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GALILEO Open Learning Materials

Biological Sciences Grants Collections Biological Sciences

Fall 2015

Introduction to Environmental Science

Caralyn Zehnder
Georgia College and State University, [email protected]

Kalina Manoylov
Georgia College and State University, [email protected]

Samuel Mutiti
Georgia College and State University, [email protected]

Christine Mutiti
Georgia College and State University, [email protected]

Allison VandeVoort
Georgia College and State University, [email protected]

See next page for additional authors

Follow this and additional works at: http://oer.galileo.usg.edu/biology-collections

Part of the Environmental Sciences Commons

Recommended Citation
Zehnder, Caralyn; Manoylov, Kalina; Mutiti, Samuel; Mutiti, Christine; VandeVoort, Allison; and Bennett, Donna, "Introduction to
Environmental Science" (2015). Biological Sciences Grants Collections. Book 2.
http://oer.galileo.usg.edu/biology-collections/2

This Course Syllabus/Schedule is brought to you for free and open access by the Biological Sciences at GALILEO Open Learning Materials. It has been
accepted for inclusion in Biological Sciences Grants Collections by an authorized administrator of GALILEO Open Learning Materials. For more
information, please contact [email protected].
Authors
Caralyn Zehnder, Kalina Manoylov, Samuel Mutiti, Christine Mutiti, Allison VandeVoort, and Donna Bennett

This course syllabus/schedule is available at GALILEO Open Learning Materials: http://oer.galileo.usg.edu/biology-collections/2

Grants Collection
Georgia College and State University

UNIVERSITY SYSTEM
OF GEORGIA

Caralyn Zehnder, Kalina Manoylov, Samuel Mutiti,

Christine Mutiti, Allison VandeVoort, Donna Bennett

Introduction to
Environmental Science
 Grants Collection
Affordable Learning Georgia Grants Collections are intended to provide
faculty with the frameworks to quickly implement or revise the same
materials as a Textbook Transformation Grants team, along with the aims
and lessons learned from project teams during the implementation
process.

Each collection contains the following materials:

 Linked Syllabus
o The syllabus should provide the framework for both direct
implementation of the grant team’s selected and created
materials and the adaptation/transformation of these
materials.
 Initial Proposal
o The initial proposal describes the grant project’s aims in detail.
 Final Report
o The final report describes the outcomes of the project and any
lessons learned.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Grants Collection materials are licensed

under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Syllabus
ENSC 1000
Introduction to Environmental Science
Introduction to Environmental Science
ENSC 1000-Fall 2015
Instructor: Email:
Office: Class location:
Office hours: Class meeting time:
Office phone:

Course Description
This course uses the basic principles of biology and earth science as a context for understanding environmental
policies and resource management practices. Our planet is facing unprecedented environmental challenges, from
oil spills to global climate change. In ENSC 1000, you will learn about the science behind these problems;
preparing you to make an informed contribution to Earth’s future. I hope that each of you is prepared for each class
and engaged with the course material.

Environmental Science Laboratory (ENSC 1000L) is a separate class and you will receive a separate grade for that
course.

Course Objectives
As a result of this course, you will be able to:
 Evaluate the diverse responses of peoples, groups, and cultures to environmental issues, themes and topics.
 Use critical observation and analysis to predict outcomes associated with environmental modifications.
 Demonstrate knowledge of the causes & consequences of climate change.
 Apply quantitative skills to solve environmental science problems.
 Demonstrate knowledge of environmental law and policy.
 Design and critically evaluate experiments.
 Interpret data in figures and graphs.

Evaluation
Exams (3) 300 points (100 points each)
Online quizzes (9) 90 points (10 points each)
Current event summaries (3) 30 points (10 points each)
Participation/homework 60 points
Final exam 150 points
Total: 630 points

The letter grading scale will be as follows: A = ≥ 90%, B = 80-89.5%, C = 70-79.5%, D = 60-69.5%, F = < 60%.

Prior to mid-semester you will receive feedback on your academic performance in this course. To receive credit for
any in-class work, including exams, you must be present in your correct section.

Exams: There will be three cumulative, in-class, closed-book exams. Exams will contain multiple choice and/or
short answer questions. You will need a 100-question scantron for each exam. The final exam will be given during
finals week. Any student with an average exam grade of 92.00% or higher may opt out of the final exam. The
average exam grade will replace the final exam grade.

Makeup Exams. If a student knows that they are going to miss an exam because of a legitimate excuse, then they
should arrange to take the exam early. If a student misses an exam (illness, family emergency), then the missed
exam grade will be replaced by the grade on the final exam.

1
ENSC 1000
Introduction to Environmental Science
Quizzes: There will be ten 1-hour online quizzes administered on GaView within a 48-hour window. You can use
any notes you want, but you need to work individually. These 5 or 10 question multiple choice quizzes will cover
upcoming lecture material. The point of these quizzes is to ensure that you read the textbook material before
lecture. For each quiz, I will indicate which topics and textbook pages will be covered. You cannot makeup
missed quizzes. The lowest quiz grade will be dropped. To earn a good grade on the quizzes, I recommend
reading the assigned chapters or articles and taking notes while reading before starting the online quiz.

