Photo: Dr. Nilsson with his dog Toby -- one of several dogs...

Still here? Want to know more? Excellent! Let's continue!

The first two weeks of the semester

Again, there are no "real" assignment deadlines the first week and a half! Use this period of the semester to become familiar with the course!!!



To become familiar with the course, THAT is the assignment at the beginning of the semester!!! Don't want to use the first two weeks for this -- fine -- but don't show up in panic later during the semester, because you decided "YIPEEE no assignment deadlines!!!" meant that you do nothing (or next to nothing) at the beginning of the semester. USE THE TIME WELL...

Grades

Understanding what to expect from a class by looking at EARNED grades and student comments from previous semesters can be very useful information. Below are the letter grades from the General Biology class taught by Dr. Nilsson at STC last semester. You can see that there are quite a bit of letter grade A. It is not a hard to EARN an A, but if you don't do all the assignments (or you miss a deadline -- THERE ARE NO MAKEUPS!!!) you might end up with a lower grade...

For some student comments about classes taught by Dr. Nilsson over the years, click on this link...

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Letter Grade Distributions: A A A A A A A A A A A A A A B B B B B B C D F F F F F Usually students who "earn" a low grade have decided that it was not worth the time to do all the assignments in class, or procrastinated for some reason and ran out of time and could not finish the class assignments. It is important to remember that this instructor does NOT GIVE students the grade at the end of the semester. In this class you EARN your grade. Students EARN D or F -- the instructor does NOT "give" D or F . Note that there are many more A A A A A A A A A A A A A A. These students DID all assignments, did them in a timely manner, and EARNED the A A A A A A A A A A A A A A.

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TEXTBOOK

From previous semesters I know that some students -- for various reasons -- may have problems obtaining a copy of the textbook immediately at the beginning of the semester. You do need the textbook, so hopefully you will be able to get the book as soon as possible without too much trouble. If you cannot find the book at the STC bookstore, try Amazon.com -- it might even be cheaper there. They have it, both new and used, but I am not sure how long it will take to ship it. Search for the textbook by typing in the name...

The textbook information is on the class hub. It is almost (?) impossible to miss the button that marks the link to the Textbook information, and it is also located below...


A lab manual is not used in online classes as taught by Dr. Nilsson, where field projects, virtual labs/dry labs and Blackboard quizzes and drills replaces the lab manual. For students in Face-to-Face classes, lab manual information will be given during the first class meeting.

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Due dates

All due dates are REAL in this class. All due dates are in the Semester Calendar (link located on the General Biology Hub). Another document called the Grade Recorder is also available to print out to help keep track of deadlines (and grade points).

Many assignments open the same date at the beginning of the semester as noted in the Semester Calendar. Some assignments are already open...


Any assignment where the required submission is on Blackboard, -- if you are in an online class that means ALL ASSIGNMENTS -- students may submit anytime the assignment is open for submission. If the assignment is not open for submission you cannot submit anything, obviously.


Many assignment in the online classes are open for submission almost the whole semester. However, there are exceptions, which you need to keep track of by keeping an eye on the Semester Calendar. You must also remember that some assignments must be submitted in a certain order, and that Reading Quiz 05 is a prerequisite for several assignments in the online classes, and some in the face-to-face or hybrid class.

Since you have a LONG period of time to finish assignments, late assignments will NOT be accepted. Don't wait to the last minute, just in case something should come up.

If you miss the assignment due date, you must accept the point loss -- as noted in the syllabus, there are NO MAKEUPS.

Again: There are NO MAKEUPS.

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Class Discussions

Class discussions are an important component of this class -- in F-2-F, hybrid, and online classes. This semester all discussions are in a special course shell set up by the Blackboard people that opens up as indicated in the semester calendar. When the course shell opens up and no later that noted in the semester calendar, you must also submit a quiz called the Town Hall "Key" Quiz.

Here is one subject we might discuss this semester, especially interesting if there will be an outbreak -- and it fits both into the Topic called "Climate Change" or the topic called "Human Population"...


Click on the article for source...

Emergent diseases are and will always continue to be a human problem. Here is a link to an interesting (and horrible) news story. Click on the image below for a different article with some statistics...


Source: http://blogs.wsj.com/briefly/2014/07/31/ebola-virus-africa/

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Class Help Desk / Student Collaboration
bulletin board

This class has a help desk for class questions. If you have something to say or ask that you don't think is none of the other students business, then use Blackboard e-mail. E-mail sent to my spam filled STC e-mail box will not receive an answer. Blackboard -- which is SPAM FREE -- is the way of privately communicate with the instructor in this class. All class questions or other class matters must be addressed in the class help desk. That is what it is for.

