CSPG101: Science & Global Change First Year Colloquium II
Welcome to the Anthropocene: Causes and Impacts of the Climate Crisis
Spring 2021
CCC 1205 Tues. 3:30-4:50 pm Eastern
SGC Website
Course Syllabus Website
Course Schedule Website
Download an pdf file of this syllabus.

INSTRUCTORS:

Dr. Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
Office: Centreville 1216
Phone: 301-405-4084
E-mail: tholtz@umd.edu
Office Hours: Mon 11 am-noon or by appointment 		Dr. John W. Merck, Jr.
Office: Centreville 1218
Phone: 301-405-4379
E-mail: jmerck@umd.edu
Office Hours: Thurs 2-4 pm (Zoom) or by appointment

Undergraduate Teaching Assistant:
Ka'Liyah Burnett
Office: Centreville 1214
Office Hours: Mon 2-3 pm
E-mail: ELMS or kburnet3@terpmail.umd.edu
[Title your email "SGC"]

 Ben Tran
Office: Centreville 1214
Office Hours: Tues 2-3 pm
E-mail: ELMS or tran.sang.ben@gmail.com
[Title your email "SGC"]

NOTE: It is your responsibility as a student to completely read through and understand this syllabus. If you have questions about it, please contact Dr. Holtz or Dr. Merck. You will be held responsible for following all requirements of this syllabus.

COURSE ORGANIZATION: One Colloquium meeting per week; some asynchronous recorded lectures on assorted weeks; one Excursion (required); attendance at the Scholars Academic Showcase (4-5:30 pm, ESJ, Friday May 6) required

REQUIRED READINGS:

Additional online required readings are indicated on the schedule, and available on ELMS. Reading assignments must be done by the class time listed.

Copyright: © 2022 Thomas R. Holtz, Jr. and John W. Merck, Jr. as to this syllabus and all lectures. Students are prohibited from copying and selling course materials, from selling lecture notes, and from being paid to take lecture notes without the express written permission of the faculty teaching this course.

COURSE OBJECTIVES AND PHILOSOPHY: The unintended consequence of the Neolithic and Industrial Revolutions is that human activity has reached the scale of Earth's natural systems. We have entered the Anthropocene, the age when humanity has altered the environment around us. Students will examine how climates operate, and how natural and human factors influence them. They will see the observed impact of recent global changes on the world around us. They will study how communities & infrastructure, food, water & national security, as well as the wildlife on land, sea & air, are challenged by the profound and increasing impact of humanity.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: By the end of the semester, every student should be able to:

GRADES: The numbers given represent the thresholds that must be passed in order to reach that grade (for example, A+ is 97.000... and any number greater). There is no rounding for letter grades; the thresholds must be passed. F is any grade below D-. Thresholds: 97, A+; 93, A; 90, A-; 87, B+; 83, B; 80, B-; 77, C+; 73, C; 70, C-; 67, D+; 63, D; 60, D-; < 60, F.

The Final Grade is the algebraic sum based on the numerical grades.

The One-on-One Scholars Status Interview is given either full points (for completion of the assigned project) or none (for non-completion or disruptive activity). Each general quiz is graded on a 8-point scale (one per correct answer); the final quiz is on a 20-pint scale.

Course grades are calculated by the summed total of the items listed below. The relative percentage of the total grade represented by each is given.

  1. General Quizzes (10%): Five quizzes are given throughout the semester. The lowest quiz grade is automatically dropped: this includes quizzes missed for unexcused absences. Quizzes will be delivered on ELMS.

  2. Final Quiz (5%): A longer quiz, held on the last day of class, also delivered on ELMS. This will cover all the material of the semester, and even draw on concepts earlier in the SGC program.

  3. Discussion Participation (25%): As this is a Scholars Colloquium, all students are expected to attend every Colloquium meeting and be an active participant when appropriate. In some classes, there may be directed interactive activities or discussions. Some meetings will involve small groups. A default grade of 5 will be given for every meeting a student attends. They may be awarded up to 2 more points as extra credit for particularly helpful or effective participation in the meeting. Students who are present for a discussion section but are non-participants or are disruptive may be docked up to 2 and 4 points (respectively) at the instructors's discretion.

    While the expectation is that students attend EVERY Colloquium meeting, it is recognized that occasionally conditions (accident, illness, etc.) arise that prevent such. To recognize that, every student is allowed two (2) absences from these meetings without penalty, so long as they inform the instructors and TAs by email (beforehand if at all possible), or certainly by the end of that same day that they will be/were absent and the reason for that absence. Should you not inform instructors and TAs in a timely fashion, the students will receive a 0 for the grade for the discussion/participation for that day. Additionally, if there are more than two absences the student will receive a 0 for the grade each additional class time missed. (If there is a medical condition or other extraordinary circumstance that does require missing more than 2 class meetings-or missing the date of an individual in-class presentation of some form-the student must provide documentation from the appropriate sort of official (health professional; court official; etc.) explaining the absence.)