Current Events: An essential component of environmental science is awareness of the world around you.
Therefore, you will be expected to submit 3 current event summaries of not more than 600 words. Details and an
example will be posted online. You should submit all current event summaries online by 11:59PM on their due
date.

Participation: Your participation grade will be based on in-class activities, in-class quizzes, and/or short
assignments. You cannot makeup missed in-class work.

Textbook (required): Our free, OER (open educational resource) textbook is available online. This resource was
created by faculty in the Environmental Science program at Georgia College specifically for this course. This link
will take you to your textbook. Each textbook chapter is a separate tab. The separate chapters are also posted on
GeorgiaView.
http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/course-overview

Course Format. Our course will consist of lectures, discussions, individual activities, small group activities, and
whole-class exercises. I strongly encourage you to participate and am happy to address questions at any time:
before, during, or after class. We will be using GeorgiaVIEW / D2L for course communications, announcements,
and assignment submissions. It is your responsibility to check our page regularly for announcements, assignments,
clarifications, etc. Please communicate with me through. Lecture notes will be posted. The notes are meant to
assist you with taking notes and organizing information in class. Online lecture notes will not contain all the
information necessary to pass exams. You will need to bring the notes to class, pay attention, take notes and think
during class. All assignments are expected to be submitted on time and online via GeorgiaVIEW. It is your
responsibility to check to make sure that your submissions go through. Assignments are due by MIDNIGHT of the
due date. All assignments must be submitted as .pdf, .doc or .docx files
GeorgiaView: https://gcsu.view.usg.edu/
Username: firstname_lastname
Password – original pin from Banner (Birthday: mmddyy) or PAWS password

Academic Atmosphere
Attendance. I will not be taking attendance in class. However, you cannot makeup missed quizzes or graded class
work. Additionally, it will be very difficult for you to pass the exams if you do not attend class.

Time Commitment. You should expect to spend a minimum of 6 hours per week on this class: 2.5 hours in the
classroom, 3.5 hours reviewing/studying/reading.

Integrity. We will all treat each other with respect and dignity. You are expected to abide by all policies on
academic honesty, as stated in the Georgia College and State University Honor Code. It is your responsibility to
complete and represent your work honestly and to demonstrate respect of others’ academic endeavors. Violations
of the honor code (including all plagiarism - from web sites, books, other students, etc.) will be treated seriously
and will result in you failing the assignment and/or the entire course. If a student is caught cheating on an exam,
then that student will receive a failing grade for the course. For more information, see the GC&SU catalog, or
http://www.gcsu.edu/student_affairs/Student_Handbook/honor/honor.html

Cell phone policy: Cell phones off during class and no texting. There is no point is showing up to class if you are
going to chat with your friends throughout the lecture.

2
ENSC 1000
Introduction to Environmental Science
Religious Observance Policy. Students are permitted to miss class in observance of religious holidays and other
activities observed by a religious group of which the student is a member without academic penalty. Exercising of
one’s rights under this policy is subject to the GC Honor Code. Students who miss class in observance of a
religious holiday or event are required to make up the coursework missed as a result from the absence. The nature
of the make-up assignments and the deadline for completion of such assignments are at the sole discretion of the
instructor. Failure to follow the prescribed procedures voids all student rights under this policy. If you are going
to miss class because of a religious holiday, then you need to contact me at least 1 week prior to class and
arrange to makeup the missed work.

Assistance for Student Needs Related to Disability. If you have a disability as described by the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504, you may be eligible to receive
accommodations to assist in programmatic and physical accessibility. Disability Services, a unit of the GCSU
Office of Institutional Equity and Diversity, can assist you in formulating a reasonable accommodation plan and in
providing support in developing appropriate accommodations to ensure equal access to all GCSU programs and
facilities. Course requirements will not be waived, but accommodations may assist you in meeting the
requirements. For documentation requirements and for additional information, we recommend that you contact
Disability Services located in Maxwell Student Union at 478-445-5931 or 478-445-4233.

Student Opinion Surveys statement. Given the technological sophistication of Georgia College students, the
student opinion survey is being delivered through an online process. Your constructive feedback plays an
indispensable role in shaping quality education at Georgia College. All responses are completely confidential and
your name is not stored with your responses in any way. In addition, instructors will not see any results of the
opinion survey until after final grades are submitted to the University. An invitation to complete the online opinion
survey is distributed to students near the end of the semester. Your participation in this very important process is
greatly appreciated.