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The CyberClassroom Finally some words about what it is you are looking at -- the CyberClassroom. This is the last segment on the class communication page today ---- and it will help you understand the class. It is subdivided into four parts. Perhaps you need more coffee before you start reading it? I wrote this segment to help you succeed in this class; to get a general overview of the class, and to understand what it is about -- read it carefully! About this class I have designed this General Biology Cyber Classroom to assist and facilitate your learning. This cyber classroom has two main locations on the WWW -- the GENERAL BIOLOGY HUB (click on the link) located on HostGator, and BLACKBOARD PLAZA located on the STC Blackboard server (link not provided here, you must log in to Blackboard to navigate to Blackboard Plaza). Most students find their way to this Class Communication Page from a link on Blackboard (the figure to the left below with a photo of the glass pyramid located at the Louvre in Paris, is from Blackboard Plaza where you submit class assignments), but a big portion of the class is located on the General Biology Hub (the green page to the right below) -- it is actually the center of the class. The pages are updated every semester, but still look somewhat similar to the figures below. Blackboard Plaza Page Environmental Biology Hub To access Blackboard you need to use your STC username/password. To access the General Biology Class Hub -- where instructions and reading assignments are located, you do not need a username/password. Below is the phone number to the Blackboard Help Desk if you need assistance with Blackboard. The instructor usually cannot help you with Blackboard problems -- unless they are tied to the class setup controlled by the instructor... Student Blackboard Help Desk 872-2598 If you have not yet visited Blackboard (you found the Hub first) there are several links to it on the General Biology Hub, where you can click on the hexagonal icon as seen below, to log in to Blackboard (or if already logged in it will take you to to the "My Institution" page). The things you are going to do during the semester are listed in the Semester Calendar and the Grading Criteria -- located in the online Syllabus (direct links are found on the General Biology Hub). However, to help you get a good start below are some things I recommend you do the first few days if you are in the ONLINE class (if you have not done it already). If you are in the F-2-F class or hybrid class you will also receive instructions in the classroom. Take the Student Contract Quiz. (You must pass it with a 100 -- and acknowledge that you have received the information where to obtain the syllabus for the class.) Take the Start Quiz. (You must pass it with a minimum 90, indicating that you have read this page to learn about the class.) (Note that in the Face-to-Face class Blackboard will not be available until the second week of the semester, when we will meet in the Biology Department Computer Lab and you will learn more about Blackboard for the Face-to-Face class.) Spend the first few days becoming familiar with the learning tools. Click around on Blackboard. Click around General Biology Hub. Look through the textbook. (Again note that in the Face-to-Face class Blackboard will not be available until the second week of the semester, when we will meet in the Biology Department Computer Lab and you will learn more about Blackboard for the Face-to-Face class.) Read the Syllabus Information (link located on the General Biology Hub). Spend time reading the Grading Criteria -- so you will become familiar with the assignments. Pay attention to the Semester Calendar -- so you know when the assignments are due, and print out the Grade Recorder -- and prepare to use it (link located on the General Biology Hub). As already stated, at the beginning of the semester there are no immediate deadlines, but you need to keep an eye on the calendar. This class is a WORK CLASS, and you work the whole semester. Find information about the two class discussion assignments, and prepare to take the required quiz for the General Class Discussion -- the Class Discussion "Key" Quiz. Reading assignments for that quiz and the discussion topics can be found here. Start Quiz The purpose of this quiz is to help students understand the class and become familiar with the class pages. In addition the Start Quiz is a prerequisite for Reading Quiz 01 and the Class Discussion "Key" Quiz, the next two quizzes you must take in the class. Quiz taking using Blackboard is a very effective teaching tool, and other quizzes can remain unavailable to the students until needed. You cannot submit any classwork on Blackboard until you have submitted the Start Quiz with the required minimum grade. (The Start Quiz is located on the designatedHomePage.) In order to access the Start Quiz you must first have submitted the Student Contract Quiz.) The Next Quiz. (Details about quizzes and exams in the F-2-F class will be given in the classroom. In the F-2-F class students have the option to submit exams and quizzes in the classroom.) The next quiz you will take on Blackboard, and some other Blackboard assignments, will remain hidden until you EARN a minimum 90 on the "Start Quiz". When you have answered all Start Quiz questions -- and EARNED at least a 90 -- the next quiz, and some other assignments, will become available/visible in the folders on Blackboard Plaza. Then it is up to you to proceed with the quizzes at a speed you feel comfortable with -- as long as you finish within certain due dates listed in the Semester Calendar. Repetition. Each quiz may have a slightly different format and number of questions, but all have in common that if you do not pass with a certain minimum grade, you must take it again until you EARN at least that number grade. The Start Quiz requires 90, the reading quizzes requires 90, and the so called short "key" quizzes require 100 (all answers must be correct). If you don't get the required grade the first time -- many students don't -- don't worry; taking a quiz several times will help you learn the material. You have UNLIMITED amount of attempts until you EARN the required minimum. In the F-2-F class repetition will also be assured for