Course Assignments:
Weekly Reading Assignments
Weekly Homework Assignment: (10 x 1.5%)=15% or 150 pts
There will be ten (10) Homework Assignments posted after the lecture, in the corresponding week’s Homework Assignment folder. Answers should be typed, in the student’s own words, and submitted on Blackboard before the beginning of the next class (on Tuesday, 5:50 PM). Detailed information will be posted in each assignment.
*There will be a 5% deduction for late submission and late work will only be accepted up to a month after the deadline.
Weekly Discussion Board/ Blog: (10 x 1%)= 10% or 100 pts
Each week all students will be posting their writing and comments (min half page long) about the current Environmental Health topic/event in the US or the World. Journal entries will be a graded as 1% each (total 10%). Each week during the classroom discussion, one or more students will share their information and comments.
Class Exercises and Participation 10% or 100 pts
Students are expected to participate actively in class. Each class session will have an information sharing and discussion segment. Students will report and discuss information related to class topics and obtained from assigned websites during the previous week. In addition, there will be Class Exercises based on assigned readings or currently discussed material. During the Class Exercise, students will most often collaborate in groups on provided topics.
Comparative Analysis of Three Peer-Reviewed Articles 15% or 150pts
Topics for the research paper will be posted on Blackboard in “Research Paper” folder.
You must read minimum five environmental health research articles from different peer-reviewed journals about one specific environmental health problem/threat (i.e., Journal of the American Medical Association, New England Journal of Medicine, American Journal of Public Health, and Environmental Health Perspectives) and choose minimum three articles to write about. Focus on original research work. Maximum one research comparison paper can be used. Be sure, you have read full scholarly papers and not just the abstracts. News articles, press releases, and consumer information such as “WebMD” or Wikipedia are not appropriate. The articles must be published after January 2010.
Deadlines for upload:
*There will be a 5% grade reduction for any late submission.
In 5.5-7 pages (minimum 1,500 words), double spaced, Times New Roman size 12 font paper (in APA style) try to answer to the following questions:
Develop your opinions based on knowledge gained from your readings, use complete sentences and provide enough information to clearly communicate what the article is about. Grammar and spelling count, so proofread your work. Please remember that we are looking for a problem which is reportedly impacting human health or which has the potential to do so. When answering the questions keep in mind that you are required to analyze the situation laid out in the article and respond in your own words.
Electronic version (in Word) has to be uploaded to a Blackboard through the SafeAssign. More details will be provided in the class and posted on Blackboard.
Group Debate Presentation 10% or 100 pts
Each group must prepare a 10-15 minute (5 min per student) Power Point presentation and deliver it in the class with the understanding that the class is the Hearing Panel (time limit is to be strictly enforced). Students are representing either government or community-based organization, group worried about a particular environmental health issue or institution/business promoting it’s business. Each student will give a testimony in the front of the classmates who are representing the coalition of residents who will be voting for or against the project. The goal of the hearing is to have the presenting group’s issue to be chosen as one of three environmental projects or issues in the community.
At the end, all of the Hearing Panelists (the class) will vote on the most compelling environmental health issue and be able to justify their votes. Later, the presentation will be posted on Blackboard and all students will be able to access it.
All PowerPoint presentations should include slides that are brief, to the point, and easy to read at a glance (bulleted key points; no sentences) with appropriate/ relevant headings and graphics. More information with project expectations and rubric will be provided on Blackboard.
Midterm Exam 20% or 200 pts
Midterm exam will be given on October 13, 2015.
Final Exam 20% or 20 pts
A final exam will be given on the last day of class on December 8, 2015. Final grades will be posted on Blackboard within one week.
Completion of all examinations is required of every student unless announced otherwise by the instructor. Only true emergencies shall constitute excused absences and will require verification by a physician, police, or clergy note. Upon evaluation of each situation, a make-up examination may be scheduled at the convenience of the instructor.