Academic Honesty. The integrity of students and their written and oral work is a critical component of the
academic process. The submission of another’s work as one’s own is plagiarism and will be dealt with using the
procedures outlined in the following link http://catalog.gcsu.edu/ugrad/student-academic-dishonesty.htm.
Remember that allowing another student to copy one’s own work violates standards of academic integrity. Also see
the student Honor Code at the website: http://www.gcsu.edu/studentlife/handbook/code.htm

Fire Drills. Fire drills will be conducted annually. In the event of a fire alarm, students will exit the building in a
quick and orderly manner through the nearest hallway exit. Learn the floor plan and exits of the building. Do not
use elevators. If you encounter heavy smoke, crawl on the floor so as to gain fresh air. Assist disabled persons and
others if possible without endangering your own life. Assemble for a head count on the front lawn of main campus
or other designated assembly area. For more information on other emergencies, please visit
http://www.gcsu.edu/emergency/actionplanmain.htm

Topics
 Population Ecology  The Clean Air Act
 The Human Population  Carbon Cycle
 Energy – Fossil fuels  Greenhouse effect
 Energy – Nuclear energy  Global Climate Change
 Energy – Alternative energy  Water management
 Air pollution  Water pollution

3
ENSC 1000
Introduction to Environmental Science
Course schedule
Week Topic Textbook link and information
Week 1 Intro Chapter 1: Introduction
Week 1 Introduction http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/introduction
Author: Dr. Kalina Manoylov
Week 1 Scientific method activity
Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Week 2 Population Ecology (exponential & Chapter 2: Population Ecology
logistic) http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/population-ecology
Week 2 Population Ecology (logistic & Author: Dr. Caralyn Zehnder
survivorship curves) Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported
Week 2 Population ecology handout

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Week 3 Human demography Chapter 3: Human Demography
Week 3 Human demography http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/human-demography
Author: Dr. Caralyn Zehnder
Week 3 Human demography
Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported
Week 4 Labor Day - no class
Week 4 Human population handout

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Week Exam 1
4
Week 5 Fossil fuels - coal Chapter 4: Non-renewable energy
http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/non-renewable-energy
Author: Dr. Christine Mutiti
Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
Week 5 Mercury case study Tuna for Lunch? Case Study
http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/collection/detail.asp?case
_id=549&id=549

Week 5 Review Exam 1

Week 6 Oil & natural gas Chapter 4: Non-renewable energy
Week 6 Nuclear http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/non-renewable-energy

4
ENSC 1000
Introduction to Environmental Science
Week 6 nonrenewable energy handout Author: Dr. Christine Mutiti
Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
Week 7 Alternative energy Chapter 5: Alternative Energy
Week 7 Alternative energy http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/alternative-energy
Author: Dr. Kalina Manoylov
Week 7 Alternative energy
Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Week 8 Air pollution Chapter 6: Air Pollution
Week 8 Air pollution http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/air-pollution
Author: Dr. Christine Mutiti
Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
Week Exam 2
8
Week 9 Fall break - no class
Week 9 Review Exam 2
Week 9 Carbon cycle Chapter 7: Climate change
7.1: The carbon cycle
http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/climate-change
Author: Dr. Allison VandeVoort
Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
Week Global Climate Change Chapter 7: Climate change
10 7.2: The Science of Climate Change
Week Global Climate Change http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/climate-change
10 Author: Dr. Allison VandeVoort
Week Global Climate Change - handout Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported
10

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
Week Consequences of climate change Chapter 7: Climate change
5
ENSC 1000
Introduction to Environmental Science
11 7.3: The consequences of climate change
Week Consequences of climate change http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/climate-change
11 Author: Dr. Allison VandeVoort
Week Consequences of climate change Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported
11
Week Climate change jigsaw
12
Week Climate change jigsaw This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-
12 NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
Week Properties of water Chapter 8: Water
12 http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/water
Week Water cycle (groundwater / surface Author: Dr. Sam Mutiti
13 water) Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported
Week Water cycle (groundwater / surface
13 water)
Week Water handout
13 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-
Week water scarcity, desalination NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
14
Week Water review
14
Week Exam 3
14
Week Review Exam 3
15
Week Thanksgiving - no class
15
Week Thanksgiving - no class
15
Week Water pollution Chapter 8: Water
16 http://libguides.gcsu.edu/ensc1000/water
Week Water pollution Author: Dr. Sam Mutiti
16 Attribution - Noncommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported
Week Water management & Clean Water Act
16

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
Week Review & final exams.
17

6
Initial Proposal
 Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grants
Round 2
Summer 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016
Proposal Form and Narrative

Institution Name(s) Georgia College & State University

Team Members Caralyn Zehnder, Associate Professor, [email protected]
(Name, Title, Department, Kalina Manoylov, Associate Professor, [email protected]
Institutions if different, and email
address for each) Samuel Mutiti, Associate Professor, [email protected]
Christine Mutiti, Lecturer, [email protected]
Allison VandeVoort, Assistant Professor, [email protected]
Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences

Donna Bennett, Associate Director for Collection and Resource Services,

Russell Library, [email protected]
Sponsor, Title, Kelli Brown, Provost, Academic Affairs, Georgia College & State
Department, University
Institution
Course Names, ENSC 1000 Intro to Environmental Science, Fall 2015, Spring 2016,
Course Numbers and Summer 2016
Semesters Offered
Average Number of 24- Number of Course 9 Total Number of 452
Students Per Course 60 Sections Affected by Students Affected by
Section Implementation in Implementation in
Academic Year 2016 Academic Year 2016
Award Category ☐ No-Cost-to-Students Learning Materials
(pick one) ☐ OpenStax Textbooks
☐ Course Pack Pilots
☒ Transformations-at-Scale
List the original Essential Environment: The Science [Cost]
course materials for behind the Stories - 5th edition by Jay $152.00/student
students (including title, H. Withgott, Pearson (required)
whether optional or required, & Total Cost $68,704
cost for each item)

