Sample 1405 Syllabus
NOTE: This is not the official syllabus for the class. Students wanting an official syllabus should check the Lone Star College website. This sample syllabus is a good model of the course content.
CATALOG DESCRIPTION
This course is a preparatory course for students who have never had chemistry and covers the metric system, atoms and elements, bonding, solids, liquids, gases, stoichiometry, solutions, reactivity, and acids and bases. The lab includes experiments in inorganic chemistry. This course is appropriate for nursing students, as well as students who will pursue higher level chemistry.
CREDIT
Credits: 4 (6 contact hours per week, combination of lecture and lab activities)
CORE COMPETENCIES/COURSE OUTCOMES
Critical Thinking
Communication
Quantitative and Empirical Skills
Teamwork
1. Solve problems using procedures outlined in class using proper SI units and significant figures.
2. Identify the states of matter and the transitions between them.
3. Compare elements, compounds and mixtures.
4. Apply the Law of Conservation of Matter to balance chemical equations and solve simple stoichiometry problems.
5. Determine atomic structure and chemical properties of elements from their position in the periodic table.
6. Perform conversions in solving problems using concentrations of solutions.
7. Draw the Lewis Structure and determine the shape and polarity of a simple compound from its formula.
8. Identify simple inorganic compounds by both formula and name.
9. Identify acids and bases, acidic and basic solutions and calculate pH.
10. Demonstrate ability to carry out laboratory experiments using common chemical measuring devices, SI units, and safety precautions.
TOPICS
We will be covering chapters 1-14. There will be some topics in the textbook that will not be covered in lecture. You will not be tested on this material unless I have specifically assigned it for you to read. There will also be a few topics that are not in the book that I will cover in lecture. You are responsible for this material.
The importance of understanding each topic in the course cannot be overemphasized. Chemistry is truly a course that relies on understanding early topics before an understanding of later topics can be realized. Since Introductory Chemistry is partially a skills course, there will be quite a few problems to work. It is required that you purchase a scientific, non-programmable calculator.
If you are having difficulty with a particular topic, be certain to get individual help promptly. (My office hours are posted.) There are also tutors in the ELC to help. Counseling is available for academic, career and personal matters. For a listing of campus counselors, please visit www.lonestar.edu/counseling-services
You are not alone! We all want you to succeed.
REQUIRED MATERIALS
Tro, Nivaldo Introductory Chemistry, 6th ed. (Pearson, 2018)
McHale, Mary. CHEM 1405 Lab Manual
Calculator: NOTE - Programmable calculators will not be allowed for use during the tests.
Safety goggles
Laboratory notebook (bound not spiral)
OPTIONAL MATERIALS
A lab coat or apron
A large three ring binder
INSTRUCTOR
Dr. Michael Sundermann
OFFICE
Building B, Room B 220A
CONTACT INFORMATION
Office 936-273-7077
Metro 936-321-5161, ext. 7077
Fax 936-273-7362
email: sundermann@lonestar.edu
emails will generally be answered within 2 business days
SEMESTER / LOCATION / TIME
Spring 2022 Section 4215/4216: TTh, 12:00 – 2:50, B213/209 (Note: All students must be available at this time even the course goes fully online)
Regular Office Hours:
MW 11:00 am-12:00 pm, 1:00 pm-2:00pm
TTh 3:00pm - 4:00pm
CALENDAR
Week of Laboratory or Test
8/26 Lab Check-in and Safety
9/2 Introduction Lab
9/9 Test - Chapters 1, 3, 4, Lab Safety
9/16 Emission Spectra
9/23 Chemical Reactions (virtual lab, handout)
9/30 Test - Chapters 5, 7
10/7 Density Lab
10/14 Hydrates
10/21 Test - Chapters 2, 6, 8
10/28 Polymers and Pollution
11/4 Lewis Structures (handout)
11/11 Test - Chapters 4, 9, 10, 12
11/18 Gases
11/25 Forensic Lab
12/2 Test - Chapters 11, 13, 14
12/9 Week of Final Exams
Please be aware that the lab schedule is tentative. Lab times and test times may be switched so be prepared to perform labs at any time. There is some possibility that more of the class will have to be offered online, so be prepared for that. Even the labs are subject to change. You are still required to be available during meeting times even if the class goes online.
