Spring 2007 G356 Syllabus

MEETING TIMES

Students are rquired to meet at class times from 12:00–12:50 and 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. (or later, as needed) every Friday for

- Formal instruction,

- Student presentations, or

- LEEPS or other presentations/seminars.

Students are also urged to attend other departmental lecture presentations held at other posted times (e.g., LEEPS, graduate student proposals and defenses).

Atypical times will be announced in class, posted, and/or e-mailed to students. Students have the responsibility to be aware of lecture offerings.

Students are required to check their e-mails daily (this is UND policy and a good idea).

Students are required to attend at least 75% of all student presentations and seminars and must submit thoughtful evaluations (on forms to be provided).

This means students must attend 3 of 4 of all presentations to pass the course.

Students must attend talks in their entirety. No evaluation forms will be distributed after a talk begins.

The dates and topics of student and department presentations/seminars will be posted on this (Hartman) Web site (Web site: www.geology.und.edu, or www.und.edu/instruct/jhartman), announced in class, and, commonly, sent to students by e-mail. Because LEEPS and student thesis seminars are always being scheduled and changed, no complete calendar of the semester will be available. By attending class, checking this Web site, and reading your e-mails, you will not have any worries.

Seminar II (Geol 422)

PREREQUISITES

Geol 356 and Geol 421 for Geol 422.

Note that Geol 421 and 422 may not be taken concurrently with Geol 356.

COURSE DESIGN IN THE GGE CURRICULUM

Basic to success in life is a person’s ability to communicate successfully with others. GGE has a series of three courses designed to allow students’ to become more effective communicators, specifically in the area of science and engineering, but also in speaking to the public. Part 3 of this series is Geol 422, known as Seminar II, where students are expected to hone their presentation skills and provide meaningful evaluation of outside speakers others and of their peers. Now as seasoned speakers, Geol 422 students are role models for Geol 421 students in presenting talks in the Seminar 1 and Seminar II activities. They have the opportunity to practice their toastmaster skills using different techniques to enhance presentations without worry of undue audience criticism. Students are taped for self-critique to understand the pros and cons of methods employed. Students continue to evaluate other presenters and reflect on what attributes of a speaker and the visuals used go into making an effective presentation. Students listen to LEEPS (Leading Edge of Earth and Planetary Science), other Geol 421, Geol 422, and graduate student presentations throughout the semester.

Geol 422 students should use information from courses in their presentations. In addition, however, Geol 422 students should also typically be seniors engaged in research (Geol 488, Research II) and conducting a Senior Research or Research Design Project (Geol 494, GeoE 485). Students must present a PowerPoint on these respective projects by the end of the semester. Students are encouraged to use other aspects of the research through the course.

OBJECTIVES

Geol 422 (Seminar II) is meant to prepare students for communicating the results of their scientific and engineering studies to a professional and public audiences. With the combination of Geol 421, students are prepared to speak from prepared material, ask questions of speakers, talk impromptu on subjects presented to them with the knowledge that they have done these activities before. Likewise, a student has the educational awareness and growth through practice to interpret and be a critical listener of presentations.

Geol 422 specifically is intended for seniors or graduate students to prepare and deliver a formal oral presentations in science or engineering, specifically culminating in the oral presentations of a senior theses (Geol 494) or Engineering Designs (Geol 485).

READING MATERIALS

Preparation of visual aids for a professional presentation: Tips and guidelines, by Robert, E. Crowder, R.E. Crowder Consulting, Golden, CO. (available in class)

Electronically speaking: A presenter's guide to communicating using PowerPoint, 35-mm slides, or poster-sized media, by Robert E. Baxter, Jr., AAPG media CD (available for purchase from the Department , $5.00).

STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES

Students are required to give three prepared and scheduled talks during the semester.

Presentations by GeoE majors must have substantial engineering content.

Talks by Geology majors and Environmental Geoscience majors must have substantial geoscience content.

The topics of these talks will be determined in class with my help.

The student presentations will have the following formats:

• Artifact presentation; an 8 to10 minute talk to Geol 356, Geol 421, and Geol 422 students (followed by questions and discussion) on an object as a visual aid chosen by the student (e.g., the object may be a geologic map, a model, a piece of equipment, etc.).

• Chalk talk presentation; a 10 to 12 minute talk on a topic of interest to Geol 356, Geol 421, and Geol 422 students (followed by questions and discussion) using the chalk board or a markable transparency.

• Power Point research presentation

– for Geol 422 students, a 30-35 minute lecture, representing a senior thesis (Geol 490) or Engineering Design (Geol 485) (followed by questions), is required. These presentations will be video taped and open to the public.

PowerPoint presentations will be saved as a record of the student's performance and activity within the department.

Other student responsibilities will include

• A one-minute spontaneous talk

• A debate presentation, with Geol 356 students as moderators

• In-class assignments, including

- talk topic selection

- abstract writing

- illustration design

All homework is required to be submitted on time for credit.

GRADING

Grades will be based on:

0-15% Evaluation of at least 75% of the required seminars and lectures

0-10% Homework and in class assignments

0- 5% Spontaneous talk

0- 5% Debate talk

0-15% Artifact talk

0-15% Chalk talk

0-35% Power Point presentation

The grades will be based on the following scale:

A = 90-100

B = 80-90

C = 65-80

D = 50-65

F = 00-50

Note: All course requirements must be completed to receive a passing grade. A zero in any category will result in a failing grade.