Plan for Hosting ☐ OpenStax CNX

Materials ☒ D2L
☒ LibGuides
☐ Other _______________________________________________
Projected Per $0/student Projected Per 100%
Student Cost Student Savings (%)

1
Title: Ditching the textbook! Developing material for a textbook free Introduction to Environmental
Science (ENSC 1000)

1. Project Goals
Our project goals are to 1) reduce the cost to students in all sections of our Introduction to
Environmental Science (ENSC 1000) course by replacing the traditional textbook with no-cost, open
access learning materials, 2) develop Environmental Science educational materials that are sustainable,
current, and specific to the learning outcomes of our course, and 3) design and share materials on a
LibGuide (Library-Specific Springshare Product) that will serve as an easily accessible resource guide for
students, as well as faculty at other institutions.

1.1 Statement of Transformation

Description of transformation: Each year, the Department of Biological & Environmental Sciences offers
nine sections of ENSC 1000 (4 fall, 4 spring, 1 summer) to approximately 452 students. This course
satisfies the Area D science requirement for non-science and science majors and it is a required course
for Environmental Science (ENSC) majors and minors. Over the past 8 years the ENSC Committee has
tried three different textbooks. However, we have not been satisfied with any of them because of two
major drawbacks associated with all Environmental Science textbooks: 1) the books are out of date as
soon as they are printed because Environmental Science is such a rapidly advancing field and 2) the
books are too broad and include many chapters that we cannot cover in a single semester course. For
example, in our current text we assign 9 of the 18 chapters. Drawback #2 leaves students extremely
dissatisfied with the textbook and frustrated that they have to spend so much money and use so little of
the book. Most ENSC 1000 students are non-science majors, so they have little interest in retaining their
textbooks for later use. In two fall 2011 sections of ENSC 1000, we surveyed 118 students using a
Student Assessment of their Learning Gains (http://salgsite.org/) and 25% of the students responded
that the textbook provided “little” or “no help” in their learning and another 27% rated the textbook as
only moderately helpful. A mere 4% of students gave the textbook the highest rating (great help).
Student comments about the textbook include “I didn’t really use the book.” “The book didn’t help me
much at all compared to the lecture. It was a waste of money.” “I never opened the book.” “I feel like
students did not need the book.” By replacing our traditional textbook with freely available course
materials, each student will save $152, for an estimated annual savings of $68,704.

For a majority of our students, ENSC 1000 is one of only two college science courses that they will enroll
in. We want this course to be exciting, relevant and to ‘hook’ students onto science. Environmental
Science can be extremely engaging and many students are motivated to learn this subject because it has
direct connections to their lives and to events in the news. A traditional textbook cannot keep up with
this rapidly changing field or include the latest environmental news. Developing our own material will
give us the flexibility to include the latest scientific breakthroughs and news stories. And the committee
will review our course material annually to ensure that it stays up-to-date.

Stakeholders affected by the transformation and a description of this impact: Our students will be the
direct beneficiaries of this textbook transformation. Our students will save money and they will have
course materials that are well aligned with ENSC 1000 course requirements. Additionally, this
transformation will directly benefit the 5 faculty in the Department of Biological and Environmental
Sciences who regularly teach ENSC 1000, since access to better aligned, more current resources
favorably impacts the quality of our teaching. And as we share these materials with colleagues at other
USG schools and publish these materials on MERLOT, (a curated collection of free online learning
materials), then other faculty will also benefit.

2
Impact on the program and department. ENSC 1000 is one of the top core courses offered by our
Department, and all faculty who teach ENSC 1000 are on board for replacing the textbook with freely
available course material. Moreover, ENSC 1000 is a required course for all Environmental Science
majors and minors and it is often the first college science course that our students take. While majors
makeup less than 10% of the students enrolled in ENSC 1000/1000L, retaining these students is of
upmost importance to us. Science majors typically spend hundreds of dollars per semester on
textbooks, so reducing this cost in any way can help with retention. Additionally, many of our students,
both majors and non-majors, enroll in ENSC 1000 because they are interested in going ‘green’ and not
requiring students to purchase a textbook saves resources and supports the idea of sustainability. Some
of the course material that we develop for ENSC 1000 can also be used in other courses within the
department, so these materials will benefit students beyond the ones enrolled in ENSC 1000.

