Chemistry 119 - January 2005 A Matter of the Environment

Required Materials

• American Chemical Society, Chemistry in Context, 4th Ed(ISBN: 0-07-241015-9, available at Bookstore)
• Braungart & McDonough, Cradle to Cradle, (ISBN: 0-86547-587-3, available at Bookstore)
• OPTIONAL Berge, Bjorn The Ecololgy of Building Materials, (ISBN: 0-7506-5450-3, available at Bookstore)
• Scientific Calculator

Quizzes and Exams
As the class calendar shows, there is one exam scheduled for the term. Occassionally, surprise quizzes may be used as a way to document attendance and entice you to keep current in your study of the material. Quiz points will be added to the total points possible for the term. If for any reason (illness or family emergency) you are unable to take a quiz or an exam at the scheduled time, I must know prior to class. I have voice messaging in my office, or you can call the chemistry department office (Karen Renneke, x3104), or you can e-mail me at jackson. If none of these options work, you can contact the Dean of Students office x3615.
 

Assignments
The calendar shows the due dates of specific assignments, while others will be assigned as the course develops.  Any assigned drill/problem exercises will be due at the beginning of each class period. Late assignments will not be accepted, except in cases of lengthy illness or family emergencies. Your assignments must be written on loose leaf (not spiral bound) standard size paper. Multiple pages must be stapled (not paper clipped, not folded, not taped, etc.) together. Assignments must be readable and organized. If these guidelines are not followed, the assignments will not be accepted. CIC based assignments will be graded on the following ten point scale:

Completemeans that all problems were attempted; masteredmeans your approach to the problems was both effective and clear to the grader. Most of the problems assigned will be from the textbook (and some answers are in the back of the book); occassionally there will be others handed out or distributed via the web. You will not receive any credit unless you show your work. This includes carefully laying out all steps for any problems that require calculations, showing ALL units, and giving a rationale for any problems that do not involve calculations. I encourage you to work together on the assignments.

Grading
The grading scale is based on adjustable percentages; I don't believe a curve is appropriate. By the term adjustableI mean that I may lower the A-B and B-C cutoffs a few points in order to give more A's and B's, but I will not raise cutoffs as might happen if grades are curved. Compete with yourself, not others in the class. It has been my experience that studying together, in groups, will help you earn the grade you want. Points and grades in the course will be distributed as outlined below:

If you have a learning disability or other issues of which I should be aware please schedule an appointment with me as soon as possible.

E-mail and Web Sites
Our e-mail alias is chem-119. Use it respectfully. Periodically you will receive e-mail from me, or others in the class. Note: if you reply "to all recipients" then your message will be sent to everyone in your section. For general course information, always check out http://www.stolaf.edu/people/jackson/08-119/ You will find information regarding the syllabus, schedules, homework assignments, and other information. I will try to keep the site updated and expanded as we go.

The information listed on the course web site, in the syllabus, and in associated documents is subject to change at the discretion of the instructor.

Page last modified on 3 January 2005 by Paul T. Jackson

Disclaimer