Upper-division Writing Requirement Review Form (12/1/08)
I. General Education Review – Upper-division Writing Requirement
Dept/Program
Course # (i.e. ANTH
DBS
Subject
455) or sequence
Course(s) Title
Description of the requirement if it is not a single course
Students with DBS majors (Biology, Microbiology, and Medical Technology) will take a
combination of courses to satisfy the Upper Division Writing Requirement for their Major. All
of the learning objectives for writing courses will be achieved within each DBS writing course;
however these courses do not base 50% of the grade on writing, nor do they necessarily require
20 pages of written work. Therefore, we have sorted our writing courses based on % of grade
based on writing and number of required pages. Some of these courses are 2/3 writing courses
(at least 33% of the course grade will be based on writing; 11 – 13 total pages submitted), while
other courses are 1/3 writing courses (at least 17% of the course grade will be based on writing;
6 – 7 total pages submitted). Students, depending on their major/option, will take a
combination of at least 2 – 3 courses to reach the equivalent of one full writing course. Having
a large number of partial writing courses allows our diverse group of undergraduate students to
choose upper division writing courses that are in line with their own personal interests. It also
spreads the work load of teaching writing courses for our roughly 500 students among many
faculty members.
Courses that will be considered 2/3 writing courses are: BIOC 486 (Biochemistry Research
Laboratory), BIOL 341 (Ecology Laboratory), MICB 404 (Microbial Genetics), and MICB 411
(Immunology Laboratory). Courses that will be considered 1/3 writing courses are: BIOC 482
(Biochemistry II), BIOC 499 (Senior Thesis), BIOL 304 (Ornithology), BIOL 306
(Mammalogy), BIOL 316 (Plant Form and Function), BIOL 366 (Freshwater Ecology), BIOL
403 (Vertebrate Design and Evolution), BIOL 406 (Behavior and Evolution), BIOL 445 (Plant
Physiology Laboratory), BIOL 499 (Senior Thesis), MICB 410 (Immunology), MICB 412
(Medical Bacteriology and Mycology), and MICB 499 (Senior Thesis). Syllabi for all of these
courses (with the exception of the senior theses) are attached. Senior theses are individualized
courses in which students write the results of their original research in a formal paper, under the
guidance of their research mentor. These courses are almost entirely based on writing (and rewriting), and often include an oral presentation at UMCUR.
II. Endorsement/Approvals
Complete the form and obtain signatures before submitting to Faculty Senate Office.
Please type / print name Signature
Instructor
Phone / Email
Program Chair
Associate Dean
Charles Janson
III Overview of the Course Purpose/ Description
Date
IV Learning Outcomes: Explain how each of the following learning outcomes will be achieved.
Typically in lecture courses, students are asked
to pursue a question that goes beyond what
they have learned in the course, in order to
explore a topic in which they are interested. In
laboratory courses, students are often required
to ask their own question, and to design their
own experiments (with guidance from
instructors).
Students are expected to use the primary
Find, evaluate, analyze, and synthesize
literature for the specific field of biology
information effectively from diverse sources
(see http://www.lib.umt.edu/informationliteracy/) related to the course. They are expected to
incorporate this information into their writing
(e.g. putting their findings in context of the
literature).
Students are expected to understand and
Manage multiple perspectives as appropriate
acknowledge alternative hypotheses in their
writing. When their writing is on a
controversial topic, they are expected to
consider information from all sides.
Students are expected to submit papers that
Recognize the purposes and needs of
conform to editorial guidelines of the journal(s)
discipline-specific audiences and adopt the
of the specific field related to the course.
academic voice necessary for the chosen
discipline
Students are given an opportunity to revise at
Use multiple drafts, revision, and editing in
conducting inquiry and preparing written work least one of the written assignments, after the
instructor has provided written and/or verbal
feedback.
Students are expected to submit papers that
Follow the conventions of citation,
conform to the individual style of the journal(s)
documentation, and formal presentation
of the specific field related to the course.
appropriate to that discipline
Students will use scientific database resources
Develop competence in information
(e.g. literature search engines) appropriate to
technology and digital literacy
the field of study.
V. Writing Course Requirements Check list
† Yes † No
Is enrollment capped at 25 students?
For some classes, enrollment is capped at 25 or
If not, list maximum course enrollment.
even fewer students. Other courses have larger
Explain how outcomes will be adequately met
for this number of students. Justify the request enrollments (up to 60, but most are closer to 30).
All of these courses are partial writing courses, so
for variance.
there are fewer pages to grade overall. In
addition, the instructors of these courses often
have graduate teaching assistants to help grade
assignments.
x Yes † No
Are outcomes listed in the course syllabus? If
Please see attached syllabi.
not, how will students be informed of course
expectations?
Are detailed requirements for all written
x Yes † No
assignments including criteria for evaluation in the Please see attached syllabi.
Student learning outcomes :
Identify and pursue more sophisticated
questions for academic inquiry
course syllabus? If not how and when will students
be informed of written assignments?
Briefly explain how students are provided with
tools and strategies for effective writing and editing
in the major.
Varies course to course. Some instructors
utilize the writing center or library resources;
some give writing workshops; some give
detailed handouts. All give detailed personal
feedback.
Will written assignments include an opportunity for x Yes † No
revision? If not, then explain how students will
In all courses, students are given an opportunity
receive and use feedback to improve their writing
to revise at least one of the written assignments,
ability.
after the instructor has provided written feedback.
