GEOLOGY 1700 CLASS SYLLABUS 

FALL 2009

 

INSTRUCTOR - Dr. Stephen B. Harper      OFFICE - 104 Graham Hall      OFFICE PHONE - 328-6773

OFFICE HOURS - 2:00-4:00 MW and by appointment                                 E-MAIL <harpers@ecu.edu>

 

COURSE TEXTSGeology 1700 Coursepack –Fall 2009 by Stephen B. Harper (transmitted via Email FREE).

You must know how to access your ECU Exchange Email Account to Survive in this Course!  All ECU students are automatically assigned an ECU Exchange address.  Introduction to Environmental Geology by Edward A. Keller (Very, very Optional).  Important General WEB sites:   www.usgs.gov/, www.epa.gov/, www.noaa.gov/, www.nasa.gov/, www.doe.gov/, www.fema.gov/, http://lwf.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/ncdc.html and www.ipcc.ch/.  WEB sites related to Case Studies will be assigned as we discuss each Case Study.

 

EXAMS - There will be 3 MAJOR EXAMS plus the FINAL EXAM.  Exam #1, #2, #3,and the Final Exam will count

20% each.  The FINAL EXAM will cover the topics discussed after Exam #3.  The dates for the 3 exams and the Final Exam are listed on the class schedule on the back side of this handout.  (EXAM GRADE TOTAL = 80% of Course Grade).  There will be questions on each Exam from assigned class readings, related to the Asian case studies.

 

EXAM FORMAT - The exam format will be announced shortly before each exam is given.  Old exams except for the

Final Exam will be provided via Internet link or posted outside my office.

 

MAKE-UP EXAMS - A make-up exam will be administered one time only for each major exam to those students who

have a written medical excuse for missing the regularly scheduled exam.  Each student must take the responsibility to arrange with the instructor to take the make-up exam within 48 hours after the exam has been missed or even before it has been missed.  Any student, who does not take a regularly scheduled exam or the equivalent make-up exam, will receive a 0 for that exam.  There is no make-up for the Final Exam.  Be there or Be Dead!

 

***OTHER GRADED ASSIGNMENTS - (20% of Course Grade)

 

Student Exercises (6%)Assigned exercises emphasizing quantitative skills.   Exercises turned in

late will be penalized.  Those turned in more than 2 days (48 hours) past the due date will not be accepted for a grade, and thus will be given a 0. The average of these exercises will count 6% of each student’s course grade.  NO DROPS!

 

End of Class Quizzes (14%) – There will be a quizzes at the end of class, perhaps every class day, to

test your knowledge of the topics covered during the class period.  Obviously, if you are not in class at the end of the period, you will receive a zero for that quiz!  The 2 lowest quiz scores for each student will be dropped.  NO MAKE UP ON THE QUIZZES!

 

GRADING SCALE -            A = 89-100            B = 78-88.9           C = 67-77.9           D = 56-66.9           F = <56

 

STUDY GUIDES - You will be given Study Guides for each unit of material.  These will not be graded, but you are

encouraged to complete them on a timely basis so that you do not get too far  behind in learning the major terms and concepts in this course.

 

CLASSROOM and ATTENDANCE POLICY - Each student is expected to attend class and to show up for each class

on time.  Failure to do so will usually result in very poor performance in the class.  Students, who show up for class late, must enter via the back door!  Students are not allowed to leave class early before the whole class is dismissed without permission from the instructor.  BOTTOM LINE POLICIES -  THE 6 “NO’S” POLICY - NO TALKING, NO TARDINESS,  NO LEAVING CLASS EARLY, NO CELL PHONES,  IPODS, or LAPTOP/NOTEBOOK COMPUTERS IN THE CLASSROOM IN THE “ON MODE”!  Any Student, whose cell phone rings during class time will be required to come to the front of the classroom and APOLOGIZE PROFUSELY to the Instructor and Fellow Students!  Any Student, caught with his/her a Laptop/Notebook Computer or I-pod turned on during class time, will be dismissed from the class for the day.  PRACTICE GOOD MANNERS AND THE MIDDLE WAY AT ALL TIMES AND YOUR PATH WILL BE PEACEFUL!