Course Policy
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General Policies
Bi8 is a course that you take because you want to do so – either because you are really interested in the subject for your own curiosity, or because you have chosen a biology-intensive major as your option. No one has to take Bi8. We therefore consider all of you to be scientists in training and will try to provide assignments and feedback that help you gain all the skills and knowledge you will need to follow your own desire.
You are expected to come to all the lectures and to the meetings of your section. Participation will be counted as part of the grade,up to 5%. People who contribute strongly in class and sections will also get special consideration if their cumulative grade falls on a borderline. Nonparticipation and nonattendance will definitely tilt the balance against you if your grade is on the borderline.
You’re expected to know everything about the course that is announced or discussed in lecture, whether or not it’s included in lecture outlines that are posted on the class web site. The textbook is useful for reference and for some reading during the class, but much of the material in the course will come from other sources and be organized according to the lectures rather than the book.
You are expected to speak up in class.
This class isn’t for people who will spend their lives “in the audience”. It’s for people who want to become leaders. You cannot have a significant career in science if you are too shy to ask questions, answer questions, or help to frame the subject with your own interest and curiosity.
You are expected to come to all the lectures and to the meetings of your section. Participation will be counted as part of the grade,up to 5%. People who contribute strongly in class and sections will also get special consideration if their cumulative grade falls on a borderline. Nonparticipation and nonattendance will definitely tilt the balance against you if your grade is on the borderline.
You’re expected to know everything about the course that is announced or discussed in lecture, whether or not it’s included in lecture outlines that are posted on the class web site. The textbook is useful for reference and for some reading during the class, but much of the material in the course will come from other sources and be organized according to the lectures rather than the book.
You are expected to speak up in class.
This class isn’t for people who will spend their lives “in the audience”. It’s for people who want to become leaders. You cannot have a significant career in science if you are too shy to ask questions, answer questions, or help to frame the subject with your own interest and curiosity.
COPYING FROM OTHER SOURCES – NEVER THE RIGHT ANSWER
No matter what the form of the assignment is, the “right answer” in this class will never be words that you copied from another source. Copying text from a review article, a textbook, an article that is assigned, or Wikipedia is plagiarism. That is a crime, not a right answer. It doesn’t matter how well something is described in Wikipedia – if you are answering a question, the point is to explore how well YOU understand it, not the anonymous corps who evolved the Wikipedia entry.
Plagiarism from published or on-line sources and copying of other students’ answers are both violations of the Honor Code. In the professional world, these would also be clear examples of “scientific misconduct” that could cost you a grant, a job, or the next five years of your professional future. If we find that your answer in any assignment is substantially copied from online sources, from the textbook, or even simply from the article you are commenting on, you will automatically get zero on that question. In addition, you may also be reported to the BoC.
Collaboration cannot include copying from each other or “community writing”
Copying from each other is not legitimate collaboration but fundamental cheating. It will be reported to the BoC automatically for consideration of penalties. Your answer at the end of the day has to be YOURS, not someone else’s. If you have questions about the boundary, ask the teaching staff …before you cross it.
Plagiarism from published or on-line sources and copying of other students’ answers are both violations of the Honor Code. In the professional world, these would also be clear examples of “scientific misconduct” that could cost you a grant, a job, or the next five years of your professional future. If we find that your answer in any assignment is substantially copied from online sources, from the textbook, or even simply from the article you are commenting on, you will automatically get zero on that question. In addition, you may also be reported to the BoC.
Collaboration cannot include copying from each other or “community writing”
Copying from each other is not legitimate collaboration but fundamental cheating. It will be reported to the BoC automatically for consideration of penalties. Your answer at the end of the day has to be YOURS, not someone else’s. If you have questions about the boundary, ask the teaching staff …before you cross it.
Exams, Quizzes, and Problem Sets
The course will have two exams, two quizzes in class, four problem sets, and two required oral presentations by each member of the class. If you skip any two assignments, including the class presentations, or get <50% of points on them, then you will flunk the class.
The exams, both midterm and final, are CLOSED BOOK, CLOSED NOTES, CLOSED INTERNET, NO CONSULTATION. You are not to consult with anyone else (or anyone else’s written materials) about the material from the time you open the exam till you are finished writing. The exams are take-home, written exams with a time limit between 3 and 5 hr, depending on the exam. The time limit is to level the playing field and to indicate the scope and degree of detail that is expected in the answers.
The quizzes are short CLOSED BOOK, CLOSED NOTES, CLOSED INTERNET, NO CONSULTATION exams that you will take in class during the first ~20 min of a specific class period. Blue books will be handed out at the door and collected from everyone when the time is up, so that we can then proceed to the lecture. They should be useful to give you feedback about what you should be mastering by these points in the term.
