School of Earth and Environmental Sciences
Environmental Science 111: Introduction to Environmental Science
Summer Session 2L 2009
Classroom: Mon/Wed 6:00-9:15pm, Room 1804, Murphy Institute
Lab: Sat 9:00am-3:00pm, D-231/235 Science Building, Queens College

Syllabus (pdf version)

Course schedule, reading assignments, homework, etc...

Instructor:      Kimmy Szeto
Office:             Queens College New Science Building D-211
Email:             kimmy.szeto@qc.cuny.edu
Office Hours: Mon for 30 minutes after class, Sat 8:30-9:00am and by appointment

Textbook:       Required:Stewart, Robert. Environmental Science in the 21st Century. Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas: 2009. Freely available at http://oceanworld.tamu.edu/resources/environment-book/contents.html

                        Required: Zheng, Yan. Environmental Science 111 Laboratory Manual, 7th ed. Queens College, New York: 2009. Distributed on the first day of classes.

                        Optional, not required: Botkin, Daniel B. and Keller, Edward A. Environmental Science: Earth as a Living Planet, 7th edition. Wiley, Hoboken, NJ: 2009. 

Attendance:    Be present and be punctual. Much of the learning takes place in classroom discussions and in the lab. There are no excused absences for any classroom or lab sessions. If you miss a class, it is your responsibility to ask your classmates about what you missed. There are no make-ups for labs.

Readings:       Reading is your most important homework for this class. Read the chapter and articles indicated in the course schedule before the class meeting, and be prepared to contribute to class discussions. You are responsible for obtaining the reading materials.

Essays:       Each week, you will write a response essay on one article in the reading assignment. The essay should be no longer than one page, and should include (1) a summary of the major points made in the article, and (2) your opinion one or two of these points.

Lab Reports: Lab reports are due at the beginning of the next Monday classroom session. A complete lab report should be typed, should address all the questions in the lab manual, and should consist of these sections: purpose, methods, results, and conclusion. Late work will be marked down by 5% per calendar day past the due date.

Quizzes:          Quizzes are given at the beginning of each Wednesday classroom session. Questions are based on the week’s reading. There are no make-ups for quizzes.

Exams:            The final exam will include all materials covered in the course (classroom and lab). There is no make-up for the final exam. The final exam may be taken early with prior arrangement made at least one week before the scheduled exam date.

Grading:        
Lab Reports    40%
Essays           20%    
Quizzes           20%    
Final Exam      15%    
Participation    5%

Course schedule, reading assignments, homework, etc...