Instructor T. Shellberg1. Teaching style
Lectures (Mostly)
Discussions
Video3. Type of assessment - Exams - Yes
4. How many assessments/exams?
Several tests - Four or Five5. Grading policy - Straight %, but points are added, if necessary, to ensure that the top grades are high As.
Drop policy - Drops for any reason until last exam. Drop will be given automatically (no need to contact me or a counselor) to any student who does not take all the exams.
6. Timeliness of feedback to students - Graded exams are usually returned by the next class period.
7. Is the final exam/assessment comprehensive? - The last exam covers only the last 1/4 or 1/5 of the material.
9. Attendance Policy - Grades are based on exam scores. How does it affect the final grade? No points are subtracted for missed classes, but students with excellent attendance may be given a small advantage when the final grade is a close call since, exams aside, students who rarely miss classes usually have learned more.
10. Homework policy - No homework, except assigned reading text, articles, etc.
13. Why should students enroll in your class? Anonymous student evaluations of the course have been consistently very positive and enthusiastically supportive of both the instruction and the subject matter. A large majority of students have indicated that the subject matter of this course should be "required or strongly advised" for all students majoring in psychology, political science, biology medicine, law, philosophy, criminal justice, advertising communications, education, and for anyone who expects to be a parent.
The instructor is very involved professionally; regularly attends and contributes to annual meetings of the Animal Behavior Society, the Human Behavior and Evolution Society, the International Society for Human Ethology, and the National Association of Biology Teachers.
This course is the biggest of its type in the country and has become a pioneering national/international model. Every year there are many requests from colleges and universities for syllabi and other information about this course.
15. Other comments
Students with Asset reading scores below 35 should usually not elect this course without first consulting with counselors or the instructor since, judging from past data, the chance of achieving a C or better grade is very small.
Biology 130 is a general introduction to the basic principles of behavioral biology designed to stand alongside Intro. Psych, Soc., and Anthro as biology's contribution to the study of animal and human behavior. Study includes reference to genetic causes, neural and hormonal mechanisms, and especially, the natural selection-based reasons why common behaviors evolved as they did. (No prereq. Four cr. Hrs. Transfer science credit)
There is a great revolution in research and theorization in the sciences which comprise behavioral biology (Ethology, Sociobiology, Behavior, Genetics, Neurobiology etc.) Many colleges are offering numerous courses and programs (U. Of Mich/Ann Arbor, for example, offers a full doctoral program in Evolution and Human Behavior). HFCC is one of the first, however, to offer a broad-based introductory course for all students.
Among the hundreds of questions addressed are these: What are the biological explanations of aggression? How do brain programs and hormones influence our passions and values and moods? Do genes influence abilities, temperaments, sexual orientation, male-female differences, etc.? Do we humans still have primitive vestigial behaviors?
Strong emphasis is given to demonstrating how selection theory (vastly refined and expanded since Darwin's day) allows us to answer why questions about animal and human behavior. Why do we sleep? Why do young mammals play so much? Why do males of virtually all species have more of a "wandering eye" than females? Why are animals more altruistic to their relatives? Why do we, like other animals, respect taller individuals? Why are kittens and puppies so appealing? Why do dogs go around in a circle before ying down? Why are we self deceptive? Why do males do all the courting in most species? Why do we play team sports?
Behavioral biologists say we can't even begin to answer these questions scientifically until we realize that we are animals and learn some basic facts and principles about genes and biological mechanisms and natural selection. Behavior aside, this is an ideal course for students who wish to learn about the revolution in evolutionary biology which is happening now.
One of the objectives of the course is to introduce students to who's who, and what's happening in behavioral biology. What's being researched and written? Which colleges are the educational leaders? What new career opportunities are being created? The course was especially designed for social science and biological science majors, but students concentrating in many other areas such as law, art philosophy, advertising, and business, have been very enthusiastic (on anonymous class evaluations) that the subject matter was of great value in their academic preparation.
January 9, 1997
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