The homework problem sets are designed to encourage you to work with primary research material on a continuing basis throughout the term. There are two problem sets before the midterm and two after the midterm. They are all open book, open notes, and you are welcome to discuss the material with other students and TAs in order to come to your conclusions about the questions. However, when you actually compose your answers, they must be written independently and in your own words. You also cannot ask the TA’s to answer the homework questions for you.
The exams, both midterm and final, are CLOSED BOOK, CLOSED NOTES, CLOSED INTERNET, NO CONSULTATION. You are not to consult with anyone else (or anyone else’s written materials) about the material from the time you open the exam till you are finished writing. The exams are take-home, written exams with a time limit between 3 and 5 hr, depending on the exam. The time limit is to level the playing field and to indicate the scope and degree of detail that is expected in the answers.
The quizzes are short CLOSED BOOK, CLOSED NOTES, CLOSED INTERNET, NO CONSULTATION exams that you will take in class during the first ~20 min of a specific class period. Blue books will be handed out at the door and collected from everyone when the time is up, so that we can then proceed to the lecture. They should be useful to give you feedback about what you should be mastering by these points in the term.
The homework problem sets are designed to encourage you to work with primary research material on a continuing basis throughout the term. There are two problem sets before the midterm and two after the midterm. They are all open book, open notes, and you are welcome to discuss the material with other students and TAs in order to come to your conclusions about the questions. However, when you actually compose your answers, they must be written independently and in your own words. You also cannot ask the TA’s to answer the homework questions for you.
Oral Presentations in Sections
Each student will give two oral presentations per term. Each student will explain some aspect of the course material to the other members of the section, in the context of explaining the answer to a short “challenge question” from a list that is posted the week before the presentations. Each list of challenge questions for the week will be given out in advance, and you can pick the one you will present on a first come, first serve basis. All students will sign up for one presentation date before the midterm and one in the second half of the course. We expect that at least the second one will be excellent.
Each presentation can take up to five minutes followed by 3-5 min for answering questions. Presentations should be chalk talks done from memory. What you write on the board should not be copied from notes or a tablet, though you can have a sheet of notes to consult later if you need them to help answering questions. All members of the section, students, TAs, and faculty, will ask questions. Both the quality of your presentation and the quality of your discussion in section will add to your grade.
Each presentation can take up to five minutes followed by 3-5 min for answering questions. Presentations should be chalk talks done from memory. What you write on the board should not be copied from notes or a tablet, though you can have a sheet of notes to consult later if you need them to help answering questions. All members of the section, students, TAs, and faculty, will ask questions. Both the quality of your presentation and the quality of your discussion in section will add to your grade.
Using Teaching Assistants for advice
The TAs are dedicated, knowledgeable, and hard working members of a team that exists to help you learn molecular biology. None of the teaching staff of the course is an expert on everything, but every one is truly interested in helping you learn. TAs will have office hours posted and will hold several free-standing review/clinic sessions throughout the term to help. You are encouraged to consult the TAs for advice about how to think about problems that are confusing you, or to explore some exciting idea that you may have. However, a TA’s job is NOT to tell you the answer to a question on a problem set or for your oral presentation. It’s to help you think about it in clearer terms. You should NOT recycle the TA’s suggestions automatically as though they are your answers. You should instead use the advice to come up with your own solution which you can explain and defend.
Grading Policies
Bi8 is a course that can be taken for grades or pass/fail. The pass/fail line is between D and F. However, if you are taking this course for option credit in Bi or BE, you may not qualify on the basis of a “D” grade. Grading will be based on multiple assignments: (1) Midterm exam, (2) Final exam, (3) in-class quizzes, (4) four problem sets, (5) two presentations in section, and (6) general participation in discussion and class. The exams and quizzes are closed-book, the problem sets are open-book, and the presentations are to be done by you at the whiteboard without referring to notes.
Grading and Pass/Fail
For those of you who are freshmen, Caltech policy still mandates P/F grades on your final report for this second term. However, we will handle your assignments and grading exactly as though the course were given for standard A, B, C, D, F letter grades for all class members. You will see what your letter grade would be, and how you are doing relative to the others in the class, whether you end up with a P or an F on your transcript. If you want recommendations in the future, we will describe your work in this course using the letter grade you really earned. If you want to master molecular biology for future work, this will let you know what you are aiming for.
