AP BIOLOGY SYLLABUS
Effingham County High School
SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
2014-2015 MRS. Yvonne Arnsdorff
Room 908 e-mail: yarnsdorff@effingham.k12.ga.us
TEXT: Biology-AP edition, 7 th Ed. Campbell, N.A. & Reece, J.B. The Benjamin/Cummings Publishing Co., 2005.
Replacement cost is $102.47.
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This is a majors level college biology course taught in high school. At the end of the year the students will have an opportunity to take a standardized exam that will determine their eligibility for advanced placement and/or credit in college biology courses. The expectation is that students will take the AP Biology exam in May. The course covers a large amount of material and makes heavy demands on the student. It is extremely important that the student keep up with all assignments, read the textbook and study outside of class. A minimum of 10-15 pages of reading per school night should be anticipated.
The aim of the AP Biology course is to achieve an understanding of the unifying principles of modern biology, an understanding of how biological information is gathered and interpreted, and to introduce the high school student to the scope and demands of college level work. Included in the course will be lab activities required by the Advanced Placement program. The Advanced Placement exam stresses a student’s ability to explain, analyze, and interpret biological processes and phenomena more than his/her ability to recall specific facts.
ABSTRACT #1 DUE FRIDAY 9/26/14
ABSTRACT #2 DUE FRIDAY 11/21/14
ABSTRACT #3 DUE FRIDAY 2/20/15
ABSTRACT #4 DUE FRIDAY 4/17/15
Big Idea 1: Evolution: The process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life.
Big Idea 2: Cellular processes- Energy & communication: Biological systems utilize free energy and molecular building blocks to grow, to reproduce, and to maintain dynamic homeostasis.
Big Idea 3: Genetics & information transfer: Living systems store, retrieve, transmit, and respond to information essential to life processes.
Big Idea 4: Interactions: Biological systems interact, and these systems and their interactions possess complex properties.
A practice is a way to coordinate knowledge and skills in order to accomplish a goal or task. The science practices enable students to establish lines of evidence and use them to develop and refine testable explanations and predictions of natural phenomena. These science practices capture important aspects of the work that scientists engage in, at the level of competence expected of AP Biology students.
Science Practice 1: The student can use representations and models to communicate scientific phenomena and solve scientific problems.
1.1 The student can create representations and models of natural or man-made phenomena and systems in the domain.
1.2 The student can describe representations and models of natural or man-made phenomena and systems in the domain.
1.3 The student can refine representations and models of natural or man-made phenomena and systems in the domain.
1.4 The student can use representations and models to analyze situations or solve problems qualitatively and quantitatively.
1.5 The student can reexpress key elements of natural phenomena across multiple representations in the domain.
Page 1 of 6

AP BIOLOGY SYLLABUS
Effingham County High School
SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
2014-2015 MRS. Yvonne Arnsdorff
Room 908 e-mail: yarnsdorff@effingham.k12.ga.us
Science Practice 2: The student can use mathematics appropriately.
2.1 The student can justify the selection of a mathematical routine to solve problems.
2.2 The student can apply mathematical routines to quantities that describe natural phenomena.
2.3 The student can estimate numerically quantities that describe natural phenomena.
Science Practice 3: The student can engage in scientific questioning to extend thinking or to guide investigations within the context of the AP course.
3.1 The student can pose scientific questions .
3.2 The student can refine scientific questions .
3.3 The student can evaluate scientific questions .
Science Practice 4: The student can plan and implement data collection strategies appropriate to a particular scientific question.
4.1 The student can justify the selection of the kind of data needed to answer a particular scientific question.
4.2 The student can design a plan for collecting data to answer a particular scientific question.
4.3 The student can collect data to answer a particular scientific question.
4.4 The student can evaluate sources of data to answer a particular scientific question.
Science Practice 5: The student can perform data analysis and evaluation of evidence.
5.1 The student can analyze data to identify patterns or relationships.
5.2 The student can refine observations and measurements based on data analysis.
5.3 The student can evaluate the evidence provided by data sets in relation to a particular scientific question.
Science Practice 6: The student can work with scientific explanations and theories.
6.1 The student can justify claims with evidence .
6.2 The student can construct explanations of phenomena based on evidence produced through scientific practices.
6.3 The student can articulate the reasons that scientific explanations and theories are refined or replaced .
6.4 The student can make claims and predictions about natural phenomena based on scientific theories and models.
6.5 The student can evaluate alternative scientific explanations .
Science Practice 7: The student is able to connect and relate knowledge across various scales, concepts, and representations in and across domains.
7.1 The student can connect phenomena and models across spatial and temporal scales.
7.2 The student can connect concepts in and across domain(s) to generalize or extrapolate in and/or across enduring understandings and/or big ideas.
Unit 1:
Evolution
Students will not be assessed on details of the methods used to date fossils nor the names
Page 2 of 6

