DESCRIPTION and GOALS

The BioNB 2210 discussion sections are designed to give an in-depth introduction to the field of behavior. While the discussion topic schedule coincides loosely with the lecture schedule, the discussion sections are NOT intended to be question/answer periods for lectures (TA and faculty office hours serve this function). Instead, the discussions will delve deeper into topics brought up in lecture and sometimes will cover topics somewhat tangential to the lecture material. The primary goals of discussion sections are to give students an appreciation for how and why researchers study behavior, introduce students to current research and areas of interest in the field of behavior, teach students to critically evaluate scientific papers and experimental designs, and help students improve their experimental design and scientific writing skills.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Because BioNB 2210 sections are group discussions, their success depends on the participation of every individual in the group. Therefore, all students are expected to: (1) attend discussions regularly, (2) come to section prepared (i.e., do the assigned readings before class), (3) contribute to the discussions, and (4) allow and encourage others to contribute. The importance of these responsibilities cannot be over-emphasized. A discussion in which only the TA or a few vocal individuals participate is both boring and a poor learning experience. However, if everyone participates in the discussion, class will be fun and dynamic.

Students will be responsible for a short assignment, due at the beginning of each week's section. These assignments will be geared towards helping students: (1) explore the discussion section topics more thoroughly and (2) practice important scientific skills (graphing, critical thinking, etc.) The exact format of these assignments will vary from week to week.

There will be one major research paper consisting of a final paper with two drafts. Students will work in groups to perform an experiment of their own design on the topic of honeybee thermoregulation, and each student will work individually to write up their results in the style of a scientific paper. Writing this paper will help students to develop their scientific thinking and writing skills. TAs will provide extensive feedback to students when evaluating the initial drafts, which students can use to help improve their writing before submitting their final paper.

SECTION EVALUATION

Your section grade will be calculated as follows:

Oral participation: 20%
Assignments: 45%
Bee lab paper: 35% (10% each for two drafts, 15% for final paper)

Your total section grade will account for 25% of your final grade in BioNB 2210. Final section grades will be normalized across all of the 4-credit discussion sections at the end of the semester to account for any grading differences between TAs.

DISCUSSION SECTION READINGS

Many readings are found in the required textbook: Exploring Animal Behavior. Other discussion section readings are available on the course website.