1.2 Transformation Action Plan

1. Identify and review appropriate no-cost materials that align with ENSC 1000 learning outcomes.
In ENSC 1000, students learn about a wide range of topics including population ecology,
demography, energy, climate change, air pollution, and water, in addition to applying the
scientific method, and developing skills in reading and interpreting graphs. Additionally, this
course has a Global Perspectives Overlay and, therefore, all of the topics include examples from
multiple countries and students examine environmental issues from multiple perspectives.
Course material available on open access sites such as MERLOT already meets some of our
learning outcomes. Additionally, a National Science Foundation -funded consortium of
community colleges recently developed a suite of open access course materials including a track
on Environmental Technology. These materials will be available in Spring 2015, and will also be
included in our review. Additional resources include articles from National Geographic and
Scientific American, which are available through Galileo, as well as datasets and Open
Educational Resources (OER) available from government websites (National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, United States Geological
Society) and scientific organizations (American Association for the Advancement of Science,
Ecological Society of America, Geological Society of America).
2. Map available resources to learning outcomes and identify gaps. These gaps will provide the
blueprint for the new material that we will create.
3. Develop new materials. This will include identifying relevant textbook chapters, formative
assessment (self quizzes), class handouts for group activities and summative assessments
(exams). Each environmental science faculty member will write and develop appropriate
material for their topic.
a. C. Zehnder (project leader): Population ecology & human demography
b. K. Manoylov: Energy (renewable resources: solar, biofuels, wind, geothermal)
c. C. Mutiti: Energy and air pollution (non-renewable resources: coal, oil, natural gas,
nuclear)
d. S. Mutiti: Water (water management, water pollution)
e. A. VandeVoort: Climate change (causes and consequences)
4. Organize materials for open access. After we review each other’s course material, we will
consider how to best present these materials using both D2L and LibGuides.
a. D. Bennett: Develop LibGuide and provide LibGuide training for ENSC faculty.
5. Review our current ENSC 1000 syllabus and instructional activities. We plan on keeping the
basic ENSC 1000 course structure and student learning outcomes. However, we will need to
revise our assessments and in-class activities based on the new material. Additionally, we will

3
 also develop mini video lectures of some topics, so instructors can use a ‘flipped’ classroom
approach when this pedagogy is appropriate.
6. Teach course. In Fall 2015, Drs. Zehnder and VandeVoort will teach two sections each of ENSC
1000, Drs. Manoylov and C. Mutiti will each teach two sections in Spring 2016 and Dr. S. Mutiti
will teach one section in summer 2016. All instructors will use the new course materials in place
of the previously required textbook. Based on assessment data, we will revise course material
as necessary. We will share challenges and successes through regular meetings.
7. Assessment. Please see the section on Quantitative and Qualitative measures below.
8. Dissemination of material. Some of the material developed for ENSC 1000 will also be used in
our new, proposed, core, online course, ENSC 1050: Sustainability and the World Population.
Additionally, ENSC 1000 is similar to other USG courses including Ecological Basis of
Environmental Issues (ECOL 1000) and Environmental Science (ENVS 2202), so some of our
materials will be transferable to these courses. We will present our results at state and regional
meetings including the USG Teaching & Learning Conference and the USG STEM-SOTL
conference. If our proposal is funded, we will submit a proposal to the Georgia College IRB to
collect data on student learning and course satisfaction both pre and post textbook
transformation. We will publish our results in suitable journals such as Innovative Higher
Education or the Journal of College Science Teaching. As appropriate, we will publish our course
material on open access sites such as MERLOT.

1.3 Quantitative and Qualitative Measures

Quantitative Measures. We will assess student performance using exam questions and assignments that
align with the course learning outcomes. These results will be compared with student performance in
previous, textbook-based versions of the course. We hypothesize that more students will meet the
course outcomes after we replace the textbook because the new material will be more closely aligned
with the course learning outcomes. Additionally, we will compare DFW rates both before and after the
textbook transformation to determine if the no-cost format increases student retention and decreases
course failure rates.

Qualitative Measures. Students in the 2015 spring and summer sections taught with a traditional
textbook and in all transformed sections (Fall 2015 and onward) will complete a Student Assessment of
their Learning Gains (www.salgsite.org) at the end of the course. Part of this survey specifically asks
students to rate how well the course resources such as the textbook and online materials, helped their
learning. Students also self-describe the learning gains they made for each student learning outcome.
We will compare student scores and comments both before and after the textbook transformation.

1.4 Timeline
Action Timeframe
Review available OERs (MERLOT, NSF, USGS, AAAS, etc). Spring 2015
Map available resources to student learning outcomes. Spring 2015
Submit interim status report to ALG. Late Spring 2015
Develop materials. Summer 2015
Organize materials into a LibGuide. Organize course on D2L. Summer 2015
Revise ENSC 1000 instructional activities Summer 2015
Teach ENSC 1000, 4 sections (~200 students) using new material. Fall 2015
Assessment in ENSC 1000. December 2015
Analyze assessment data. December 2015
Submit final report to ALG. December 2015

4
1.5 Budget
Drs. Zehnder, Manoylov, Mutiti, Mutiti, and VandeVoort will receive summer pay totaling $5,000 salary
and benefits. Ms. Bennett will receive a contract overload totaling $5,000 salary and benefits. The total
budget request is $30,000.

