GENERAL PHYSIOLOGY BIO 370 SPRING 2010 Instructor: Dr. Stuart Cromarty Email: scromart@assumption.

edu Phone: X7247 Office: Testa 106 Office Hours: MWF 10:30am to noon Office Hours: MWF 1:00pm to 2pm; and by appt Lecture: MWF (9:30-10:20 am); Testa 106 Lab: T (8:30-11:30am); Testa 29 Lab: T (2:30-5:30pm); Testa 29

Mandatory Text: The required and only text for this course is Human Anatomy and Physiology by Elaine Marieb, 8th edition. The books are available at the Assumption College Bookstore. Additional readings will also be assigned depending on complexity of topic. Course Description and Objectives: Welcome to the spring semester of General Physiology. The overall purpose of this course is to increase your overall understanding of physiology. During this course you examine the major systems of the human body and gain an understanding for what they do and how they work. We often use other animal models to compliment our understanding of how systems function and this is particular relevant in the lab component. You will further develop important skills such as critical thinking, verbal and written communication and how to obtain and interpret reliable scientific information. The lectures run from 9:30 to 10:20am. The schedule is not carved in stone and I will adjust it depending on how we (you) assimilate the material. Lectures are also taken primarily from the text due to the short period of time available. Course expectations: If you have the time to supplement the text with other readings feel free to do so; you can only benefit from it. Physiology is an exciting fast-paced field and we will try to stay ahead of the latest discoveries. This means that I will also be adding articles from newspapers, magazines etc. to supplement the readings. Feel free to bring me articles you have discovered that relate to physiology. It is important that you try and read as much of the chapters before each class, to familiarize yourself with the contents. Do NOT try and copy/write down all the information presented on the overheads, as you will fall quickly behind. PowerPoint and overheads will NOT be placed on reserve in the library but Powerpoint files will be added to my personal web site. Grading Policy: The overall grade for this 4-credit course consists of your lecture grade (70%) and your lab grade (30%). Your grade for the lecture component of this course is based on my evaluation of your performance on four exams (three during the lecture period and one final cumulative exam) and homework assignments. The three-lecture period exams will take approximately 50 minutes and are not cumulative. Two of your highest lecture period exam grades are each worth 20% of your lecture grade. The lowest lecture period exam grade will only count for 15% of your grade. The final exam is cumulative and is worth 35% of your lecture grade. The final will occur during the final exam time slot scheduled by the registrars office. Homework assignments will be announced during lecture and will collectively count towards 10% of your lecture grade. Lecture Grade: Three lecture period exams (20%, 20%, 15%) One final cumulative exam Homework assignments 55% 35% 10%

Grading scale: Your earned letter grade will be determined by the scale below. A 100-90% B 84-82% C 74-72% A- 89-87% B- 81-79% C- 71-69% B+ 86-85% C+ 78-75% D+ 68-65%

D 64-62% D- 61-59% F 58-0%

If the final, overall class average (NOT the average for one exam or assignment) should fall below 74%, the instructor reserves the right to scale the final grades to bring the class average up to 74%. NO negative scaling will be done if the class average is above 74%. Note: A grade of B- or better is required for a letter of recommendation Students missing an exam without a valid excuse will be assessed a zero. Missing 2 exams is unacceptable and you will be given a failing grade for the course. The 3 exams will NOT be cumulative, but the final, which will make up 35% of your lecture grade, will be cumulative. Emphasis for the FINAL EXAM will be on the LAST 6 or 7 lectures but the final exam will be cumulative (see schedule). The exams are NOT scaled until the end of the semester. In most cases the mean will fall around 70%-75% in any case. Students that are on the borderline between grades will be assessed on improvement (or lack thereof) over their exam grades. The decision to scale up individuals is at the final discretion of the instructor. Attendance policy: You are expected to promptly attend and be prepared for every class, take all exams at the scheduled time, participate in class discussions and complete all homework assignments. While your attendance is not recorded, it is critical that you attend every class for four reasons: 1) material presented in class is not always from your textbook, 2) emphasis and clarification of certain concepts are difficult to obtain outside of class, 3) attendance is mandatory to receive credit for homework assignments and 4) hints for exams are given during lecture. If you miss lecture, you are responsible for obtaining materials distributed during the class. In general, there will be no make-up exams. Only under exceptional circumstances will a make-up exam be offered. Make up exams are much more difficult than other exams and consist of essay questions. Students missing an exam without a valid excuse will be given a 0. Missed or late homework assignments are given a 0 and cannot be made up. If you are an athlete or have other obligations/reasons that will cause you to miss a lab or a lecture, please contact me as soon as possible to discuss arrangements. Please be respectful of your fellow students and turn off cell phones, PDAs and pagers at the beginning of class. Homework assignments: Throughout the semester, homework assignments will be announced during class. It is the students responsibility to attend class to be informed of a homework assignment, complete the assignment and return it to the instructor at the next class session. Homework assignments need to be turned in both electronically (emailed to me as a MS word file) and as a hard copy (to be handed in at the beginning of class). Assignments that are given to the instructor late or are not provided in both electronic and hard copy formats are not accepted and will receive a 0. To receive full credit, all assignments turned into the instructor must have the following written at the top of the page: 1) the students full name, 2) date, 3) homework assignment title and 4) General Physiology, Spring 10. Assistance and accommodations: Students who need additional help with the course should see their professor as soon as possible. Do NOT wait till the end of the semester. Another source of help for students is the Academic Support Center ( http://www.assumption.edu/ acad/ASC/default.html) that sponsors a variety of programs, including a tutoring

