AST 1910 -- Proposed New Course

Tue Feb 21 12:28:55 2017

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Approvals Received:
Department
on 02-20-17
by Terry Thibeault
(tlfoley@umn.edu)
Approvals Pending: College/Dean  > Provost > Catalog
Effective Status: Active
Effective Term: 1179 - Fall 2017
Course: AST  1910
Institution:
Campus:
UMNTC - Twin Cities/Rochester
UMNTC - Twin Cities
Career: UGRD
College: TIOT - College of Science and Engineering
Department: 11092 - Astrophysics, MN Inst for
General
Course Title Short: The Ultimate Questions
Course Title Long: The Ultimate Questions
Max-Min Credits
for Course:
2.0 to 2.0 credit(s)
Catalog
Description:
Why are we here?  Not here at the U, or even on Earth, but why do intelligent beings even exist in the Universe?  How did it all begin?  And how is it going to end?  Did the Universe have to turn out the way it did, or are we simply the lucky one of an infinite number of universes existing across space and time?  Of course, we won?t answer any of these questions, but their exploration makes for a fascinating journey.  Our guidebooks will be two intriguing works by Paul Davies, ?The Goldilocks Enigma? and ?The Mind of God,? anchoring our discussions which are guaranteed to keep you up at night.
Print in Catalog?: Yes
Grading Basis: A-F only
Topics Course: No
Honors Course: No
Online Course: No
Freshman Seminar: Yes
Is any portion of this course taught
outside of the United States?:
No
Community Engaged Learning (CEL) : None
Instructor
Contact Hours:
2.0 hours per week
Course Typically Offered: Periodic Fall & Spring
Component 1 : LEC (no final exam)
Auto-Enroll
Course:
No
Graded
Component:
LEC
Academic
Progress Units:
Not allowed to bypass limits.
2.0 credit(s)
Financial Aid
Progress Units:
Not allowed to bypass limits.
2.0 credit(s)
Repetition of
Course:
Repetition not allowed.
Course
Prerequisites
for Catalog:
<no text provided>
Course
Equivalency:
No course equivalencies
Cross-listings: No cross-listings
Add Consent
Requirement:
No required consent
Drop Consent
Requirement:
No required consent
Enforced
Prerequisites:
(course-based or
non-course-based)
No prerequisites
Editor Comments: <no text provided>
Proposal Changes: Conversion of Freshman Seminar topics courses so each topic has it's own catalog number.
History Information: <no text provided>
Faculty
Sponsor Name:
Faculty
Sponsor E-mail Address:
Student Learning Outcomes
Student Learning Outcomes: * Student in the course:

- Can locate and critically evaluate information

Please explain briefly how this outcome will be addressed in the course. Give brief examples of class work related to the outcome.

Students are responsible for bringing in a "fascinating fact" each week to class, on any topic. They must be prepared to cite a reliable source for the information, and if challenged by either the instructor or fellow students, they need to do further research and post their results on our Moodle discussion pages. Students working in small groups also research and make a class presentation on an assigned topic related to the course. They must identify reliable resources for the information, and distinguish between findings that are secure and those which are speculative.

How will you assess the students' learning related to this outcome? Give brief examples of how class work related to the outcome will be evaluated.

Assessment of the fascinating facts is based on the ability of the student to identify and justify the reliability of their source. Assessment of the class presentations is done on the basis of accuracy and use of suitable resources, distinction between things which scientists consider established vs. those that are speculative, and the ability to present all of this clearly to the class.

Liberal Education
Requirement
this course fulfills:
None
Other requirement
this course fulfills:
None
Criteria for
Core Courses:
Describe how the course meets the specific bullet points for the proposed core requirement. Give concrete and detailed examples for the course syllabus, detailed outline, laboratory material, student projects, or other instructional materials or method.

Core courses must meet the following requirements:

  • They explicitly help students understand what liberal education is, how the content and the substance of this course enhance a liberal education, and what this means for them as students and as citizens.
  • They employ teaching and learning strategies that engage students with doing the work of the field, not just reading about it.
  • They include small group experiences (such as discussion sections or labs) and use writing as appropriate to the discipline to help students learn and reflect on their learning.
  • They do not (except in rare and clearly justified cases) have prerequisites beyond the University's entrance requirements.
  • They are offered on a regular schedule.
  • They are taught by regular faculty or under exceptional circumstances by instructors on continuing appointments. Departments proposing instructors other than regular faculty must provide documentation of how such instructors will be trained and supervised to ensure consistency and continuity in courses.

