Course Overview

Course Description

Content
Introduces chemical principles to illustrate the significance of chemistry in the world today. Practical applications and current issues related to general chemistry, organic chemistry, and biochemical topics will be integrated with chemical concepts. Recommended for non-science majors. IAI P1 903

Objectives

• improve your science literacy
• enhance your understanding of basic chemical concepts
• apply scientific concepts to societal issues
• gain an appreciation for and understanding of the way science and scientists work
• construct ideas and connections between concepts to make sense of the ideas rather than simply memorizing isolated facts
• work cooperatively with others in small group settings to accomplish a common goal
• gain insights into how you process information and what learning environments work best for you

Course Requirements

Materials

Textbooks

• Hill and Kolb, Chemistry for our Changing Times (any edition). This text book is optional. I will not assign problems from it, but it does include a lot of the topics we will discuss this semester. I also have a copy on in-room use reserve in the library.
• Heyden McNeil Lab Notebook. You are required to purchase a lab notebook that allows you to make carbonless copies. You can buy either the 100 page or the 50 page notebook.
• Lab investigations will be posted on Blackboard under Course Materials - Labs. You are responsible for downloading and printing them prior to each lab.

Assessment and Evaluation

We will be involved in assessing your learning together. It is important for both of us to have a sense of what you understand, what you are struggling with, and how you are making connections. Therefore, your assessment with be both formative and evaluative. Formative assessment is ongoing and is intended to inform you and me of your current level of understanding and to guide us in clearing up misconceptions, providing deeper insights, and enhancing your learning. Evaluative assessment occurs periodically as a means of measuring your level of understanding and your ability to demonstrate what you have mastered. We will use some traditional and some nontraditional means of assessment.

Activities
You will participate in a variety of interactive activities from Blackboard besides the lab investigations. These will often be as a part of a collaborative group.

Labs
As you participate in the lab you will:

• Ask and answer questions and explore topics discussed in class through hands-on, inquiry-based laboratory experiences
• Write laboratory reports that reveal thoughtful analysis of data and include evidence to support conclusions
• Develop basic laboratory techniques
• Practice laboratory safety

See the Laboratory Guidelines for more details regarding expectations in the lab. <

Exams
Exams will consist of some multiple-choice questions, but most will be free response, essay, and problem solving questions. You will take two exams during the semester. The second exam will be given on the last day of class. It will be cumulative.

Web project
You will be working in a small group to investigate a sustainability/climate change intervention and its consequences. Possible topics include energy efficiency, alternative fuels, recycling, and conservation of resources. The final project will involve a presentation of the group's results and everything will be posted on a class website. More details will be provided in a separate document.

Article Portfolio
Since a primary goal of this course is to enhance your scientific literacy, you will be developing an article portfolio throughout the semester. You will find and read eight (8) articles in publications available to the public that deal with science related topics for which a basic understanding of scientific principles is needed to fully understand and appreciate. These need to be from newspapers or other magazines available to the public. They are not to be from research journals. Issues of Chemical & Engineering News, a weekly publication of the American Chemical Society are available around the department. Feel free to read articles from this publication, but select those that address societal issues. You can get the articles online, but they must be published articles, not just information from a website.

For each article, you are to read the article and write a 250-500 word summary of the article. You must include either a copy of the article or a complete bibliographic reference for the article. Additionally, write a reflective paragraph in which you

• explain why you selected the article
• state one chemical concept included in the article and what you know about that concept
• how you can apply what you learned
• what you want to know more about as a result of reading the article

One article report will be due each week throughout the semester. At the end of the semester you are to also include an evaluative essay regarding your portfolio in which you

• explain the most significant thing you learned from this assignment,
• what was the least effective aspect of the assignment, and
• whether or not there was a pattern to the types of articles you chose to read.

Note: All article summaries and reflections should be submitted via Blackboard

Grading & Policies

Course Policies

Make-up work
Make-up labs are usually not possible because equipment/chemicals are usually removed or disposed of after the lab. If you must miss lab, please let me know as early as possible and we can discuss options. If you are consistently late for lab and miss the prelab discussion, I reserve the right to deny your admittance into the lab. An unprepared student in the lab is a potential incident or accident waiting to happen.

Deadlines for assignments are in place to help you manage your time, to enable me to provide you feedback frequently throughout the semester and so that we are all not overloaded at the end of the semester trying to get everything done at the last minute. I believe I am reasonable, however, so if you find you occasionally need additional time to complete a project or assignment, talk with me about an extension (well before the assignment is due). Please do not abuse this offer or it will be withdrawn.

Academic Dishonesty
Cheating is not tolerated in the class. Work together, but do not cheat! Below is the College's academic honesty policy:

Harper College is strongly committed to the promotion of high ethical standards. Such standards can best be accomplished in an environment where honesty and integrity are practiced. For this reason, the College strongly condemns academic dishonesty. Academic dishonesty includes cheating, plagiarism, or other improper appropriation of another's work as one's own and falsifying records to advance one's academic standing. Cheating includes but is not limited to copying answers, stealing and/or disseminating tests or answer keys, using someone else's data in preparation of reports or assignments, and assisting other in such practices. Plagiarism involves the presentation of another person's words, ideas, or work as one's own. It includes but is not limited to copying material, written or nonwritten, without proper acknowledgment of its source, and paraphrasing another's work or ideas without proper acknowledgment. Falsifying records includes but is not limited to falsifying or improperly altering college records and documents, or knowingly supplying false or misleading information to others (e.g. the College, other educational institutions, or prospective employers).

If you are caught violating this academic honesty policy, it will result in a zero on that particular work and may result in a failing grade for the course.

Grading

Your course grade will be determined based upon the total number of points you earn this semester. Each area of evaluative assessment will contribute approximately as follows. The point values per category and thus the total number of points for the semester are subject to change as the semester progresses.

Quizzes			9%
Labs			30%
Exams			20%
Activities			15%
Final Project			9%
Article Portfolio			10%
Biodiesel Project			7%
Total			100%

The total number of points available this semester is subject to change at my discretion. Grades are assigned based upon your final percentage of points earned:

90-100% A

80-89.9% B

70-79.9% C

60-69.9% D

59.9% and below F

Course Calendar (subject to change)