University of Florida Soil and Water Science Department

Transcription

1 University of Florida SWS 4550/5551: Soils, Water, and Public Health Distance Education (DE) Course Online Summer credit hours Instructors: Dr. Elizabeth Hodges Snyder Courtesy Assistant Professor University of Florida Assistant Professor of Public Health Department of Health Sciences University of Alaska Anchorage Phone: afeh1@uaa.alaska.edu Dr. G. A. O Connor Professor of Environmental Soil Chemistry University of Florida Phone: ext gao@ufl.edu Lecture Contributor: Dr. Max Teplitski Associate Professor of Soil Microbiology University of Florida Office Hours By appointment online; please Course Meeting Times Asynchronous DE format Prerequisites Undergraduate-level students: CHEM 2045 and 2046 and BSC 2010 or consent of instructor Graduate-level students: none Undergraduate-level students can enroll in the graduate-level of the course with permission of the instructor. Course Description The course explores important instances where soil and water science and public health overlap, and teaches skills required to take an integrative approach to identifying, evaluating, and managing current environmental health problems. Instructor lectures, guest lectures, and class activities are designed to facilitate a semester-long case study.

2 Course Objectives Upon successful completion of the course, the student will be able to: Describe the disciplines of environmental health and soil and water science, and discuss issues/legislation that shape the fields Describe basic soil characteristics and physical/chemical/biological processes that enable preliminary estimates of how various contaminants may move, react, and dissipate in dynamic soil and aquatic environments Describe various physical/chemical/biological hazards and protective factors Describe factors which influence exposure pathways, exposure behaviors, and health outcomes as they relate to soil properties, water/soil quality, and water/soil management Highlight important and/or innovative environmental contamination prevention strategies and remediation techniques that serve to protect and promote public health Describe processes of site evaluation, data reporting, and public communication Explain how risk evaluations develop into standards Describe soil, water, and public health topics from different geographical perspectives Supplemental Readings There are no required textbooks, but supplemental readings will be assigned and provided in electronic format as the course progresses, so be sure to check the course webpage each week for posted materials. What YOU Should Expect From Your INSTRUCTOR and This Course Recorded lectures and tutorials. Timely and thorough answers to questions posted to the discussion board and in s but do not expect instantaneous replies from me or your coursemates. Plan accordingly! Respect, guidance, and constructive criticism in feedback to submitted assignments. What Your INSTRUCTOR Expects From YOU in This Course Daily: Check for new ANNOUNCEMENTS on the course webpage. Weekly: Check the WEEKLY UNIT. You are responsible for completing each unit IN ITS ENTIRETY within its assigned week. Don t forget to review the entire weekly unit. Read assignments BEFORE answering weekly discussion questions. Post your answers to discussion questions on the DISCUSSION board. Complete any posted assignments. On due dates: Submit assignments through the appropriate Weekly Unit by 11pm EST.

3 Always: Be respectful to your coursemates and instructor. Student Evaluation Grades will be determined by the accumulation of points received for the completion of the following course requirements. Ten percentage points are subtracted for each day an assignment is late. You CANNOT pass the course unless you complete each course requirement. Work completed for other courses cannot be recycled for this course. All work must be original. If you have a question about modifying previous work, please ask first. Make up exams are rarely authorized and must be medically justified and authenticated. Graduate-level: 1. Discussion Participation 20 points each = 200 points) (Note: you can earn up to 40 extra credit points by participating in all 12 discussion boards. Discussion on Weeks 1 and 12 is required.) 2. Homeworks (200 points) 3. Reusable Learning Objects (RLOs) (200 points) 4. Review RLOs (100 points) 5. Exams 150 points each = 300 points) Total: 1000 points Undergraduate-level 1. Discussion Participation 20 points each = 200 points) (Note: you can earn up to 40 extra credit points by participating in all 12 discussion boards. Discussion on Weeks 1 and 12 is required.) 2. Homeworks (200 points) 3. Review RLOs (100 points) 4. Exams 150 points each = 300 points) Total: 800 points Grading Scale: % = A; 91-90% = A-; 89-87% = B+; 86-82% = B; 81-79% = B-; 78-75% = C+; 74-70% = C; 69-65% = D+; 64-60% = D; <59% = E **Note: Please keep a copy of all returned written and electronic communication in case you have a question regarding your final grade.

