Heartland Community College Math/Science Division
Student Syllabus for BIOL 114 Contemporary Biology ONLINE Summer 2013
Credit Hours: 4
Contact Hours: 5
Meeting times: Section 91 Online*
Lecture Hours: 3
Laboratory Hours: 2
Location: Online*
*Students are required to come to the main campus (Normal) for two Saturday lab sessions
(ICB 1405) and must take the Midterm Exam and Final Exam on campus in the Testing Services
Center (SCB 2001A).
Instructor: Jon Hoekstra. My name is Dutch and is pronounced “hook-struh.” I grew up in
Michigan and have lived in Illinois, Arizona, New Mexico, Georgia, and Oregon. I now live in
Tremont, IL with my wife Tina and our 9-yr-old daughter Pomona. Some of the things I like
best are gardening, hiking, fishing, and learning about bugs and mushrooms. I view science as a powerfully
positive force and hope that you, too, will come to appreciate its beauty and usefulness.
Phone: (309) 268-8648 Office: ICB 2414 (2400)
E-mail: jon.hoekstra@heartland.edu
Office Hours: If you would like to meet in person for office hours on campus,
please request it and we can set up an appointment. I can also meet with
individual students or groups virtually through an online meeting tool
(Anymeeting webinar). Please email me to request such a meeting and I will be
happy to arrange it at a time that is convenient for us. Email is the best way to
contact me; I will respond within 48 hours during the week and by noon on the
following Monday if you email me over the weekend.
Catalog Description: Prerequisite: Completion of Math through Beginning Algebra
level or assessment. BIOL 114 will introduce students to a broad range of biological
principles, including organization, structure and function, heredity, evolution, and
ecology. Students will demonstrate how their knowledge in biology is relevant to
them, their community, and their world. Students will use scientific evidence as the
basis for their arguments. Students will improve their skills in relaying biological
information to peers and to others. In addition, students will leave with a better
understanding of scientific views that differ from their own. The laboratory
component will emphasize scientific inquiry and use of knowledge in problem
solving. This course is intended for students who are not pursuing a science career.
Relationship to Academic Development Programs and Transfer: BIOL 114
fulfills 4 of the semester hours of credit in Life and Physical Science required
for the A.A. or A.S. degree. This course should transfer as part of the
General Education Core Curriculum described in the Illinois Articulation
Initiative to other Illinois colleges and universities participating in the IAI.
However, students should consult an academic advisor for transfer
information regarding particular institutions. Refer to the IAI web page for
information at www.itransfer.org
Images from Wikimedia Commons and shared under CC licenses. Works by Michael Ströck (DNA), US National Cancer Institute
(blood cells), Gray’s Anatomy (heart and lungs), and Eric Ward (family portrait).
Course Learning Outcomes:
1. Students hypothesize, experiment, gather data, and formulate conclusions.
2. Students evaluate the validity of biology-related results and conclusions that are presented in the media
and other settings.
3. Students relate biological concepts to their daily life and to the world around them.
4. Students synthesize information from various sources to generate an essay, poster, oral presentation, or
other product.
5. Students demonstrate awareness of issues related to individual and community health.
6. Students demonstrate awareness of environmental issues related to biology.
HCC General Education Learning Outcomes:
Critical Thinking 1: Students gather knowledge, apply it to a new situation, and draw reasonable conclusions
in ways that demonstrate understanding.
Critical Thinking 3: Students generate an answer, approach, or solution through an effective synthesis of
diverse sources and arguments and provide a rationale.
Communication 2: Students effectively deliver a message via various channels/modalities.
Diversity 1: Students are receptive to beliefs and values that differ from their own.
Course / Lab Outline:
1) Introduction to the science of biology
2) Basics of biochemistry
3) Introduction to cell biology and energy use
4) Genetics
a) DNA and gene expression.
b) Inheritance.
5) Animal structure, function and human health
a) Musculoskeletal system
b) Circulation and respiration
c) Digestion, nutrition, and excretion
d) Nervous and endocrine systems
e) Reproduction and development
6) Evolution
a) Evidence for evolution
b) Processes of evolution
7) Ecology
a) Population and community ecology
b) Ecosystem ecology and environmental issues
Required Materials:
Starr, C., Evers, C.A., & Starr, L. 2013. Biology Today and Tomorrow with Physiology (4th ed.). Brooks-Cole
Publishing, Belmont, CA. Electronic textbook subscription including access to Aplia homework system. ISBN
9781285410227 – Special Order available through Heartland’s bookstore.
Important URL: http://www.heartland.edu/asc/ includes information about library, tutoring and testing
services, computing lab, writing services and disability support services.
myHeartland information: https://my.heartland.edu includes access to IRIS, your Heartland student e-mail,
your Backpack files, the library, and announcements. If you are logging in for FIRST time, use Password Station
to create password and change your security questions after creating password.
