Physical Geology Lab Policies

Laboratory Class Policies

GOL 105 is an introductory course that focuses on the physical, chemical and biological processes that continuously transform the surface of our home planet. After completing the course, students should be familiar with the cycles of energy and material that occur on Earth and be able to identify common minerals, rocks and landforms. There are no prerequisites for enrollment.


lab meetings	11:00 am to 1:50 pm, Tuesdays, Bisdorf 391.
cancellation	Official college closures are announced on the NOVA home page and at 703-323-3770 (or at 703-330-3770 in Prince William County). If inclement weather, or any other emergency, causes cancellation of a lab meeting, you must arrange with me to complete the missed exercise before Friday, December 16.
attendance	Attendance will be taken at every lab meeting. Any student who has accumulated three absences will be withdrawn immediately.
electronic devices	You must obtain my prior permission before using any electronic device during lab meetings.
lab reports	For each lab, a written report must be submitted to obtain credit.
lab tests	There are two lab tests—one is a mineral identification test and the other is a rock identification test. If you miss a lab test and do not arrange for a makeup within one week, you will receive a zero for the test. There is no lab final exam.
field trip	During the course of the semester, you must make a self-guided visit to the Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution and answer a set of questions concerning geological exhibits there. The report is due Monday, December 5, at 6pm. In place of the Smithsonian trip, you may arrange with me to participate in one of my GOL 135 field trips.
lab grade	There are four components of the lab grade. The two identification tests each account for 15% of the total. The field trip report represents 20%. Each of the ten lab exercises represents 5%, accounting for the remaining half of the grade. The lab grade is 40% of your total grade for GOL 105. (The other 60% is the lecture grade.)
misbehavior	Behavior that disrupts a lab meeting will not be tolerated. On the first occasion of such behavior, I will ask you to leave. On the second occasion, I will expell you from GOL 105 with a grade of "F".
cheating	The lab tests and field trip report are *not* group activities. Each must by completed by the individual student working alone. I reserve the right to penalize anyone that I catch cheating. The minimum penalty is a zero grade for the test or report. The maximum is expulsion from the lab with a lab grade of zero.