BI230:
Meeting Times, Location, & Course Delivery Details
The delivery is strictly in person
If the college is required to transition to online learning at any point during the semester, the course will move to an online synchronous format for both lecture and lab.
If we must shift to virtual instruction:
- The lectures will be taught synchronously at the regularly scheduled class time via Zoom
- Timed exams and quizzes will be given on Blackboard
- Any assignments will be assigned and submitted through Blackboard
- Alternative virtual lab activities will be assigned through Blackboard if in-person labs cannot be safely conducted
Contact Information
Textbook
Name: Campbell Biology
Edition: 11
ISBN: 13: 9780135188743
Author: Urray, Lisa A., Urry, Jane B. Reece, Michael L. Cain, Steven A. Wasserman, Peter V. Minorsky, and Robert B. Jackson
Publisher: Pearson
By the end of this course:
- Students will demonstrate an understanding of science as a way of knowing about the physical world and recognize the types of questions that science, by its very nature, can and cannot answer.
- Students will demonstrate an understanding of the scientific method by generating hypotheses, analyzing raw data after conducting an experiment, drawing appropriate conclusions, and through oral and written communication of the experimental process.
- Students will demonstrate knowledge of concepts in cell and molecular biology. This will be demonstrated by student performance on written examinations. Precise learning objectives for examinations will be provided.
- Students will demonstrate a working vocabulary in cell and molecular biology by recognizing definitions (multiple choice and matching questions), recalling definitions (writing definitions), and using terms appropriately in essays.
- Students will demonstrate the ability to answer a scientific question by designing an experiment, performing the experiment, analyzing results, drawing appropriate conclusions, and effectively communicating this process. Achievement of this goal will be the production of a written report in the format of a scientific paper and a presentation.
Tentative Schedule
Subject to change during the semester. Adequate notice of changes will be given.
Assignments turned in late for any reason will have points deducted from them. The more days late, the higher the deduction. Late assignments will have points deducted from them according to the following schedule (no exceptions without a valid excuse):
Days Late Percent of Grade Deducted
1Day @ 1 minute after stated deadline 10%
Day 2 20%
Day 3 30%
Day 4 40%
Day 5 50%
Day 6 60%
Day 7 70%
Day 8 80%
Day 9 90%
Day 10 100%
The grading scale will be as follows:
Grading:
Item | Point Value |
| Exam 1 | 100 |
| Exam 2 | 100 |
| Exam 3 | 100 |
| Exam 4 | 100 |
| Online lab exam | 75 |
| Lab | 325 (25 pts/lab) |
| Lecture Assignments | 70 |
| Finals Week Group Discussion | 30 |
| Attendance and Participation | 100 |
| Total | 1000 pts |
Points earned will be added and grades will be assigned based on the scale below. Do not expect any "curving" of grades in this course.
Letter grade and points: Meaning of grade (from WC Handbook):
A = 1000-925, A- = 924-900 Range of outstanding achievement
B+ = 899-865, B = 864-825, B- = 824-800 Range of good achievement
C+ = 799-765, C = 764-725, C- = 724-700 Range of average achievement
D+ = 699-665, D = 664-625, D- = 624-600 Range of below average achievement
F = < 600 Inadequate achievements
Plus/Minus grading will be used in this course. Guaranteed grade cutoffs are as follows:
100-92.5%: A; 92.4-90.0%: A-; 89.9-86.5%: B+; 86.4-82.5%: B, 82.4-80.0%: B-.
Cutoffs for grades in the C and D ranges follow the pattern established for the grades in the B range. Final grade cutoff points are sometimes lowered to better fit the grade distribution curve. Final letter grade cutoffs will be at the discretion of the instructor.
