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MUDDY WATERS
Chicago's Environmental Geology
Earth Science 109W,
Section 01,
Fall 2011
COURSE SYLLABUS
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SCHEDULE |
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The outline below will be adjusted daily. Check frequently
for updates!
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Field trips are required class activities. You must
be present and dressed appropriately for the weather.
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For daily learning objectives, click the date. Links
will be added weekly as the semester progresses. |
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Week |
Class Activities
(Click the date for a list of daily learning objectives!) |
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Class meeting times: Wednesday 10:00-10:50 am, and Friday, 10:00 a.m.-12:30 pm |
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1 |
AUG 31 Welcome to NEIU! Getting to know you. What is FYE? What are
environmental geology and the Muddy Waters course? |
SEP 2 Field safety contracts. Field trip to an
urban watershed.
Dress for
outdoor work today! |
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2 |
SEP 7
Lab safety. Working with
measurements of water quantity and flow rate. Read
Chapters 1 and 5 in the CSS book before coming to class today. |
SEP 9
Field trip to the North Branch of the Chicago River (Central Park Bridge
and Field Park). Flow velocity. Water quality
parameters:
intro to measuring field parameters
TDS and temperature.
Dress for outdoor work today! |
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3 |
SEP 14 Measuring stream discharge.
Academic
integrity and plagiarism. |
SEP 16
Field trip to the North Branch: Irene Hernandez Picnic Area.
Measuring river discharge.
Dress for outdoor work today! |
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4 |
SEP 21 What is a watershed?
The
hydrologic cycle. Introducing the semester project.
Note-taking for field work. Read
Chapters 4 and 6 in the CSS book before coming to class today.
Bring a copy of a syllabus from another class today. |
SEP 23
Surveying.
Measuring gradient. What's "natural"? What's
"contamination"?
Dress for outdoor work today! |
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5 |
SEP 28
Quiz on time
management. Processing, compiling, and analyzing your surveying
data. Topographic maps. |
SEP 30
Topography of the Chicago region.
Map-reading to find flow directions.
The Chicago "Big Map".
How does water get out of town?
Dress for outdoor work today! |
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OCT 5
Planning your future:
Academic Planning (guest speaker from Academic Advising).
Goal-setting and team-building (for wall climbing).
Bring the NEIU Catalog to class with you. |
OCT 7
Testing water quality:
pH.
Goal-setting, teamwork, and the NEIU climbing wall.
Dress for wall-climbing today! |
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OCT 12
Measuring dissolved oxygen. Principles of colorimetry. Measuring
nitrate and
phosphate in the lab.
The North Shore Channel and waste water in Chicago. |
OCT 14 Field trip to the confluence of the North
Shore Channel and the North Branch of the Chicago River. Collect water samples at the river confluence.
Dress for outdoor work today! |
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OCT 19 Colorimetric
lab analyses of nitrate and phosphate. Web readings on nitrate and
phosphate (see
Assignments page). |
OCT 21
Diluting
water samples to bring constituents into analytical range. Working
with sample blanks and reagent blanks.
Measuring
chloride,
sulfate, and
fluoride in river water. Flooding, floodplains, stage and
discharge, flood frequency analysis.
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OCT 26
Soil texture
and permeability. Field description of soil.
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OCT 28
Soil permeability.
Field collection of soil samples. The NEIU detention basin.
Dress for outdoor work today! |
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NOV 2
Analyzing permeability data.
Ground water: what is it? Intro to ground water wells and well sampling. |
NOV 4
Measuring
precipitation. Finding precipitation data. Measuring well water levels.
Sampling and analysis of well water.
Dress for outdoor work today! |
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NOV 9
What is beyond NEIU? Preparation for career planning.
Strategies for analyzing web/text readings.
Evaluating web-based information.
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NOV 11
Water and soil in four ecosystems at the North Park Village Nature
Center.
Dress for outdoor work today! Last day to drop a course. |
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NOV 16
Teamwork and the semester project. |
NOV 18
Human/urban effects
on water quality:
Sewage treatment.
Dress for outdoor work today!
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NOV 23
Sewage and
sewage treatment. |
NOV 25 Thanksgiving Holiday--no class.
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NOV 30 Career
planning: getting to know your personality type, skills, interests, and
values. The rest of the project! |
DEC 2
Completing your water budget calculations.
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DEC 7
Finalize your presentation.
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DEC 9
Group
presentations. FYE course evaluations. |
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DEC 14 Exam week. No class
today. |
DEC 16
SCSE
Field trip.
Career planning: guest speaker.
Course
evaluations. (Grades are due at midnight, December 19.) |
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REQUIRED TEXT
AND MATERIALS:
Bring these to every class session. |
w CSS:
"College Success
Strategies", by Sherrie L. Nist-Olejnik and
Jodi Patrick Holschuh, custom edition for NEIU, Pearson Custom Publishing, 2010.
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Additional readings: Some
readings will be provided in class or via Blackboard; you must check
this online syllabus to stay updated.
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Your notebook,
field notebook, pen/pencil,
text, and any handouts or homework papers you might need.
