Welcome to Immunology! MIC 519/419H is an introductory course for graduate and honors students interested in how the body protects itself from infectious disease. You should have completed General Biology and Organic Chemistry plus at least two other courses in Microbiology, Genetics, Biochemistry, or Cell Biology. If you have had NONE of these advanced courses, please see me about your readiness to take this course. All students taking this course will do the same work and be graded the same, regardless of whether you are graduate, honors undergraduate, or regular undergraduate students.
Over the next 16 weeks, you will learn in this course what constitutes the immune system, how it functions to keep us healthy, and how it can cause disease in cases of allergy and autoimmunity. We'll also explore the ways in which immunology is used for diagnosis and treatment of infectious disease and cancer.
When you finish this course, you should be able to:
Why do we give grades (called assessment in educational jargon)?
Acquiring FACTS is just the beginning of learning. Some of the facts you learn in immunology this year will not be facts next year or the year after. More importantly, knowing facts without being able to apply them is "inert knowledge", good for Immunology Trivial Pursuit but not much else. Educational skills I want to you acquire include the abilities to comprehend, analyze, apply, synthesize, and evaluate information in immunology. The longer I teach, the more convinced I am that the amount of active participation by the student determines how much effective learning takes place. I am also convinced that for material to be learned in such a way that it is useful to you during the course and after the course is over, it must be learned stepwise (not the night or weekend before an exam). For these reasons, grading (and non-graded writing) will occur often throughout the semester.
Grades in MIC 519/ 419H will be based on several assessments with the relative weighting shown below.
|
ACTIVITY
|
POINTS |
519 GRADING*
|
|---|---|---|
|
Exams 2 @ 100
Due in class and on Turnitin.com |
200
|
450-500 = A
400-449 = B
350-399 = C
300-349 = D
< 300 = E
|
|
Team Vaccine Proposal
|
200
|
|
"Pink Sheet" |
50 |
|
Participation Score |
50 |
|
|
Course Total
|
500
|
Case Studies/Exams Because I am an advocate of active learning, this course will feature lecture on demand - I'll be happy to lecture, but only when you need my expertise to understand the textbook material or extend it. A case study will be assigned for each of my "lecture" topics; it will be available on line at least 48 hours before class. You should complete as much of the case as you can before class, writing down your answers and any questions you need answered. All material you need for answering the case questions is contained in the cases and the textbook. In class, you will discuss the case with your team, reach a consensus on the answers, and make a list of questions or topics on which you need explanations or clarifications. I will then "lecture" on the topics you select and introduce additional questions until everyone is clear on the concepts. The Midterm and Final Exams will be cases that you will complete individually; the immunology concepts required to complete these exams will be those from previous cases.
Vaccine proposal Teams of 4 students will collaborate to write a vaccine proposal on a pathogen of your choosing. More detailed information may be found at Proposal.
Grading scale The course is graded on how well you meet the objectives listed above, not on a curve. Grades are maintained to two decimal points and at the end of the semester, total points with a decimal of equal to or greater than 0.50 are rounded up to the next integer. I carefully examine scores within 1-2 percentage points of the next highest letter grade, and MAY award a higher grade in individual cases where I see a clear trend towards performance at the higher level. I cannot change your grade or allow you to do extra work once the class is over!!!
September 14 last day
to drop without a grade (course will not appear on transcript.
October 12 Last day to drop with a W if you are passing; needs my
signature of an add/drop form.
December 5 Last day to completely withdraw from the semester; see
Dean of Students.
Do NOT assume that if you just stop attending class you will be administratively dropped! Failure to follow these procedures will result in an "E" on your transcript. An incomplete will be given only when most of the work in the course has been completed and the remainder can be completed without retaking the course. An incomplete agreed upon by you and me will be accompanied by an written agreement signed by both of us listing what work must be completed and a final due date.
Academic Integrity Students are encouraged to share intellectual views and discuss freely the principles and applications of the course work. However, examinations and individual assignments must be written independently . This course operates under the UA Code of Academic Integrity (http://w3.arizona.edu/~studpubs/policies/cacaint.htm). All forms of academic dishonesty are prohibited, including (but not limited to): cheating, fabrication, academic dishonesty, plagiarism, modifying any academic work to obtain additional credit without approval of instructor, or attempting to carry out any of the above. Committing any of the above will result in sanctions being imposed on the student's scores or grade up to and including the assignment of an "E".
YOU, the student: learning is not a spectator sport! How do you learn most effectively? Reading? Listening to lecture? Flash cards? Taking notes? Discussing the material with a study group? Writing a paper? Most people learn most effectively when they DO something. In this class, you will be doing a variety of things (because different activities work better for different learners) to help you learn immunology (and also enjoy doing so).
What I expect of you:
Your fellow students There are many reasons for working with your peers, but I'll give you what I consider the most important: 1. The BEST way to learn something is to teach it or discuss it with someone else. 2. Working effectively with a diverse group of people is a life skill you will need in any career you choose. Class sessions will involve learning activities with your classmates, where you work together to solve problems. Studying together outside of class is also a good strategy and one that I encourage.
Text and library resources I have asked the bookstore to order as the text for this course IMMUNOBIOLOGY The Immune System in Health and Disease by Charles Janeway et al. (6th Edition, Garland Publishing,2001) and A Short Guide to writing About Biology by Jan. A Pechenik. Reading assignments from the immunology text will be made each week, and the course schedule will generally follow the text. The Writing Guide will be a valuable resource for the kinds of writing we do in this course. Research papers will be assigned by me or visiting lecturers one week ahead of when they will be discussed.
Electronic resources All class materials, including announcements and reminders, case studies, calendar, syllabus, Tutorials with practice quizzes and problems, and ToolBox descriptions of techniques and materials are available electronically at http://microvet.arizona.edu/CoursesVSC519/vsc519index.html. Computers are available for course use in the Student Resource Center, VetSci/Micro Building, Room 202, from 8 AM until 4 PM weekdays. For the location of other campus computing facilities, how to access the campus network from off campus locations with a modem and phone line, and for instruction in acquiring a FREE e-mail account and in using e-mail and the Internet, see the copy of Computing on Campus which you can get from CCIT or from the Resource Center.
Special resources Students needing special accommodations or special services should contact the S.A.L.T. Center in Old Main, 621-1242 and/or the Disability Resource Center, Second and Cherry Streets, 621-3268. The needs for special services must be documented, verified by these UA units, and presented to me before the end of the second full week of classes. I will do everything I can to accommodate documented special needs. Non-native English speakers may use a language dictionary during exams as long as it has no added material related to immunology.
Instructor
Janet M. Decker, PhD, Senior Lecturer
Department of Veterinary Science and Microbiology
235 VetSci/Micro (Building #90)
Phone: 621-8942 Email:
jdecker@u.arizona.edu
Campus Mailbox: Room 204 VetSci/Micro
Office Hours: http://microvet.arizona.edu/Courses/MIC419/mic419instructor.html
Drop-ins are welcome. I post my weekly schedule on my office door and on line at http://microvet.arizona.edu/Courses/MIC419/mic419instructor.html, and enjoy seeing students in my office. Please come by as soon as you have something I can help you with or just to chat. If you think you would like me to write a letter of recommendation for you once you have successfully completed this course, make sure I know you as more than a name and student number. I plan lectures and in-class activities to highlight the most important topics or clarify the most difficult topics from the textbooks and other assigned reading, not to substitute for doing the reading yourself before coming to class. Tape recorders are welcome at all lectures.
What you can expect of me:
