Physical Science I Syllabus for 2011-2012
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Course

PHYS-1415-002 Physical Science I

Prerequisites

Math 0303-minimum grade of C, Accuplacer score of 75, THEA score of 270 or an equivalent score on a state-approved test; RDNG 0331-minimum grade of C or a score on a state-approved test indicating college-level reading skills

Course Description

Science course designed for non-science majors with focus on elementary education science instruction methods and content. Primary emphasis will be fundamental concepts of chemistry, such as atoms, density, equations, reactions, acids and bases and solutions. May also include integration with physics, geology and astronomy.

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Department Expectations

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Hours

(4 sem hrs; 3 lec, 3 lab)

Class Type

On Campus Course

Syllabus Information

Textbooks

Conceptual Physical Science, 4th Edition, Hewitt, Suchocki, and Hewitt. Pearson/Addison Wesley, 2008. (Bundled with Practice Book and Lab Manual for Conceptual Physical Science).  Explorations in Conceptual Chemistry, 1st Edition.  Jeffrey Paradis.  Pearson/Benjamin Cummings

Supplies

You will need a 3-ring binder, at least 2 inches thick.  Other items strongly recommended are pens, pencils, paper, basic scientific calculator, marking pens or colored pencils, highlighters, ruler.  If you have a small pair of scissors, th

Student Performance

1.  Have sufficiently developed lab skills.

2.  Have a basic understanding of chemistry and its everyday applications.

3.  Explain the relation between atoms and molecules.

4.  Make simple chemical calculations.

5.  Have a basic concept of solution chemistry.

6.  Understand atomic structure and the periodic table.

7.  Have a basic understanding of the different types of chemical reactions.

8.  Relate chemistry to other disciplines and understand how it fits into everyday living.

9.  Develop confidence in presenting chemistry concepts in the classroom.

1.  To gain a basic understanding of general inorganic chemistry and its applications.

2.  To learn fundamental theories, concepts, terms and skills to master basic inorganic chemistry.

3.  To gain an introduction and basic understanding of simple organic chemistry.

4.  To develop fundamental laboratory skills.

5.  To provide hands-on activities for use in teaching chemistry basics in the elementary-middle school classroom.

Students Rights and Responsibilities

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If you are an active staff or faculty member according to Human Resources, use "Exchange". All other students, use "AC Connect (Google) Email".

Expected Student Behavior

Please turn off your cell phones during class.  It is disruptive and disrespectful to your classmates to have a phone ringing during class.  If it is a necessity to have a phone on, please see me about it during the first week of class.

Please familiarize yourself with the Student Rights and Responsibilities Document (link above) and particularly the section on cheating.

CHEATING:  If a student is caught cheating on a test in this class, the test will be taken up and a grade of zero will be assigned for that test.  The grade assigned for cheating may not be the drop grade and a report will be added to the permanent record of the student

TOBACCO AND TOBACCO PRODUCTS USE:  Also according to the Student Rights and Responsibilities document, tobacco and tobacco product use is prohibited inside college buildings.  This includes smokeless products (i.e. chewing tobacco) as well as cigarettes, pipes, and cigars.

Grading Criteria

You may monitor your grades through the AC Online web access for your class.

There will be an exam at the completion of each unit of study. There will be a comprehensive final exam over the text material. There are no laboratory exams, but there may be prelab questions over the experiments.  Homework will be assigned and there will be daily questions which also contribute to the final grade. The lowest test grade will be dropped when the test average is calculated. If a test is missed, that test is the drop grade. There are no make-up exams. The final grade in this class will be determined from the average of all test grades (60%), daily questions and group work (5%), homework (5%), lab experiments and explorations (10%), notebooks (5%), presentations (5%), and final exam (10%).

The final grade will be assigned based on your final average as follows:  90.0=A, 80.0=B, 70.0=C, 60.0=D, and less than 60.0 is failing.

There are no make-up assignments for this class. If you miss a class it is your responsibility to get class notes from one of your classmates. You will have a dropped lab score so missing one lab will not hurt your grade.

Attendance

All students are expected to attend class regularly.  Lack of attendance will affect the grade because of missed lecture material and missed quizzes.  A missed quiz is recorded as a zero and may not be made up. It has been shown that students who attend class regularly have a higher success rate (i.e.- passing rate) than those who chose not to attend class.  If a student finds it necessary to drop this class, it is his/her responsibility to complete and submit the appropriate paperwork. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL THE INSTRUCTOR BE RESPONSIBLE FOR DROPPING A STUDENT FROM THIS CLASS! The last day to withdraw from this class is November 16, 2011.

Calendar

Additional Information

OTHER INFORMATION (GENERAL NOTES):  Assignments will be given for reading material in preparation for lecture and for homework assignments.  There will be small group activities throughout the semester.  Some will be during lecture and others during the lab.  There will be at least four (4) hour exams.  These tests will be comprehensive and may contain true/false, matching, completion, short answer and multiple choice questions as well as problem solving when it is applicable. Tests may also include material from previous chapters.  There will be no mid-term exam.  There may be either announced or unannounced quizzes. Keep a supply of quarter sheets of paper in your notebooks for these quizzes.  Homework assignments over the material assigned for a particular test are due the day of the exam over that material.

TEACHING TECHNIQUES:  I will be using several teaching techniques in this class.  Of course, there will be the traditional lecturing for basic content.  It is nearly impossible to get away from this aspect of teaching although I would like to keep lectures to a minimum. And I will keep this to only a portion of what we do in class.  There will be posted notes for you and these will be correlated to any lecture that is done.  We will be doing quite a bit of guided inquiry learning using the Paradis book.  This is done in small groups, and mostly during lab time, and your groups will vary from time to time. The general procedure for groups is to work on a problem or assignment, and then regroup into the full class and discuss any issues that arise during the small group work.  Some of the lab work will also be in this format.

You will find that I often will not directly answer your questions.  Instead, I will ask you a question that will help you develop an appropriate answer to your original question. This is called the Socratic Method and helps students formulate ideas using the previous knowledge they already  possess.  It also helps you develop critical thinking skills you will need in all aspects of your life. 

You may find yourself at the board working problems with other students or perhaps leading a short discussion.  All of these are techniques that you can use in your classrooms as you move into the teaching fields of your choice.

HOMEWORK GUIDELINES:  Homework must be neat and legible.  It may be done by hand or on the computer.  If I cannot read it, no credit is given.  All assignments will have the problem written out, followed by the answer showing all set ups and calculations.  Short answer questions will be written in complete sentences.  The problem number should be clearly separated from the problem itself (i.e. in the margin) and there will be a space between problems and answers.  The answers for the problems will be highlighted, circled, or otherwise distinguished from the questions.  Please do not rip pages from a spiral notebook.  You may turn in the entire notebook, or put your assignment in a folder, and it will be returned to you as soon as possible.  Work may be done in either pen or pencil

NOTEBOOKS:  Each student will keep a notebook (learning log) to contain hand out material, homework, class notes, lab reports, and other materials from the class.  The cover will include topics relevant to chemistry and interests of the student and will be part of the notebook grade.  The criteria for grading of the notebooks will be covered by another handout.(found in the lessons folder in AC Online).

CLASS PRESENTATIONS:  Each student will be required to make a presentation to the class. Generally this assignment is done with a partner.  This presentation will be a lesson covering some topic appropriate for chemistry in the elementary classroom.  It will include handout material, expenses, teacher notes, and will be grade appropriate as determined by the student.  (See additional handout found in the lessons folder in AC Online).