Texts

• We will be using the 7th edition of Earth, by Tarbuck & Lutgens for the lecture part of the course.
• You will be provided with the Fall 2002 version of the WWU Lab Manual for General Geology in your lab section.

Instructional methods

• This course will employ some methods that may be new to you. You will use the course web sites to interact with the instructor and each other. Class meetings will include lectures (augmented by slides and videos), small group discussions and problem solving sessions.
• Each week in Geology 101 we will explore new topics in geology. The reading assignments must be completed by the beginning of the topic period. I will show you how to get the most out of the textbook in the shortest time. Please consult the course web site regularly (at least once before each class meeting!).

Prerequisite knowledge

I expect you to know basic math and science skills which you were probably taught in grade school and middle school. These skills include, but are not limited to:

• Reading a graph
• The metric system (e.g., how many millimeters are in a kilometer)
• The numerical meaning of the words "million" and "billion" (in U.S. parlance; the British have a quite different meaning for "billion").

Field Trips

There will be optional, no-credit field trips on various weekend days. These will be half-day trips in which we will examine some rocks and other features along the coastline south of town as we kayak along the coast. Kayaking instruction and gear will be provided, but the trips will cost money. More information about the field trips will be announced in class and on the blackboard site.

Warm-up quizzes and surveys

• An important component of this course involves work performed prior to each lecture session. There are two portions of the warm-up work, quizzes and surveys. Both are located on the Blackboard site, and must be completed by 11 am the day of lecture. You may not make up any quiz or survey (Blackboard does not allow it, from a technical standpoint), but the three lowest quiz scores and three lowest survey scores will be dropped at the end of the quarter. I strongly recommend that you do these exercises in an on-campus lab (or someplace with a high-speed internet connection), the day before our lecture, using an up-to-date web browser to ensure that technical glitches do not cause you to score a zero on an assignment.
  • Quizzes serve to ensure that you come to class prepared to discuss the material. These are generally worth 5 points, and contain mostly true/false or multiple choice questions.
  • Equally important is the warm-up survey, intended to pique your interest in the subject at hand, and get you thinking. These differ from the quizzes in that they are graded for completeness rather than correctness and generally involve open-ended responses. Some surveys involve working through web-based exercises, and these can require as much as an hour to complete, so budget your time accordingly.

Other resources

• The course homepage is at the WWU Blackboard Site (http://courses.wwu.edu, find course GEOL101-DH). There is also a supplemental web site running on my server, at http://www.davehirsch.com (click "Professional", then click "courses taught").
• I value feedback on my teaching style and techniques. I am glad to receive (and usually respond to) emails on the subject. For those of you who are too timid, however, I have set up an anonymous comments form that is part of the supplemental web site running on my server (Click "feedback" link on front page of site). If you don't want to fill out the whole survey, you can just skip to the end of the form and write a comment in the space provided.

Lab

• You cannot be enrolled in Geology 101 without also being enrolled in a laboratory section.
• Note that the lab sections are run independently from the lecture, and your lab section will have members from various professors' lecture classes. I can do little to help with administrative lab questions, although I'm always glad to answer geological questions about lab, if they arise.

Grades

No credit will be given for work submitted after the day it is due, except by prior arrangement with the instructor, or when emergency circumstances intervene. All exams will be taken at the assigned times (no early exams). Make-up exams will not be offered except by prior arrangement with the instructor and must include an official excused absence from Student Support Services (OM 100, x3844), the Health Center (x3400), or your coach.

• 25% of the grade (250 points) will be based on your laboratory score.

Because the laboratory and lecture sections are largely separate, you should speak to your TA about how this portion of your grade is calculated. However, you must score at least 50% on the laboratory grade in order to pass the course!

• 30% of the grade (300 points) will be based on the final exams.

The final exams will be comprehensive, but will emphasize the portion of the course after the second midterm. There will be two final exams, each one hour long. The individual final exam will be worth 200 points, and the cooperative final exam will be worth 100 points. The two exams will have the same questions, but the cooperative final will be answered in groups of three or four. More information on this will be provided in the final few weeks of the quarter.

• 30% of the grade (300 points) will be based on midterm exams

Each midterm will be worth 150 points.

• 15% of the grade (150 points) will be based on non-exam work.

This portion of the grade is calculated from the scores on the warm-ups and any homework assignments.

• The exam grades will be curved, by multiplying all grades by a value necessary to make the top grade 100%.

Based on the above distribution, the maximum number of points possible will be (1000). Letter grades will be assigned by reference to the scale below. In unusual circumstances, the scale can, at my discretion, be made more generous.

Important Dates (also in course plan)

• Exams
  • First in-class midterm exam - Wednesday, October 16
  • Second in-class midterm exam - Friday, November 8
  • Course finals - Tuesday, December 10
• University deadlines
  • University regulations allow a drop without incurring a "W" on or before Tuesday, October 1.
  • Last day for late course withdrawal is Friday, November 8.

Other Important Notes

• Attendance
  • Because of the structure of this class, attendance is not only recommended, it is effectively mandatory. There is overwhelming evidence that there exists a positive correlation between attendance and academic success.
• Studying & Time Expectations
  • A standard benchmark for studying for a college science class is 2-3 hours of work outside of class for each hour in class. Part of that time you will be reading the textbook chapters. Some of the time will be spent working on WarmUps or laboratory prep work.
• Papers
  • Do not give a peer or a professor any kind of paper unless you have kept a copy! The professor reserves the right to ask for a second copy of anything you have handed in.
  • As a general rule, all writing assignment must be typed. I will inform you of any exceptions. Do not use binders or folders. Make a cover page with your name and the title of the project. One staple in the upper left corner is best. Some submissions in Geology 101 will be electronic via the course web site.
• Group work & Academic Honesty
  • There will be a number of occassions for group work, and group activities. Furthermore, I encourage you to form study groups, discuss questions about the material, and quiz each other on lab and lecture topics. There may even be some group assignments, where a group grade is assigned for work completed. However, you must do your own work on exams and on most assignments. If it is ever unclear what collaboration is acceptable on an assignment, ask your professor!
  • Anyone caught cheating on an exam or turning in work that is not his or her own will be dealt with in accordance with the General Catalog's Appendix D - Academic Dishonesty Policy and Procedure. If you're not familiar with this section, you may want to review it.
• Special exam conditions
  • If you have a condition verified by the Office of Student Life that requires non-standard exam conditions, you must notify me at least one week before the exam in question. I would prefer notification as soon as possible, preferably within the first two weeks of class.