Northern Virginia Community College
Extended Learning Institute
BIO 102  General Biology II
Course Information
Mary Wise, Instructor for Bio 102
Betty King, Instructor for Bio 102

Welcome

Welcome to the Biology 102 course taught through the Extended Learning Institute. This page will provide you with information on how to contact the instructors and general information about the Biology 102 course as well as a brief overview of the assignments. You will receive a syllabus in the mail from ELI which will provide you with essential information about how to get started in the course.

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 How to Contact Your Instructors

      Mrs. Wise - Bio 102 - Section E87A:
       At ELI: (703) 323-3347.
                  (703) 845-6349, Ext. 17341
       Via email at mwise@nvcc.edu

   Dr. King - Bio 102 - Section E86A:
        At the Alexandria Campus: (703) 845-6517.  Please leave a message if I am unavailable. I will return your call.
        Via email at bking@nvcc.edu

Office Hours at ELI for Fall Semester, 2005:

Wise:   Wednesday 3:30 – 5:30 pm
King:    Monday and Wednesday, 2:30 – 4:30 pm. Office hours will be held on the Alexandria campus

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Course Description

Biology 102 is the second semester of a two-semester sequence and Biology 101 is a prerequisite for Biology 102. Biology 101 explores fundamental characteristics of living material from the  molecular to the cellular level. Biology 102  examines the whole organism and the ecosystem levels. It also examines the structure and function of a variety of organisms, both plant and animal, and makes some comparisons of the evolutionary relationships of various organisms with emphasis on general biological principles and their applications to everyday life and general health.

The ELI Biology 102 requires on-campus attendance for one lab at the Alexandria campus of NVCC. The remaining labs are performed by the student outside of a formal lab setting. This may include the home, a zoo, and various outdoor environments, most to be selected by the student. About one third of the lab work is made up of an investigative lab in which the individual student plans, organizes, and carries out an experiment, and writes a scientific laboratory report on the work. Further information and suggestions can be found in the ELI Study Guide/Lab Manual or by getting in contact with me via telephone or e-mail. Each student will also perform a community service project as one part of the lab.

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Course Objectives

When you have successfully completed this course, you will be able to:

·  Describe the levels of organization of multicellular organisms.

·  Describe the structure and functions of the major organ systems in animals.

·  Describe the evolutionary development of the major organ systems in animals.

·  Describe the mechanisms, principles and processes involved in the maintenance of homeostasis in animals.

·  Describe the main features of animal development.

·  Describe the relationship between structure and function in plants.

·  Describe the regulation of growth and development in plants.

·  Relate the basic principles of ecology to the diversity and distribution of organisms on the earth.

·  Outline the main principles governing ecosystems and describe how the activities of humans affect ecosystems.

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Required Textbooks

  1. Erdahl & Wise. ELI General Biology Study Guide and Lab Manual, 3rd ed., Pearson Press, 2003.
  2. Campbell, Reece, Mitchell, & Taylor. Biology, Concepts & Connections, 4th ed., Redwood City, CA, Benjamin Cummings Publishing Co., 2003 OR Campbell, Mitchell, & Reece, 3rd ed., 2000.

The course materials are available at the campus bookstores or they can be ordered by mail. Textbook mail order information is enclosed with the course materials sent to the student at registration. If you are going to purchase books by mail,  it should be done immediately since it may take several days for the books to reach you.  If you are going to go to a bookstore to purchase the books, it is wise to call ahead to confirm that the books are in stock. Also, it is advisable to take your Syllabus with you when purchasing your textbooks and Study Guide/Lab Manual, so you can be sure to get the right books for your course.

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How to Begin

In order to get started on Biology 102, you must have 1) the ELI General Biology Study Guide and Laboratory Manual by Wise and Erdahl and 2) the textbook, Biology, Concepts & Connections by Campbell, Mitchell, and Reese. All assignments and other information that you require are found at this web site.  The textbooks are the same ones used in the ELI Biology 101 course; if you do not already have them, you must purchase them before you can begin the work for this course. See the Required Textbooks section for how to purchase them.

The Study Guide/Lab Manual contains the specific learning objectives for each part of the course. The Lab Manual portion of the book contains the lab exercises which you will perform. You will make one visit to the Alexandria campus of NVCC in order to perform two labs and you will do the remaining laboratory work at home or in the field. Explanations and practice exercises in the Study Guide and the reading material in the Campbell text will aid you in mastering the objectives. Specific assignments and all other required information, including  the directions for completing and submitting your completed assignments to me and taking exams are available at this web site.

You should do the assignments in the weekly order suggested. Most of the lab exercises assume that you have completed the text assignments and that you are familiar with the terminology needed to complete the lab. However, if you are unable to attend the campus lab until later in your enrollment, you should go on to the other labs and come back to the campus lab when it fits into your schedule.

You will use your local newspapers or popular magazines to select and review articles which your study of topics in Biology will help you appreciate and critique. It is advised that these be done while you are working on the particular section which the article covers.

There are four exams in Biology 102, one at the end of each section. There are practice tests online, with feedback, at the Blackboard site. There are further practice questions available to help you determine whether you are prepared for the exam. You will find links to these from the Weekly Assignments page. While it is helpful, it is not absolutely essential for you to complete the labs assigned for each section before taking the exam for that section. Note that the last exam is not a comprehensive exam.
 

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Grading Scale, Withdrawing, Incomplete Grades

Assignment

Possible Points

Percentage of Grade

Introductory Letter

20

2%

4 Newspaper or Magazine 

Articles and Review (20 pts. ea.)*

80

8%

1 Descriptive paper

100

10%

4 Exams (125 pts. ea.)

500

50% (12.5% ea.)

10 Laboratory Assignments

 

 

7 at 20 pts. each**

120 maximum

12%

1 at 30 pts.

30

3%

1 at 40 pts. (Lab Report)

40

4%

1 Investigative Lab

110

11%

Total

1000 points

100%

* You may do an optional fifth news article review to earn up to 20 extra points.

** Your lowest grade will be dropped or you may elect to omit one of these labs. However, Labs 3, 5, and 8 are not optional--you MUST do these labs.

Keep a personal record of all your grades as they are returned to you so that you will know at all times where you stand in the course. For BIO 102, you must pass two out of the 4 exams in order to pass the course, regardless of how well you do on the other assignments.

Final grades will be based on this scale:

A = 90 - 100% = 900 to 1000 points

B = 80 - 89% = 800 to 899 points 

C = 70 - 79% = 700 to 799 points 

D = 60 - 69% = 600 to 699 points 

F = Below 60% = Fewer than 600 points 

Self-initiated Withdrawal: If you wish to withdraw from this course, you should fax a completed Refund and Withdrawal form to Registration at (703) 323-3392 or mail the form to the Extended Learning Institute,
Attention: Bio 102, Northern Virginia Community College, 8333 Little River Turnpike, Annandale, Virginia 22003-3796.

Instructor Initiated Withdrawal:  Pay close attention to your Withdraw date: If you do not complete and submit your Introductory letter, News Article 1, Labs 1 and 2, and Exam 1 by your withdraw date, your instructor will withdraw you from this course. Your grade will be a W.

If you are receiving financial aid, course withdrawal or a grade of F may impact your status. Please contact the Financial Aid Office for further information.

Incomplete Grade: To request a grade of Incomplete for Biology 102, you must have satisfactorily completed half of the course work. This means that you must have completed two of the News Articles, the Research/Term Paper, two exams (with a passing grade), and five labs in order to be eligible for an Incomplete. The Incomplete is only given at the discretion of your instructor.

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