Principles of Chemistry II (CHY 115) Syllabus
Spring 2021
Course Description:
A continuation of the presentation of fundamental principles of chemical science from CHY 113. These principles will be presented in quantitative terms and illustrated by examples of their applications in laboratories and in ordinary non-laboratory experience. This course and CHY 116 (normally taken concurrently) provide the basis for further study of chemistry. Prerequisite: C or better in CHY 113, or permission of instructor.
Learning Objectives:
By the end of this course you should be able to...
Describe basic chemistry concepts, and utilize these concepts to draw conclusions and solve basic chemical problems.
Use quantitative and qualitative scientific reasoning to understand and discuss current scientific issues and advances.
Understand chemical properties, and apply this knowledge to determine the properties of specific molecules.
Appreciate the applicability of chemistry to your major and your everyday life.
Course Requirements:
Required
Text: The text is the OpenStax Chemistry 2e, available for free online. Print copies are available for $55 from Amazon, here.
A subscription to Chem101. See the instructions below (at the bottom of this page) for the course code and how to join. If you already have a valid subscription from last semester, all you need to do is enter the correct course code (EEHVQY). If you need to purchase access to Chem101, note that there is a grace period ending Feb 8, during which you can use the program without paying for it.
Optional
Essential Algebra for Chemistry Students by David W. Ball, ISBN-13: 978-0-495-01327-3
Survival Guide for General Chemistry, 2nd edition, by Charles H. Atwood, ISBN-13: 978-0-495-38751-0
A note about the course delivery/modality
This semester CHY 115 is being delivered "asynchronous online". That means there are no required, scheduled meetings.
There will be several synchronous Zoom-based "recitation sessions" offered by the Learning Assistants each week. You are expected to attend one of them each week. These are EXTREMELY important in your learning - doing and talking about chemistry with your peers and student leaders will help you succeed. We'll schedule these meetings once the LAs have their own schedules under control.
There will be 4 "exam days" (2/19, 3/26, 4/23 and 5/7). You will need to find a 2-hour block of time in your day, that day, to take the exam. Once you start it, you must stick with it and finish it - you can't save and come back later. The exam will be available beginning at 7 am on the assigned day. You will need to start the exam no later than 9:59 pm in order to have the full 2 hours.
This website will guide you through the topics to study and the resources available. There are videos to supplement your readings, there are suggested practice problems at the end of each chapter, and MOST IMPORTANT of all, there are the readingassignments in the text. You should keep syncrhonized with the schedule, since there will be weekly problem sets assigned through the Chem101 platform, and they focus on the topic of the week. The course calendar will tell you what the topic of the week is. Chem101 will list the assignments that are scheduled.
Assessment of Performance
Weekly recitation sessions
Attendance and participation at the weekly recitation sessions will count for 10% of your course grade.
Problem Sets
I will assign weekly problem sets through Chem101. You can complete them any time before the deadline. Late problem sets will not be accepted. You may use your text and your notes. You will have unlimited time to do these problem sets (as long as you complete them before the deadline), but they SHOULD take you about an hour to complete. If you find you are spending much more time than that on them, you need to do more practice problems.
Exams
There will be 4 exams which you will take using the Chem101 platform. Each exam will be available for 24 hours on the assigned day - see the course calendar for details. Once you start the exam, you will have the next two hours to complete it. You must take the exam that day - I do not offer makeup exams. You may use your book or notes if necessary, but be advised that taking the time to do so will cut into the time you could be spending answering other questions. I would recommend that prior to the exam, perhaps as part of your review process, you prepare a one-page "cheat sheet" that has things you think you're likely to need, and have that handy during the exam.
If you miss an exam, or if one of your exam scores is more than 10 points below the average of your other three exams, I will use that value instead. For example, if your exam scores are 80, 0, 70 and 90, the 0 is more than 10 points below 80 (the average of the other three), so I replace the 0 with a 70 (10 points less than 85) giving you an in-class exam score of 77.5 (the average of 80, 70, 70 and 90).
Grading
Recitation sessions - 10%
Problem Sets - 25%
Exams - 65%
At the end of semester I will calculate a course grade of 0-100 with the above weighted contributions. Your letter grade will be based on this according to the following table:
Snow days
Snow days - days when in-person classes are cancelled due to inclement weather - will not have much impact on us. You will still be responsible for all assignments due, whether you have power or not - so don't wait until the last possible minute to complete your problem sets.
The only exception to this is when one of the four scheduled exam days is a snow day. If USM classes are cancelled on a scheduled exam day, the exam will be rescheduled to a later date.
Additional Help
My office hours are posted above the navigation links to the left of each page. I will post a link on Brightspace to a weekly zoom meeting that you can log into and discuss any issues you have, no appointment necessary. I will be in my office during this time, so if you are on campus feel free to stop by. If these times don't work for you, no problem! I am happy to find a time to meet with you (via zoom).
A myriad of helpful resources, including tutoring, are available through the Learning Commons website.
Students with Disabilities
If you need course adaptations or accommodations (including accommodations granting additional time for assignments) because of a disability, please inform me during the first week of the semester, AFTER consulting with the Office of Academic Support for Students with Disabilities, 237 Luther Bonney (780-4706). For problems with writing or study skills, make an appointment at the Learning Center, 253 Luther Bonney (780-4228) or the Counseling Center, 106 Payson Smith (780-4050).
Academic Integrity
All students are expected to follow the academic integrity policies that have been implemented by the University. If you need to review the policy you can visit the website for the Office of Community Standards (http://www.usm.maine.edu/ocs/).
With the exception of assignments specifically labeled "practice", all work you do on Chem101 is expected to be your own, without assistance from others, including sources on the web. You may use the text, and your notes, to complete these assignments.
Updated 12/14/2020