Policies
Lecture attendance. I expect you to attend every lecture. Without a doubt, your absence will be recorded when you do poorly on exams. You are unlikely to understand my emphasis, which will be the emphasis on the exams, only by reading the book or looking at lecture illustrations. If you must miss a lecture, be sure to get the notes, go through them with a classmate, and ask me questions during office hours. I'm always willing to help you to better understand material.
Laboratory: You are required to attend each 3-hour lab for its duration. I encourage you to work together to examine material and ponder thought questions, but the drawings and writing that make up your notebook should be your own. There will be no opportunity for make-up labs. You may hand in your lab worksheets at the end of the lab or at the start of the following lecture.
Exam prep. You will be tested on lecture material, reading material, and laboratory material. See the Exams link at the website for more detailed information about how to prepare. You should always, for example, know the taxonomy to the level listed at the top of each handout, both for lecture and lab material. I encourage you to study in groups—you will learn more if you quiz each other to test the depth of your understanding of terms and concepts.
Disabilities. Any student with a documented disability who has been approved to receive accommodations through SNAP please feel free to discuss this with me during office hours.
Missing an exam. You may be excused from taking an exam at the scheduled time only for a true medical emergency suffered on the day of the exam. Other legitimate, unavoidable conflicts (e.g., med school interviews) must be approved by me well in advance. Make-ups may be given, if I choose, within a day or so earlier or later than the scheduled time.
Regrade policy: Any request for regrading of an exam answer must be done in writing. I will have a second grader regrade the question without considering the original score. This process might actually lower your score, so be confident of your request.
Late assignments. Assignments are due at the date and time indicated. Assignments handed in past the deadline date and time without prior approval will have approximately 10% per day deducted.
Academic misconduct related to exams, laboratory worksheets, or writing assignments will not be tolerated. The honor code requires that I turn over to the honor court any suspected violations. Be absolutely sure you understand violations of the honor code, including both obvious and subtle points of plagiarism, as described at the writing assignments link at the course website.
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