BIO 221 - Hergert

General Zoology - BIO221
Hergert

General Course Information:

	Course Description: General Zoology is designed to introduce life science and preprofessional majors to the broad scope of animal life and zoological principles. Lectures stress evolution and relationships of animal groups, natural history, ecology, and life cycles. Laboratory sessions are devoted to taxonomy and structure of the animals. This is one of the three courses essential for all biology majors (205, 211, 221).
	Method of Instruction: Traditional lecture will be used during the course, with the occasional addition of films. Laboratory sessions involve hands-on activities and group work.
	Learner Outcomes: Upon successful completion of this course, the student will - 1. Be able to explain and demonstrate what science is, and how the process of science is done. 2. Be able to explain how life on our planet has evolved, due to natural selection, to create the diversity of animal life we see today. 3. Be able to identify the basic taxonomy of the various animal groups. 4. Be able to compare and contrast the different groups of animals, and identify each group’s major characteristics and evolutionary advancements. 5. Be able to discuss and illustrate the ecological roles played by animals in the various groups. 6. Be able to identify and explain some of the many adaptations that animals display. 7. Be able to describe and recognize some of the major components of animal behavior and how they are studied. (We may or may not get to this, depending upon the semester schedule.)
	Required Materials:

1. Required: Hickman, C., Roberts, L., Keen, S., Larson, A., and D. Eisenhour. Animal Diversity. 5th edition, 2007. McGraw Hill. Madison, WI. (Available in the RVC Bookstore)

2. Required: Van De Graaff and Crawley. A Photographic Atlas for the Zoology Laboratory. 6th edition, 2005. Morton Publishing. Englewood, CO. (Available in the RVC Bookstore)

3. Required: Zoology 221 Lab manual. The cost of this manual is included in the course fee and will be given to the student on the first day of class.

4. Recommended: A large 3-ring binder or folder in which to keep all class materials, notes, lab quizzes, etc.

5. Recommended: A ½” 3-ring binder to keep the loose-leaf photo atlas in.

6. Recommended: Colored pencils for making sketches and drawings during lab and lecture.

Assignments/Assessment:

	Exams: There will be 4 unit exams. Exams 1-3 will be worth approximately 120 points, while the final exam, although not cumulative, is longer and is worth about 140 points. Exams may be a combination of multiple choice, T/F, matching, short-answer and lab practical questions. Exams constitute about 56% of the course grade.
	Quizzes: Approximately 10-12 short (around 12-15 points) lab quizzes will be given, on a weekly basis. These quizzes will be mostly fill-in-the-blank and short answer question format and will be over the previous week’s lab material. These quizzes will be given at the beginning of the class period. Students must be on time to take the quiz! Quizzes constitute about 22% of the course grade.
	Laboratory Assignments: Laboratory handouts will be collected after each exam and graded for completion and quality of work. Each lab exercise will be worth 5 points. Students will not receive full credit for their lab work if they consistently leave lab early and don’t participate fully in lab activities. Labs constitute about 15% of the course grade.
	Research Paper: A 55 point research paper will be assigned during the semester. Details will be given at that time. The paper constitutes about 7% of the course grade.
	*Note that the exact percentage in each category may vary slightly depending upon the length of each exam and quiz, the number of quizzes in the semester, etc.

Frequently Asked Questions about Zoology 221:

	Will you overload this class? No. Because of the laboratory nature of this course, the class is capped at 24 students. I do not overload. I do, however, create a waiting list prior to the start of each semester. If you wanted to enroll in the course and it is closed, see me about getting added to the waiting list.
	I'm not really a morning person and this class is only offered at 8:00 AM. If I'm frequently late or miss class, will this affect my grade? Yes. Each week (usually on Tuesday) we have a quiz right at 8:00. If you are too late or absent, you will be unable to take the quiz. Missed quizzes or poor quiz scores due to rushing because you were late will greatly impact your grade. If you know that you are frequently late or miss early morning classes, then this class is not for you.
	When will we be studying "real" animals? A common misconception that students have about Zoology is that we will spend the semester studying the scaley, furry and feathered animals that everyone is most familiar with. Students are sometimes dismayed when we spend almost the entire semester learning about invertebrates (worms, insects, crustaceans, etc.) and only the last two weeks or so learning about vertebrates (fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals). The class is organized this way to reflect the animal kingdom itself, which contains more insects alone than all other types of animals combined. There are approximately 29 phyla in the animal kingdom, and only one of them - Chordata - contains vertebrates.

Instructor Contact Information:

	Name: Deena Hergert
	Department/Office Location: Life Science Department, CLII, G09
	Email address: dhergert@ednet.rvc.cc.il.us
	Office Phone Number: 815-921-3484

This page created by Deena Hergert
This page last updated Auguest 2009