ATTENDANCE EXPECTATIONS
Studies have shown that consistently missing class and/or being tardy to class has an adverse effect on student performance and success. Any student tardy to lab will not be allowed to perform that lab. Laboratory instructions are crucial, not only to understanding the experiment, but for safety purposes as well.
NO LONGER ATTENDING CLASS DOES NOT CONSTITUTE WITHDRAWAL FROM THIS CLASS, NOR DOES A STUDENT’S NOTIFICATION TO THE INSTRUCTOR THAT THE STUDENT WISHES TO BE DROPPED. FAILURE OF A STUDENT TO FILL OUT A SCHEDULE CHANGE FORM TO OFFICIALLY DROP THIS CLASS MAY RESULT IN A GRADE OF "F".
CLASS POLICY: ANY STUDENT WHO MISSES THE FIRST WEEK OF CLASS MUST WITHDRAW, AND MAY NOT ATTEND CLASS
COLLEGE POLICY: IF YOU HAVE NOT ATTENDED CLASS BEFORE OFFICIAL DAY, YOUR NON-ATTENDANCE MAY RESULT IN BEING WITHDRAWN FROM THE COURSE.
CAMPUS POLICIES
FERPA The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), also known as the Buckley Amendment, was established to protect the privacy rights of all students and applies to any educational facility receiving federal funds.
Lone Star College System District Board Policy Manual
Academic Integrity and Dishonesty The consequences for academic dishonesty are determined by the professor, or the professor and academic dean, or the professor and chief student services officer, and can include, but are not limited to: 1. Having additional class requirements imposed, 2. Receiving a grade of zero or "F" for an exam or assignment, 3. Receiving a grade of "F" for the course, 4. Being withdrawn from the course or program, 5. Being expelled from the college system.
Lone Star College COVID-19 Prevention RecommendationsLone Star College COVID-19 Prevention Recommendations
EVALUATION
The breakdown of points is as follows:
45% Tests
5% group work
30% Laboratory assignments
20% Final exam
Problem Sets (see below)
The test grade will be calculated from the average of the top four out of five tests. The score from the fifth test will be dropped. No make-up tests will be given. If you believe an error was made in grading the test, you can ask for a regrade. Tests must be written in unerasable pen to be eligible for a regrade. Missing the final exam will drop your grade by one letter. Even if the class goes fully online, you must be available during class meeting times and exam times to take the tests and final. Flexibility might be granted only in the case where someone is not allowed on campus for testing positive for COVID, at the discretion of the professor.
Note that the laboratory grade is thirty percent of the course grade. The lab grade will be earned by completion of lab assignments, pre-labs, lab quizzes and a lab notebook. The lowest lab grade will be dropped when the average is determined.
There will be five problem sets given to coincide with the material presented in lecture in order to help prepare for the tests. You may consult fellow students as well as the instructor for help with the problem sets, but you may not simply copy answers. These questions will be a good cross section of the material covered in class and will resemble the types of problems that will be on the tests. Your grade will depend on the completeness and accuracy of your answers. You must show your work to get full credit. The problem sets will be given a grade of check+, check, or check-. Each check+ will add half a point to the final grade, and each check- will subtract half a point from the final grade. Each set not turned in will subtract one point. The problem sets will be due the class before a test, unless otherwise specified. Problem sets can be turned in up to a week late, but cannot earn a grade higher than a check-.
