ACP Biology Course Expectations 

Wellesley High School Department of Science, Kenneth Bateman

Office Hours - Wednesday 6:55-7:30AM or by appointment. 

Welcome to Biology!  This course is a college preparatory course introducing biological principles, concepts, and processes.  Through lectures, readings, laboratory work, projects, and discussions, students will learn the foundations of biology, develop critical thinking and research skills, and discover the many ways in which biology affects our daily lives.  

Topics covered in this course will include:

The scientific method, Ecology, Plant development and structure, Biomolecules, Biodiversity, Animal development and structure, Cell biology, Evolution, Human biology, Cell reproduction, Genetics, and Biotechnology

The course will require you to work in teams as we spiral through many aspects of biology. 

Text

Concepts of Biology - Open Stacks. You can find this URL and PDF version of the textbook on Canvas.

Notebook

Students are required to keep all current work (class notes, handouts, laboratory reports, assignments, and quizzes) chronologically in a three ring, loose-leaf binder. At the completion of a unit, students may remove that material from their notebook and store it at home.This work will be needed when studying for the midyear and final exams.

Evaluation

Each student will receive a term grade based on the quality of his or her work, weighted as follows:

Tests and quizzes:  60%

Projects, laboratory reports, and:  40%

At the end of the first semester and at the end of the academic year, a midterm and final examination may be administered.  Additionally, there will be a long term research project on plants that will occur in the spring. The combined final examinations and the research project will count for 12% of the final grade. Each quarter counts for 22% of your final grade in the course. Tests:  Tests will always be announced in advance.  You can expect at least two tests per term.  If you have an educational plan stating that you may take your tests in a different setting or you allotted extended time, please let me know BEFORE test day. You are expected to take the test on the day that it is meant to take place. 

There will be an opportunity for test corrections throughout the year. When completing test corrections, you will do so in your classroom. In order for you to do test corrections, you will look over your test, and analyze the questions you got incorrect. You will then summarize what the correct answer should be and write a detailed explanation as to why it is the correct answer. If you have completed your test corrections to the fullest extent, you will earn back 33% of the point that you lost on the test. Everyone is allowed to do test corrections, regardless of your initial test grade. 

Quizzes: Occasional quizzes will be given and may be announced or unannounced, but most often these will be formative.

Projects:  There will be several projects, long lab reports, and poster presentations assigned throughout the year, including a long term project on plant growth, which will culminate in a science poster night. 

Laboratory Reports: A worksheet, small write-up, or full laboratory report will be required as part of each laboratory exercise.  Late projects and lab reports will generally result in a 10 % grade reduction for every day they are late.

Homework:  Homework will be assigned on a regular basis and must be completed by the beginning of class on the day it is due.  Some assignments will be collected and graded for accuracy while other assignments will simply be scanned for effort and completeness.  Homework completed AFTER the start of class will be considered late. Late homework will generally result in a 10 % grade reduction for every day they are late.

Class work:  Class work is to be handed in at the end of the class period unless it is indicated that a particular assignment may be turned in at a later date.  

How to Contact Mr. Bateman for Extra Help or Questions

Students, I am available most days before school to give extra help and answer questions from 7:15-7:30 AM. I will also post office hours as the semester progresses. During the winter months, I can be available after school with advanced agreement. I am also available during the school day by appointment during one of my free blocks. Check my schedule on the door for my availability.  I will try to accommodate your schedules whenever possible.  Feel free to stop by my office (room 358) to ask a question or email me at batemank@wellesleyps.org.  You might also find me in room 341 throughout the day. Be aware that I may not check my email from home, but I usually try to do so each night before 8:00 PM. 

PLEASE come see me for extra help if you need it.  ALWAYS speak to me before an assignment is due or several days before a test if you have questions.  Do not wait until the day of the quiz, test, or project due date to discuss issues with me. 

Classroom Policies and Expectations

Students are expected to be in the classroom, seated and ready to begin work when the bell rings (this includes 7:30 on lab days). Students are expected to come to class with their laptop, a biology notebook, a pen and pencil, paper, calculator, and other necessary materials. They should be prepared to participate fully in discussions and activities. Students should not use their cell phones to communicate with anyone during class. Improper use of cell phones during class will be handled in keeping with policies outlined in the WHS Student/Parent Handbook.

Attendance and Tardiness:  The attendance policy described in the WHS Student/Parent Handbook will be strictly applied. 

Behavior:  Students are expected to act in a courteous and respectful manner at all times.  In addition, students are expected to abide by the safety regulations given in class.  Any violation of these rules will result in a detention or removal from class (and possible further action taken by the student’s dean.)  Any student removed from class will not receive credit for any work completed during that class. You should review the lab safety contact that all science students at Wellesley High School need to agree to. 

Making Up Missed Work:  Students will receive no credit for work missed due to an unexcused absence.  If a student has an excused absence, it is his/her responsibility to make up all work as promptly as possible. The student is responsible for establishing a make up plan with me within one day of their return to school. If we do not have class on the day you return, please seek me out to schedule a time for make up work. YOu can do so via email as well. This includes regular classwork AND laboratory assignments. For a planned absence, the student should advise me in advance and check on the work to be missed ahead of time.  NOTE:  If the student is absent the day before a scheduled test and returns to school on the day of the test, they are expected to take the test with the class.  If the student is absent on the day of the test, they are expected to take the test on the day they return to school.  There will be no make-up opportunity for those students who cut a test.

Plagiarism:  All work the student submits must be their own.  Copying another person’s work or allowing another person to copy work will be considered cheating.  Even if the student works with a partner or a group in class, the written assignment turned in must be the student’s own work.  Knowingly quoting directly from a source without giving credit to the source is considered plagiarism.  Students who have plagiarized or cheated on any assignment, quiz, test, or exam will not receive credit for that assignment, quiz, test, or exam.  Other actions, as outlined in the WHS Student/Parent Handbook may be applied.  

Handing in work

Many assignments in this class will be handed in via Canvas, and will be on a shared doc with group members. When you work on an assignment with another person or in a small group, you need to make sure everyone’s name is on the assignment. Additionally, everyone in the group must hand in their own copy of the assignment in Canvas. It is YOUR responsibility to turn in your work, and not that of your groupmates. 

Food and Cleanliness

No science teacher at the high school has their own classroom. We share the classrooms with 2 or 3 other teachers. As a result, we must be conscious of the space around us inducing its cleanliness and functionality. We must make sure that we pick up after ourselves after every lab or classroom activity. Failure to do so will result in a lower preparation grade for the course. Along those lines, it is unbelievably disheartening to see students coming into class with cups from Starbucks and Dunkin (I also teach APES). As a result I am asking you to refrain from doing so. It is not necessary. Lastly, because I detest  picking up food scraps, I am implementing a no food policy in the classroom. If you want to eat something, it will have to be before you get to class or after you leave. 

I look forward to working with you this year.  Don’t forget that I am here to help you succeed in biology.  I hope this will be a rewarding year for all of us. 

Students and Parents/Guardians: please feel free to contact me via email (batemank@wellesleyps.org).  Email is the best way to get in touch with me.  I will reply to your email as soon as possible.  I look forward to meeting you during the year.

ACP Biology Welcome Video

Sincerely,

Ken Bateman