  4. Student-Generated Questions (8% total): Every week we will ask you to provide a question, its answer (and in the case of a matching or multiple-choice question, additional incorrect options) from the lecture presented the previous week. Creating your own question is an effective way of better understanding the material. These questions will be made available to all. A selection of these will form part of the discussion in Colloquium and may be used in quizzes.

  5. Homework (10%): There are two individual homework assignments this semester. The first (due February 8) is calculating your individual carbon footprint; the second (due on March 8) is on reconstructing paleoclimates from proxy data. Details about the assignment provided later this semester.

  6. One-on-one Scholars Status Interview (5%): How are you doing at University of Maryland? How are you progressing towards your Scholars citation? In order to help make sure things are going well, and that you are progressing to completion of your SGC citation, we require all students to have a one-on-one interview with Dr. Holtz, Dr. Merck, or the TAs during the middle part of the semester. There will be an online sign-up sheet to register for a particular time slot later in the semester. The interviews will be brief (~15 minutes). More details to come.

  7. "Awareness of Climate Change Impact" Survey (5%): How well does the general public understand the potential impacts of climate change? You're going to find out. Each student will be responsible for obtaining five (5) respondents to a brief survey about the types of impacts global climate change can be (we will provide the survey). The respondents may NOT be current or former Science & Global Change scholars; they may be students from any other Scholars program; non-Scholars; University faculty, staff, or graduate students; family; friends not at University of Maryland; people you only know online; total strangers; etc. By March 29 classtime you must have had responses from five different individual (in other words, you might have to ask more than five in order to get five responses). You will input their responses on ELMS. This data will be examined in Colloquium and be incorporated into the various "Impacts of Climate Change" Team Project videos.

  8. SGC Academic Showcase Report (10%): Later this semester your sophomore colleagues will be presenting the results of their individual research, service-learning, or internship work during the Scholars Academic Showcase. The Academic Showcase will take place on the afternoon of May 6: make sure to attend. You are required to attend the Showcase, and interview at least five (5) of the presenters, at least three (3) of whom must be SGC students and at least one (1) must be from another program. Your report on these short interviews will be part of the grade for this semester but will also give you an idea of some of the experiential learning opportunities afforded by Scholars. (NOTE WELL: Next Spring YOU will be presenting at the Academic Showcase, so observe carefully!! Don't just talk to five sophomores and leave as soon as you can; instead, use this time to survey a large number of these projects so that you get an idea of the possibilities.) The report is due May 10.

  9. Excursion Report (10%): Each student is responsible for attending and reporting on one (1) of several options of extracurricular events. These reports are due as file uploads on ELMS online. The question sheet relevant to specific field trips will be provided in advanced; there are service project forms, as well as an even more generic report form: all will be made available on ELMS. Here are some options of types (and examples) of excursions available this semester; more will be announced in class and on ELMS as the semester progresses.

    NOTE: You may not use the same specific Excursion this semester which you used last semester.

  10. Freshman Time Capsule Reflection Essay (10%): You are now completing your first academic year, and one way or another you have learned much. In some ways, your life here may have bone according to plan and in other ways, it will have been full of surprises. Due on the last day of colloquium, your assignment is in the form of an essay letting next year's incoming students know what to expect (exclusive of the effects of the COVID-19 situation, which hopefully they will not have to face in the same ways you did!)

  11. Portfolio Maintenance (2%): Be certain that your Academic Portfolio is updated (i.e., your current class status, major, age, contact information, etc.); that all links are operational; that all text is properly spelled; that all images and code are used legally; all pages use the same css; etc.

LATE ITEMS: Graded items must be uploaded/posted by the date listed. If there are important extenuating circumstances, discuss this with the faculty & TA as early as possible so that we can make allowances, if we deem it appropriate.

IMPORTANTLY: Any item not turned in by the end of final exam period will be graded as "0", unless special arrangements are made in advance of this date between the student and both faculty. "I forgot to turn it in" or "I was busy with other courses" do not represent "special arrangements"; you must be responsible for your own grade and graded items.

EXPECTATIONS & POLICIES

Attendance in the Colloquium meetings is required. The Scholars Colloquia require you to do more than simply master the information; you must be able to intelligently communicate and discuss the ideas and concepts of the course with your instructor and fellow students.

You should bring the following to every single colloquium meeting:

During class time:

Given the nature of the course and program, participation in colloquium meetings is MANDATORY. It is up to you to make certain that your presence has been recorded for every class.