AP BIOLOGY SYLLABUS
Effingham County High School
SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
2014-2015 and dates of the five major extinctions. This reduction/elimination of content should save
MRS. Yvonne Arnsdorff
Room 908 e-mail: yarnsdorff@effingham.k12.ga.us
approximately four instructional days.
Eliminating the details of the fossil-dating methods, in addition to the those associated with the five major extinctions (which are now illustrative examples), allows more time to be spent completing inquiry-based activities and labs such as Phylogenetic Tree Analyses based on a student-generated research question using the www.phylogenetic.fr website, the NCBI
(National Center for Biotechnology Information) gene sequencing database, and the BLAST lab in AP Biology Investigative Labs: An Inquiry-Based Approach (2012).
Unit 2:
Cellular Processes:
Energy and
Communication
Since cellular organelles and their functions are now considered prerequisite knowledge, approximately six to seven instructional days will be saved. This reduction represents time which would have been spent on mnemonic activities and helping students use rote memorization to learn every detail and factoid associated with photosynthesis and respiration.
Most of the content in Campbell and Reece, Chapter 2 (“The Chemical Context of Life”), which focuses on the chemical foundations in biology, is not required content in the course because it is now considered prior knowledge. This will save approximately five instructional days and allow me to move more quickly into the genetics unit.
Coverage of Campbell and Reece, Chapters 9 –10 (“Cellular Respiration: Harvesting Chemical
Energy” and “Photosynthesis”) is reduced. This includes oxidation and reduction, rote memorization of names and structures of molecules, and processes and cycles in respiration.
The reduction of photosynthesis material includes properties of light, structure and function of pigments, and C4 and CAM plant adaptations for carbon fixation and photorespiration.
The instructional time saved will allow more time in “flipping the classroom” and giving students meaningful homework assignments, which allows them to review concepts previously learned.
The reduction in the coverage of cellular organelle and function content and the basics regarding the chemical foundations of biology (e.g., atoms, compounds, elements, bonding, matter) provides opportunities to build on prior knowledge and deepen understanding of the cell and its biochemical functions. Students are able to connect survival of the cell and the many roles of proteins.
The reduction in content coverage also allows for more time to be spent on Campbell and
Reece, Chapter 11: “Cell Communication.” This is a topic that many students find difficult, so the additional time to delve deeper here will be appreciated.
Unit 3:
Genetics and
Information
Transfer
In this unit, the following reductions in content have been made: content from Campbell and
Reece, Chapters 16 and 17 has been eliminated as part of the scope of what students need to know. Chapter 19, “Viruses,” has been moved to Unit 4. The previous content requirements pertaining to DNA replication, transcription, and translation have been reduced. It is not necessary for students to memorize the names of most enzymes involved in the process from gene to protein; this will save approximately one to two instructional days. Instead of focusing on the steps involved in the gene-to-protein process, I can now go directly into teaching more concepts involving genomics, gene regulation, and social/ethical issues surrounding advances in biotechnology.
More time is now spent on the following:
• Chapter 18: regulation of gene expression
• Chapter 20: genomics, ethical issues, genetic manipulation
• Chapter 21: gene regulation
• Chapter 22: mathematical models that support evolution
• Chapter 24: evolutionary change and speciation
The instructional time saved with the content reductions allows me to offer students additional inquiry-based and student-directed activities. For example, students get a closer look at genes and the role that they currently play in advancing biotechnology by performing both of the biotechnology labs (Bacterial Transformation and Restriction Enzyme Analysis of DNA) in AP
Biology Investigative Labs: An Inquiry-Based Approach (2012). Students are able to explore heritable genes and how they relate to current issues through the analysis of Case Studies and content-related movies such as Gattaca .
Unit 4:
Page 3 of 6

AP BIOLOGY SYLLABUS
Effingham County High School
SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
2014-2015
Interactions
In this course, students are not expected to know plant and animal structures. Content coverage from Campbell and Reece, Chapters 27 through 35 has been reduced. Students will now use plants and animals as illustrative examples of content. Coverage of Chapters 40 –44, 46, 47, and
50 has also been reduced. The required systems for students to know are immune, endocrine, and nervous. Other organ systems are used as illustrative examples. These reductions save approximately five instructional days. This unit allows the student to further apply all of the concepts that have been learned thus far in the AP Biology course to an increasing hierarchy starting from the cell to the biosphere.
More time is now spent on Chapters 43, 45, 48, and 49 (immune, endocrine, and nervous systems). There is an increased emphasis on homeostasis, chemical signaling, and regulation.
Content coverage of animal development in Chapter 47 now focuses on timing, coordination, and regulation of animal development.
With the reduction of time spent on the plant and animal structure/function (march through the phyla), more in-depth, student-directed, and inquiry-based activities and labs can be included.
For example, my students can conduct both the Energy Dynamics and Fruit Fly Behavior labs in AP Biology Investigative Labs: An Inquiry-Based Approach (2012). Both of these labs require more time than I would normally dedicate to a lab in this course, but the opportunity for students to practice inquiry and enter the role of the scientist, directing their own learning, is well worth the additional time.
MRS. Yvonne Arnsdorff
Room 908 e-mail: yarnsdorff@effingham.k12.ga.us
Review until AP Exam in: May 2015
LABORATORY EXPERIENCES
A minimum of 8 labs required by the AP Biology Program will be completed during the course of the year (2 per Big Idea.)
In addition to these there will be other labs that are designed to enhance your understanding of the material.
COMMITMENT
You are undertaking a rigorous course of study with the intended outcome of achieving college credit. Whether you receive credit or how much credit you receive will depend on your level of commitment. I am not here to remind you about assignments. You will receive written guidelines that will tell you when you should have read certain chapters, when labs are scheduled, when abstracts are due, etc. It will require organization and planning on your part to meet your deadlines and to be prepared for tests and assignments that are due. This is as it will be in college. Now is the time to develop the necessary habits. If you have trouble staying organized, use an agenda/planner and look at it daily.
GRADING:
Tests
Your grade will be based on the following breakdown.
Homework
40%
10%
Labs/Lab write-ups
Abstracts
Quizzes/Lab Quizzes
25%
10%
15%
Average of the 2 nine weeks– 80% of final grade
Final Exam – 20% of final grade
Even if you take the AP exam, you will have to take the final in the spring.
Page 4 of 6

