Los Angeles Mission College Section 0335, Spring 2016

Physical Geography Syllabus

Hello and welcome! I’m Dr. Daniel Waktola, your course instructor, who
is ready to help you understand the fundamental knowledge and skills of
Physical Geography. With your curiosity, participation, and steady effort,
I’m confident that you would exceed the learning outcomes of the course.

Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs)

Class Room: CMS 28

MW 10:35 am —12:00 pm Upon successful completion of this course you should be able to:

***** SLO 1. Locate and cr itically analyze impor tant natur al featur es using
Office # 240 (West Wind,
analogue maps, digital maps, and satellite imageries.
Upper Level, Inside Physi-
cal Sci. Dept).
SLO 2. Demonstr ate knowledge of Ear th’s planetary configuration and re-
**** late these to Earth’s surface cycles, such as seasons and climate
You can drop by change.

MW 10:00-10:30 am; SLO 3. Explain the pr ocesses oper ating within and between Ear th’s sys-
TTh 10:00-10:30 am; tems and relate these forces and processes to the distinctive land-
M 6:00 – 6:30 pm. forms of Earth.
T 6:00 – 6:30 pm.
SLO 4. Examine the inter actions between Ear th’s systems and the human
realm.
Or, by appointment.

****
Email me at
[email protected]

Call me at Course Description

(818) 833 3408
Physical Geography explores the earth's ever-changing physical system, in-
*****
cluding human activities where they interface with the environment. Empha-
sis is given to earth-sun relationships, atmosphere-hydrosphere interactions,
If geography is prose, maps lithospheric processes, integration of climate, soils and biomes and their spa-
are iconography. tial patterns. Students interpret the spatial patterns using maps produced from
Lennart Meri Geographic Information System (GIS), Global Positioning System (GPS),
and satellite imagery.
 PAGE 2 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY S YLLABUS

Class Policies
 Class time will be spent in lecture and discussion. It is expected that every
student will participate in the discussion and will not disturb the class.
 Attendance rosters are always maintained, and absences in excess of 3 may
result in exclusion from class.
 Every class attendance and class activity has a designated point. Every missed
class, for whatever reason, leads to a score of 0.
 Failure to attend class will result in your missing valuable information and
material. Besides, missing classes would lead to missed class activity points.
 If you are absent, it is your responsibility to acquire all the missed infor-
mation from your classmates. Therefore, it is very important to have the
name, phone, or e-mail addresses of three classmates.
 Medical appointments, work, job interviews, child care responsibilities,
etc., should be arranged so as not to occur during class time.
 Arriving late for class is disruptive for everyone, and habitual tardiness may
result in exclusion from class.
 Students are required to stay for the entire class period.
 Headsets should not be worn in class. Cellular phones should be turned off.
 If you are interested to use laptop or tablets during lecture hours, it shouldn’t
distract you from pay attention to the class activity. Repeated distraction may
lead to banning you from those gadgets in the class. Specifically, you should:
1. Refrain from browsing unrelated websites, and
2. Sit either in the front or second rows of the classroom seats.

Required Textbook

McKnight’s Physical Geography. California Edition 3rd

California Edition Hess, ISBN: 1-269-14437-5. This
is a bundled book with Access Card (which is a
must!).

Course ID: MGEOGSPRINGMW160335

Check the Mission’s Bookstore at:
http://eagleslanding.lamission.edu/

NB: Onecan’t pass this course without buying this

textbook and completing the chapter homeworks.
 SECTION 0335 , SPRING 201 6 PAGE 3

Withdrawal If you are having difficulty with the concepts

presented in class, I will be happy to help you.
Please see me after class or dur-
Non-attendance does not constitute withdrawal. It is ing the office hours if you are
your responsibility to drop. I will exclude only “no- having problems. You may call
shows” up through “census week.” You must be aware or email me. Getting help early
of the dates pertaining to withdrawals (see college cata- in the semester will ensure a
logue and schedule of classes). You may drop the class more successful course grade.
any time through the last date to drop via the Admis- When emailing me, don't forget
sions Office, on-line, or by phone. If you stop attending to include your full name,
class without filing an official drop card with Admis- course name, and section num-
sions and Records by the scheduled deadline, you will ber.
receive a grade of Fail.

