D grade means that you were there physically most of the time and maybe even piped up three or four times during the semester but that's it. It's just the grade it should be--a minimal passing grade.

An F grade should need no explanation. I do give "F" participation grades when warranted.

Criteria for Grading Papers

An A Paper is an interesting and original paper demonstrating sophistication of thought. The description is vivid and the presentation is appropriate for the intended audience. Ideas are clearly communicated with a logical structure appropriate to the paper's subject, purpose, audience, and central concept. Sophisticated transitional sentences often develop one idea from the previous one or identify their logical relations. Words are used precisely, demonstrate an appropriate level of specificity, and create vivid images. Sentence style fits paper's audience and descriptive purpose. Sentence structures are varied, yet clear and carefully focused. The paper is almost entirely free of spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors.

A B Paper is a solid piece of writing that shows originality and thought. The paper is thoughtfully organized and each paragraph is structured around a core topic that is clearly related to paper's descriptive goal. However, a B paper usually contains some major flaw that keeps it from receiving a higher grade. For example, the primary idea is clearly articulated but may not be fully developed. It may disregard audience at times. The author generally uses words accurately and effectively, but words may sometimes be too general. Sentences are clearly structured but some may not fit the paper's purpose or sentence structures may be too repetitive. May contain several mechanical errors that a careful proofreading should have caught. If two of these major flaws are evident in an otherwise strong piece of writing, the paper will usually earn a B-.

A C paper is adequate to the task assigned but typically exhibits several significant flaws. It presents a central idea in general terms, but often depends on platitudes, cliches, or generalities. It may list ideas randomly rather than using any evident logical structure. While each paragraph may relate to the central idea, overall organization is not always clear. Paragraphs have topic sentences, but may be overly general, and arrangement of sentences within paragraphs may lack coherence. Words used may be too general or inappropriate for the paper's purpose. Sentences are generally clear, well structured, and focused but some may be awkward or ineffective. It may contain mechanical errors, which may temporarily confuse the reader but do not impede overall understanding.

A D paper either doesn't have a central idea, the idea is unclear or does not respond appropriately to the assignment, or the idea is too vague or obvious to be developed effectively. It may also exhibit apparently random organization, lack internal paragraph coherence, and/or use few or inappropriate transitions. Paragraphs may have some major deficiency: lack of main topic, topic is too general or too specific to be effective, topic may not all relate to the paper's central idea. The paper uses vague and general words. Sentence structure is generally correct, but sentences may be wordy, unfocused, repetitive, or confusing. Usually contains either many mechanical errors or a few important errors that block the reader's understanding and ability to see connections among thoughts.

An F paper does not respond to the assignment, lacks a central idea, has no appreciable organization, and/or lacks coherence. It usually contains sufficient errors in sentence structures, word choice, and mechanics to suggest that little of no thought or energy was put into crafting the paper.

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