1.6 Sustainability
The Department of Biological & Environmental Sciences is committed to offering ENSC 1000 every
semester and the ENSC faculty members are committed to using our new material in all subsequent
sections and not requiring students to purchase a traditional textbook. ENSC 1000 is regularly assessed
by our program, both as part of Area D core assessment and as part of our regular program assessment.
Therefore, we regularly review how well students meet the learning outcomes and we also evaluate
student feedback. We will review course material on an annual basis, create new material as needed
and delete outdated information.

All ENSC 1000 instructors currently use D2L in their classes, so it makes sense for us to continue to use
this course management software. D2L allows instructors to easily rollover course content into future
classes or to share content across concurrent courses. In addition to the material that we create and
post on D2L, the course also will rely on articles provided to students via GALILEO, the University System
of Georgia’s virtual library. Course materials will also be shared using a LibGuide. LibGuides are easy to
create and edit, offer flexible design, and can be edited by multiple users. Files, links, widgets, video and
more can be embedded in the guides. Russell Library currently provides many course guides containing
research help and supplemental materials, so students are already comfortable using these resources.
In addition, LibGuide usage can be tracked through page views, providing feedback to guide creators.
Sharing is encouraged and facilitated in the LibGuides Community, and so course materials can be easily
shared with USG and other interested schools.

1.7 References
• Klymkowsky . 2007. Teaching without a Textbook: Strategies to Focus Learning on Fundamental
Concepts and Scientific Process CBE Life Sci Educ. 6(3): 190–
193. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1964522/
• Hoskins & Stevens. 2009. Learning our L.I.M.I.T.S.: less is more in teaching science. Adv Physiol
Educ. 33(1):17-20. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19261755
• M. W. Klymkowsky. 2010. Thinking about the Conceptual Foundations of the Biological Sciences
Vol. 9, 405–407. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2995756/pdf/cbe405.pdf

5
 GEORGIA Provost and Vice President
for Academic Affairs

--~
COLLEGE Campus Box 24
Milledgeville, Georgia 31061-0490
Phone 478-445-4715
Fax 478-445-5151

December 2, 2014

Dear Review Board,

On behalf of Georgia College in Milledgeville, I am pleased to offer this letter of support for our institution's
Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation grant application. Georgia College is requesting funding for the
creation of " No-Cost-to-Students" Learning Materials for college Environmental Science courses, the development of
which w ill be spearheaded by a team of faculty from Biological and Environmental Sciences and supported by
Associate Director for Collection and Resource Services of Russell Library, Donna Bennett. Each year, Georgia College
provides 6,600 undergraduate and graduate students with an exceptional learning environment that extends beyond
the class room, with hands-on involvement with faculty research, community service, residential learning
communities, study abroad, and internships. We are the only public institution named as a "College of Distinction" in
Georgia for the 8th consecutive year, and our institution is regularly named as a " Best Southeastern College" by the
Princeton Review, which places us in the top 25 percent of the nation's four-year colleges.

In 2012, colleges and universities across the nation learned of the one million STEM graduates needed to fill projected
employment needs in the next decade. Georgia College is making great strides to advance STEM education by
implementing activities such as STEM grant awards for faculty and staff, service learning courses that enable students
to work w ith students and teachers in STEM, and supplemental instruction programs to encourage STEM retention
and achievement. Georgia College is also one of seven partner institutions that participate in the USG STEM In itiative,
wh ich seeks to increase the success and completion rates of college STEM majors. As an additional measure, reducing
the financial burden of STEM courses at our institution by providing no-cost learning materials will promote greater
student engagement and achievement in STEM fields.

Th is project will support the creation of online learning materials for ENSV 1000, Introduction to Environmental
Science, which is a required course for environmental science majors and also satisfies the science requirement for
non-science majors. Approximately 450 students in nine course sections will benefit from replacing the textbook
Essential Environment: The Science Behind the Stories (5th edition by Jay H. Withgott, Pearson, $152) with free open
access materials. Resulting materials will be sustainable, current, and specific to the learning outcomes of the course.
Library-Specific Springshare Products (LibGuides) will enable faculty to design and share materials with students and
faculty at other institutions. The Office of the Provost, along with the Office of Grants and Sponsored Projects, will
ensure compliance with all State, Board of Regents, and institutional policies and procedures, should we receive
funding.

