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Hawaii Pacific University
BIOL 1500 Conservation Biology Section ____
Semester and year, meeting times
Instructor: Name, contact information and other relevant information about the instructor.
Course description: An introductory undergraduate course designed to introduce students to the
biological sciences. The course will emphasize the nature of biodiversity, the growing threats to
biodiversity, and ecologically sound conservation and resource management practices designed to slow
its loss.
Course prerequisite: None
General Education Requirement: This course is classified under the Global Systems Theme and meets
the requirement for a course in Global Systems C: Other Global Systems Courses.
General Education Student Learning Outcomes and the Five Themes: HPU’s general education
curriculum is focused around five themes. This course emphasizes the Global Systems Theme and
provides students with opportunities to achieve the following related general education student
learning outcomes.
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Students will utilize various systems approaches or theories to comprehend
global processes. Conservation Biology is an applied science focused on preserving
biodiversity. Understanding biodiversity (what it is, how it got here, and why it is
important), requires an understanding of several core themes in biology, especially
ecology, evolution and genetics. The predominant approach taught in this course is the
Scientific Method, and this course goes into some detail about experimental design and
tools. Core theories that provide the foundation for this discipline include evolution by
natural selection, DNA as the molecule of heredity, species interactions drive co-evolution,
and the idea that we are living during the 6th major extinction event on Earth, and the only
one caused by humans.
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Students will integrate knowledge and understanding from various disciplines in
the analysis of global systems. While the core biological principles are sufficient to
explain biodiversity, they are not sufficient to understand the nature of the current
biodiversity crisis and how we might change its course. The applied nature of this field
requires consideration of non-science disciplines that help us view science in its societal
and historical context so that students can build on his and her existing worldview. One of
these disciplines is economics- we examine the assumptions of both the predominant and
historical economic approaches to valuation of commodities and consider alternative
approaches to determining value of natural resources and the societal circumstances that
might drive such a change. Other disciplines that are applied (but with less formal
treatment) include history (especially since the industrial age), sociology, and ethics.
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Students will understand the importance of global environmental systems and the
interactions between humans and the environment. The key to understanding
conservation biology as a legitimate discipline is seeing how profoundly humans have
affected the livelihood of other species on the planet. This is treated as a unit called
threats to biodiversity, which has three major categories that are all human caused:
habitat destruction, overexploitation, and invasive species. Each biodiversity threat is
thoroughly explained and examples given.
The course also addresses the Values and Choices Theme by providing students with opportunities to
achieve the following related general education student learning outcome:
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Students will analyze the interrelationships among beliefs, choices, and cultural, social
and/or scientific institutions and practices. Conservation biology emerged as a new
discipline because it became clear that scientific certainty was not enough to guarantee
action by society, so scientists themselves felt the need to become advocates for the
preservation of biodiversity. We examine case after case where scientific knowledge was
not available, not considered or ignored even when environmental impacts might seem
obvious. We examine the historical progression of conservation and preservation ethics
as we moved from a world with limitless resources to one that seems in crisis. The
precautionary principle is a concept that suggests that when sufficient data are not
available, society should err on the side of not impacting the environment. We examine
what factors seem to make humans more likely to ignore the precautionary principle. We
also examine successful conservation efforts and evaluate the approaches that made
them possible in various cultural and social contexts.
Note: Purple text shows places where specific course information must be filled in. Red text contains
explanatory notes to the instructor which should be deleted before using the syllabus. Blue explanations
above should be rephrased by the individual instructor to reflect the specific approach in that section of
the course. Course- specific outcomes below are provided as an example and may also be rephrased or
modified by the instructor.
Course-Specific Student Learning Outcomes for BIOL 1500 Conservation Biology
Upon successful completion of the course, a student will be able to:
The student will be able to:
1. Describe the scientific method, and in a given scenario, be able to judge whether it is applied
appropriately.
2. Describe the components of biological diversity at the gene, species, and higher-level scales
3. Explain strategies used to assess, maintain, and restore diversity
4. Explain the key points of important biological concepts relevant to conservation biology:
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a. Explain how mutation and selection are instruments of evolutionary processes and give
examples that demonstrate evolution as an ongoing process
b. Explain ecological succession and give examples of forces that can influence the process
and its outcome
5. Evaluate various lines of evidence presented in current media, summarize arguments, then
assess how humans affect biodiversity by mechanisms such as global warming, introduction of
invasive species, and habitat destruction.
6. Research, prepare, and deliver a presentation about a current conservation topic of particular
interest. (assessed by student presentation)
For the rest of these required syllabus items see the details in the faculty handbook. Delete this note
once the syllabus is complete. For online courses there are some additional requirements given at this
link.
Texts List textbooks with ISBN’s and include this language as well
All textbook information (pricing, ISBN #, and e-books) for this course can be found on the HPU
Bookstore website: hpu.edu/bookstore.
If you have any questions regarding textbooks, please contact the HPU Bookstore at:
Phone:
808-544-9347
Or e-mail:
jyokota@hpu.edu
mmiyahira@hpu.edu
Assignments and mode of evaluation
Summary of important dates and deadlines (if the schedule is a separate document and due dates are
not given with the description of the assignments).
Class rules and policies (including regarding attendance, late work and academic dishonesty)
Schedule of events (may be attached separately)