From the Wilmington College Faculty Handbook: “It is the policy of Wilmington College to strive for fairness in grading and avoid grade inflation. Faculty are encouraged to regard a "C-" as a satisfactory grade, which means the student is meeting College standards and will treat it as such in talking with students unless otherwise noted in the College Catalog. The grade "A", on the other hand, should mean outstanding achievement, with a grade of "B" in between. The grade "D" represents minimally acceptable achievement, and the grade "F" indicates failure.”
Instructor Course Policies
Attendance will be recorded and students who regularly skip class should not expect to do well in the course. Attendance as well as participation is 10% of the grade. Attendance will be taken at every lecture session and points will be given for attending lectures.
Students are expected to actively participate in lecture activities and will be graded on their level of participation and preparation for each class. Students are expected to exhibit appropriate classroom etiquette, including, but not limited to, listening attentively when the professor or another student is speaking, arriving to class on time, and turning off cell phones.
See the current Student Handbook for the college Attendance Policy especially as it pertains to excused absences. No makeup exams will be allowed unless the student has contacted either the instructor and/or the Office of Academic Affairs prior to the time of the exam. All excused absences must be documented. The College accepts these four categories of excused absences:
- Activities in which the student serves as an official representative of the College (e.g., musical performances, athletic contests, field trips)
- Personal illness, with documentation by the College nurse or a physician
- Family or personal emergencies
- When severe weather makes travel to campus dangerous
Promptness is very important because announcements will be given at the start of the lecture period. 50% of the attendance grade will be deducted if you are more than 15 minutes late to lecture. After 30 minutes, it will be considered an absence. Even if you know you are going to be very late, however, you should still show up to receive the information necessary to do your lab assignments and exams.
Students are responsible for getting information from other students or from the professor on what material they have missed from a lecture, whether the absence is excused or unexcused.
All work (essays, test answers, homework answers, etc.) that you submit in this course must be originally produced by you and not by artificial intelligence,
All submitted works will be compared against AI detectors
Failure to comply with this policy will result in penalties for academic dishonesty!!!
Institutional and Program-Level Policies
All exams will follow the Final Exam Schedule. Students scheduled to take three or more final examinations on one day may request to arrange their examination schedule, so no more than two exams occur on one day.
Requests for early or late exams are considered only under extreme circumstances. Prior to the exam period, the student must file a written request on the Early/Late Exam Form available in the Student One Stop Center, Academic Records, and on the WC portal. The form must be signed by the Instructor and the Academic Dean, approving the alternate exam time. This process must be completed prior to the scheduled exam period.
Undergraduate: SP25 Final Exam Schedule Graduate:
Out-of-class Work Expectation A minimum of 2 hours of out-of-class student work is expected for each hour of in-class time for traditional face-to-face courses. For online and hybrid courses, the combination of face-to-face time and out-of-class work should be equal to 3 hours per credit hour per week. |
Instructional Course Delivery |
Academic Integrity Policy The use of generative AI is prohibited except where expressly allowed in assignment instructions. |
Class Attendance Policy |
Accessibility and Disability Services
Accessibility and Disability Services
Wilmington College provides accommodations and services for student with a variety of disabilities, including chronic illnesses, psychological, physical, medical, learning, and sensory disability amongst others. If you anticipate or experience barriers based on disability and feel you may need a reasonable accommodation to fulfill the essential functions of this course, you are encouraged to contact:
Spencer Izor, Associate Vice President of Compliance - Title IX/ADA Coordinator at spencer.izor@wilmington.edu or 937-481-2365 or Nathan Flack, Academic Resource Manager at 937-481-2208 to learn more about the process and procedures for requesting accommodations, or by visiting College Hall Room 306a or the Robinson Communication Center, Room 103.
Religious Accommodations
Wilmington College strives for an inclusive climate and welcomes students from all backgrounds, faiths, and experiences. If religious observance impedes your ability to participate fully in classroom activities or a principal holiday from your religious tradition occurs during the semester and conflicts with class meetings or activities, please make the professor aware of this immediately to determine if a reasonable accommodation is possible.