The letter grades will be determined from the calculated numerical grade, rounded to the nearest percent:
90-100 = A
80-89 = B
70-79 = C
60-69 = D
0-59 = F
GROUP WORK
Students will be assigned to small groups of 3 to 4 students. The members of each group are chosen by the instructor. You are encouraged to work in your group during class and thus will be required to sit with your group in class. (The members of your study groups will also constitute your lab partners.) Several group problems from the textbook will be assigned to groups for each testing unit. Once during each testing unit, approximately thirty minutes of class time will be devoted to the working of group problems. Because thirty minutes will not be sufficient time to look over all of the problems, students are encouraged to work in their group outside of class.
After group problems are reviewed, a short in-class quiz will be given, individually, consisting of one or more group problems. These quizzes will count 5% of your test grade. However, one member of each group, chosen randomly, will be selected to solve one or more of these questions and then explain those problems in front of the class using his/her notes only. The chosen student’s thoroughness and accuracy of explanation will determine his/her 5%. In addition, a grade of 0 to 4 will be assigned to each member of that student’s group depending on whether the answer and explanation are complete and correct. These points will be counted as EXTRA CREDIT on the appropriate test.
Group board work is considered a review. Obviously, if a group member is not present for the board work, he/she cannot receive his/her group points. It is your responsibility to be present at that time.
If a group becomes smaller than three members, the instructor will probably consolidate that group with another group.
LABORATORY SAFETY
Lab safety will be stressed in this class. Safety goggles must be worn at all times during the lab period. You will not be admitted to lab without proper eye protection. Additionally, a student may be dismissed from lab if he/she removes his/her safety glasses during the lab. Certain chemicals you will be working with may present a health hazard, be extremely reactive, or flammable. The instructor will review all safety aspects at the start of each lab.
LABORATORY GUIDELINES
In general, a pre-lab exercise must be completed before each laboratory. Normally the pre-lab assignment consists of reading the experiment and any supplemental material pertaining to the experiment. Additionally, the laboratory notebook must be prepared according to the guidelines given below. If the student has not completed the required pre-lab assignment by the beginning of the laboratory period, he/she will not be allowed to participate in the laboratory.
The grade for missed lab activities is zero. Missed labs cannot be made-up. Since the lowest lab grade is dropped, a single missed lab will not adversely affect the final grade.
Lab reports are usually required for each laboratory experiment. These reports are usually due on the next class day. Lab reports consist of the lab modules themselves with completed data tables and answers to all post-lab questions, unless notified otherwise.
Pre-labs are usually worth 3 points, the lab assignment itself is worth 3 points, and the data sheet and post-lab report is usually worth 9 points, for a total of 15 points per lab. Labs can be turned in up to a week late for a 3 point penalty.
Guidelines for laboratory notebooks:
1. The lab notebook will be a bound notebook.
2. The lab notebook will have a table of contents listing the page numbers of each lab. Each page of the notebook following the table of contents will be numbered consecutively. No pages should be ripped out of the notebook under any circumstances. Write only on one side of the page.
3. All information in the lab notebook will be in ink. Corrections will be crossed out with a single line through the incorrect statement or data. There should be no erasures. Laboratory notebooks are considered legal documents in academic and industrial research.
4. Each lab notebook will be organized as follows:
a. Title of the experiment.*
b. Date that the experiment was conducted*
c. Purpose of the experiment.*
d. Safety hazards*
e. A step-by-step procedure of the experiment*
f . A quantitative record of the actual data obtained in the experiment
*Pre-lab (to be completed before class)
5. The notebook will be ready for evaluation by the instructor at the beginning of the class period with a completed pre-lab write up (a – e above) and will be signed by the instructor to indicate completion. The student will not be permitted to do the lab exercise if the pre-lab write up in his/her notebook is not complete.
6. Each student must record his/her own data in his/her own lab notebook, not in the laboratory textbook or module. When a student has completed the lab, the instructor will sign his/her completed data table and the blank data table in the lab module. This indicates that not only has the lab been completed, but that the student has left his/her lab area clean and all equipment has been returned to its proper place. All data should be recorded in the lab notebook, not in the laboratory textbook or handout.