Syllabus

Spring, 2012

Office Hours:

I will be on campus most weekdays. You are welcome to call or come and find me in my office at any time.  Although there is always a chance that I may have something under way which can not be interrupted, I can usually stop and help.  If you are coming from off-campus, give me a call to set up an appointment when you arrive.  Additional means of contacting me are the phone (number above) and email (pganter@tnstate.edu or just click on the "Email Me" buttons on any of my web pages).

Compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act

The Department of Biological Sciences, in conjunction with the Office of Disabled Student Services, makes reasonable accommodation for qualified students with medically documented disabilities. If you need an accommodation, please contact TSU's Disabled Student Services Office at 963-7400 (phone) or 963-5051 (fax), preferably in the first week of class.  You can view elibilility information and register for services online at: http://www.tnstate.edu/disabilityservices/

Course Description and Objectives (Link to a list of Specific Objectives for each lecture):

Credit Hours: This course meets three hours per week and carries 3 credit hours.

Prerequisites: BIOL 1110 & BIOL 1120 (Intro to Biology I and II, including laboratory courses).   In addition, courses in genetics, botany, ecology, invertebrate and/or vertebrate zoology and an elementary statistics course would be very helpful to anyone taking this course.

Catalog Description:  A study of current evolutionary theory, including systematics, with an examination of macroevolutionary patterns and microevolutionary processes.

This course is designed to present an overview of biological evolution.  Students are introduced 1) to the historical context that gave rise to the various questions about order in the natural world to which evolution has proposed answers and the scienific reception of Darwin's ideas about the mechanisms of evolution, 2) to an up-to-date history of life, 3) to current evolutionary theory, and 4) to the ways in which evolutionary biologists go about gathering data to refute or support hypotheses derived from theory.  Specific evolutionary studies are used to illustrate the application of theory as a tool for understanding natural systems. Thus, students are expected to become familiar with the conceptual models by through which we attempt to understand complex biological systems, the facts upon which those models are based, and the processes through which we discover these facts.

Student Responsibilities and Evaluation of Performance:

Students are expected to know and adhere to the standards of conduct described in the Student Code of Conduct section of the TSU Student Handbook (the handbook can be downloaded from the TSU website).  Note that class attendence and arriving before class begins are part of your code of conduct.

This course is intended for the collegiate senior year. Thus, students have had extensive experience in taking and successfully completing college biology courses.  With this assumption in mind, material is presented in several ways, with considerable overlap. The primary source for you is the textbook.  Your second source of information is through attending class and the third is the supplemental material either handed out in class or found on this website (and on other websites you may find - be sure they are reputable before using them!).  Not all of the information in the textbook can be presented or discussed in class, yet you are responsible for learning the information covered in the assigned portions of the textbook, any additional readings distributed during class or through this website, and anything covered during class. 

Remember that learning the material does not merely entail understanding it.  You must become familiar enough with the material to answer questions about it.  Understanding the material is the necessary beginning of the process of learning but practice with it is as necessary as understanding it.  Without practice, you will not be able to demonstrate your understanding.  Without practice, the ideas presented will not become conceptual tools for your future use. 

Because class time is limited, we must make the best use of it.  Discussion of ideas helps facilitate understanding and begins practice.  Lecture can only facilitate understanding.   For this reason, we will concentrate on discussion of ideas during class.  However, an absolute requirement for discussion is that student and professor are prepared for discussion.  Thus, reading the textbook must be done by students before the topics are covered in class.  To ensure that students fulfill this requirement, unannounced quizzes will be given at the beginning of some classes.  Those who arrive late will not be eligible for the quiz.

Grading: There will be three period-long lecture examinations during class on the days noted in the weekly schedule below. Lecture examinations will be taken from only the material covered since the previous lecture examination and will be in objective question, essay, and/or problem formats.  TSU Policy mandates a final examination during the final examination period.  The final will be comprehensive of all material presented during the class.

As mentioned above, pop quizzes will be given to reward those who read the chapters before class.  The average of the quizzes will be used as a fourth examination grade when calculating points earned.

In addition to examinations, the final and quizzes, there will be two short papers on topics chosen by the student and approved by the instructor.   Papers on topics not pre-approved will not be accepted.  The paper format is described on its own webpage.

Since student participation in class is very important, students will be responsible for presenting topics to their classmates.  Presentations will be graded by the instructor and by the class (2/3 from the instructor, 1/3 from the class).  Since student participation in class is very important, 5% of the grade will be given for attendance (only arrival before the scheduled class time and departure after the end of the scheduled class time counts for attendance).

Three topics will be chosen by the instructor for notes.  Each note will be one-page summary of a paper on the chosen topic.  Finding a paper for the note is the responsibility of the student (with the instructor's help).  Each note should briefly summarize the question addressed by the paper, the methods used, the results reported and relate the paper's findings to the material presented in lecture.  Some notes will be read out loud to the class by their authors.

All dates for both paper submissions and examinations are subject to change. The overall grade for the course will be based on the standard TSU point-to-grade scale. The distribution of points is:

Exams:	30%
Papers:	25%
Presentations:	15%
Notes:	15%
Attendance:	5%
Final:	10%

Policy on plagiarism and cheating: Cheating on exams or plagiarizing on a paper will result in a 0 grade for that exam or paper.  The Department Chair and Dean of Arts and Sciences will be informed of the infraction. To plagiarize is 1. to appropriate and pass off as one's own (the writings, ideas, etc., of another). 2. To appropriate and use passages, ideas, etc. from another's text or product. (Funk and Wagnells Standard Dictionary of the English Language, 1965). All papers will be kept by the instructor.

DISCLAIMER:  This syllabus is a guide to the course.  The instructor reserves the right to change it at any time to meet specific circumstances as they arise during the semester.

Schedule of Lectures and Assignments:

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Last updated on January 8, 2012