<no text provided>
Criteria for
Theme Courses:
Describe how the course meets the specific bullet points for the proposed theme requirement. Give concrete and detailed examples for the course syllabus, detailed outline, laboratory material, student projects, or other instructional materials or methods.

Theme courses have the common goal of cultivating in students a number of habits of mind:
  • thinking ethically about important challenges facing our society and world;
  • reflecting on the shared sense of responsibility required to build and maintain community;
  • connecting knowledge and practice;
  • fostering a stronger sense of our roles as historical agents.


<no text provided>
LE Recertification-Reflection Statement:
(for LE courses being re-certified only)
<no text provided>
Statement of Certification: This course is certified for a Core, effective as of 
This course is certified for a Theme, effective as of 
Writing Intensive
Propose this course
as Writing Intensive
curriculum:
No
Question 1 (see CWB Requirement 1): How do writing assignments and writing instruction further the learning objectives of this course and how is writing integrated into the course? Note that the syllabus must reflect the critical role that writing plays in the course.

<no text provided>
Question 2 (see CWB Requirement 2): What types of writing (e.g., research papers, problem sets, presentations, technical documents, lab reports, essays, journaling etc.) will be assigned? Explain how these assignments meet the requirement that writing be a significant part of the course work, including details about multi-authored assignments, if any. Include the required length for each writing assignment and demonstrate how the 2,500 minimum word count (or its equivalent) for finished writing will be met.

<no text provided>
Question 3 (see CWB Requirement 3): How will students' final course grade depend on their writing performance? What percentage of the course grade will depend on the quality and level of the student's writing compared to the percentage of the grade that depends on the course content? Note that this information must also be on the syllabus.

<no text provided>
Question 4 (see CWB Requirement 4): Indicate which assignment(s) students will be required to revise and resubmit after feedback from the instructor. Indicate who will be providing the feedback. Include an example of the assignment instructions you are likely to use for this assignment or assignments.

<no text provided>
Question 5 (see CWB Requirement 5): What types of writing instruction will be experienced by students? How much class time will be devoted to explicit writing instruction and at what points in the semester? What types of writing support and resources will be provided to students?

<no text provided>
Question 6 (see CWB Requirement 6): If teaching assistants will participate in writing assessment and writing instruction, explain how will they be trained (e.g. in how to review, grade and respond to student writing) and how will they be supervised. If the course is taught in multiple sections with multiple faculty (e.g. a capstone directed studies course), explain how every faculty mentor will ensure that their students will receive a writing intensive experience.

<no text provided>
Statement of Certification: This course is certified as Writing Internsive effective  as of 
Course Syllabus
Course Syllabus:

For new courses and courses in which changes in content and/or description and/or credits are proposed, please provide a syllabus that includes the following information: course goals and description; format; structure of the course (proposed number of instructor contact hours per week, student workload effort per week, etc.); topics to be covered; scope and nature of assigned readings (text, authors, frequency, amount per week); required course assignments; nature of any student projects; and how students will be evaluated.

Please limit text to about 12 pages. Text copied and pasted from other sources will not retain formatting and special characters might not copy properly. The University "Syllabi Policy" can be found here

Any syllabus older than two years should be replaced with a current version when making ECAS updates.



the ULTIMATE QUESTIONS
Astro 1905 - Freshman Seminar - Fall 2016
 T 3:35-5:30 Bruininks 123
https://ay16.moodle.umn.edu/course/view.php?id=5070
Instructor - Lawrence Rudnick,  (Doc R.) , x4-3396, larry@umn.edu
Office hours: W   10:30-11:30 or by appointment



GOALS:     In this course you will



    a) Become better acquainted with other students, a faculty member, and the U;

    b) Understand the special set of circumstances that allow life to exist on Earth and throughout the Universe
    c) Explore the "big questions" that frame our existence

    d) Have fun



REQUIREMENTS : (details below)

    a)  Attend all classes

    b)  Post weekly reflections on the week's class on the web - due at 23:59:59 Friday

    c)  Do assigned readings and post comments and two numbered questions on web (by 23:59:59 Sunday)

    d)  Research, prepare and make one class presentation on assigned topic (choices due 2nd week of class)

    e)  Participate actively in discussions - including weekly "fascinating facts" (on 3x5 cards)

    f)  Write one 500 word reflective essay on the course

DAILY SCHEDULE:  (rough)

