BIOL 251: Introduction to Human Anatomy and
Physiology
Introduction
Welcome! I am pleased that you have decided to take BIOL 251, a three credit hour course in human
anatomy and physiology.
The course is divided into twenty lessons. Each odd‐numbered lesson assigns chapters from the
textbook along with my comments on each chapter. These comments provide not only a detailed
summary of all the important points you should know, but additional information that helps explain
the material in your text. At the end of each of these lessons is a written assignment, described in
more detail below.
The even‐numbered lessons are practice exams.
I want this Self‐paced Courses experience to be a positive one for you, so if I can offer any
assistance, please feel free to contact me at any time. I will usually reply to your emails within four
days, but I will occasionally be out of town. If I expect to be gone for more than one week, I will post
a return message to that effect. In the meantime, you may continue submitting lessons on your own
schedule. I will catch up on grading when I return.
Textbook and Materials
See course description for an up‐to‐date list of materials.
Course Requirements
Each odd‐numbered lesson includes an introduction, reading assignment, and written assignment. My
notes on each assigned chapter includes these sections:
The Big Picture—an overview of the chapter
What to Know—learning objectives for the chapter
Snapshots—my views and generalizations about that chapter as well as a detailed outline of the
most important concepts and terms; relevant figures of the text that illustrate these points
are frequently referenced
Medically Speaking—brief examples of the ways in which major bodily structures or activities
have everyday importance and relevance.
Terminology
You are responsible for understanding and being able to recognize and define all terms in bold print
in the textbook and any additional terms introduced in my chapter notes. One good strategy is to
make up vocabulary flash cards for each term in a chapter. The Seeley Online Learning Center also
has interactive flash cards, as well as animated labeling exercises.
Written Work
Your written work for each odd‐numbered lesson will consists of reports. The reports will be one‐
page single‐spaced or two‐page double‐spaced (unless otherwise specificed) on a variety of topics.
Your reports may be longer than the minimum if you wish to expand on a topic (possibly for a better
grade). Each report must have three academic Internet resources, properly referenced. Unreliable
sources such as Wikipedia should not be used. You may use any style of referencing and citation, as
long as there is enough information so that I can easily find the source myself. The report grade is
based primarily on content, but you could lose up to 10 percent for spelling errors, poor grammar,
misused vocabulary, or poor sentence structure. In your report, discuss specific consequences of
conditions, diseases, and therapies, as well as something about the frequency of the condition, both
nationally and internationally.
Be very careful about plagiarism! Any ideas not your own should be cited. This is a science
course, not a creative writing course, so it is proper that you will have many cited sources in
each report. You are not expected to come up with original scientific discoveries!
Practice Examinations
The even‐numbered lessons are practice examinations—self‐examinations to help you gauge your
progress. Although you will submit them to me for scoring, they will not be a part of your final
course grade. However, the final examination will be composed of questions selected from each of
the practice exams, so it is to your advantage to study for them and do well on them.
Important: Carefully follow the submission instructions provided for each assignment. You will send
your work to me and to Student Services via email attachments. It is vital that you follow the
instructions for file naming and subject lines so that we can track your progress and keep your work
separate from that of other students.
Grading and Final Exam
Your course grade will be determined by a comprehensive final examination and by the average of
the grades you receive on your reports. The final examination will count 50 percent of your grade,
and the reports average will count 50 percent. A good way to prepare for the final is to review the
ten practice examinations as well as the Review and Comprehension questions at the end of each
assigned text chapter. Your final examination will be composed of questions selected from the
practice exams.
The grading scale is:
A = 90–100
B = 80–89
C = 70–79
D = 60–69
F = 59 and below
You must pass the final exam in order to receive credit for the course.
Your final exam must be supervised. You can schedule your exam with the Self‐paced Courses office.
Course Mechanics
Library Services
Students enrolled in Self‐paced Courses have access to the UNC Library System. Visit Distance
Education Library Services to access a wide array of online services and resources including online
databases, online journals, online books, and live help with research and library access. Most online
resources require you to log in with PID. If you have any trouble finding the resource that you need
or logging in to a resource, you can contact the library through the contact information at Distance
Education Library Services. You can chat live about your problem, or send an email to request
assistance.
Email
The primary method of communication in Self‐paced Courses online is electronic. You will
communicate with me and submit your assignments via email. It is essential to inform me and
Student Services of any change in your email address.
If you use a filter on your email account, you are responsible for ensuring that it does not prevent
you from receiving messages from me, the course listserv, or Friday Center staff. If you use a
webmail service, the email links in this course may not work for you.
It is extremely important for you to save copies of any work you send to your instructor via email. If
your instructor doesn’t receive your work, you must have a copy of the email with the attached file,
indicating the date sent, to prove that you submitted the assignment. It is your responsibility to
maintain copies of your sent emails, as there is no way to guarantee that any email message will be
delivered. Please check your email software to see how it manages sent and saved messages. Some
software automatically deletes messages one month after they have been sent; others only save
messages if they are filed in folders; others save messages received but not those sent. You may
need to send yourself a copy of your emailed assignment at the same time you send it to your
instructor, or you may need to print a copy of the email message and any attachments to keep in
your paper files. No matter how your system works, make sure you know how to save a copy of all
work that you submit to your instructor and that you save the copy for several months beyond the
end of the course.
Other Questions
Contact your instructor with questions regarding the content of the course and your progress. (There
is an email link at the top of every lesson page.) Please include “SPC BIOL 251” in the subject line of
your email.
Contact the instructional designer at the Friday Center about problems with this Web site, including
bad links.
If you have any logistical questions as you work through the course (enrollment, Onyen, credits,
withdrawal, and so on), contact the Student Services staff at the Friday Center for Continuing
Education (phone 919‐962‐1134 or 800‐862‐5669).
Lessons
The course schedule is up to you. You can complete the course in as few as twelve weeks or take as
long as nine months. The important thing is to get a good start, then maintain your momentum.
Since this course is not held in a classroom, I will probably never meet you in person. Still, I would
like to know something about you so that I can associate each email message from you with
something more than a screen name. Therefore, your first task is to send me a Personal Information
Sheet: Save this Word Document to your hard drive (or copy and paste from this Web page into your
word processing program), fill it out, and attach it to an email to me. Please tell me why you are
taking this course, and any background you have in the sciences. This also gives us a chance to make
sure our communication lines are working, and that we can send and receive attachments.
Links to the lessons are in the left sidebar of Sakai.
Lesson 1
Introduction, Tissues, and Skin
Lesson 2
Practice Examination for Lesson 1
Lesson 3
The Skeletal System
Lesson 4
Practice Examination for Lesson 3
Lesson 5
The Muscular System
Lesson 6
Practice Examination for Lesson 5
Lesson 7
The Nervous System and the Senses
Lesson 8
Practice Examination for Lesson 7
Lesson 9
The Endocrine System
Lesson 10
Practice Examination for Lesson 9
Lesson 11
The Blood, Heart, and Circulation
Lesson 12
Practice Examination for Lesson 11
Lesson 13
Lymphatics and Immunity
Lesson 14
Practice Examination for Lesson 13
Lesson 15
The Respiratory System; The Urinary System
Lesson 16
Practice Examination for Lesson 15
Lesson 17
Digestion and Nutrition
Lesson 18
Practice Examination for Lesson 17
Lesson 19
Reproduction and Development
Lesson 20
Practice Examination for Lesson 19
Final Exam
Schedule your final exam with Self‐paced Courses.
Please fill out a brief online course evaluation. We want to know if this course met your needs and
expectations.
© The University of North Carolina
Send comments and questions to fridaycenter@unc.edu.