CourseSite: You will be accessing the online course through an online service, not through myHeartland as is
normally required for online coursework here at Heartland. To get to the course, launch a Web browser and
visit https://www.coursesites.com/s/_BIO_114 (notice underscores in the address). I strongly recommend
that you use an updated version of Mozilla Firefox when you work with the online course. Campus computers
should have Firefox installed; access it from the Start menu. You can download the Firefox browser free from
http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/
Required Writing and Reading: The student will be expected to read the textbook (about 40-80 pages per week
for the 8-week course) plus relevant news or feature articles, web pages, or case studies. The student will write
for many assignments, including: answers to lab questions, Discussion Board posts and replies, article summary
and analysis papers, and answers to short answer or essay questions.
Online and In-Person Components: Students will do homework, participate in discussions, submit most lab
assignments, and take Tests through the CourseSite online. Students will be able to complete tasks at any time
they choose so long as deadlines are met. However, students must travel to the main campus in Normal and be
physically present for two Exams and for two 3-hour lab sessions.
1) The Midterm Exam and the Final Exam must be taken in the Testing Services Center in Normal. It is on
the second floor of the Student Commons Building near the library (SCB 2001A). You can learn more
about its location and hours of service here: http://www.heartland.edu/testing/
2) Each student must report to campus for two required lab sessions of 3 hours each (see Syllabus
calendar). If you know in advance that you cannot attend a scheduled lab session, please contact the
instructor. Alternative lab sessions may be scheduled to accommodate student needs; notifying the
instructor ASAP will help make this possible.
Time Commitment: This course will require that you invest a lot of time on a regular schedule, starting on Day 1
and sustained through the short 8-week semester. For comparison, consider what is involved in taking the
traditional (in-person) 8-week course. It meets for 2 hours and 20 minutes daily on Monday-Thursday. For each
hour in class, students spend at least 2-3 hours reading, studying, and doing assignments. Thus a successful
student will invest 20-30+ hours per week in class work. This online course is equivalent. You will save on travel
time, but you’ll be expected to do similar activities and meet the same learning goals as any other student. In
short, this online course will be at least a half-time job and you should view it as a major daily commitment.
Assessment of Your Learning: You will demonstrate your learning in many different ways. You’ll have to be
consistent and well-rounded to do well in the class!
Aplia Homework (10%): The online textbook for this course provides access to Aplia, a homework system
that can help you learn. Homework exercises based on each textbook reading will provide you with your
first opportunity to work with key concepts and terms – and get instant feedback! After the due date, you
will not be able to take the Homework for credit, but the same Homework set will become available for
practice. You can repeat the practice sets as often as you like. At the end of the semester, your Aplia score
(the percentage of total available points that you have earned) will be added to your course total.
Discussion (15%): The class Discussion Board will allow you to connect with your fellow students, explore
controversial issues, and build your communication and critical thinking skills. On a regular basis you will
be required to post responses to questions and to comment meaningfully on your peers’ posts. These
contributions will be graded on timely completion and good faith effort. At the end of the semester, you
will write a short essay reflecting on what you have learned through the Discussion Board. At this time you
will review all the posts and replies you have made and choose the “top 3” posts and comments that you
are most proud of writing. Your essay and your chosen “favorite” contributions will be graded based on
quality. I hope this will encourage you to put special effort into your Discussion Board interactions.
Biology in the News Reports (5%): This assignment will help enrich your learning in the class and see the
many connections between biology and everyday life. You will select, read, and report on two different
feature articles written about biological topics for a general audience.
Lab Exercises (20%): Lab exercises give you hands-on experience and reinforce key course concepts. Labs
may involve working with simulations, making observations, or analyzing data. You will be doing some lab
exercises at home. We will also do six labs on campus during two required lab sessions. The in-person lab
sessions will allow you to work with microscopes and other equipment that would otherwise be
unavailable. They will also give us our only chance to meet in person as a group!
Unit Tests (20%): Whereas the Homework is primarily designed to help you learn and practice with
concepts, the Unit Tests measure your learning at the end of each Unit. Therefore the rules for these Tests
are more restrictive and feedback is delayed until the Test deadline has passed. Tests will typically include
multiple choice, matching, short answer, and essay questions.
Midterm and Final Exam (30%): Exams are a significant opportunity for you to consolidate and reinforce
your learning and to demonstrate mastery of the course content. Each Exam is cumulative, so the Midterm
covers the first half of the course and the Final Exam covers key concepts and skills from the entire course.
Exams will be similar in format to the Unit Tests. You will take the Exams independently with no outside
resources at the Testing Services Center in Normal (SCB 2001a). All students must take both Exams; these
scores cannot be exempted or dropped.
