Biology

 COURSE DESCRIPTION

      BIOLOGY is the study of living things and their interactions with one another and their environments.  This is a one-year lab-based course that meets the requirements of a lab science course prerequisite for the University of California system and other colleges and universities.  It is intended for students who expect to attend college and/or enter a health or science-related career following high school graduation, as well as for students who have an interest in learning biology.

     In addition to biological concepts, students will learn lab safety, lab skills, scientific processes, academic strategies and responsibilities.  Students will also have some research assignments (such as research on current issues in biology). 

     Prerequisites: Students should be academically strong, earning at least a “B” in previous science courses.  For freshmen, an entrance exam will be given to assist in determining student readiness for biology.

    Textbook:  Biology, California edition, Miller and Levine, 2007, Pearson Prentice Hall.

COURSE OUTLINE

(Not all labs or activities are noted; listed are primary objectives, major research assignments and some of the labs included in the course.)

INTRODUCTION TO BIOLOGY AND SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION

Objectives: students will demonstrate safe lab practices, solve problems using the scientific method, and demonstrate proper data collection (including the construction of tables and graphs) and data analysis.

Activities include:

• What is life? lab
• Lab safety training
• How to create data tables and graphs, how to analyze data
• Labs in which problems are solved by applying the scientific method 

BIOCHEMISTRY and CELLS

Objectives: Students will describe the importance of water and pH in living systems Students will explain the strucure and function of the major organic molecule classes Students will describe the functions associated with various cell structures.  They will be able to correctly use microscopes and create biological diagrams.   They will explain how cells allow substances to enter or leave.  They will describe the processes and importance of photosynthesis and cellular respiration.

 Activities include:

• Acid/Base lab
• Microscope viewing and diagramming of cells 
• Osmosis lab
• Photosynthesis and light lab

GENETICS and HEREDITY

Objectives: Students will explain the role of chromosomes and genes in heredity.  They will also explain how and why cells divide, including how chromosomes are sorted to allow for a variety of traits in organisms. They will be able to predict genetic makeup from given genes.  They will explain how mutations occur.  They will describe and model how the DNA code provides instructions for all cellular activity.  They will explain how proteins are made from the instructions in DNA. They will explain how genes are expressed.  And they will explain how genetic engineering can be used.

      Activities include:

• Making a model of DNA and protein synthesis
• Observe mitosis
• Meiosis model
• Mutations lab
• Human genetic traits labs
• Examine karyotypes and pedigree charts
• Conducting a webquest or research project on genetic engineering

 

EVOLUTION

Objectives: Students will explain the theory of the evolution of living things by natural selection.  They will describe evidence for evolution from genetic, fossil and geologic evidence.  They will explain how species appear, change and become extinct.

      Activities include:

• Natural selection lab
• Adaptation lab

 ECOLOGY

Objectives: Students will be able to explain how individual organisms interact with each other and their environment.  They will describe the flow of energy within an ecosystem.  They will explain the importance of preserving biodiversity and maintaining the sustainability of earth, along with how humans impact the earth, both adversely and positively.

Activities include:

• Analysis of biogeochemical cycles
• Environmental studies on campus

PHYSIOLOGY and DEFENSE AGAINST DISEASE

Objectives: Students will be able to understand how organ systems coordinate their activities to allow the internal environment of the human body to remain generally stable, despite alterations in the environment.  Students will be able to explain how the body can protect itself from infection by microbes, how vaccination and other strategies can effectively prevent or treat disease, and how different types of microbes can attack the body.

     Activities include:

• Response time and taste labs
• Neuron model
• A student-designed physiology lab
• Making a chart and/or pamphlet of invasion by, and protection against, microbes
• Making and conducing a survey concerning disease and immunity, including AIDS, myths and facts
• Disease transmission simulation

Standardized Tests (given in the spring at or near the completion of the units studied to date:

• California Biology Content Standards Test -- all Biology students
• California High School Exit Exam (CAHSEE) -- Sophomores and upperclassme who have not yet passed
• No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Science assessment -- Sophomores only

 

After the Tests:

Objective: Students will further develop their biology skills and prepare for chemistry. Toward the end of the course, students will take a chemistry entrance exam to help determine their preparedness to be successful in chemistry the following school year. Students will study biological classification, research a current controversial issue in environmental sciencec or genetics, and participate in laboratory activities intended to develop lab and math skills in preparation for chemistry.

Activities include:

• Classification labs
• Biology stations
• Research and presentation of a controversial issue in biology
• Chemistry entrance exam