The grade will be based on the exams, quizzes, problem sets, presentations, and class participation in lectures and sections. The final will be worth 40% of the grade, the midterm will be worth 20% of the grade, and each quiz and problem set will be worth 6% (x6 = 36%). The remaining 4% of the grade will come from the presentations (0-3 x 2% with super presentations giving a bonus). ALL GRADES ARE SUBJECT TO A POSSIBLE BONUS OF UP TO 5% OF TOTAL POINTS FOR STUDENTS WHO PARTICIPATE STRONGLY IN CLASS.
There is no pre-set distribution of grades – if all the students in the class do superbly, you could all get A’s. However, more normally grades will range from the 50’s to the low 90’s. People earning less than 50% of points for the term will fail. People who skip two or more of the assignments (including the oral presentations) will also fail automatically. For letter grade equivalents, the grading will be on a curve-adjusted scale, so that exact breakpoints between, e.g., “B+” and “A-” grades or “C+” and “B-” grades will be determined as we go, based on the clustering of scores in the class. This is because we try not to give a full letter grade difference (A- vs. B+, for example) to cumulative scores that differ by less than a point. You will see the histograms that we use for these splits and be able to see how you did compared to the rest of the class. If you are on the margin, the difference-maker can be credit you can earn for class participation throughout the term.
The grade will be based on the exams, quizzes, problem sets, presentations, and class participation in lectures and sections. The final will be worth 40% of the grade, the midterm will be worth 20% of the grade, and each quiz and problem set will be worth 6% (x6 = 36%). The remaining 4% of the grade will come from the presentations (0-3 x 2% with super presentations giving a bonus). ALL GRADES ARE SUBJECT TO A POSSIBLE BONUS OF UP TO 5% OF TOTAL POINTS FOR STUDENTS WHO PARTICIPATE STRONGLY IN CLASS.
There is no pre-set distribution of grades – if all the students in the class do superbly, you could all get A’s. However, more normally grades will range from the 50’s to the low 90’s. People earning less than 50% of points for the term will fail. People who skip two or more of the assignments (including the oral presentations) will also fail automatically. For letter grade equivalents, the grading will be on a curve-adjusted scale, so that exact breakpoints between, e.g., “B+” and “A-” grades or “C+” and “B-” grades will be determined as we go, based on the clustering of scores in the class. This is because we try not to give a full letter grade difference (A- vs. B+, for example) to cumulative scores that differ by less than a point. You will see the histograms that we use for these splits and be able to see how you did compared to the rest of the class. If you are on the margin, the difference-maker can be credit you can earn for class participation throughout the term.
Late Work Policy
To be fair, everyone in the class should have the same amount of time to deal with the assignments, and to ensure level standards, we need to be able to grade everyone’s work in parallel. Obviously it’s also important that you have done the work before the answers to the assignments are posted. In general, we will post the answers on line within a week after the due date. Work that is handed in by the deadline will get full credit. Work that is handed in after the deadline, but before the answers are posted will get partial credit, at a deduction of 20% from the original point score per day. Any work that is not handed in until after answers are posted will not be given any credit, except under rare and well-documented circumstances.
Exceptions to late work policy
If you know in advance that one of the deadlines conflicts with an obligation, such as travel to an interview or conference, it’s your responsibility to contact the TAs and arrange an alternative due date for your work. If you do this in advance, and then you get your work turned in by the arranged time, you will not be penalized.
If you get sick or have an accident that prevents you medically from finishing your work, you may also be given extra time, but only under these circumstances: you must get a note from a doctor or registered health professional. Dean Green can be very helpful as a sounding board for any problems you may have, but she is not a substitute for a doctor. A supportive note from Dean Green can explain the situation, but does not protect you from the requirement to give us written evidence that you are really sick. Again, if you are sick you should also talk with the TAs to arrange a new due date for your work, and you need to abide by this.
If you are seriously ill and need to miss/postpone more than two deadlines as a result, you should discuss this situation with the teaching staff for advice. It would probably make sense in that case for you to drop the course and re-take it in a future term when your health is better.
If you get sick or have an accident that prevents you medically from finishing your work, you may also be given extra time, but only under these circumstances: you must get a note from a doctor or registered health professional. Dean Green can be very helpful as a sounding board for any problems you may have, but she is not a substitute for a doctor. A supportive note from Dean Green can explain the situation, but does not protect you from the requirement to give us written evidence that you are really sick. Again, if you are sick you should also talk with the TAs to arrange a new due date for your work, and you need to abide by this.
If you are seriously ill and need to miss/postpone more than two deadlines as a result, you should discuss this situation with the teaching staff for advice. It would probably make sense in that case for you to drop the course and re-take it in a future term when your health is better.