GEOL-1403-M40 - Physical Geology
Lamar State College - Port Arthur
House Bill 2504
Fall 2017 Course Syllabus
Faculty Information | |||||||||||||
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Semester | Fall 2017 | ||||||||||||
Instructor | Taylor, Ronald Shearer | ||||||||||||
Phone | (409) 984-6575 | ||||||||||||
taylorrs@lamarpa.edu | |||||||||||||
Department |
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Office |
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MyLamarPA | Be sure to check your campus E-mail and Course Homepage using MyLamarPA campus web portal (My.LamarPA.edu). When you’ve logged in, click the email icon in the upper right-hand corner to check email, or click on the “My Courses” tab to get to your Course Homepage. Click the link to your course and review the information presented. It is important that you check your email and Course Homepage regularly. You can also access your grades, transcripts, and determine who your academic advisor is by using MyLamarPA. | ||||||||||||
Course Information | |||||||||||||
Course Number | 91787 | ||||||||||||
Course Description | Introduction to the study of the materials and processes that have modified and shaped the surface and interior of Earth over time. These processes are described by theories based on experimental data and geologic data gathered from field observations. Laboratory activities will cover methods used to collect and analyze earth science data. | ||||||||||||
Course Prerequisites | None | ||||||||||||
Required Textbooks |
The Changing Earth: Exploring Geology & Evolution, 6th or 7th Ed., Wicander & Monroe, Cengage Learning Publishing, 2012 or 2014. Lab Manual not required. |
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Attendance Policy | To receive credit for all tests, quizzes, and lab exercises, attendance is required. Three lecture tests and the final exam feature memorization of fundamental information and multiple choice questions taken with an opened-book/smart-phone. If one of the three scheduled tests is missed, then the score of the one missed test is taken from equivalent material in the Final Exam. The video quizzes are based on the content of the teaching videos; not attending the video when shown, downgrades the score. Missed lab assignments cannot be made up because most assignments require materials such as specimens, models, and other materials provided by the instructor. | ||||||||||||
Course Grading Scale | 90 - 100=A 80 - 89=B 70 - 79=C 60 - 69=D Below 59 = F | ||||||||||||
Determination of Final Grade |
Three tests - 45%, Quizzes - 15%, Lab exercises - 15%, Final Exam - 25% |
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Final Exam Date | December 11, 2017 - 5:30 PM | ||||||||||||
Major Assignments |
Week 1: Course introduction; thinking like a geologist; plate tectonics Week 2: Ocean seafloor; hot-spots; Minerals; quizzes & labs Week 3: Silicate minerals; igneous rocks; quizzes & labs Week 4: Volcanic rocks; plutons; plate tectonics & igneous rocks Week 5: Rock cycle; Sedimentary rocks; Weathering; Topographic maps Week 6: Depositional environments; sedimentary rocks; geologic maps Week 7: Mountain-building; metamorphic rocks; geologic time; lecture test Week 8: Plastic deformation; folded sedimentary rocks; brittle deformation Week 9: Faults & earthquakes; dynamic earth hazards; geologic structures Week 10: Mass-wasting; dynamic stream processes and landforms Week 11: Groundwater; water movement processes Week 12: Groundwater; mass-wasting & Karst topography; Valley glaciers Week 13: Continental glaciers and Climate change Week 14: Oceans & Shorelines; Drylands, deserts & jungles Week 15: Review & final exam |
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Calendar of Lecture Topics and Major Assignment Due Dates | A/A | ||||||||||||
General Education/Core Curriculum Student Learning Outcomes |
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Program Student Learning Outcomes |
PSLO ALPHA - Reading and comprehension of technical terminology as primary goal of a science course PSLO 1 - Uses critical thinking skills CSLO 2 - Develops ability to analyze, evaluate, & synthesize earth-material (geologic) cycles and their inter-relationships to plate tectonics PSLO 2 - Demonstrates communication skills CSLO 2 - Demonstrates an ability to effectively illustrate and describe the steps of a geologic cycle as a teaching project. PSLO 3 - Demonstrates empirical & quantitative skills CSLO 3 - Demonstrates data management & problem-solving skills for rapid geologic changes and sort out their cause |
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Course Student Learning Outcomes |
PLSO 4 - Teamwork skills CLSO 4 - Demonstrates ability to work cooperatively in a project that requires the inter-connecting of geologic events and earth subsystems. |
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Academic Honesty | Academic honesty is expected from all students, and dishonesty in any form will not be tolerated. Please consult the LSC-PA policies (Section IX, subsection A, in the Faculty Handbook) for consequences of academic dishonesty. | ||||||||||||
Facility Policies |
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Additional Information | |||||||||||||
Important Information | |||||||||||||
ADA Considerations | The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal anti-discrimination statute that provides comprehensive civil rights for persons with disabilities. Among other things, this legislation requires that all students with disabilities be guaranteed a learning environment that provides for reasonable accommodation of their disabilities. If you believe you have a disability requiring an accommodation, please contact the Special Populations Coordinator, Room 231, in the Madison Monroe Building. The phone number is (409) 984-6241. | ||||||||||||
Copyright Violations |
Some material in this course may be copyrighted. They may be used only for instructional purposes this semester,
by students enrolled in this course. These materials are being used fairly and legally.
