Class Policies-Grading

Course Information (supplies and additional information beyond the syllabus)

Grading System

Class Period 2

Exams: 60% Homework/homework quizzes: 25% Projects/Group work/Participation: 15%

Lab (periods 3 & 4)

Major Labs & write-ups: 60% Minor Labs 30% Projects/group work/participation 10%

Homework

All homework must be done in pen or pencil, unless you have a documented reason why it must be typed.

http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/news/releases/take-notes-by-hand-for-better-long-term-comprehension.html

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-learning-secret-don-t-take-notes-with-a-laptop/

Notes are to be done using the Cornell format (note area, main ideas, and summary at the bottom). One to two days a week there will be a one or two question homework quiz based on the previous nights assignment.

Late Labs

• • Lab write ups will receive bonus points for being on time, and begin losing points within two days of the due date. As these assignments are worth a great deal, and are very important for your understanding of the subject, I will deduct 10 points a day down to to 70%. You may still hand in the assignment at any time within the term and receive a 70%. I do not encourage late work by any stretch of the imagination, but feel this is fair to those who run up against time constraints.

• Test Revision Policies

  • In order to do test corrections, you must have completed a majority of the homework for that unit, demonstrating that you put effort into learning the material

  • Unit tests can be corrected in the following manner:

• 1. Identify the correct answer

  2. Explain why your answer is incorrect (in biological terms)

  3. Explain why the correct answer is the best answer (in biological terms)

There are some types of questions where this is not as easy to do. See me if you have any concerns.

You may receive up to (if 1 - 3 above are done correctly!) 1/2 credit back for each question you missed (up to an 85%)- definitely worth doing for the points and review!!!!! If you score a 85% - 95% on your test, you may do corrections and get up to five extra points.

Extra Help:

I will be after Monday and Tuesday from 1:50 - 2:30 for AP extra help and lab make-up work. I can meet at other pre-arranged times before school or during the school day.

Class supplies:

• • You will need one large capacity three ring binder. You will be receiving a lot of handouts (no joke!) throughout the year, all of which should end up in your notebook.

  • Please have dividers to organize your notebooks, as well as loose leaf paper for taking notes.

  • The class notebook should have the following sections:

• 1. Class notes (including hand outs and graphic organizers)

  2. Classwork/homework

  3. Test study guides and returned tests and quizzes

  4. AP exam-specific review and test work

  5. Lab handouts

• • The notebook should contain a 8 dividers within the Class notes section, one for each major unit.

  • A composition book with graph paper is needed for lab notes and graphing.

  • Beyond pens and pencils, I would also suggest each student have colored pencils, a metric ruler and a calculator.

Field Trips:

I would like to organize a few field trips throughout the year. I will keep students and parents posted as the possibilities develop.

Homework (missed!) Policy

It is absolutely essential that you do the homework, and do the homework on time! The homework supports what we do in class, and without it, you will have trouble processing and retaining the volume of biology content we cover in this course. I would rather you investigate research topics in biology than turn in old assignments that are no longer relevant to what we are studying at that time.

• • I do not accept late homework, unless you have a legitimate excuse, such as an illness or family emergency.

  • The only exception to this are lab write ups, which I will accept up until the end of the term, though a late lab write up will lose 10 points a day until it is only worth 70%.

If you do miss a homework, make it up asap. Depending on circumstances, you may lose 10 pts/day down to a 70%. If it's more than 10 days late within the term, you can do an alternative assignment to regain 70% of the missing credit.

• • Look on line for a New York Times Science Times, Nature or Scientific American article (there are other possibilities)

  • Find one article that relates to the subject of biology, and write a 250 word summary, finishing with a thoughtful question that pertains to the article.

  • Each article summary can be used to replace one missing homework, up to five missing assignments.

  • Summaries must be turned in before the end of the term in which assignments are missing.