Are expectations for Information Literacy listed in
x Yes † No
Please see attached syllabi.
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.
This varies course to course. In the 1/3 writing
Formal Graded Assignments
courses, at least 17% of the course grade is based
on written assignments of at least 6 -7 total pages.
In the 2/3 writing courses, at least 33% of the
course grade is based on written assignments of at
least 11 – 13 total pages.
See above.
Informal Ungraded Assignments
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.
BIOL 316 Biology of Oxygenic Photoautotrophic Organisms Spring 2009 Instructor: Dr. Kevin J. Murray
Office: NS 113 ; Phone: 243-4495 , email: kevin.murray@mso.umt.edu
Class meeting times: W-F 1:10 – 4:30 pm; HS 102
Course Overview. BIOL 316 is a one semester course exploring the biological diversity of
photosynthetic organisms (plants, eukaryotic algae, cyanobacteria). The central objectives in the
course are: 1) to understand the phylogenetic relationships of photosynthetic organisms and, 2) to
understand the functional biology of photosynthetic organisms including modes of reproduction,
anatomy, physiology and ecology. The majority of photosynthetic organisms studied in this
course play important roles in the structure and function of aquatic ecosystems ranging from
freshwater lotic/lentic systems, to bogs, fens and the marine realm. These roles include the
foundation of food chain interactions (algae) as well as aquatic system physical structure and
resilience (aquatic bryophytes, emergent vascular and other nonvascular plants). Thus the course
will link frequently to the importance of photosynthetic organisms as primary components of
aquatic systems, but will extend also to the roles of these organisms in upland systems and at the
interface between upland and aquatic habitats.
Presentation format. In principle we will have one, 1-1.5 hour lecture and 1-2 hours of lab
investigation per meeting, but this will vary.
Grading. Lecture and laboratory exams, a laboratory notebook and classroom participation will
be used to assess your meeting of the above objectives. Final grade breakdown by percent value:
Lecture exams (3) 40%, laboratory exams 40%, laboratory notebook 10%, writing assignment
10%.
The course will serve to meet University Writing Course requirements (1/3, partial = 17% total
grade). There will be 1 writing assignment on topic of your choice relevant to the ecology,
physiology and/or economic importance of plants and other photosynthetic organisms. To
facilitate your choice you will receive a list of appropriate review-type papers from which to
choose your topic. The intent is to summarize a broad-scale review paper in a succinct and
relatively brief fashion. Evidence of focused and refined information literacy is a prime objective
of this assignment. The paper will be assessed for content as well as composition and structure.
Papers will be revised and resubmitted following initial appraisal. Plan on a 5-6 page paper, 1.5
spacing, 11 font; selected references page not counted towards 6 page total.
To achieve the required 17% of total grade calculated under University Writing Course
guidelines, you examination responses (short essay form) will be graded not only for content but
also grammar, punctuation and clarity of presentation.
Required text: Biology of Plants. Raven, Evert and Eichhorn. W.H. Freeman. 7nd Edition, 2005
BIOL 316
Date
Spring, 2009 Lecture/lab schedule and readings
Lecture topic
ref pp.
Lab
28 Jan
30 Jan
course intro & autotrophy
Systematics & biological diversity
1-6
219-235
no lab
microscopes
04 Feb
06 Feb
Cyanobacteria
Cyanobacteria
244-250
244-250
Cyanobacteria
Cyanobacteria
11 Feb
13 Feb
intro. to Protista
Chlorophyta
229-237
327-333
Chlorophyta
Chlorophyta
18 Feb
20 Feb
Dinophyta & Euglenophyta
Cryptophyta, Haptophyta, Oomycota
303-306
306-312
Dinophyta & Euglenophyta
Haptophyta, Oomycota
25 Feb
27 Feb
Exam I review
Exam I (lecture & lab)
04 Mar
06 Mar
Bacillariophyta, Chrysophyta, Phaeophyta
Phaeophyta, Rhodophyta
312-321
321-326
Diatoms, Phaeophyta
Rhodophyta
11 Mar
13 Mar
Lichens, Chytrids, Mycorrhizae
Lichens, Chytrids, Mycorrhizae
chap 14
chap 14
Lichens
Chytrids
18 Mar
20 Mar
intro. to Bryophytes
Bryophyta
345-350
358-367
mosses
mosses
25 Mar
27 Mar
Bryophyta
Bryophyta
358-367
351-358
Sphagnum
liverworts
01 Apr
03 Apr
Spring break
Spring break
08 Apr
10 Apr
Exam II (lecture & lab)
intro. to vascular plants; Lycopodiophyta
368-389
Lycopodiophyta
15 Apr
17 Apr
Lycopodiophyta; Pteridophyta
Pteridophyta
368-389
408-427
Ferns
Horsetails
22 Apr
24 Apr
intro. to Gymnosperms
Cycadophyta, Ginkophyta
408-427
408-427
Cycadophyta, Ginkophyta
29 Apr
01 May
Coniferophyta, Gnetophyta
intro. to flowering plants
408-427
434-435
Conifers, Gnetophyta
flower anatomy
06 May
08 May
flowering plants
Angiosperm diversity
434-435
452-456
LAB EXAM III
13 May
Final exam (3:20-5:00 pm)