CHEM-342 INTRODUCTION TO BIOCHEMISTRY SYLLABUS - SPRING 2011 On-line at: http://www.udel.edu/chem/white/C342/342-SyllabusS11.html Table of Contents Administrative Information About the Instructor …….…….……………………………….……………………… page 1 Meeting Time and Place ...……………………………………....…………………... ...…...2 Prerequisites ……………………………...…………………………..…….………………..2 Course Reader and Text ………………...………...……………...……………...……………2 Classroom Resources …………………………………………………..…….……………...2 Grading ………………………………………………….……...…………………………...2 Important General Information Brief Course Description …………………………………………..……………………..2 Course Objectives and Content …………………………………..………………………3 Pedagogy and Philosophy of PBL ………………………………..………………………4 Group Formation and Function …………………………………..………………………5 Tutor-Facilitators …………………………………………………..……………………..6 Assignments Reading Assignments …………………………………………………………………….7 Writing Assignments …………………………………………………………………….7 Academic Honesty …………………………………………………………………….……..7 Examinations …………………………………………………………………………….8 Course Evaluation ………………………………………………………………………..8 Distinguished Visitors ……………………………………………………….………………9 Administrative Information Instructor: Prof. Harold B. White Office: 203 Brown Laboratory Phone: 831-2908 (w), 737-7988 (h) E-mail: halwhite [at] udel [dot] edu Office Hours: Normally, the hour after class will be available for office hours; however, you should feel free to contact me by phone or e-mail or to stop by my office at other times. If I do not have pressing business, I will be happy to meet on the spur of the moment. Please note that I do not do e-mail at home, so messages sent in the evening or on weekends likely will not be answered until the next working day.CHEM-342 Syllabus Spring 2011 Page 2 Meeting Time and Place: 8:00 - 8:50, MWF in 205 Brown Laboratory. Normally, important announcements are made at the beginning of class, so don't be late. Similarly, homework is due at the beginning of class. The tentative course schedule is available on line and will be updated regularly as necessary through the semester. Prerequisite: CHEM-331 or CHEM-321, Organic Chemistry or equivalent. Completion of or concurrent registration in introductory biology, physics, and calculus courses is assumed. Course Reader and Texts: The Course Reader, which contains photocopies of all articles used in the course as well as some supplementary materials, is required. It and a three-ring, 2-inch loose-leaf binder to contain it can be purchased at the University Bookstore. The textbook for CHEM-641 & 643 is a useful optional, but highly recommended, reference book in CHEM-342, Introduction to Biochemistry. All students should have and use a good collegiate dictionary or be willing to make frequent use of Wikipedia. (There will be a variety of biochemistry texts available for loan during the course.) In addition, textbooks from introductory/prerequisite biology, chemistry, physics, and math courses come in handy for reviewing a variety of topics encountered in Introduction to Biochemistry, i.e. don't sell them. Classroom Resources: A variety of biochemistry textbooks and other books will be available for loan from the course's classroom library. Grading: There will be two examinations (midterm 20% and comprehensive final 30%). Individual and group assignments will constitute 40% of the final grade, of that 15% is a major individual writing assignment due the last Friday of the semester. Attendance, Preparation, Participation, and Attitude (APPA) are worth 10%. Unexcused absences and tardiness will detract from your final grade. Attendance is monitored. The comprehensive final will be administered during finals week. The midterm is scheduled in two parts for Wednesday and Friday before Spring Break. Grading will not be on a curve. If every student does excellent work, everyone will get an A in this class. (The converse is also true.) Important General Information Brief Course Description: This course uses series of 8 to 10 classic research articles on hemoglobin and sickle cell anemia to introduce sophomore biochemistry majors to the discipline of biochemistry. The course and its problem-based learning (PBL) format are non-traditional. Each article constitutes a rich multidisciplinary problem from which students identify and pursue those topics (learning issues) they need to learn or review outside of class in order to understand the article as a whole. Most classes are devoted to discussions of various learning issues within permanent groups of 4-5 students facilitated by a peer tutor-facilitator who has previously taken the course. Brief descriptions of the historical context of each article and follow-up lists of instructor-generated learning issues provide the intellectual continuity and assure that students address the major issues. These issues include topics relating to ethics in the conduct of science, philosophy of science, and experimental design inCHEM-342 Syllabus Spring 2011 Page 3 addition to issues of biochemical content and history. This course is not a survey course. Midterm and final essay examinations involve both individual and group assessments. Old exam files may be accessed from the course home page. Course Objectives and Content: The ability to evaluate information within conceptual frameworks distinguishes practicing scientists from most undergraduate science majors. Through formal education and practical experience, biochemists come to "see" and interpret biological phenomena in molecular terms. A major objective of CHEM-342 is to