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Appropriate attire for the day's activities. |
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COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
Grading and Evaluation |
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Attendance at all class sessions is required.
Attendance is part of the course grade. The NEIU policy on class
attendance (see the NEIU Catalog) applies to this course.
In accordance with university policy, less than 75% attendance will
automatically result in a failure for the semester, regardless of your
grade for assignments.
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If you absolutely must miss a class, please notify
the instructors in advance, if possible, or as soon thereafter as you
can. To learn what you missed, first check the web page,
and then get notes from at least two classmates.
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All course requirements must be completed to pass the
course.
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The final date to drop any Fall 2011
course, per University policy, is
November 11.
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Students are expected to check e-mail and the course
website at least every other day to watch for course announcements
and updates.
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Academic integrity:
The
NEIU policy on
academic misconduct will be strictly enforced. A
site from
Indiana University explains and gives examples of plagiarism
and provides helpful tips on how to avoid it. Cheating on
homework, exams, quizzes, or other course components will result in a
score of zero for that assignment or more severe penalties, as described
in the NEIU policy.
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A large part of this course involves
working in small groups. A positive group dynamic depends
on your positive attitude and acceptance of diversity: other group
members will have diverse opinions, individual backgrounds, and work
styles. The ability to work well with others is an important skill
necessary in virtually all careers and in daily life. Whether or
not you have previously been exposed to group work, in this class you
will have the chance to build and enhance these skills--and have some
fun along the way!
w Team citizenship may be a part of your grade on the semester
project or other group projects. The team score will be weighted
by individual scores assigned by team members to themselves and their
teammates.
A copy of the Team Citizenship Evaluation appears here.
w Students are expected to participate in
all
course assessments.
On some days, you will be asked to complete anonymous "minute papers",
ungraded quiz-type questions, concept maps, or survey questions.
This information will help the instructors determine the extent to which
the course is meeting its goals. To help make the course better,
please give your most thoughtful, honest feedback--the more, the better.
Evaluation and Grading
Policies
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Attendance and participation: |
10% |
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Assignments
(all homework, reports,
field notebooks, and in-class assignments): |
50% |
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Semester Project:
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40% |
* The grading scale is as follows: A 100-90%; B 89-80%; C 79-70%; D 69-60%; F
<59%.
* Late
homework assignments will not be accepted
unless you communicate with the instructors
about the issue and they approve the request. Even with instructor
approval, late assignments may be docked points.
* Make-up exams will be
permitted only in a case where there is an approved reason for missing the exam. Missed exams that are not made up will result in
a score of zero for that exam.
* Please note the schedule for the final exam and university policies governing final exams (inside the
back cover of the Schedule of Classes.) No exceptions will be made other than
those allowed by this policy.
Flexibility:
The schedule of activities will change several times per week as the
semester evolves. Check this page frequently for updates!
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| LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Course Objectives |
Upon successful
completion of this course, you will have demonstrated the ability to do
the following:
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work effectively as a team
member to research environmental geology issues of a specific area, in
particular with respect to the scientific investigation of soil and
water, interpreted in the context of Chicago regional geology.
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apply a scientific method for geologic field and data interpretation,
utilizing time management strategies, critical reading and analysis, and
written/oral presentation skills in the synthesis and interpretation of
the data.
Toward this final goal, successful completion of course elements will
enable you to:
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Compile an organized record of data and supporting information from
various sources (field and laboratory experiences, class presentations,
readings, and research), optimized for your individual learning style.
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Distinguish changes to the landscape effected by stream, lake, and
coastal processes; critically analyze patterns of change in soil and
bodies of water to predict continuing/ future changes from these forces.
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Evaluate the impact of geologic factors on human activities (including
water and waste management, storm water and sewage treatment/control,
construction, etc.) in Chicago, and the effect of human activities on
analyzed parameters of water quality and soil characteristics.
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Apply strategies to maximize achievement of your short-term and
long-term academic goals through self-knowledge, successful navigation
of the university environment, and effective planning.
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COURSE DESCRIPTION |
| Chicago's vital bodies
of water--Lake Michigan, Chicago River, and others--interact with the
urban landscape and the soils and rocks of the ground beneath us. These
interactions influence environmental issues in our everyday lives,
including
"What happens when water goes down the drain?" and
"Why do
certain areas flood after it rains?" Explore these questions in
the context of Chicago's geology, to evaluate the critical interactions
affecting soil and water contamination, flooding, and our drinking
water. Laboratory analysis of water and soil, collected on local field
trips, will clear the
"muddy water" about how environmental geology
impacts your neighborhood. ESCI 109W meets the
NEIU General Education requirement of a laboratory Natural Science
course. |
Muddy Waters is supported by the National
Science Foundation program
Opportunities for Enhancing
Diversity in the Geosciences
(Award 0914497).
Department of Earth Science
| Northeastern Illinois University
Copyright 2011 Laura L. Sanders. Last updated
December 9, 2011.
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Your Instructors:
Dr. Ken Voglesonger
Dr. Laura Sanders
Your Peer Mentor:
Paty Jaimes |
