INTRODUCTION TO PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY -- GEOGRAPHY 010

INDEX

Procedures: Please read this document carefully and refer to it throughout the semester. It contains important information about course policies and structure.

Basic Information

 index . 

About Physical Geography

Physical geography uses a geographers perspective to study the earth's surface and the forces that shape it. That means we will look at the distribution of features across the surface of the earth and look for patterns in that distribution. Because of the subject matter and the geographer's particular interest, the course will cover topics in geology and climatology as well as the scientific approach to asking and answering questions about our world.

For example, have you ever wondered why some winter storms bring rain, others ice or snow? Or have you seen pictures of the California coast with the mountains that come right down to the ocean and wondered why it is so different from the Jersey Shore? Or maybe it was a National Geographic special that made you wonder why eastern South America has rain forest near its equator but eastern Africa has the great savannahs of the Serengeti. These are the kinds of questions that physical geographers ask and try to answer, and they are the kinds questions that are the focus of this course.

index . 

COURSE PROCEDURES

The course consists of two weekly lectures and a two hour lab. Most lectures will be organized around a question or questions that a geographer might ask. The information needed to answer the question including scientific principles and the basic data will be presented so that we can begin to find answers and to find new and more difficult questions that need to be answered as well.

Lab periods will be devoted to learning skills a geographer needs and to developing your ability to analyze data. Labs are a very important part of the class and your preparation and active participation in them will greatly increase your chances of success in the class.

index . 

Reading

I expect students to read the text for background information before each lecture and will assume that you are already familiar with certain terms and information so that I do not need to spend class time covering that material. Because learning science involves learning the language of the scientist, it is very important that you have exposure to geographic jargon and ideas before lecture. Otherwise, you are likely to miss important ideas and information. Please come prepared.

Each lecture is accompanied by an introduction, an outline, and review questions that are available on the internet ( Lecture schedule) . Again these will be most useful if you access them before the lecture and have used them to help guide your reading and preparation.

index . 

Grading

Please read the following description of grading procedures carefully and ask questions if you do not understand the method.

Grades will be based on weekly quizzes that give the student an opportunity to demonstrate mastery of material covered, a mid-semester project comparing the climate of some area of the world with the climate of Philadelphia, and a final presentation in which students will describe and explain a landform found in a National Park.  Quizzes will be graded as excellent (A - 4), very good (B - 3) or satisfactory (C - 2). There are two possible unsatisfactory grades  -- partial understanding (D - 1) and very poor (F - 0). Each quiz will be of equal weight. The climate project will count as two quizzes and the final presentation will be weighted as the equivalent of four quizzes. A student's final grade will be the average of all assignments computed as a grade-point average.  The grade-point average can be converted to a percentage using the formula: % = (Average - 1) *12.5 +60.
    If a student's participation has been exceptional, I may raise his or her grade as much as 1 percent if that changes the recorded letter grade.  Participation is the only possible form of "extra credit" considered.  In all other cases, grades will be based entirely on the average grade earned by the student and will not be round up.

An improved demonstration of mastery will be allowed on quizzes taken before March 1, 05  if the additional work is completed within two weeks of the original quiz. To demonstrate improved understanding, the student must submit a correction of the original with typed corrected answers stapled to the original quiz.  Students must then schedule a meeting with the instructor to discuss information covered in the quiz to ensure that mastery has been achieved.  Students are urged to contact the instructor for suggestions on how best to improve an assignment or response before resubmission of the corrected work.  The highest grade on a make-up assignment will be an A if the original grade was a B or C.  D and F grades can be raised one letter grade.  The March 1 deadline for correcting quizzes is based on the assumption that by then you will have a good understanding of my expectations and methods of assessment.  You should also have a good idea by then what you need to do to be successful.  If you don't think you can succeed, then you should withdraw from the course.

Make-up work necessary because of lateness or absence will be handled as above.  Documentation of excused absences should be stapled to the completed quiz that is done as make-up.  Make-up of unexcused absences are also allowed, but the highest possible grade will be a C.

Note: An "A" grade is reserved for student work that demonstrates an understanding of the concept or concepts being assessed, that uses those concepts to infer new information, and that communicates the knowledge and analysis clearly.  Poorly written answers with misspellings and (or) grammatical mistakes cannot be considered A work.

index . 

Attendance

Attendance at lectures and labs is your responsibility. However, recognize that grades are strongly correlated with attendance. This will be especially true for this course since tests will stress the material covered in class. 

Late arrival causing a student to miss all or part of an exam or quiz will be treated as an absence.

index . 

Intellectual Integrity

I will expect all students to follow university policy   regarding intellectual integrity. I also expect all students to represent as their work only the work that they themselves do. I understand that group work requires sharing ideas and effort, however, when you sign a completed assignment as your work, it implies that you, as an individual, have made a significant contribution to the completion of the exercise.

Students should also ask themselves about the hidden costs of academic dishonesty. We read that cheating is rampant and that cheaters rarely pay a price for their activity. I think that this is not true. First the most important lessons you will learn in college are not those that are taught in the classroom. More important will be your learning and growth as an individual. If you decide to reduce yourself by cheating, your growth will be less. Second, real education demands trust between student and teacher. If that trust is loss, do not expect a teacher to give as fully of himself as he would for a student he respects. And, finally ask yourself what it is you hope to gain from the four years and thousands of dollars you are spending to complete your degree. If it is simply a piece of paper, then you are wasting your time. You must have more important goals, dreams of who you want to be and what you want to do when you are finished. The diploma will not make you successful, that depends on who you are and how committed you are to developing every bit of your potential. Cheating can only interfere.

index . 

General Comments

My experience has been that many students feel that their success or failure in a class is pre-ordained. "I'm not good at science." is a commonly heard statement. That is hogwash. It may be that you haven't learned the tools needed to do science well or it may be that you haven't liked science and, therefore, have not applied yourself to your science courses, but it is not because there is some part of your brain missing that prevents you from being able to think scientifically. If you can think, then you can do science. If you can read, then you can read about science and understand it. If you feel that science is hard for you, then that doesn't mean that you aren't " GOOD" at it, it only means that you have to work hard to achieve success.

During this course, I will try to teach the tools of science. It is up to you to learn how to use them. If you want to succeed then you have to do the work. Learning requires your active participation. Read the assignments, study the notes from class, look carefully at the slides and videos, think, and ask questions. Answer questions. It doesn't really matter if your answer is right or wrong (except to your pride) but being involved in the class and trying to answer the question will make you a more successful learner.

I would like for every student in the class to earn an A. That would be the ideal teaching experience because it would mean that every student has made a commitment to learning and that I have made the information accessible to all students. But, let me warn you now. This course is not easy. If you don't want to commit to learning now, I would suggest you choose another course while you have a chance.

index .