Upper-division Writing Requirement Review Form (12/1/08)
I. General Education Review – Upper-division Writing Requirement
Dept/Program
Course # (i.e. ANTH
DBS
BIOL304
Subject
455) or sequence
Course(s) Title
Ornithology
Description of the requirement if it is not a single course
two revision-based writing assignments—a 3- to 5-page lecture update and a 3- to 5-page field
project (40 of 70 points on writing synthesis, organization and clarity), plus writing practice
and instructor response on ERES discussion area, plus opportunity to re-write the first exam to
improve written answers.
II. Endorsement/Approvals
Complete the form and obtain signatures before submitting to Faculty Senate Office.
Please type / print name Signature
Instructor
Richard Hutto
Phone / Email
hutto@mso.umt.edu
Program Chair
Charlie Janson
III Overview of the Course Purpose/ Description
Date
Understand the process of scientific inquiry using bird biology as a tool
IV Learning Outcomes: Explain how each of the following learning outcomes will be achieved.
lectures involve the latest thought in major
Student learning outcomes :
areas of ornithological research; students
Identify and pursue more sophisticated
also expected to provide a synthetic written
questions for academic inquiry
update.
one writing assignment requires synthesis of
Find, evaluate, analyze, and synthesize
this sort, plus all lecture exams require
information effectively from diverse sources
(see http://www.lib.umt.edu/informationliteracy/) students to “…be able to understand
material more deeply than that required to
successfully “regurgitate” facts. I lean
heavily toward trying to find out whether
students truly understand concepts, the
reasoning behind arguments, and how
researchers use the scientific method to
make progress in building our
understanding of the natural world.” (from
course syllabus)
all lecture tests require an understanding of
Manage multiple perspectives as appropriate
alternative hypotheses
results from field project, which constitute
Recognize the purposes and needs of
the second writing assignment, are geared
discipline-specific audiences and adopt the
toward a non-scientific audience
academic voice necessary for the chosen
discipline
Use multiple drafts, revision, and editing in
conducting inquiry and preparing written work
draft and revision required in writing
assignments
Follow the conventions of citation,
documentation, and formal presentation
appropriate to that discipline
Develop competence in information
technology and digital literacy
yes…writing is referenced as in journals
yes…lecture update requires that students
use library resources to find new
information in the primary literature
V. Writing Course Requirements Check list
Is enrollment capped at 25 students?
If not, list maximum course enrollment.
Explain how outcomes will be adequately met
for this number of students. Justify the request
for variance.
Are outcomes listed in the course syllabus? If
not, how will students be informed of course
expectations?
† Yes XX† No
35-40 students—Initial read conducted by
instructor; re-read conducted by TAs
XX† Yes † No
Are detailed requirements for all written
† Yes XX† No
assignments including criteria for evaluation in the
course syllabus? If not how and when will students overview in syllabus; details in separate
be informed of written assignments?
handouts
Briefly explain how students are provided with
tools and strategies for effective writing and editing primarily through feedback from written
in the major.
assignments
Will written assignments include an opportunity for XX† Yes † No
revision? If not, then explain how students will
receive and use feedback to improve their writing
ability.
Are expectations for Information Literacy listed in
XX† Yes † No
the course syllabus? If not, how will students be
informed of course expectations?
VI. Writing Assignments: Please describe course assignments. Students should be required to
individually compose at least 20 pages of writing for assessment. At least 50% of the course grade
should be based on students’ performance on writing assignments. Clear expression, quality, and
accuracy of content are considered an integral part of the grade on any writing assignment.
Formal Graded Assignments
see separate writing assignment handouts
below
Informal Ungraded Assignments
ERES discussion writing feedback
VII. Syllabus: Paste syllabus below or attach and send digital copy with form. ⇓ The syllabus
should clearly describe how the above criteria are satisfied. For assistance on syllabus preparation
see: http://teaching.berkeley.edu/bgd/syllabus.html
Paste syllabus here.
