The course is based on teaching a three-year sequence of ...



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Ms. Lisa Cancel

lisacancel@

(732) 376-6240

Materials

- spiral bound notebook or notebook paper

- 1 inch binder for homework, assignments, and handouts

- folder with pockets

- student planner/agenda

- red pen

- blue or black pen

- pencils and erasers

- colored pencils

- flash drive, Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.

- scientific calculator for home use (does not have to be a graphing calculator)

Course Description

The goal of this course is to provide students with the scientific principles, concepts, and methodologies to understand the interrelationships of the natural world, to identify and analyze environmental problems both natural and human-made, and to evaluate the risks associated with these problems and examine alternative solutions for resolving and/or preventing them. There is an extensive field work component to this course as to best understand the environment one must be in the environment.

A key goal of the course is to give students an integrated insight into the modern scientific view of the world. The separation of the sciences into the discrete disciplines of physics, chemistry and biology is becoming less useful; our world is simply not divided up in that way. By the conclusion of this course students should have a perspective on the world, and how it works, which will empower them to follow their interests in any direction after high school, either on to college/university or their career.

Course Outline

• History of Environmental Science and Chemistry Review

• Ecology

• Human Population Diversity

• Sustaining Biodiversity

• Water and Soil Resources

• Energy

• Pollution

• Human Society

• Human Impact on the Environment

Requirements and Expectations

Students are expected to arrive in class promptly with their binder, pencils and other required materials. Students will be seated, ready to begin, prior to the bell indicating the start of class.

During class students are expected to participate and show proper respect to their teacher and classmates. Of course, students will be expected to follow all rules of behavior listed in the school handbook.

It is suggested that students use a three ring binder, as there will be numerous documents, which will need to be kept in an organized manner. These will include handouts, lab reports, homework assignments, and graded tests and quizzes. This will be important throughout the year but will be especially important in preparing for the midterm and final exams.

Students will be given homework on most nights. These assignments need to be completed by the designated time in order that the student is prepared for class. This is critical since HW is 10% of your grade and frequent quizzes will assess student understanding of each HW assignment.

Course materials will be posted on my website at Domain/2353. Students can download and print any lost handouts, HW assignments or labs from that site. In addition, if students are absent, they should go to my website to see what was missed that day, find HW from that day so as not to fall behind, and be sure to speak to classmates or me when they return to class.

Course Work and Assessment

Students will be assessed based on their results on quizzes, quests and tests. Tests will occur at the end of each unit and are based on about 100 points. Quizzes will have a point value of up to 25 points, and may be given at any time, with or without prior notice. Students will always be given advanced notice of tests.

There will not be any “extra-credit” projects to improve a student’s grade. Should a student fail a test, the student can improve their grade by making corrections to their test with explanations as to why the new answer is correct; this shows that their current understanding of a topic has improved as well as helping them to realize what they did wrong.

Students will be conducting full-scale labs. Students will be required to keep record of their lab results in a notebook AND turn in lab analysis questions. Lab quizzes will be given at the completion of each lab. These quizzes will have a value of up to 25 points.

District Grading Policy

• 60% - Tests, Research Projects

• 30% - Quizzes, Labs/Lab Report, Projects/Presentations

• 10% - Participation (classwork, homework, do now)

Midterms and Finals

In addition to their four quarterly grades, students will also receive a separate grade on their transcript for their midterm and final exams. Each quarterly grade carries a weight of 20% of the full year grade while these two exams each have a weight of 10%. Together they have the same impact as a single quarter’s result.

The midterm exam will be on the work covered through the first two quarters. The final exam will be on the work for the entire year. It tests the cumulative knowledge retained by the student at the end of the course.

Teacher Availability

I will be available most days after school until 3:30. Should you wish to stay please be sure to sign up before you leave class to make sure that I am available.

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