No one may distribute or share these copyrighted materials in any medium or format with anyone outside this class,
including publishing essays with copyrighted material, uploading copyrighted material to Facebook or YouTube, or
painting or performing copyrighted material for public display.
Copyright violation is not the same thing as plagiarism. Plagiarism is intellectual dishonesty. Offenses of plagiarism result in lower grades or failing scores, and professors and the college strictly enforce plagiarism rules. There is never any acceptable use of plagiarism. Copyright violation is a legal offense, punishable by large fines and penalties. Copyrighted material can be used if permission from the material’s creator is obtained, or if its use meets the standards of fair use in an educational setting. For example, a student can quote a line from Shakespeare’s Hamlet in a report without violating copyright but still be guilty of plagiarism if the quotation is not properly documented. If you are in doubt about what material can be freely used, ask your professor or contact the Dean of Library Services, at (409) 984-6216. |
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Assessment Statement |
Assessment is a process by which LSCPA can help you learn better and gauge the level of progress you have made to
attain knowledge, skills, beliefs, and values. It also helps your professors understand how to improve teaching
and testing methods in your classes, and it helps each department understand and improve degree and certificate
programs.
Periodically LSC-PA will collect assessment data for research and reporting purposes, including statistical data and sometimes copies of your work. Be assured that all material the college uses for assessment purposes will be kept confidential. To ensure anonymity, your name will be removed from any material we use for assessment purposes, including video-recorded performances, speeches, and projects. If you object to allowing LSC-PA to use your material for assessment purposes, submit a letter stating so to your professor by the 12th class day. You will still be required to participate in whatever assessments are being done; we just won’t use your data. What’s the difference between assessment and grades? The grades you get on papers, projects, speeches, and assignments are specific types of focused assessment. LSC-PA’s assessment efforts include class grades, surveys, standardized tests, and other tools. |
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Privacy Notice |
Federal privacy laws apply to college students. This means that college employees, including instructors, cannot
divulge information to third parties, including parents and legal guardians of students. Even if the students are
minors, information about their college work cannot be shared with anyone except in very limited circumstances.
Anyone requesting information about a student should be referred to the Registrar. Instructors will be notified in writing by that Office about what information may be released and to whom. Please remember that releasing private information about a student, however innocuous it may seem, can be a violation of federal law, with very serious consequences. Circumstances under which information may be released:
An adult student may submit, to the Registrar, a handwritten, signed note granting permission for release of
information. The note must specify what information may be divulged, and it must specify the name of the person
to whom the information may be given.
The Registrar’s office is located in the Student Center room 303B, and can be reached at (409) 984-6165. |
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College-Level Perspectives |
This course helps add to the students’ overall collegiate experience in the following ways:
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Degree Plan Evaluation |
A Degree Plan Evaluation will help you determine which classes you need to complete your program.
All of the classes that you have taken that apply to your declared major will be listed on the right. If you have a class that still needs to be completed, a “NO” will be listed on the right next to the required class. |
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HB 2504 | This syllabus is part of LSC-PA’s efforts to comply with Texas House Bill 2504. | ||||||||||||
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