AP BIOLOGY SYLLABUS
Effingham County High School
SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
2014-2015 MRS. Yvonne Arnsdorff
Room 908 e-mail: yarnsdorff@effingham.k12.ga.us
Tests will be similar in design to the AP Biology Exam so that students can become accustomed to the format and time constraints. Obviously the tests given in class will be shorter but will reflect the same ratio of questions to time as the
AP Biology Exam.
For one of the labs required by the AP program a formal lab write-up will be required. This write-up will be detailed and require additional research outside of class. It should be in MLA or APA format. The labs will help prepare you for the essay portion, as well as the lab set questions in the multiple choice portion of the AP exam. Labs for which formal write-ups are not assigned will be assessed with a quiz or lab practical. Labs may require an online pre-lab quiz as well.
Each student will be required to learn to use and read current scientific literature. Six abstracts will be due during the year. You will receive specific directions regarding how to complete an abstract and information on articles or periodicals that are permitted.
You will be required to maintain a notebook with all materials and handouts. Your syllabus should be the first item in your notebook. All material should be retained until the AP Biology exam in May 2015.
All assignments must be submitted as a hard copy. No assignments will be accepted on floppy disk, CD-R,
CD-RW, or by email. Assignments must be printed out in advance. (The exception was made for summer work)
ABSENCES:
Attendance is extremely important in AP Biology. If excessive absences have been a problem in the past it will make success in this course more difficult. Material is covered very quickly and in much more detail than in prerequisite courses. Obviously your tests will reflect much of what is covered in class, lecture, discussion and labs; it will not however be limited to those topics. Being present will help to ensure that you receive and understand at least the highlights of the material, making it easier to concentrate on what you are responsible for outside of class. Also, many of the labs will require several days, and in order to have a complete understanding of the lab you should be there for all of the instructions and procedures. This is particularly important with 7 period days!
LATE WORK:
YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR TURNING IN ALL ASSIGNMENTS ON TIME. Late work will only be accepted up to
2 days after the due date. For each day the work is late, there will be a 20% automatic grade reduction.
MAKE-UP WORK :
It is your responsibility to make up work from absences. All lecture powerpoints will be accessible on my website. You will need to check with me when you return to obtain any handouts, guided notes, activities, etc… If you know you are going to be out, please obtain your make-up prior to leaving. This will allow you to stay on top of the material in the class.
All tests and quizzes must be made up after school. Please schedule that accordingly.
POLICY VIOLATION OF TECHNOLOGICAL EQUIPMENT:
Calculators may not be shared on tests or quizzes and/or at other times as designated by the teacher.
Cell phones are never to be out or on during the instructional day unless permission is given by the teacher .
SAFETY:
Since this is a college level course we will be doing more difficult labs and ones that require the use of potentially hazardous materials. You must be aware of and follow all appropriate safety procedures to ensure your safety and that of your classmates. Done correctly all of the labs are safe. No horseplay of any kind will be tolerated. I expect respectful students who are eager to participate in some very interesting lab experiences. Additionally, the equipment is very expensive and I expect each student to take good care of it.
Recommendations:
Purchase an AP Biology Review book from a local book store. There are many books published to help prepare for the AP Biology Exam. Any of the following books have been reviewed and should be helpful: Cliffs AP Biology
Review, Princeton Review of AP Biology, Barons AP Biology Review. (Make sure the review book is for AP Biology, not
Biology in general).
Page 5 of 6

AP BIOLOGY SYLLABUS
Effingham County High School
SCIENCE DEPARTMENT
2014-2015 MRS. Yvonne Arnsdorff
Room 908 e-mail: yarnsdorff@effingham.k12.ga.us
Help: I will be available for help after school. Please let me know if you plan to stay to be sure that I will be available that day. I would also highly suggest developing study groups with your class mates. This is a common practice in college.
I look forward to having a great year with this class. I know it will be challenging at times, but we are in this together.
Mrs. Arnsdorff
Page 6 of 6