Course Requirements And Grades

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        A student's semester grade for Prin­ciples of Biol­ogi­cal Science II will be based on major tests, quiz­zes, laboratory exercises, a project, class attend­ance and partici­pation, and a final ex­am­ination.

 

Major Tests, Quizzes, and the Final Examination.

        Grades on major tests, quizzes, and the final examination will constitute 60% of the semester grade.

 

Major Tests.

There will be four major tests based primarily on the material dealt with during the class periods. Missed tests must be made up before the next major test, at a time determined by the instructor. Failure to make up a missed test will result in a grade of zero for that test.

 

Quizzes.

There will be a number of quizzes ov­er the course of the semester. Missed quizzes cannot be  made up; however, the lowest quiz grad­e will be drop­ped while the high­est grade will be doubled. The average grade for quizzes will count the same as two major tests.

 

Final Examination.

The final examination will be cumulative and will count as two major tests. Students who have missed no more than four class/laboratory sessions and who have a grade of A− or A going into the final examination may exempt themselves from the final ex­amination.

 

Laboratory.

        The series of laboratory activities for

­Biology 126 ­will parallel or complement material covered in clas­s and the laboratory grade will constitute 20% of the semester grad­e.

 

Project.

        To successfully complete Biology 126, each student must develop and com­plete a project worth 15% of the sem­ester grad­e. Each student is ex­pect­ed to spend a significant amount of time and effort on his or her project and it must be representative of college level work.

        A formally written project report will be required and time also will be set aside at the end of the semester for an oral report. The grade for the project will be based on its quality of scientific thought and investigation as well as the clarity, organization, and neatness of the written report and the oral presentation.

        More detailed directions concerning the project will be given as the semester progresses.

 

Class Participation, and Attendance.

        A student's atten­dance and course par­tici­pation will count for 5% of the semester grade.

 

Attendance.

Students are expected to attend class­es on a regular basis and to be on time. A portion of a student’s grade for attendance and  participation will be based on being present for class and for being on time. A student absent from more than four class and/or laboratory ses­sions should not expect a grade high­er than a C for the semester.

While almost everyone oc­casion­al­ly is late for a class, coming in late, nevertheless, is distracting to students and to the instructor. Four incidences of tardiness will count the same as one absence.

 

Participation.

Participation involves more than attendance. Stu­dents who meaningfully and actively participate in the course will receive a high­er grade than students who display a passive or apathetic attitude.

        A student's atten­dance and course par­tici­pation will count for 5% of the semester grade.

 

Attendance.

Students are expected to attend class­es on a regular basis and to be on time. A portion of a student’s grade for attendance and  participation will be based on being present for class and for being on time. A student absent from more than four class and/or laboratory ses­sions should not expect a grade high­er than a C for the semester.

While almost everyone oc­casion­al­ly is late for a class, coming in late, nevertheless, is distracting to students and to the instructor. Four incidences of tardiness will count the same as one absence.

 

Participation.

Participation involves more than attendance. Stu­dents who meaningfully and actively participate in the course will receive a high­er grade than students who display a passive or apathetic attitude.

 

 

GRADE SCALE

A 

(4.00)

95% − 100%

C+

(2.33)

73% − 76%

A−

(3.67)

90% −   94%

C 

(2.00)

70% − 72%

B+

(3.33)

85% −   89%

C−

(1.67)

66% − 69%

B 

(3.00)

80% −   84%

D 

(1.00)

60% − 65%

B−

(2.67)

77% −   79%

F 

(0.00)

Below 60%

 

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