Biology 304, Ornithology
Tentative Course syllabus, Spring 2009
MWF 10-11, HS 207
Prof:
TAs:
Prof/TAs
Richard Hutto
Aaron Flesch
Amy Johnson
E-mail
hutto@mso.umt.edu
aaron.flesch@umontana.edu
amy1@umontana.edu
Office
HS 211
HS 209
NS 311
Office hours
MW 11-12
Tu 11-1
Th 11-1
Required texts:
1. Gill, F. 2007. Ornithology. W. H. Freeman and Co., New York.
2. Any field guide that covers birds of the western United States.
Date
Jan 26
Jan 28
Jan 30
Feb 2
Feb 4
Feb 6
Feb 9
Feb 11
Feb 13
Feb 16
Feb 18
Feb 20
Feb 23
Feb 25
Feb 27
Mar 2
Mar 4
Mar 6
Mar 9
Mar 11
Mar 13
Mar 16
Mar 18
Mar 20
Mar 23
Mar 25
Mar 27
Mar 30Apr 3
Apr 6
Apr 8
Apr 10
Lecture
Course overview, policies
The essence of birds
Origin of birds
Speciation, zoogeography
Mechanics of flight
Process of science
Origin of flight
More on flight
LECTURE EXAM 1
No class--Holiday
Molt patterns
Plumage coloration I
Plumage coloration II
Plumage coloration III
Special senses
Brains and behavior
Migration ultimate
LECTURE EXAM 2
Migration proximate I
Migration proximate II
review lab exam
Orientation and navigation
Winter ecology
Vocal communication I
Vocal communication II
Vocal communication III
LECTURE EXAM 3
Spring Break
Territoriality/coloniality
Mating systems I
Mating systems II
Reading*
3-24
25-49
572-601
115-140
40-41
108-113
105-108
183-200
200-214
273-295
245-271
295-306
Lab/field
Topography;
Bird ID part 1
Quizzes
Taxonomy;
Bird ID part 2
Lab Quiz 1
Feathers;
Bird ID part 3
Lab Quiz 2
Osteology;
Bird ID part 4
Lab Quiz 3
Int Anatomy I;
Bird ID part 5
Lab Quiz 4
Int Anatomy II;
Bird ID part 6
Lab Quiz 5
review
Bird ID part 7
TH eve EXAM
Discuss project
Bird ID part 8
Lab Quiz 6
215-242
Field Trip I
Spring Break
307-332
335-377
Field trip II
Lab Quiz 7
Date
Apr 13
Apr 15
Apr 17
Apr 20
Apr 22
Apr 24
Apr 27
Apr 29
May 1
May 4
May 6
May 8
May 13
Lecture
Clutch size
Brood parasitism
Communal breeding
LECTURE EXAM 4
Census; Population biology
Niche theory
Habitat selection
Fire ecology
LAB EXAM II
Community ecology
Island biogeography
Human population
Final exam, Wed 10-12am
Reading*
427-30; 520-30
377-385
385-398
Lab/field
Bird ID part 9
Quizzes
Lab Quiz 8
Field trip III
533-569
603-634
635-684
Bird ID review
Lab Quiz 9
Field trip IV
Lab Quiz 10 (in
the field)
* page numbers from your textbook (Gill 2007)
Course policies, and expectations of students
Lectures⎯In most cases, I will use a traditional lecture format, but I allow
students to listen attentively by making my notes available through electronic reserve at
the library (http://eres.lib.umt.edu/). Your password for access to Biology 304 materials
is “bird09.”
Reading⎯The reading in Gill (2007) is meant to complement lecture material.
There will be no testing on book topics that are not also covered in lecture, unless
otherwise stated. If you really want to get a sense of what’s happening these days in
ornithology, read the current journals and popular magazines listed in the “Selected
Ornithological References” handout.
Laboratory⎯These sections meet for 2 hours per week unless there is a field trip
that involves driving, in which case you go into the field for 4 hours from 7-11 am on
Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday (as set up in class). The lab exercises are meant to
complement lectures, to enable you to see bird features up close, and to help you learn
bird ID characteristics and life history facts. You should bring any ERES handouts and
your field guide to lab. Use of museum specimens is a privilege that should not be
abused. Handle specimens carefully, always placing them gently on their backs so that
all parts of the bird’s body touch the table simultaneously.
Field⎯The vehicles for trips 2, 3, and 4 will leave at 7am, not 10 minutes after
the hour. Attend the field session that you signed on to in class, and bring no visitors on
the field trips. Do bring binoculars. Stay with the group so you can share your
observations. Keep talking to a minimum and listen to what the instructors have to say;
that’s the most rapid avenue to becoming a competent birder.
Learning Expectations⎯In lecture, I expect students to be able to understand
material more deeply than that required to successfully “regurgitate” facts. I lean heavily
toward trying to find out whether students truly understand concepts, the reasoning
behind arguments, and how researchers use the scientific method to make progress in
building our understanding of the natural world. Some students mistakenly believe that
they understand concepts because they have memorized every word in their notes, but the
regurgitation of memorized words will not ensure a good grade on a lecture exam. The
best way to find out how well you understand a topic is to explain the topic to somebody
without the use of notes. In short, doing well will take daily review outside of class
time! I provide extra help by posing questions on ERES.