Extra Credit: Throughout the semester, a modest number of bonus points may be awarded for contests,
surveys, quizzes, or other activities. These “extras” will be designed to help you learn; they will not be
“busywork.” Additional extra credit will not be offered on an individual basis to help specific students. Any
bonus credit opportunities will be offered to the entire class. If you have an idea for an activity that is relevant
to the course, suggest it to me and I will consider making it available for extra credit!
Grading System:
Activity or Assessment
Aplia Homework: percentage of total available points [(Total Score / Possible Score) X 100]
Discussion Board: 6 @ 20 points each + Reflective Essay and “favorites” @ 30 points
Biology in the News: 2 @ 25 points each
Labs: 14 @ 10-20 points each
Unit Tests: 4 @ 50 points each
Exams (Midterm and Final): 2 @ 150 points each
Total
Points
100
150
50
200
200
300
1000
Assignment of Letter Grades: Total points earned will be used to determine a letter grade according to the
scale below. If a student is within 20 points (2%) of a grade cutoff, the higher grade may be awarded based on
consistent timely contributions to the class discussion, an improving trend in coursework, and/or a relatively
high score on the Final Exam. 900+ = A
800+ = B
700+ = C
600+ = D
<600 = F
Graded Work: Grades will be posted to the CourseSite and will be available to you through the My Grades link.
Students may review their graded Exams in person (office hours by appointment). Emails are durable and
potentially public records, so I will not report grades by email. Graded (paper) lab worksheets will not be
returned unless you bring a self-addressed stamped envelope to the lab session.
Late Work: See guidelines on individual assignments for details. In most cases late work will not earn a grade; it
is your responsibility to make sure you complete assignments in a timely manner. Labs from the Saturday lab
sessions are due at the end of the lab session. These labs cannot be made up and cannot be turned in late if the
student does not attend the in-person Lab session. Unit Tests are available for at least a 5-day time window and
Exams are available for at least a 1-week time window. It is your responsibility to take each Test or Exam within
the available time window and before the due date. The Tests and Exams will not be available to you after the
due date. If you are unable to take a Test or Exam for a serious and unexpected reason that is outside of your
control (death in the family, serious illness) you may request a special accommodation. You will be required to
show evidence documenting your excuse and may need to do an alternative assignment.
Academic Integrity: If you submit work that exhibits plagiarism or engage in other forms of academic
dishonesty, you will at a minimum be required to resubmit with the problem corrected and with a 10% point
penalty. Extreme cases or second offenses will be dealt with more harshly. You and your classmates are
expected to observe the Heartland Honor Code: “In the continuous pursuit of excellence, the HCC community is
dedicated to the principles of integrity, respect, and honest achievement. As a member of this community, we
each have the responsibility to uphold these ideals with the expectation they be upheld by others.” Specific rules,
expectations, and consequences are detailed in the document linked below:
http://www.heartland.edu/documents/aqip/AcademicIntegrity/policy.pdf
Two common “problem areas” are discussed in more detail here:
No Parrots! You will learn best if you do your own authentic writing. You are expected and even
encouraged to make mistakes, for any kind of learning requires that we fail, try again, and gradually improve
our skills. You can trust that I will be patient and appreciative of genuine effort. In turn, I trust that you will
learn to be “real” and write in your own words. Copying an answer directly from the textbook or an online
source does not require enough mental effort to result in much learning. A student may write down a
sentence that contains many unfamiliar terms and have no understanding of what he or she has written! I
call this practice “parroting” and strongly discourage it.
No Copycats! Writing an answer for an open-ended question is an individual activity unless otherwise
noted; students should not submit duplicate answers. Group work (for example, collaboration on a lab) is
NOT a “divide and conquer” type enterprise. Except where otherwise noted, you’re each expected to be
involved in each step of an activity and, when it comes time to answer a question of any substance, you
should explain your answer in your own personal way. Do not copy a peer’s answer word-for-word and do
not give your answers to another student. All students (sources and copiers) are harmed by such behavior.
Be prepared to split credit (each getting only half points) if you do this.
How to Succeed: Devote time and attention to the course on a daily basis. You will be juggling reading,
homework, labs, and discussion board activities. You will also need to prepare for Tests with regular study, and
will need to travel to campus for two required lab sessions and to take the Exams in the Testing Services Center.
All of this requires time, effort, planning, and a consistent schedule. Finally, you will need to continually seek
out feedback and monitor your own learning. You should always ask yourself: how well do I really know this?
The only way to know is to practice. If you can’t answer a homework question immediately without looking at
your notes or book, you need more practice. If you can’t explain a concept out loud or in writing, you don’t
really get it yet. I will provide feedback to the best of my ability. Please feel free to ASK me for help before you
are sure you need it. We can easily set up a virtual meeting or arrange a time to meet for in-person office hours.