4 Requirement Descriptions 1. Discussion Participation: Each student must actively participate in the weekly discussions. To receive full credit for each post, the student must, at a minimum, post a substantive response to each component of the discussion question AND post a substantive comment on a posting by a fellow coursemate. Each Monday by 12 noon EST, a discussion topic will be posted to the class Discussion Board. The discussion and comments on that topic of discussion will end by 11 PM EST the following Sunday. The topic will officially close at that time and no further postings will be accepted (for credit) on that topic of discussion. You may also post general class questions or comments to a designated discussion board which be open and available throughout the semester. Check this discussion board prior to ing the instructor directly with an inquiry to be sure your question was not previously posted by a coursemate. 2. Homeworks: ALL homeworks must be submitted by 11 PM EST at the end of the week assigned. Homeworks will be assigned periodically throughout the semester. 3. Reusable Learning Objects (RLOs) (Graduate-level students only): Students develop packaged information on a brief topic that will aid future students with filling knowledge gaps in the basics of soils, water, and public health, or develop short case studies. RLOs will be implemented in EcoLearnIT ( RLO subject matter will be selected by the student in consultation with the instructor during the first half of the semester. 4. Review RLOs: Watch 3 student RLOs and answer associated review questions written by each of the 3 student authors. 5. Exams: Each of the two timed exams will be a combination of multiple choice, multiple answer, fill-in-the-blank, true/false, matching, ordering, and short-answer questions. Once you begin an exam, you cannot stop and return at a later time. You may refer to a one-page cheat-sheet, but remember that you have to finish the exam in the allotted time. Course Policies Students are responsible for all information in the assigned texts or presented in class materials. Students are expected to read all assigned materials prior to contributing to discussion boards or completing related assignments/activities. Students should always consider the possibility of technology failure, and complete assignments to allow adequate time to correct for potential technology problems.

5 Students are expected to communicate respectfully with their coursemates and instructor. Disrespectful or threatening interactions will not be tolerated. Students in violation of these expectations will be given ONE warning. If the behavior continues or is repeated, the student will be banned from the discussion board and will automatically lose all subsequent discussion board-related points. Cheating or plagiarism of any kind will not be tolerated. Any violations of this policy will result in a zero for the given assignment, and the zero will be figured into the final grade. Additionally, students may be subject to University disciplinary action, including possible suspension/expulsion. Academic Honesty In 1995 the UF student body enacted a new honor code and voluntarily committed itself to the highest standards of honesty and integrity. When students enroll at the university, they commit themselves to the standards drafted and enacted by students. In adopting this honor code, the students of the University of Florida recognize that academic honesty and integrity are fundamental values of the university community. Students who enroll at the university commit to holding themselves and their peers to the high standard of honor required by the honor code. Any individual who becomes aware of a violation of the honor code is bound by honor to take corrective action. The quality of a University of Florida education is dependent upon community acceptance and enforcement of the honor code. The Honor Code: We, the members of the University of Florida community, pledge to hold ourselves and our peers to the highest standards of honesty and integrity. On all work submitted for credit by students at the university, the following pledge is either required or implied: On my honor, I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid in doing this assignment. The university requires all members of its community to be honest in all endeavors. A fundamental principle is that the whole process of learning and pursuit of knowledge is diminished by cheating, plagiarism and other acts of academic dishonesty. In addition, every dishonest act in the academic environment affects other students adversely, from the skewing of the grading curve to giving unfair advantage for honors or for professional or graduate school admission. Therefore, the university will take severe action against dishonest students. Similarly, measures will be taken against faculty, staff and administrators who practice dishonest or demeaning behavior. Students should report any condition that facilitates dishonesty to the instructor, department chair, college dean or Student Honor Court. (Source: Undergraduate Catalog) It is assumed all work will be completed independently unless the assignment is defined as a group project, in writing by the instructor. This policy will be vigorously upheld at all times in this course. Software Use All faculty, staff and students of the university are required and expected to obey the laws and legal agreements governing software use. Failure to do so can lead to monetary damages and/or criminal penalties for the individual violator. Because such violations are also against university policies and rules, disciplinary action will be taken as appropriate. Campus Helping Resources Students experiencing crises or personal problems that interfere with their general wellbeing are encouraged to utilize the university s counseling resources. The Counseling and Wellness Center

6 provides confidential counseling services at no cost for currently enrolled students. Resources are available on campus for students having personal problems or lacking clear career or academic goals, which interfere with their academic performance. University Counseling and Wellness Center, 3190 Radio Road, , o Counseling Services o Groups and Workshops o Outreach and Consultation o Self-Help Library o Training Programs o Community provider database Career Resource Center, CR-100 JWRU, , Students with Disabilities The Disability Resource Center coordinates the needed accommodations of students with disabilities. This includes registering disabilities, recommending academic accommodations within the classroom, accessing special adaptive computer equipment, providing interpretation services and mediating faculty-student disability related issues Reid Hall, ,

7 Course Topic Outline and Schedule ab Week Topics RLO Assignments Exams 1 (5/14 5/20) Introduction Fundamentals of environmental health 2 (5/21 5/27) Fundamentals of soil science 3 (5/28 6/3) 5/28 HOLIDAY Fundamentals of water science Water quality and quantity 4 (6/4 6/10) Biological hazards and benefits 5 (6/11 6/17) Chemical hazards and benefits Exam #1 6 (6/18 6/24) Fate and transport of biological and chemical contaminants Select RLO topic (graduate-level only) (6/25 7/1) HOLIDAY 7 (7/2 7/8) 7/4 HOLIDAY Bioavailability in soil, water, and crops Physical, mechanical, and psychosocial hazards and benefits 8 (7/9 7/15) Water treatment and sanitation Site remediation Environmental justice 9 (7/16 7/22) Risk assessment I 10 (7/23 7/29) Risk assessment II Environmental toxicology RLO due (graduate-level only) 11 (7/30 8/5) Developing standards Exam #2 12 (8/6 8/10) RLO review Conclusion All students review RLOs a: Schedule is subject to change. b: Homeworks and supplemental readings are also periodically assigned.