Thank you for your favorable consideration of Georgia College's application . Please contact me should you have any
questions regarding this project.

egards,

·fh\f\A--
Provost & Vice President
for Academic Affairs

Milledgeville • Macon • Warner Robins

Georgia College, the state's designated public liberal arts university, combines the educational experience
expected at esteemed private liberal arts colleges with the affordability of public higher education.
Final Report
 Affordable Learning Georgia Textbook Transformation Grants
Final Report
Date: Dec. 15, 2015
Grant Number: 109
Institution Name(s): Georgia College & State University
Team Members (Name, Title, Department, Institutions if different, and email address for
each):
 Caralyn Zehnder, Associate Professor, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
[email protected]
 Kalina Manoylov, Associate Professor, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
[email protected]
 Samuel Mutiti, Associate Professor, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
[email protected]
 Christine Mutiti, Lecturer, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
[email protected]
 Allison VandeVoort, Assistant Professor, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences,
[email protected]
 Donna Bennett, Associate Director for Collection and Resource Services, Russell Library,
[email protected]

Project Lead: Caralyn Zehnder

Course Name(s) and Course Numbers: ENSC 1000. Introduction to Environmental Science
Semester Project Began: Spring 2015
Semester(s) of Implementation: Fall 2015
Average Number of Students Per Course Section: 24-60
Number of Course Sections Affected by Implementation: 9 per year
Total Number of Students Affected by Implementation: 452 per year
1. Narrative
Our project goals were to 1) reduce the cost to students in all sections of our Introduction to
Environmental Science (ENSC 1000) course by replacing the traditional textbook with no-cost, open
access learning materials, 2) develop Environmental Science educational materials that are sustainable,
current, and specific to the learning outcomes of our course, and 3) design and share materials on a
LibGuide (Library-Specific Springshare Product) that will serve as an easily accessible resource guide for
students, as well as faculty at other institutions.

1
We successfully met all of our project goals and were able to use our new textbook in our four fall 2015
sections of ENSC 1000. Our program will continue to use this free, OER textbook in this class for the
foreseeable future. This means that our students will not have to spend over $150 per student on a
textbook that they would only use in this one class. Importantly, our new OER textbook is focused on
the information that we cover in our course, and so students are not stuck buying an expensive textbook
and then not using all of it. Additionally, our textbook is relevant and up-to-date, which is very
important in a field like Environmental Science the changes rapidly.

Our work began during the spring semester of 2015. Our team met multiple times throughout the
semester to work on this project. We developed the framework for our open access material, assigned
individuals to specific topics, developed student learning outcomes for each module, and created
outlines for each module.

During the summer of 2015, we collaboratively wrote our textbook. The five Environmental Science
faculty each wrote one or two chapters. Additionally, we all reviewed and commented upon each
other’s work. As we finished the chapters, our librarian uploaded the documents and appropriate links
to our LibGuide and added the appropriate creative commons license. She also reviewed the chapters
for content clarify, formatting and citations.

This fall, we implemented our new textbook in all four sections of ENSC 1000, including our majors-only
section. This affected approximately 200 students. We posted links to our LibGuide in GeorgiaView and
explained to students how they would access their new (free!) textbook. Our students were easily able
to access the material and the student feedback was overwhelming positive. They were very excited
about not having to purchase a book and they also felt that this material was worth reading since it was
written by their professors. They saw how the OER textbook and lecture activities complemented each
other and many students commented that they liked that our textbook didn’t contain a lot of irrelevant
“fluff”. Mid-semester, we administered a survey in two sections of ENSC 1000 and asked students to
comment on chapters 1-6. We will use this feedback in future revisions.

In terms of lessons learned, like many projects this one was very time consuming - especially writing the
material. We would have preferred to have more occasions to discuss the various course topics, but it
was hard to find time to bring everyone together over the summer. Ideally, it would have been great to
have a week-long writing retreat. Also we need to work on making our book more cohesive. It was
obvious to our students that different chapters were authored by different individuals, so in the future
we will try to present a more unified voice. Additionally, some chapters included practice questions and
a list of vocabulary terms, while other did not. We want to have a standardized format for our materials,
so we plan on adding these additions to the chapters that originally lacked them.

For a majority of our students, ENSC 1000 is one of only two college science courses that they will enroll
in. We want this course to be exciting, relevant and to ‘hook’ students onto science. Environmental
Science can be extremely engaging and many students are motivated to learn this subject because it has
direct connections to their lives and to events in the news. A traditional textbook cannot keep up with
this rapidly changing field or include the latest environmental news. Our new “textbook” gives us the
flexibility to include the latest scientific breakthroughs and news stories. And the committee will review
our course material annually to ensure that it stays up-to-date and we will incorporate student feedback
into our reviews.

2
2. Quotes (all from students enrolled in ENSC 1000, Fall 2015)
“I really like that I don’t have to buy a book. Textbooks are so expensive and I am supporting myself
through college.”

“The chapter learning outcomes are very clear because they are basically an outline of the ch. 2
material. They use key terms and say exactly what you need to know about the material associated with
that term.”

“There was a lot of information in this chapter, but I felt like it was all incredibly necessary. I felt like this
chapter was very important and a lot of the information on the exam came from this chapter.”

“It’s so easy for me to look up material in class since my textbook is online.”

3. Quantitative and Qualitative Measures

3a. Overall Measurements
Student Opinion of Materials
Was the overall student opinion about the materials used in the course positive,
neutral, or negative?
Total number of students affected in this project: __183 (this semester only more
will be affected in the future).________

 Positive: __76_____ % of ___72_____ number of respondents

 Neutral: __14_____ % of ___72_____ number of respondents
 Negative: _10______ % of __72______ number of respondents
Student Learning Outcomes and Grades
Was the overall comparative impact on student performance in terms of learning
outcomes and grades in the semester(s) of implementation over previous
semesters positive, neutral, or negative?

