Times & Locations

Lectures will be held on MWF 2:00 - 2:50 p.m. in ES223. Lab sessions will be split: some students will have Lab on Tuesday 1:00-2:50 p.m., and others on Thursday 1:00-2:50 p.m., both in ES 218. Note, however, that these times will not be sufficient to complete the labs - you will need to spend time outside of class. There may be some mixing of lab time and lecture time.

People

Texts

We will be using the text "An Introduction to Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology," (second edition) by John D. Winter, with supplementary material provided as needed, primarily via the web site. If you have access to the first edition, that will be acceptable as well, although you will have to figure out the appropriate reading sections on your own.

Textbook reading & Handouts: 

IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT YOU KEEP UP WITH THE READING IN THIS CLASS.  Besides the text, you will be given many handouts during the course of the semester.  You must read these handouts as they are sometimes the only way to reinforce what we have talked about in lecture (i.e., your book doesn't cover everything).

Field Trips

There will be one required field trip for the class. The date will be listed on the schedule. Details will be announced. An intensive write-up will be required for this trip.  The write-up will be graded both on content and writing style.
Field Trip Guide (20 MB PDF).

Online resources

This document is available online, as are many others revelant to the course (linked below, in part). You can get to the course's home page by going to http://www.davehirsch.com (click Geol 406 in lower-left), and it is also linked from the "Courses Online" section of the Geology Department's site (http://geology.wwu.edu)

• The tentative schedule of labs and lectures is available.
• The web contains superb resources for this course and for general earth science. Check out these links and others.
• We have posted an anonymous feedback form. In this way you can give me feedback on our teaching. 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.
• You can check your course scores online, interactively!

Lab

• Lab exercises are provided for your learning, and will be graded only on a check / check+ / check- basis. Keys to each lab will be posted. Experience has shown that failure to complete the lab exercises will likely result in poor performance on the lab exams.
• Exams - There will be two lab practical exams during the quarter, which will focus on topics and techniques covered in the lab sessions.
• You will need a hand lens for all labs (10x or 12x magnification is best, 18x or 20x is too much). These (10x) can be obtained cheaply at the WWU Bookstore. Also, there are numerous Geological Supply catalogs that carry excellent hand lenses - ask me.

Grades

Late assignments will be docked 2% for each day late.

• 40% of the grade (400 points) will be based on the lecture exams.
  • One exam will cover igneous rocks, and the other metamorphic rocks; each is worth 200 points.
• 30% of the grade (300 points) will be based on your laboratory exams.
  • One exam will cover igneous rocks, and the other metamorphic rocks; each is worth 150 points.
• 10% of the grade (100 points) will be based on the labs.
• 10% of the grade (100 points) will be based on the field trip writeup.
• 10% of the grade (100 points) will be based on other work.
  • This will include in-class work, homework assignments, quizzes, etc.

The exam grades will be curved if necessary, by multiplying all grades by a value necessary to raise the mean grade to 72%. If the mean grade is greater then 72%, then the grade for that exam will not be curved.

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 our discretion, be made more generous.

Other Important Notes

• 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, part will be working on labs, part will be working on the term paper or the field trip writeup..
• 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. We 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.
• Group work & Academic Honesty
  • There will be a number of occassions for group work, and group activities. Furthermore, we 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. We would prefer notification as soon as possible, preferably within the first two weeks of class.