Exams Course Evaluation

There are two (2) mid exams in this course covering Grades are totaled from exams, quizzes, homeworks,
material presented up to the week preceding the and assignments. A portion of your grade is based on
exam. The format of each exam will be discussed class participation. Late submission, for whatever rea-
the week prior to the exams. Exams may include son, will be penalized.
multiple choice, true-false, matching, and short an-
swers
 2 Exams —–——- 200 pts
In addition, there would be two quizzes for each
chapters: The first one is posted on the website of  Mastering Geography Home Works 110 pts
the textbook (www.masteringgeography.com,  Chapter Quizzes / Tests 120 pts
which requires access code) and the second one is
 Term Paper 50 pts
posted in the Etudes (www.myetudes.org)
 Class Activities + Attendance 50 pts
NB:  Assignment s 40 pts
 No make-ups will be given for missed ex-
 Final Exam —–——— 130 pts
ams. If you miss one of the exams (except the
final), points will be assigned based on 85% of
the highest exam score during the semes- Grand Total —–———- 700 pts
ter. Any additional missed exam will receive
zero points.
 One can’t pass the course without completing
the online quizzes! If you fail to take the quiz-
zes you will receive a grade of
“Incomplete” (“I”).
> 616 pts =A
546 - 615 pts =B
Grading 476 – 545 pts =C
Academic Integrity Policy 350 - 475 pts =D
 Cheating is unacceptable behavior for college < 350 pts =F
students.
 If you are part of a cheating incident (either by
giving or receiving assistance on an exam, or
through plagiarism—submitting anyone else’s
work as your own), you will receive a score of Everything has to do with geography
zero and recommended for disciplinary actions.
Judy Martz
 PAGE 4
Course Outline (Subject to Change)
Wk Date Topic Reading
1 Feb 8 (M) Course Intro: Syllabus, Policies Course Resources
Feb 10(W) Introduction to Physical Geography Ch. 1
2 Feb 15 (M) HOLLIDAY (PRESIDENTS’S DAY) 1. Mastering Geography—Accessed
Feb 17 (W) Earth and Solar System by a purchased code. The course ID
is: MGEOGSPRINGMW160335
*** Feb 21 Drop Classes Without “W”
3 Feb 22(M) Earth Sun Relations, Time  This resource helps you to do
Feb 24 (W) Portraying Earth Ch. 2 home works for each chapter. Be-
4 Feb 29 (M) Scale, Projections, GPS, Remote Sensing, GIS sides, it gives you access to various
resources: e-book, animations, chap-
March 2 (W) The Atmosphere Ch. 3 ter reviews, and quizzes.
5 March 7 (M) Weather and Climate & Exam Review Go to: www.masteringgeography.com
to get registered and enroll in the
Mar 9 (W) Test 1 Ch. 1-3 class using the code you purchased,
6 Mar 14 (M) Insolation and Temperature Ch. 4 and instructors ID.
Mar 16 (W)
Solar Energy, Warming/Cooling, Radiation
Budget, Temperature Distribution  Failure to complete the activities
on MasteringGeog leads to a grade
7 Mar 21 (M) Atmospheric Pressure and Wind Ch. 5
of “I” (“incomplete).
Mar 23 (W) Atmospheric Pressure and Wind
8 Mar 28 (M Library Orientation
9 April 4 & 6 SPRING BREAK
10 April 11 (M) Atmospheric Moisture Ch. 6
April 13 (W) Atmospheric Moisture 2. ETUDES
(www.myetudes.org). It is a
10 April 18 (M) Atmospheric Disturbances Ch. 7 course management website
April 20 (W) Air Masses, Fronts, Cyclones, Hurricanes, which helps you to access lec-
Thunderstorms, Tornedoes ture notes, take quizzes and
*** April 21 upload your assignments, par-
Last Day to Drop Classes With “W” ticipate in discussions, and
11 April 25 (M) Climate and Climate Change & Test Review Ch. 8 chat with your classmates.
April 27 (W) Test 2 Ch. 4-8 Detailed information at:

12 May 2 (M) Landform Study Ch. 13 http://missiononline.pbworks.com/w

/page/61823645/etudes-help
May 4 (W) Landform Study Ch. 13
13 May 9 (M) Tectonic Processes Ch. 14
May 11 (W) Tectonic Processes
14 May 16 (M) Weathering Ch. 15
May 18 (W) Fluvial Processes Ch. 16
May 21 (S) Field Trip to Vasquez Rocks 9:00 am —
12:00
15 May 23 (M) Topography of Arid Processes Ch. 18
May 25 (W) Final Exam Review Ch. 13-18
June 1 FINAL EXAM (10am– 12:00pm) Ch. 13-18