MASK POLICY: The University has clear expectations about the wearing of masks in classroom situations. KN95 masks over the nose and mouth are required while you are indoors at all times. There are no exceptions. Students not wearing a mask will be given a warning and asked to wear one, or will be asked to leave the classroom immediately. Students who have additional issues with the mask expectation after a first warning will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct for failure to comply with a directive of University officials.

Recording Your Presence: In general, your presence will be recorded based on your picking up of your name stand. It is your responsibility to make certain that you have signed the quiz, project report, or picked up your name stand.

Students observed leaving the colloquium before 4:50 or before it is formally dismissed will be counted absent.

NOTE: We expect students to adhere to proper academic decorum during colloquia. This means focusing your attention on presentations, refraining from conversations or activities that are not relevant (e.g., reading newspapers, doing homework for other classes, etc.), and showing proper respect for student, faculty, and guest presenters. We reserve the right to count you absent from colloquium if you fail to uphold this standard!

Excused Absences: If you have a legitimate reason for being absent, such as a family emergency, unavoidable academic conflict, or other excuse according the University's guidelines, we will usually excuse your absence. However, you must notify us in a timely fashion. Requests for the excusing of an absence will not be considered after two workdays from the absence: please contact us by email! Please use the Excused Absence Report form from https://www.geol.umd.edu/sgc/docs/absence.pdf

If the absence was for a colloquium for which there was no graded activity other than participation (i.e., no quiz, etc.) AND for which this was your first or second absence from colloquium this semester, you may simply complete the Excused Absence form and turn it in. If instead there were a graded activity, AND/OR this was not your first or second absence from colloquium this semester, you will need to provide some form of documentation from an independent source supporting your absence. These include, but are not limited to:

Barring the above, a signed statement by an independent party (for example, your RA if you were ill and the RA is willing to verify that they observed this: feel free to use the back of the Excused Absence form for this)

NOTE WELL: Failure to provide the Excused Absence Form will result in the absence being unexcused, and you will face the appropriate penalties.

Grades and Excused Absences: Even if you miss a class from an excused absence, you are still held responsible for material during that class, included graded assignments such as small group projects. See the faculty about arrangements for a make-up. If the small group project is such that it cannot be done alone, it will not be factored into your grade if you have an excused absence that you informed the faculty about within two workdays from the absence.

Unexcused Absences: All other absences are considered unexcused absence. You may have two unexcused absences that do not directly affect your grade (except for missed small group projects: see below). Each subsequent unexcused absence lowers your final course grade by 10 percentage points.

If you miss a quiz or small group project because of an unexcused absence, you will not be allowed to make it up.

Missing Field Trips: If you are signed up for a field trip but are unable to make it, please email Drs. Holtz & Merck as soon as possible (before the trip, if at all possible). If it is a field trip is one that SGC has to pay for (i.e., the program pays for tickets or transportation) and you miss it without informing us in advance, this will count as an unexcused absence.

Of course, the Colloquium doesn't stop existing outside 3:30-4:50 pm once a week. Every student should be expected to be spending a few hours every week on Colloquium-related materials outside of the classroom. This involves doing the readings, working on homework, watching required videos, filling out surveys, doing excursions, and so forth. You should not expect to be working on this-and indeed, any-course ONLY in the meeting classtime!!

General Policies

The University has provided a page on Academic policies here. Each student is responsible for reviewing this page with regards to issues of Academic Integrity; the Code of Student Conduct; Sexual Misconduct; Discrimination; Accessibility; Attendance, Absences, or Missed Assignments; Student Rights Regarding Undergraduate Courses; Official UMD Communication; Mid-Term Grades; Complaints About Course Final Grades; Copyright and Intellectual Property; Final Exams and Course Evaluations; and Campus Resources.

Laptop/Smartphone/Tablet Use:

You will need to upload documents to ELMS and to your terpconnect.umd.edu webspace, take online quizzes, and occasionally watch online lectures this semester, so please make certain that you have access to appropriate hardware, software, and Internet connections. If you are concerned about your ability to connect remotely for this course, please consult the following information about solutions provided by the Division of Information Technology:

During the Colloquium, please refrain from email, social media, online shopping, streaming videos, and other such communication outside the scope of the colloquium. In other words, please restrict your computer use to the activities of the class.

Communication:

The primary means of communication for this course will be the ELMS Inbox (email) function. In cases of inclement weather or other unexpected emergencies, the University may close. Please consult the University main webpage (http://www.umd.edu) or call 301-405-7669 (SNOW) to confirm such cancellations. Drs. Holtz & Merck will contact students via ELMS in order to inform them concerning delays of due dates for projects to be handed in or for exams: typically, these will be shifted until the next available class date.

Course Evaluations:

CourseEvalUM will be open for students to complete their evaluations during the last two weeks of the semester. Students can access CourseEvalUM through ELMS to complete their evaluations. You will be alerted about these dates and provided more information closer to that time, and students will be alerted via their official University e-mail account.