    Check in time (10 min)

    Fascinating facts  (20 min)

    Discussions of readings / questions (40)

    Break (5min)

    Presentation/exercise by LR and/or Students ( 45 min)

    Check-out time (5min)

TEXTS:  

   "The Mind of God,"  Paul Davies
  "The Goldilocks Enigma," Paul Davies
   Other web readings as assigned
   Projects will involve library and web research.

TOPICS and READINGS SCHEDULE:

   See links on Moodle

Reflections  (Moodle)

Each week, you will post a reflection,  approximately 100-150 words in length,  an  original and thoughtful commentary, reflection, etc. on the material we covered that week in class.  Entries must be posted no later than Fri. night at 11:59pm.  The reflection should be interesting for your classmates to read, not simply a recitation of what we discussed.

Comments on Readings and Questions: (Moodle)

Readings are posted on the Moodle link.  For each week's reading, provide an approximately 100-150 word commentary. The commentary should be interesting for your classmates to read, not simply a recitation of what you read.  At the end, provide two numbered questions that would be suitable for class discussion.  Due Sunday night, 11:59 pm.

Fascinating facts

You will bring in a "fascinating fact" to discuss with the class.  This can be on any topic, but must be something that causes you to think, question, reflect, etc. -- something the class can talk about.   The whole class will be expected to join in this, as well as our other discussions.

Final reflective essays

Your final reflective essays will either be posted in the Final Essay forum on the web site, or be submitted by e-mail to larry@umn.edu by May 8th at 11:59pm. They should be 450-550 words long, and be original and thoughtful reflections on the content and experience of the course. They should be without spelling or grammatical errors, and should be developed around a coherent theme. Essays that appear to be first drafts will be returned for revision with a loss of one grade. Standards will be discussed further in class. You can submit in plain text or Word or pdf .

Presentation guidelines: (in groups of 2 or 3)

You will prepare a 40 minute lesson for the class, including a presentation, Q&A, and a 10 minute class activity.  Details to be provided later.

Grading:

All weekly assignments will be graded on a two-level basis:  good/satisfactory (2) , and marginal (1).  Readings /questions  15%;  Reflections 15%;  Class presentation 25%;  class participation 25%; final essay 20%.  An average grade of "satisfactory" will be equivalent to a B.
Special Needs:

Any special needs should be discussed with Doc R. before the 2nd week of class.   
Academic Standards:

You are responsible for being familiar with the academic standards policies of your college of enrollment.
Student Mental Health Services

As a student you may experience a range of issues that can cause barriers to learning, such as strained relationships, increased anxiety, alcohol/drug problems, feeling down, difficulty concentrating and/or lack of motivation. These mental health concerns or stressful events may lead to diminished academic performance or reduce a student&#65533;s ability to participate in daily activities. University of Minnesota services are available to assist you with addressing these and other concerns you may be experiencing. You can learn more about the broad range of confidential mental health services available on campus via the Student Mental Health Website at http://www.mentalhealth.umn.edu




Strategic Objectives & Consultation
Name of Department Chair
Approver:
Evan Skillman
Strategic Objectives -
Curricular Objectives:
How does adding this course improve the overall curricular objectives ofthe unit?

N/A
Strategic Objectives - Core
Curriculum:
Does the unit consider this course to be part of its core curriculum?

No
Strategic Objectives -
Consultation with Other
Units:
Before submitting a new course proposal in ECAS, circulate the proposed syllabus to department chairs in relevant units and copy affiliated associate dean(s). Consultation prevents course overlap and informs other departments of new course offerings. If you determine that consultation with units in external college(s) is unnecessary, include a description of the steps taken to reach that conclusion (e.g., catalog key word search, conversation with collegiate curriculum committee, knowledge of current curriculum in related units, etc.). Include documentation of all consultation here, to be referenced during CCC review. If email correspondence is too long to fit in the space provided, paraphrase it here and send the full transcript to the CCC staff person. Please also send a Word or PDF version of the proposed syllabus to the CCC staff person.

N/A
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