program, study-skill and time management workshops. Students interested in these programs should visit the ASC on the second floor of the DAlzon Library, call the center at X5232, or contact Allen Bruehl, the centers director (X7311). Assumption College is committed to providing equal access to students with disabilities who are able to effectively function in a campus-based liberal arts environment (http://www.assumption.edu/acad/ ASC/disabilities.html). If you have a disability or believe you require accommodations in the lab or classroom, please inform your instructor as soon as possible. Requests for accommodations must be accompanied by verification from the Director of Disabilities Services, Sharon de Klerk at X7500. Academic dishonesty policy: Throughout the course, all students are expected to adhere to the Student Academic Honesty Policy of the College. This policy is stated in the Academic Honesty Booklet and Student Handbook and at http://www.assumption.edu/stulife/StudentHandbook/StudentHandbook.html. Claiming ignorance about any component of the Academic Honesty Policy is never a valid excuse for violating the policy. If this policy is unclear to you in any way, please speak with your instructor immediately. All writing assignments and formal lab reports need to be emailed to your instructor as a word document as well as hardcopy. Various search engines look for plagiarism and will be used to scan your reports. Code of Conduct in my class means, no hats, cell phones or pages, and be timely (5 min cutoff!!). Student Athletes should go over their schedules early. Letters of absenteeism from their coaches should be at least 2 weeks before each exam. Success!!??: Come to class!!! Although the text is great, not all the information will come from the text. Different emphasis is placed on some material and some concepts are difficult to pick up outside of class. I often give away hints for questions that I WILL ASK on exams. Read material as much as you can before class TAKE GOOD NOTES!! Try to recopy or reorganize your notes as soon as possible after class. Ask me questions! If you missed a concept, chances are your classmates did as well. Spend quality study time. Dont put in long hours staring at your textbook. Students who take time to make flash cards from their notes, draw out important diagrams to memorize them, and study in groups where they can quiz fellow students, tend to do better. Ask for help early. The longer you wait the harder it will be to solve the problem. Dont let material build up because you cannot understand it. My promise to you: I will respect each of you as hard-working college students and adults. I will facilitate your learning of General Physiology topics. I will arrive on time and be prepared for class, and you will have my full attention during class time. I will try my best to answer your questions, and if I dont know I will do my best to find the answer and get back to you. I will be available for questions during posted office hours or by appointment. I will strive to answer your emails but I cannot guarantee same day answers. My expectations of you: Please note that General Physiology is an upper level biology course. Keep in mind that in addition to attending class and lab, you will need to devote extra study time in order to excel. The material covered in class will build upon itself throughout the semester, therefore it is important to keep up

with readings and not to cram (which doesnt work). An official excuse is required in order to receive full credit on late assignments due to any absences. You are responsible for all material during the semester regardless of absences. Attendance is mandatory in laboratory. Because each lab is distinctively different, labs will not be made up. Please silence your cell phones before entering class. Violations of the Student Academic Honesty Policy will be referred to the Dean of Studies and you will be expelled from my class.

I, the terms within Dr. Cromartys BIO 370 syllabus.

, have read the information and agree to

Signature

Date

Anatomy: Genetics:

yes yes

no no

List all other Biology courses you have taken so far at AC:

List your strengths:

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