Project: Infectious Diseases
Due Dates
Topic Due
Conference & “Outline” due
Annotated bibliography
Paper rough draft
Final due date (Paper, presentation, website)
Monday, May 9
Thursday, May 19
Thursday, May 26
Monday, June 6
Tuesday, June 14
Other important dates – The biology MCAS is June 1 & 2. Finals start June 21.
Introduction
Take a minute to picture what it’s like to complete a big project. You might see yourself searching the
Internet, typing in dozens of Google searches, printing out lots of papers, and writing down every
single piece of information you can find that’s related to your topic.
This project is going to sharpen and improve your research skills. You will learn to identify what
sources are valid, and you will also learn to only write down necessary information. The facts that you
choose to include in your paper will NOT summarize all the information available about your topic- it
will transform the information into your own project.
Project Outline
Paper – 45%
Annotated bibliography – 5%
Works Cited page, APA format – 5%
3-4 page paper – 35%
Public Awareness – 25%
Website (wikispaces) or commercial/video
Powerpoint & Presentation – 25%
3-5 minute presentation
5-12 slides
Dress professionally
Effort & Time in class – 5%
Rubrics & Grading
The paper, Powerpoint, and public awareness components all have rubrics that explain specifically
what is needed to earn the grade you want. Use the rubrics as you are researching your project and
putting the pieces together – the rubrics are NOT an afterthought. They are meant to be used during the
project. So, use them!!
Explanation of Due Dates
Topic Due – Monday, May 9
You will choose ONE type of bacteria, virus, or prion to research. Once you pick a topic, you cannot
change it, so use the next few days to do some research on the ones you’re interested in. You are not
limited to these topics.
Diseases caused by bacteria:
E. coli
Salmonella
Botulism
Gonorrhea
Tuberculosis
Strep Throat
Pneumonia
Syphillis
Anthrax
MRSA
Tetanus
Lyme disease
Bubonic plague
Diseases caused by viruses:
Mono (the “kissing disease”)
Seasonal flu
Chicken pox
HIV* (hard topic)
Swine flu
Small pox
Diseases caused by prions:
Mad cow disease/ CJD
Kuru/Scrapie
Common cold
Avian flu
Ebola
Rabies
Conference & “Outline” due Thursday, May 19
On this day, I will meet with each of you individually to discuss how your project is coming along.
(Conferences will probably run into Friday, May 20). You must bring all of your research notes to the
conference so that I can see how your work is going and that your sources are valid.
Your notes should include an outline of how you plan to write your paper. It does not need to be a
formal outline- but I need to see your plan. If a formal outline works for you, make an outline. If you
prefer to sketch notes on a few pieces of paper, then do that. The important thing is that you HAVE A
WRITTEN PLAN before you sit down to write at the computer.
Annotated Bibliography due Thursday, May 26
A regular bibliography is a list of sources you used to put a project together. An annotated
bibliography is a list of sources that also gives a paragraph description of what the source is about.
You will choose your three best sources to include in the annotated bibliography.
Paper Rough Draft due Tuesday, June 7
Bring in a hard copy of your rough draft on June 7 for peer editing. You will look for things like
spelling and grammar, but also for whether the paper meets the specified criteria in the rubric. The
more you put into your rough draft, the more valid the feedback will be that you get from your peers.
When you revise a rough draft, anytime, for any class, you should be fixing more than spelling &
grammar. You often need to delete a section, add a section, rewrite a section, etc. If you are only fixing
spelling & grammar, you’re not improving your paper enough.
Final Due Date is Tuesday, June 14
Presentations will be Tuesday-Friday of that week. We will draw names before Tuesday to decide the
order of the presentations. Even if you do not present until Friday, all of your work will be collected on
Tuesday:
-a hard copy of your paper,
-a print out of your Powerpoint slides (Page Layout: 9 slides per page),
-a print out of your website (or if you chose to do a video, I need proof that it’s done.)
Your oral presentation will be 3-5 minutes long. I will be sitting in the back- after 4 minutes, I will
raise my hand to signal that you have 1 minute left. After 5 minutes, I will raise my hand again to
signal that 5 minutes have passed. If your presentation goes over 5 minutes, you will lose points.
Infectious Disease: Paper Rubric
Criteria
Total
Points
Introduction – Overview of what paper includes
3
Describe the bacteria, virus, or prion – What does it look like?
What are some characteristics? Class of virus? Gram -/+?
3
History – When was it first discovered? Did any famous people
have it? Is there any current research being done?
3
Statistics – How many people have it? Who’s at risk? (Men?
Women? Children? People in a certain country?) How many
people die from it each year?
4
Infection – What in the body specifically does it infect? How is it
spread? (Contact? Blood? Air?)
4
Symptoms
4
Diagnosis Tests (more than just acknowledging symptoms)
3
Treatment
4
Prevention
4
Conclusion paragraph
3
FORMAT – 1” margins, 12 pt Times New Roman, double spaced,
cite sources within your writing, title at top of first page, separate
Works Cited page with references in APA format, at least 3 valid
sources; This rubric turned in with paper
5
Total
40
Rough
Draft
Final
Draft
Infectious Disease: Presentation Rubric
Criteria
Total
Points
Powerpoint hard copy provided at “9 slides per page”, made of 5-12 slides
including title slide
3
Time limit: 3-5 minutes
3
Attire is professional; No jeans, shorts, sweatshirts, or hats
3
Introduces project & captures audience attention – be creative!
3
Speaks loudly and clearly throughout presentation
3
Knows information and does not need to read completely from the slides/ notes/
index cards
4
Informs audience of what they need to know about the disease
3
Conclusion summarizes the presentation; Hint: you should not need to say “In
conclusion,” or “The end.”
3
Total
25
Your
Points
Website/Video Rubric
Your website (wikispaces) OR video should be informative and creative. It should be something that
the public would be interested in using to learn about the disease you researched. It should capture
their attention – just make sure it is accurate! It should answer the question, “What do I need to know
about the disease?”
Hard copy* provided
Informative & accurate
Creative & captivating
_____/5
_____/10
_____/10