Appendix B: Introduction to Workshops in CHEM 115
I: Goals for Introduction to Workshops
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1.Students should be able to follow the standards for student conduct at SFSU.
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2.Students should understand the requirements for the lab and discussion portion of CHEM 115, which include the following.
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a.how to communicate with their instructor, and where their instructor will hold office hours
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b.the breakdown of points for each component
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c.the grading for the lab/discussion component
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d.the attendance requirements
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e.the physical requirements (lab notebook, goggles, lab fee)
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f.the collaborative style of the lab and discussion
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3.Students should be able to record accurate and timely observations during experiments in the lab.
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4.Students should be able to take timely and accurate notes in discussion and lecture.
II: Discussion Procedures
The discussion section of CHEM 115 follows a workshop format where you will be asked to work in pairs or in groups assigned by your lab instructor. You may be asked to report your findings to the class verbally or on the white board. You will frequently be asked to complete a pre-workshop assignment before you come to your discussion session. You will complete the workshop by doing activities related to the pre-workshop assignment in class, and a reflection at the end of class. Your grade for the workshop will consist of the pre-workshop assignment, the in-class exercises, and a reflection.III: Standards for Student Conduct
You will be asked to agree to and sign the Standards for Student Conduct on the first day of class.IV: Grading in Lab and Discussion
| Thirteen 10-Point Labs (Lowest One Dropped) |
120 Points |
|---|---|
| Eleven 10-Point Workshops (Lowest One Dropped) |
100 Points |
| Attendance (recorded in WebAssign) |
10 Points |
| Safety Quiz (Required to Stay In Class) |
5 Points |
| Instructor Points (Pre-Labs, Quizzes, Reflections, Clean-Up, Etc.) |
15 Points |
| Total | 250 Points |
V: Grade Cutoffs
| A | 90% and Up | C+ | 73% |
|---|---|---|---|
| A– | 87% | C | 70% |
| B+ | 83% | C– | 67% |
| B | 80% | *D | 57% |
| B– | 77% | F | 56% and Below |
VI: Attendance Policy
Attendance will be recorded during each lab and discussion period in WebAssign. You are allowed no more than two unexcused absences from lab and two unexcused absences from discussion. Upon your third unexcused absence, you will be notified that you will receive an F in the lab/discussion portion of the course, and therefore, an F in CHEM 115. If you are going to be absent, it is your responsibility to notify your instructor immediately. Your instructor retains the right to require documentation of all excused absences. Attendance in all lecture, lab, and discussion sessions is required the first two weeks of class. A single absence in any one of the sections will result in your being dropped from the course.VII: Guidelines for Keeping a Proper Laboratory Notebook
A 100-page laboratory notebook that is permanently bound and uses carbon paper or carbonless paper to make duplicate pages is required for the lab portion of this course. Your lab instructor will let you know if you need a separate workshop notebook, and in what form that notebook should be.-
1.The laboratory notebook is a working notebook. It should be legible and organized to you, but not necessarily neat. However, all information should be adequately described, so that someone else can tell what you were doing. All numbers should have units.
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2.All writing in the notebook must be done with a ball-point pen that contains permanent ink. Erasures or use of white out are strictly forbidden. Any erroneous entries should be lined out in such a way that the reader will see what it is that is being corrected.
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3.Begin the entry of each experiment on a new page. All entries must be dated and clearly identified.
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4.All data and observations must be entered directly into the notebook, never recopied. Paper towels, filter paper, filler paper, scraps of paper, or other loose pieces of paper containing recorded data will be confiscated and destroyed by your lab instructor.
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5.You are required to include all data, observations, analysis, and answers to questions that are part of the exercise in your laboratory notebook. Notes from the pre-lab lecture should be kept separate from your laboratory notebook.