If Things Go Badly: In the first weeks of the semester I will monitor your progress closely. If you miss several
due dates and are clearly on a path to failing the class, I will ask you what’s going on and may encourage you to
withdraw (“drop” the class). It may be wise to try again in another semester when your life is more settled. The
College sets deadlines for withdrawal and it is best to withdraw early if that is your choice.
Midterm Withdrawal Policy: At midterm I will administratively withdraw you (“drop” you from the course) if
you are no longer actively making progress. I will withdraw you under any of the following conditions: you have
earned less than 50% of the available points at midterm; you have not logged in or been active in the course for
more than one week; you have completed less than half (50%) of the required labs and Discussion Board
activities. If you are struggling and do not wish to be dropped from the course, you must communicate with me
in the week before midterm.
Incomplete Grade: An Incomplete grade may be justified if a student encounters extreme circumstances
(serious illness, accident, death or serious illness in the immediate family) toward the end of the semester and is
unable to complete the semester. The student must be in a position to pass the class if the Incomplete is given.
The student must sign a form requiring him/her to finish the class by next semester.
Course Atmosphere and Rules: Respect for others, strict ethics, and good manners are expected at all times.
This is particularly important in Discussion Board interactions. I will remove any offensive or disrespectful posts
or comments and will communicate with the responsible student at that time. If the behavior continues, I
reserve the right to block a student from use of the Discussion Board altogether.
Syllabus Disclaimer: Unforeseen events may interrupt or alter our class schedule. The instructor may also
determine that certain policies should be changed to enhance learning in the class. Therefore the information in
this syllabus is subject to change. Any changes to the schedule, course policies, or requirements for graded work
will be announced in the CourseSite and policy changes or calendar revisions may also be sent in a separate
email to all students. Students are responsible for monitoring and complying with any such changes.
CALENDAR – Biology 114 ONLINE
Items submitted online are always due at 11:45 PM on the date in question; routine due dates are Wednesdays and Saturdays each week.
Week
Day
Module (Homework) DUE
Discussion DUE
1
June 3
WED
Mod 1 Course Orientation
Mod 2 Intro to Biology (Ch. 1)
Discussion 1 Post
Lab DUE
Test Availability & DUE
*Lab Session 1 on June 8
Unit 1 Test (Mods 2-4) available
FRI
Last Day to Withdraw with Tuition Refunded
SAT
Mod 3 Chemistry of Life (Ch. 2)
Discussion 1 Replies
2
June 10
WED
Mod 4 Cells (Ch. 3)
Discussion 2 Post
SAT
Mod 5 DNA (Ch. 6)
Discussion 2 Replies
Lab 3 DNA
3
June 17
WED
Mod 6 Gene Expression (Ch. 7)
SAT
Mod 7 Cell Division (Ch. 8)
Bio in the News #1
Lab 4 Gene Expression
Unit 2 Test (Mods 5-7) available
4
June 24
WED
Mod 8 Inheritance (Ch. 9)
Discussion 3 Post
Lab 6 Inheritance
Unit 2 Test DUE
*Midterm Exam (Mods 2-9) available in Testing Center
SAT
Mod 9 Evolution Evidence (Ch. 11)
Discussion 3 Replies
Lab 7 Natural Selection
5
July 1
WED
Mod 10 Body Systems & Tissues
Discussion 4 Post
SAT
Mod 11 Skeletal & Muscular Syst.
Discussion 4 Replies
6
July 8
WED
Mod 12 Circ. & Resp. Syst.
SAT
Mod 13 Digestive System
7
July 15
MON
Last Day to Withdraw with a “W” Grade
WED
Mod 14 Nervous & Endocrine Syst.
Discussion 5 Post
Lab 12 Reproduction
SAT
Mod 15 Reproduction
Discussion 5 Replies
Lab 13 Biodiversity
8
July 22
WED
SAT
9
July 29
*
*
WED
FRI
Unit 1 Test DUE
*Midterm Exam DUE in Testing Center
Lab 10 Nutrition
Unit 4 Test DUE
Bio in the News #2
*Lab Session 2 on July 13
Discussion 6 Post
Mod 16 Ecology & Environment
Unit 4 Test (Mods 10-12) available
Discussion 6 Replies
Unit 5 Test (Mods 13-15) available
Unit 5 Test DUE
*Final Exam (Mods 2-16) available in Testing Center
Lab 14 Carbon & Climate
Reflective Essay
*Final Exam (Units 1-6, Mods 2-16) DUE in Testing Center
Final Course Grades will be Posted to IRIS by the end of the day
The Midterm Exam and Final Exam must be taken in the Testing Center on the Normal Campus, SCB 2001a. To take an Exam, you must visit
the Testing Services Center during their hours of operation and present an HCC ID card. See http://www.heartland.edu/testing/
Lab Sessions are held on campus in in ICB 1405, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Lab Session 1 = Labs 1, 2, and 5. Lab Session 2 = Labs 8, 9, and 11.