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Moodle

During the semester we will announce appropriate general audience seminars or lectures dealing with biology or the environment. You may attend one or more of these seminars and write a summary and critical analysis of the speech. Please note the section on seminar etiquette and read the requirements of the project before you attend a seminar.

Seminar Etiquette:

• Arrive early. Seating may be limited.

• Stay late. The most interesting part of a seminar like this is usually the question and answer session at the end. Allow about an hour and a half for the seminar and Q & A period.

• Do not leave during the seminar. If you do not have time to attend the entire seminar AND the question and answer session don't try to do this project. Not only will you not get the whole story, it is just plain rude to get up and walk out. You may not receive credit for the project if you leave early.

Requirements:

1. Contact the virtual TA via Moodle and indicate your interest in the project.

2. This project involves posting reviews in the Speech/Seminar forum in Moodle. See the directions in sections 4-8 below.

3. You are required to turn in a printed portfolio of your work for evaluation by the virtual TA. See the Portfolios page for due dates and instructions for the preparation of your extra credit portfolio.

4. Attend the entire lecture and the following Q & A period.

5. Take notes and turn in a photocopy of your notes as part of your project in your printed portfolio.

6. Write a summary and critique of the talk (The equivalent of at least three double spaced, 12 point, typed pages - about 1,000 words).

Adhere to the Policy of Academic Integrity in Biology 100/101

Include these components in your summary and Critique:

the major points of the presentation

explain connections to concepts or issues you have heard about in Biology 100/101

supporting and/or conflicting views from at least two articles from scientific journals, the popular press, or the world wide web that deal with the issues addressed by the speaker (this could be from a professional journal, Scientific American, National Geographic, a news magazine, or anywhere).

cite your references in the body of your paper and include an explanation of their relevance to the speaker's thesis or your critique of the speakers thesis.

a critique of the presenter's point of view and success in supporting the main points of the presentation.

Include references to the speech and the articles you used in a bibliography at the end of your analysis.

Include working links to web sites used as references for your review and critical analysis.

7. Post your critical analysis in the Speech/Seminar forum in Moodle.

8. Dialog Entries are not required for this project.

Credit:

• You may earn two extra percentage point per Speech-Seminar project.

• You DO NOT need to include dialog entries for your Speech-Seminar project.

• A rubric will be used to evaluate and assign credit to your project reports.

• Extra credit is added at the end of the semester as percentage points on top of the course grade you have earned.

• Extra Credit for the course is variable depending on your level of participation. It will be based on the number of your project entries through the final due date of your portfolio and your active interaction in other student's extra credit projects via dialog entries. Maximum extra credit for all projects in the semester is 6%. You may complete a variety of different projects during the semester.