the students selecting to submit exams and quizzes in the classroom, but with different assessment methods... This is not a speed race. Learning is the name of the game. So, when you pass the Start Quiz with at least 90, the class will open up. For most quizzes (not all -- see the info box when you start the quiz) you have 4 hours, plenty of time. If you don't score the required minimum grade you can take the quiz or drill again. For more Reading Quiz information click on the button below. Do you know that you can have both this page and the Blackboard quiz page open -- or any other web page you wish to see while reading this page? You should! If you have a wide screen you can have both windows next to each other, if not they can overlap. Don't waste time surfing between the pages using only one window. Work Class Unlike some other college classes you might have had, the method to learn in this class is "work", "repetition", and "discussion". The cartoon above is used for EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES by Dr. Nilsson, South Texas College, scanned from The Monitor, McAllen The cartoon above is used for EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES by Dr. Nilsson, South Texas College, scanned from The Monitor, McAllen Again, this is a "WORK CLASS". You do the work -- according to the instructions -- you get a 100... In the online and hybrid classes (and in the F-2-F class if you so select), with the help of your textbook and online reading assignments, you do "work" using open book learning-drills, and various types of open book quizzes. All "tests" are this way, with the (slight) exception of the Endterm (Final) Exam. In the F-2-F class it is slightly different (details will be given in the classroom). Hopefully when you do this work, and repeat it (if you have to) , you learn. The goal of the class is not to make students learn a ton of facts, but rather "expose" students to the living world -- and with help of critical thinking you will, hopefully, form your own educated opinion about the REAL world. The cartoon above is used for EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES by Dr. Nilsson, South Texas College, scanned from The Monitor, McAllen Noticed that above it said "with help of critical thinking you will, hopefully, form your own educated opinion about various issues that affect biology..." One reason for the problems we face on our planet is wide spread ignorance (lack of educated knowledge) about how the REAL world works and what is presently happening to the planet. The word "education" means to "lead forth" and implies leading forth away from "imprisonment in ignorance". If people were better educated about the REAL world and had a better grasp of reality based on facts -- rather than being satisfied with uneducated opinions and beliefs -- we would have much less problems. We will have class discussions where we will use CRITICAL THINKING (hopefully) and debate various issues. Based on observations from previous semesters, ignorance, belief, knowledge and opinions will be part of these discussions. But after reading the textbook, viewing YouTube videos, reading cases studies, and participating in eye opening discussions, hopefully there will be less ignorance and beliefs, and more knowledge and educated opinions, at the end of the semester. Instead of a few major large and time consuming exams, this class instead has several smaller and shorter assignments. F-2-F students will have the option to select more traditional (and time consuming?) assessments... The shortest quiz only have one questions, and will take less than a minute to finish. But there is work to do, even if the assignments are not long. In this class it is not enough to "show up" or "go online" -- you have to do the work... And don't come the day before the final exam and ask if you can make up all the assignments you never turned in, by doing something else (preferably easy?). Yes, the latter has happened. A previous semester an online student asked to make up 19 assignments AND the final exam the day before the grades were due at STC. Yes, 20 assignments THE LAST DAY OF THE SEMESTER! For an interesting discussion and for the source of this cartoon -- click here or on the cartoon... This is COLLEGE -- in this class you do the same work, on time, as per the instructions, AS REQUIRED BY ALL STUDENTS (not just the A students). You have PLENTY of time for ALL assignments -- for some assignments the whole semester -- for regular fall and spring semstsre that is 3.5 months For summer semesters it is shorter.... If you miss an assignment YOU MISS THE POINTS, don't ask for a make-up -- there is none... However, that said, you will notice that there is a second chance to join the two class discussions (for the second session) -- if the deadlines for prerequisite quizzes have been missed for various reasons, usually PROCRASTINATION. A student during the fall 2014 semester, who submitted assignments on time got upset and sent me the following e-mail: "Dr. Nilsson, I mean do disrespect, but its not fair for those of us (students) that have committed ourselves to the course and followed all the guidelines on the semester calender and the students that did not commit themselves to the course are getting a second chance."  --- I agree 100 percent with the student. Nevertheless, there is a second chance to join, but the points for the first session have been lost... The cartoon dated 1927 -1938 is used for educational purposes by Dr. Nilsson, South Texas College, reposted here, from http://www.ucl.ac.uk/sts/cain/projects/ejn/ejn_comics/. For further source information and fair use statement see bottom of page. Education a main priority! A previous semester student posted the following on the Class Help Desk: "Dr. Nilsson, you're making me use every available cell in my brain!" I replied: A challenging course? Excellent! Used for educational purposes by Dr. Nilsson, South Texas College, reposted here, from the cover page of Advocate, summer 2008. For further source information and fair use statement see bottom of page.

OK, this is it for now. Welcome to class!

Let's have an interesting semester! See you online or in the classroom -- depending on which class you are in...

Dr. Nilsson

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