General College Curriculum Goals

Course Number: 1133

Credits: 3

Diversified Core: Science

Designated Theme: None

Writing Intensive: No

Completed by: Jay T. Hatch

Date completed: 6 February 1999

A. Develop academic skills (i.e., processes involved with both acquiring and demonstrating knowledge) and successfully apply them to college-level coursework

Curricular Goals	Course Goals	Learning Activities
1. Students will read college-level texts.	1. you will read and appreciate the difference between popular scientific articles (secondary sources) and formal scientific articles (primary sources) 2. you will be able to use popular keys and field guides to identify to family, genus or species selected common plants and animals of the Twin Cities	1. there are no texts for this course but students read published articles from scientific and popular journals 2. they learn how to use a variety of popular keys and field guides for identification of local plants and animals
2. Students will understand lecture material.	none explicitly stated	1. this is an experiential learning course with very little lecture 2. students observe, question and identify
3. Students will participate in classroom discussions.	none explicitly stated	1. students work in groups of 2-3 in the lab or in the field; they work collaboratively to question, challenge and resolve
4. Students will write a variety of documents.	1. you will learn how to make appropriate field journal notes in your field notebook 2. you will learn how to make a detailed, descriptive field journal entry from your field notebook 3. you will find and use primary and secondary natural history references for any given Twin Cities animal species and write a life history summary with acceptable scientific citations for each reference	1. explicit instruction in the form and content of field notes based on field excursions 2. models of field journal entries and practice making entries--feedback given then students write again 3. write a 4-5 page summary of the life history of a Minnesota plant or animal based on library research
5. Students will understand quantitative problems.	no quantitative solutions in this course
6. Students will be able to use a computer.	none explicitly stated	1. students use the Web to access information about plants and animals that form the subject of this course 2. encouraged (but not yet required) to submit life history summary electronically
7. Students are willing to receive information and respond to it.	this is the essence of the course 1. you will make a variety of useful field observations and interpret them	1. detailed observation and its interpretation is modeled and practiced every week
8. Students develop values, organize them into systems, and apply those systems to their private and public lives.	none explicitly stated	1. through experiences, students develop a set of values regarding nature 2. they develop a sense of where their thoughts and actions place them within or outside of the rest of nature
9. Other.

B. Build and use a foundation of general knowledge in the discipline

Curricular Goals	Course Goals	Learning Activities
10. Appreciate the discipline as a valuable area of knowledge.	1. you will discover the importance of knowing about and understanding your natural surroundings	1. make observations of and interpretations about the majors plant and animal species of the Twin Cities area
11. Identify and describe issues or problems in the discipline.	1. you will characterize a variety of habitat types in the Twin Cities area, know where to find them and what common plants and animals are likely to occur there 2. you will be able to describe the basic life cycle or an example life cycle for conifers, flowering plants, and birds	1. we visit habitats in the Twin Cities and intensely study their characteristics critically comparing them to descriptions in guides and keys 2. we study basic life cycle models during the first 3 weeks and then apply them to the creatures we encounter during the remainder of the course
12. Analyze and reflect upon issues or problems in the discipline.	none explicitly stated
13. Solve issues or problems in the discipline.	1. you will be able to identify without the aid of keys or guides a small, selected number of Twin Cities trees, wildflowers and birds 2. you will be able to use popular keys and field guides to identify to family, genus or species selected common plants and animals of the Twin Cities	1. we use deduction and the process of elimination to identify creatures and to interpret plant and animal sign
14. Think creatively.	none explicitly stated	1. we practice looking for clues and using deduction to identify living creatures and their sign
15. Other.

C. Demonstrate greater awareness of and respect for individual, cultural, ethnic, and religious differences

Curricular Goals	Course Goals	Learning Activities
16. Awareness and respect for diversity in terms of content.	in part this is a course in how to deal with overwhelming diversity 1. you will characterize a variety of habitat types in the Twin Cities area, know where to find them and what common plants and animals are likely to occur there	1. the experiences of observing nature very closely leads most students to a greatly increased awareness of the world around them 2. some come away with an increased respect for life
17. Awareness and respect for diversity in terms of process.	1. you will be able to describe the basic life cycle or an example life cycle for conifers, flowering plants, and birds	1. we learn life cycles of different major groups; apply variants of them repeatedly in the field
18. Other.

D. Develop attitudes and behaviors that are associated with success in college

Curricular Goals	Course Goals	Learning Activities
19. Class participation.	this is an experiential learning class, you must be present to learn	1. all hands on experience; more than 2 absences results in no credit for course
20. Use of learning resources.	1. you will be able to use popular keys and field guides to identify to family, genus or species selected common plants and animals of the Twin Cities 2. you will be able to use libraries to find information about local plants and animals	1. we use the keys and guides that student choose to use 2. students write a life history summary based on library research
21. Task completion.	none explicitly stated	1. late assignments, unless U-approved absence, are accepted for reduced grade
22. Appropriate interaction with peers, faculty, and staff on academic issues.	none explicitly stated	1. students work in groups of 2-3 in a collaborative learning approach
23. Understand themselves better as learners.	none explicitly stated
24. Evaluate their own strengths, limitations, and interests.	none explicitly stated
25. Set attainable academic and career goals.	none explicitly stated
26. Time management.	none explicitly stated	1. students are encouraged to lay out a time line for the course during week 1--noting the deadlines for the various assignments
27. Test taking.
28. Library skills.	1. you will find and use primary and secondary natural history references for any given Twin Cities animal species and write a life history summary with acceptable scientific citations for each reference	1. the life history summary note above
29. Condensing and summarizing.	included in #28	1. the life history summary note above
30. Techniques for organizing knowledge.	none explicitly stated	1. dichotomous keys are used extensively 2. familiarization with modern taxonomic classification
31. Familiarity with different learning strategies.	none explicitly stated
32. Awareness of personal learning styles.	none explicitly stated
33. Other.