Environmental Sciences Seminar II (ENSC 506, Fall 2010)

 


Instructor:                  Dr. Zhi-Qing Lin

Office:                        0328 Science Building

Phone:                        618-650-2650

email:                          zhlin@siue.edu


Class Schedule:          Thursdays, 5:30-6:20 pm, 2415 Peck Hall 

 

Office Hours: By appointment


Course Description:

 

One of the most important aspects of environmental studies is to communicate your findings of scientific research experiments or environmental analysis on current environmental issues. In this course we will discuss and practice different steps and approaches necessary for giving an effective oral or poster presentation. Guest speakers and Faculty in the Environmental Sciences Program will demonstrate how to formulate a scientific presentation, and students registered in ENSC 506 will be required to give a 30-minute oral presentation on their thesis or research paper topic. ENSC 506 is required to be taken during or just prior to the semester of their thesis or paper defense.


Course Objectives:

1)      to learn how to organize materials for scientific oral presentations

2)      to practice different technical skills for giving an effective scientific presentation

3)      to enhance our oral and written communication ability


Grading System:

 

Each oral presentation will be evaluated by your audience (both ENSC 505 and ENSC 506 students) and the instructors following your presentation (see Evaluation Form). You will be required to meet with the instructor to review the evaluation materials during non-class time.

 

Oral presentation                                 85%

Attendance & chairperson                  15%


Course Attendance: Regular prompt attendance is required for success in this course. Only the University approved absences will be accepted for missing classes. If excessive absenteeism occurs, 10 points will be deducted.


Guidelines for Presentation:

You presentation may include the following components: 1) title, 2) introduction (e.g., background information and questions that need to be addressed), 3) methods and materials (if applicable), 4) analysis and interpretation of your results (if applicable) or current available information or literature, 5) discussion (e.g., your explanation, speculation, and future research needs), 6) conclusion. In short, your presentation needs to be informative and presented clearly in a logical way. Be creative!


Academic Misconduct:

"Acts of academic misconduct for which students are subject to sanctions include, without limitation, plagiarism, cheating, failure or refusal to follow clinical practice standards, falsifying or manufacturing scientific or educational data and/or representing manufactured data to be the result of scientific or scholarly experiment or research, and soliciting, aiding, abetting, concealing, or attempting such act. Plagiarism is defined as including, without limitation, the act of representing the work of another as one's own. Plagiarism may consist of copying, paraphrasing, or otherwise using the written, electronic, or oral work of another without proper acknowledgement or consent of the source or presenting oral, electronic, or written material prepared by another as one's own. Plagiarism also includes using information from electronic resources, including the Internet, without the use of proper citations." (SIUE Student Academic Code)

 

In the event of academic misconduct, the student is subject to a number of penalties, including a failing grade for a plagiarized assignment or for a course.


Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities should visit the Disability Support Services (DDS) located in the Student Success Center, Room 1270, at their earliest convenience to meet the director and discuss available services.  The student with a documented disability and a disability ID card from DSS should also notify the instructor as soon as possible to make any necessary arrangements, including assistance in emergency evacuation. 


Course Schedule:

Week 1, Aug. 26:

Introduction to the seminar courses and seminar signup;

Lecture: Preparing and presenting an oral and poster presentations

 

Week 2, Sep. 2:

Lecture:  Laboratory safety training

 

Week 3, Sep. 9:

Lecture:  Guest speaker(s)


Week 4, Sep. 16: ENSC 505 students 1 and 2

 

Week 5, Sep. 23: ENSC 505 students 3 and 4

 

Week 6, Sep. 30: ENSC 505 students 5 and 6

 

Week 7, Oct. 7: ENSC 505 students 7 and 8

 

Week 8, Oct. 14: ENSC 505 students 9 and 10

 

Week 9, Oct. 21: ENSC 505 students 11 and 12

 

Week 10, Oct. 28: ENSC 505 students 13 and 14

 

Week 11, Nov. 4: ENSC 505 students 15 and ENSC 506 student 1

 

Week 12, Nov. 11: ENSC 505 student 16 and ENSC 506 student 2

 

Week 13, Nov. 19: ENSC 505 student 17 and ENSC 506 student 3

 

Week 14, Nov.25:

No Class (Thanksgiving Break)

 

Week 15, Dec. 2: ENSC 505 student 18 and ENSC 506 student 4

 

Week 16, Dec. 9:

Poster presentations by students in ENSC 505 (Poster preparation using PowerPoint; poster evaluation form)