Choose One:
 _x__ Positive: Higher performance outcomes measured over previous
semester(s)
 ___ Neutral: Same performance outcomes over previous semester(s)
 ___ Negative: Lower performance outcomes over previous semester(s)
Student Drop/Fail/Withdraw (DFW) Rates
Was the overall comparative impact on Drop/Fail/Withdraw (DFW) rates in the
semester(s) of implementation over previous semesters positive, neutral, or
negative?

3
 Drop/Fail/Withdraw Rate:
__7.1_____% of students, out of a total ___183____ students affected,
dropped/failed/withdrew from the course in the final semester of implementation.
Choose One:

 ___ Positive: This is a lower percentage of students with D/F/W than previous
semester(s)
 ___ Neutral: This is the same percentage of students with D/F/W than previous
semester(s)
 _x__ Negative: This is a higher percentage of students with D/F/W than previous
semester(s)
3b. Narrative
Overall the students were happy with the OER Environmental Science textbook that the committee
created. Initially some of the students were a little confused about having an online textbook, especially
since many of the students enrolled in ENSC 1000 are first semester freshmen. However, the instructors
regularly explained how to access the textbook and posted links on GeorgiaView (D2L) to help students
find the resource. Many of the students chose to print off the chapter pdfs so that they could write
notes and highlight the material. Some of the student learning outcomes were unclear and need further
clarification. Additionally, some chapters need to include more examples and explanations – based on
student feedback. However, a majority of the students found the material to be clear and easy to
understand.

Students regularly accessed the LibGuide material. There were 6890 separate LibGuide accesses by
students during the fall semester, which means that each student accessed the LibGuide 37 times during
the semester. Figure 1 shows the number of times that each chapter was accessed by students each
month. You can see the pattern of chapters taught throughout the semester. Chapters 1 and 2 were
taught in August, so that is when students access this material and then they accessed this material
again before exam 1 in September. We were initially surprised by how few students accessed the
LibGuide in December during finals weeks. However, it is likely that many of the students downloaded
the chapter pdf during a previous visit to the LibGuide. Also the December data only includes Dec. 1-4,
and finals were Dec. 8-11. So it is very likely that many students returned to the LibGuide while studying
during finals week.

4
Figure 1: The number of times that students accessed the Libguide material each month. Each line
represents a different chapter.

In terms of student performance, a higher percentage of students earned “As” in 2015 than in 2014.
However, a greater percentage of students dropped the course or failed the course in 2015 compared to
2014. Taken together, the data indicate that the textbook transformative did not have a strong impact
on student performance in terms of learning and grades.

Table 1: Compares the grade distribution for Fall 2015 (implementation of new textbook) and Fall 2014
(traditional textbook). The instructors for ENSC 1000 were the same for both years.
A B C D F W TOTAL
Fall 2015 49 (26.8%) 77 (42.1%)32 (17.5%) 12 (6.6%) 5 (2.7%) 8 (4.4%) 183
Fall 2014 45 (23.1%) 90 (46.2%)44 (22.6%) 12 (6.2%) 3 (1.5%) 1 (.5%) 195

When the ENSC committee discussed the slightly higher number of withdrawals in 2015 compared to
2014, we decided that it seems unlikely that the withdrawals can be attributed to the textbook. Two of
this year’s withdrawals were because of medical reasons and the other students who dropped the class
before midterm were all student who were not attending class, failed to turn in assignments, and
subsequently did very poorly on the first two exams. It is unlikely that these students were using the
OER textbook and it is unlikely that the textbook affected their decision on whether or not to drop the
class. The DWF rates for ENSC 1000 are comparable to other Area D non-science majors courses. For
example, the W rate for BIOL 1100 was 4.5% in Fall 2015. We will continue to examine the DFW rates in
the future.

5
4. Sustainability Plan
Our plan is very sustainable. The Department of Biological & Environmental Sciences is committed to
offering ENSC 1000 every semester and the ENSC faculty members are committed to using our new
material in all subsequent sections and not requiring students to purchase a traditional textbook. ENSC
1000 is regularly assessed by our program, both as part of Area D core assessment and as part of our
regular program assessment. Therefore, we regularly review how well students meet the learning
outcomes and we also evaluate student feedback. We will review course material on an annual basis,
create new material as needed and delete outdated information.

5. Future Plans
This project has helped us also reflect on how students use our course materials. Additionally, we have
noticed that many of our students come to college lacking the ability to read college-level textbook
materials. We are considering adding more study guides to our OER material to help students learn the
content and also develop their reading skills.

We will continue collecting student feedback on our OER textbook and also continue collecting data on
student learning outcomes. We hope to publish our work in an appropriate STEM-SOTL journal in the
future and potentially present at the USG Teaching and Learning Conference or the STEM-SOTL
conference at Georgia Southern.

6. Description of Photograph
Environmental Science students participating in a class activity in Dr. Mutiti’s class.