Course Syllabus

The course will be completed in four and a half weeks. The beginning half week will be the orientation and preparation period. During this half week, the instructor will help the students set up their account, familiarize them with the course website and D2L program, and allow for introduction of the course instructor and the participants. The following four weeks deal with one unit per week. The total amount of estimated time to complete this course is 20-30 hours. Students should spend 4-6 hours approximately each week to finalize all requirements of the unit.

Each unit begins on Monday, and must be completed by the following Sunday at midnight. Though the online pattern allows the students to work at their convenience, the instructor has virtual office hours, 8:00 -9:00am Monday through Friday. Below is the course schedule for the NRES 679-China, Fall07:

               Unit One: October 1st - October 7th, 2007

               Unit Two: October 8th - October 14th, 2007

               Unit Three: October 15th - October 21st, 2007

               Unit Four: October 22nd - October 28th, 2007

Two Types of Learning Efforts are Offered in this Course

Need-to-knows

Need-to-knows refer to information that is required based on the course goals and objectives. All the Need-to-knows, including the required readings and compulsory assignments, will be marked with the Picture (15x15, 909 bytes) symbol and are in red bold writing.

Nice-to-knows

Nice-to-knows are optional and may selected by the learners based on their personal experiences, subject needs, and interests. All the nice to knows, including the suggested readings and assignments will be marked with the Picture (15x13, 900 bytes) symbol.

Course Structure

Unit 1: General Introduction of China

  • Physical Geography

  • History

  • People and Culture

  • Xinjiang

  • Yunnan

Unit 2: Biodiversity and Conservation

  • Biodiversity in China

  • Biodiversity Conservation Policies and Natural Reserves

  • Biodiversity in Yunnan

  • Biodiversity in Xinjiang

Unit 3: Major Environmental Issues

  • State of the Environment

  • Energy issues

  • China’s Environment in a Globalizing World

Unit 4: Society and Effort

  • Politics

  • Economics

  • Recent Movements and Efforts 

 

Assignments

All assignments must be completed and submitted to the secured D2L drop box or online discussion board unless otherwise noted.

The paragraphs below explain all possible types of assignments participants will experience.

1. Required readings (Picture (15x15, 909 bytes))

These readings are required of everyone in the class. They are noted by the symbol above and identified in red bold lettering. All the required reading materials are available online by linking to the original site or through D2L in PDF format.

 2. Suggested readings (Picture (15x13, 900 bytes))

The instructor provides a list for suggested readings. Students may select readings from the list based on their interest.

3. Discussion ( Picture (15x15, 909 bytes)and Picture (15x13, 900 bytes))

Students are required to post their opinions and/or reflect on readings and quizzes. Also, responding to classmates' opinions and reflections are required and considered in grading.

4. Watch the DVD of China Rises (Picture (15x15, 909 bytes))

Watch the DVD of China Rises--Getting Rich, and post the discussion question on D2L discussion board.

5. Final project (Picture (15x15, 909 bytes))

By the end of this course, participants will develop an educational plan to infuse into their teaching grade level(s) and subject area(s) based on the information gained in the course.

Grading Scale   

This course relies heavily on the level of interaction during the virtual discussion. Your postings must relate to the unit readings. You will be expected to submit comments, reflection, and/or answers in the discussion board in addition to responding to others' postings. 

Posting your reflections and comments to others at the discussion board 60%
Final project 40%
TOTAL 100%