Sometimes I present ideas that may have been subsequently debunked through
ingenious research. Why don’t I simply tell you what the current thinking is, and skip the
junk that’s fallen by the wayside? I want you to see the flow of discovery and the process
of science, which involves the development of a logical framework of hypotheses and
predictions, and subsequent disproof of ideas through the discovery of facts that are
inconsistent with predictions. The emergence of a fact that serves to disprove an idea or
the emergence of a new hypothesis that was previously overlooked but perfectly
consistent with existing information is a thing of beauty...you need to develop a feeling
for the development of understanding, not current understanding in a vacuum.
In lab, I expect students to glean facts related to bird morphology, anatomy,
taxonomy, and natural history. In contrast with lecture, this is entirely a memorization
task.
Exam style⎯As noted above, lab exams involve pure memorization, so if you
spend a reasonable amount of time learning the material, you will get a good grade. In
contrast, questions on lecture exams will require three things: (1) pure
memorization⎯Did the student learn the material presented? (2) logic⎯Did the student
understand the significance or relevance of each bit of information? (3)
transposition⎯Can the student take what is known and understand the implications, or
can the student represent known information graphically or symbolically?
For all three categories of questions, grammar is of utmost importance. If you
write something that does not accurately (grammatically speaking) reflect what you
meant to write, then the answer is technically incorrect. It is not that you need to write
your answer using certain words, or in a certain way; it’s that you need to write what you
mean. Developing a clear, concise, and unambiguous form of written and verbal
communication is a critically important part of your education.
Exam policy⎯I do not give make-up lecture exams, so take note of the dates
scheduled on the syllabus. If you see conflicts (beyond your control), tell me now. The
lowest 2 scores for lab quizzes (not counting the last field quiz) will be dropped,
eliminating the need for makeup quizzes as well.
Exam grading policy⎯If there is an adding error on an exam, see me
immediately and I’ll change the score. Otherwise, the overall quality of your test answers
relative to the answers of others in the class is probably accurately reflected in the test
score you receive. I always give partial credit if the possible number of points for a
question is greater than one, but I also use the full range of possible points to reflect
differences in the quality of answers that I read.
Important aspects of an answer include not only whether the concept was
understood, but also how well you express your understanding of a concept. I am
especially interested in legibility, organization, grammar, spelling, sentence
completeness, coherence, conciseness, clarity, freedom from extraneous information
(information unrelated to the question), and, in some cases, the ability to express your
understanding using symbolic logic (graphs and figures). Much of this is subjective, and
you have to trust that I can recognize and rank the quality of answers; you are paying me
for my subjective opinion about your understanding of ornithology relative to other
ornithology students in the nation, and I believe I can do so fairly and accurately.
Invariably, some questions will be graded a bit too harshly and others a bit too
leniently. Nonetheless, if you believe that your test was graded too harshly overall, and
that you should have received a greater point total, you may return the test for reevaluation. Be warned, however...if I only re-evaluate those individual questions that
you believe were graded too harshly, it would lead to an inaccurate total relative to others
who choose not to contest points, and who, therefore, still retain a loss of some points due
to questions that they may have had graded overly harshly. Therefore, to be fair to those
who may not wish to approach the instructors about points, and to discourage rewarding
aggressive behavior for its own sake, I should review and re-grade your entire test. I will
be happy to do so, if you wish. Simply note the question(s) of particular concern, and
note why you feel the scoring may have been incorrect. I will review every question,
with an eye toward finding errors due to both overly lenient and overly harsh grading.
Point gains and/or point losses will be noted, and the new point total recorded. I will then
return the re-graded test in a day or two.
Writing requirement—I am requiring that you write essays related to a lecture
update and a field project. Instructions and expectations for the first assignment are
outlined in a separate handout, and details related to the field project will be spelled out
later. Writing will amount to not more than several pages for each assignment.
Review sessions⎯Instructor-run review sessions generally defeat the purpose of
trying to get you to view studying as an ongoing process. Students need to develop the
habit of regularly reviewing lecture material, not waiting until the night before an exam
to try to decipher material from the previous several weeks. My experience is that
students will tend to use study sessions as their only time to really begin to think about
lecture material, and that is a poor way to encourage good study habits. Instead, I invite
you to use the discussion forum with other students on ERES. The TAs and I are also
available for mini-review sessions via office hours, during which you may wish to
discuss or clarify lecture material. Collectively, there will be some 100 + hours available
through such means. Thus, if you need help understanding the lecture material, there are
plenty of “review sessions” available through ERES and instructor office hours.
Course grading scheme⎯
Assignment
Exam I
Exam II
Exam III
Exam IV
Final
Lab Exam I
Lab Exam II
Lab Quizzes
Project essays
Total points
80
80
80
80
80
70
70
70
70
Percent of grade
12
12
12
12
12
10
10
10
10
Dropping, adding, changing grade option—University policies on drops, adds,
changes of grade option, or change to audit status will be strictly enforced in this course.
These policies are described in the “Academic Policies and Procedures” section of the
2008-2009 catalog. Students should note that after the 30th instructional day of the
semester, such changes are NOT automatically approved. They may be requested by
petition, but the petition MUST be accompanied by documentation of extenuating
circumstances. Requests to drop a course or change the grade basis to benefit a
student’s grade point average will not be approved.
Lecture update procedure--2009
1. Select any topic of general relevance and importance to an undergraduate ornithology
student and add something new from the very current literature. The idea is for you to
take any important lecture topic and develop a written section that would be suitable to
insert in a lecture on that topic. The new information should be fundamentally important
or significant enough to warrant inclusion in a conceptually based lecture that all
undergraduates who take ornithology should hear. Again, the idea is to pick a topic that
has some new information that we should all know about. This is not a review of
everything we know about a topic, it’s an update of the topic with new information, so
one new paper is ok, but often there will be several if it’s an area of current research
interest. The section should include (1) an introduction to the big issue (What’s the main
lecture topic, and what specific related question does the research address?), (2) the
nature of the experiment or observations associated with the research you wish to
describe, including the conceptual design (with alternative outcomes and associated
predictions), (3) the main results (and relevant figures) that emerge from the new research
findings, (4) the overall conclusion or new synthetic understanding related to the issue,
and (5) associated references.
2. Use Google Scholar and the Mansfield library web resources to conduct an electronic
database search and get a handle on the recent literature (things published within the last
year…yes, there’s plenty published in a single year). You might start with a search of
recent articles in the journals listed in your handout.
3. Your synthesis should be presented as one coherent essay on the topic or issue of
interest. This should be typed (double-spaced) in a Word document and submitted to me
as a hard copy and also emailed to me (hutto@mso.umt.edu) as an electronic copy. We
will provide a review so that you can re-write the section taking into account any editorial
suggestions. You can then re-submit the edited version for re-grading; your point total
will be the average of the two scores. There is no page limit, but it will probably take no
more than 3 pages of text. This paper will be due no later than Friday, 6 March.
6. Grades will be based on how relevant, significant, and interesting the material is (10
points), how well the story is written (10 points) and synthesized (10 points) as part of an
existing lecture topic, and how well you provided supplemental material (graphs or
figures for a printed lecture handout or for a Powerpoint lecture presentation—5 points).
Late papers will be docked 3 points per day.
HAVE FUN!
Ornithology 2008 – Second Writing Assignment
Fill out the questions below working within Microsoft Word. The completed assignment
should take no more than 3-5 pages. Please make sure your answers are double-spaced,
and not in bold. Make sure to put your name on the top of the page, and save the file
adding your last name to the start of the file name (e.g. Hutto Ornithology 2008 writing
assignment.doc). Save the file to a safe location, print it if necessary (files “lost in email”
will not be an excuse. Please make sure you have a backup.) Email the file to your TA.
1. In Google Earth, make a map showing the distribution pattern of interest.
Change the colors, size, and types of markers of the species/families of interest.
Show other geographic features (e.g. roads, water) that may help describe the
pattern. When you are satisfied, go to Edit>copy image. Paste that image below
here, and trim so that it fits the page.
2. Describe the pattern of interest. In what way does the distribution pattern
appear to be nonrandom? How would you demonstrate that statistically?
3. Provide at least two alternative explanations for why the pattern exists. Describe
why, hypothetically, the observed pattern could be an artifact of sample design or of
the methods of data collection. Do you think the hypothetical problem you
described was an issue here? Why or why not?
4. Wildlife biologists would like to use current distribution patterns to model where
species are likely to be in places or times that have not been surveyed yet. How
would you use the data that we collected to build a model to predict where your
selected species would be expected to occur in western Missoula (where we didn’t
conduct the survey)?
5. Some nonrandom patterns might be considered trivial, and others interesting. Is
the pattern you describe trivial? Why or why not? What do you believe makes a
distribution pattern interesting enough to warrant further study?