COURSE INFO AND ADMINISTRATION

TEACHING TEAM

Course Address

University of Toronto
Department of Cell and Systems Biology
Earth Sciences Centre, 25 Willcocks Street
Toronto, Ontario
M5S 3B2
Fax: (416) 978-5878

Team Leader and Lecturer

Professor Tropepe is the team leader and the lecturer for CSB349. His email address is v.tropepe@utoronto.ca. All lectures will be held in the Earth Science Building in ES1050.

Lectures are on Monday from 1:00pm - 2:00pm and Wednesday from 9:00am - 11:00am.

Coordinator

Dr. Melody Neumann is the CSB349 course co-ordinator.

ES 3052 Earth Sciences Centre
Tel: (416) 978-7431
Fax: (416) 978-5878
E-mail: melody.neumann@utoronto.ca
Office Hours: Monday to Wednesday 2:00–4:00pm . If you cannot come at the specified office times, please email or telephone to make an appointment.

Administrator

Nyla Maharaj is the course administrator.
ES 3053 Earth Sciences Centre
Tel: (416) 978-6442
Fax: (416) 978-5878
E-mail: csb349.csb@utoronto.ca
Office Hours: Monday 2-4, Tuesday to Thursday 10-12 & 2-4, and Friday closed. If you cannot come at the specified office hours, please email or telephone to make an appointment.

Tutorial Assistants

Note: The * is being used as a substitute for the @ for spam purposes.

COURSE POLICIES

(Amended Oct 1st, 2009)

Dear CSB349 Students,

If you miss a tutorial/term test or cannot hand in an assignment due to the flu or flu-related illness then please read the following policy change:

We will allow students to scan/screen capture and e-mail their flu declaration from ROSI and/or their completed UofT approved medical documentation (located in your course manual) within one week of missing a tutorial, term test, or assignment due date. Within a week of being ill, we require that the original medical document be provided to us for final approval. More specific details follow. Please read these.

*Assignment Due Dates:*

We strongly request that students contact us before the assignment due date to let us know that they are sick and will not be able to hand in the assignment on time. This must be followed up by a flu declaration and/or the completed UofT medical documentation, which can initially be emailed to us. However, even if you e-mail us your medical documents, within a week of being ill, the original medical document must be provided to the CSB349 Office for final approval and your assignment must be submitted.  If your illness lasts longer than a week, let us know!

We highly recommend that you get assignments done early, and if you happen to be ill on the day one is due, that you e-mail it to the course office. It is important to take control of the things that you can (e.g. not leaving assignments until the night before they are due), so that you can concentrate on catching up on the things that you cannot control, such as missed lectures, tutorials, and term tests. Past experience has shown that being proactive will pay off since you will be able to catch up on missed work much more quickly.

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Term Tests

Term Test 1 - NO MAKE-UP TEST. If you miss the term test (and have a valid documented reason - illness or death in the family), the second term test will be weighted to be worth 40% of your grade. Bring your documentation to the CSB349 office (ESC 3053) no later than 12:00 noon October 26^th, 2009.

Tutorial Attendance

If you miss the quiz because you are late, you miss the marks for the tutorial assignment. If you leave the tutorial early and do not contribute to the majority of the group discussion and summation, you forfeit the assignment mark.

There are no make-up tutorials or temporary changes because of the importance of group work.

If you miss paper analysis tutorials (3, 4, 7, or 8) for an authorized reason (e.g., illness), you may make up the marks by completing an alternative assignment, which you bring with your documentation to the CSB349 office (ES3053). Before beginning the alternative assignment check with the CSB349 office (telephone or e-mail) to ensure that your reason for missing the tutorial is acceptable. Except for extended illnesses, your alternative assignment plus documentation is due within 1 week of your missed tutorial (e.g., your tutorial is Tuesday, your alternative assignment is due at the latest the following Tuesday). Use the official University of Toronto Medical Note (see sample in the course manual) and clearly indicate your tutorial group and TA on your medical note and alternative assignment.

Alternative assignment-write a 3 page (single spaced) summary of the primary paper for the missed tutorial. Include the hypothesis of the study, technique(s) chosen, results, and what the results indicated. Use the study questions provided, with the articles to help you write this summary. Include a title, introduction, conclusion, and properly cite the reference summarized using expanded referencing style.

If you miss tutorials (4, 6, or 9) when PBL-related individual assignments are due, contact your TA and submit your assignment to your TA electronically. Your TA will not mark your assignment until your documentation is approved by the CSB349 office (ES3053). Except in extended illnesses (ill for at least 5 days before assignment is due), you are expected to submit your assignment to your TA on time (at the start of your regular tutorial) and bring in a paper copy of your assignment plus documentation before 4:30 pm the day after your missed tutorial. If you are too ill to bring documentation to the CSB349 office please contact us via telephone or e-mail. See below for details regarding the Final PBL Project.

Late Assignments

What is "LATE" and what are the Penalties?

1. If you have been approved to do the "Paper analysis" alternative assignments for tutorials 3, 4, 7, or 8: these assignments must be received by your TA within one week of your missed tutorial or they will not be accepted (0 marks for that tutorial).

2. PBL Individual assignments are due in tutorials 4, 6 and 9. Assignments will be collected at the beginning of the tutorial; those not handed in by the time the TA leaves the tutorial are considered late. Group PBL assignments are due in Tutorial 9 and will be collected at the beginning of the tutorial; A LATE group final product will not be accepted. You must complete the Team Skills Rubric and give these to your TA in tutorials 4 & 9 (the appropriate forms can be found in the course manual with the tutorial in which they are due); if you miss these tutorials, give your TA these sheets as soon as possible (within a week) or you will lose marks on the group project.

Late Individual PBL Assignment Penalties

MINUS 1 Grade MARK: You have until 4:30 pm the next day to hand in your assignment or report, with 1 grade mark deducted for being late [e.g., regular tutorial is Tuesday 4-6 pm, you have until Wednesday 4:30 pm and the highest mark you can earn is B+. Or if the raw mark for your report is an A- you will get a B-]. Reports will not be accepted if handed in after the next day (i.e., mark of 0) for reasons other than a serious, extended illness (ill for at least 5 days before assignment is due) with appropriate documentation.

Late Final Group Projects

Final Group Project Oral Presentation and Poster Day

In Tutorial 9, all group projects must be ready to be presented, as there is no way to re-schedule. If you are not ready, you will be marked accordingly. If you miss Tutorial 9 which is the presentation day for your PBL project (or if you are in a group doing a poster and you miss the Poster Day), you will lose marks for the oral presentation component without a documented authorized reason for your absence.

NO LATE ASSIGNMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED FOR FULL CREDIT WITHOUT APPROPRIATE DOCUMENTATION (I.E., OFFICIAL U OF T MEDICAL FORM) AND APPROVAL FROM THE CSB349 OFFICE.

Created by Nyla Maharaj January 2008.
Art work in the website banner courtesy of Sven Geier, this particular piece of art and others like it can be found at www.sgeier.net/fractals/flam3/fractals/DNA.jpg.