Instructor: Jim Mihal
E-Mail: natsci225@gmail.com
Contact Hours: Email me anytime, I will try to respond within 24 hours.  See Blackboard for times you can call, text, Google Meet, Skype, or Zoom.
Phone: (262) 751-6465  (my cell)      You can text me as well but please identify yourself in the text
Prerequisites: None
Credits: 3
Due Dates: Please see the "Daily Schedule" link in the welcome folder of Blackboard for exact dates.  Please do NOT follow calendar tab in Blackboard since the daily schedule provides much more details.

Required Materials: All of the reading material is online and free. You can reach this material by clicking the Study Guide links below. 

• You must have an up-to-date, working computer with internet access.  You must have the authority and ability to load software on it.  You will be installing (free) software on your computer related to this class.  In addition, you will need access to a smart phone for the final exam OR be willing to have the final exam proctored online by a third-party proctoring service provided by the school (details provided later in the class).
   
• In addition, there is an optional text you can purchase to supplement your reading: ESSENTIAL COSMIC PERSPECTIVE by BENNETT 8th edition ISBN: 9780134516332 ($208).

  .  Please do not feel obligated to purchase this text unless the materials I present (for free) are not adequate. 

Format: Online reading, research topics, homework assignments and evaluations.  All class related material is offered through Blackboard.

Attendance: MATC has a new attendance policy.  It states: "Enrollment Services will administratively withdraw for non-attendance students who fail to attend (participate in) class during the first two weeks of (this) course". Since this is an online class and assignment due dates follow a “floating schedule”, here is how I will interpret and implement this policy:

During the first two weeks of this course, I will record students absent two consecutive weeks if they have not earned ANY points. Note: You earn (bonus) points by simply introducing yourself in the discussion board and completing the initial survey in the announcement page.  Earn any points during this period and I’ll mark you as present for the week you earn those points and you will avoid being dropped by administration (you should be mostly reading and learning the Stellarium assignment during this time).  If you have any emergency which prevents you from participating in the class within those weeks, you need to contact me (prior to or within the week) and I will evaluate if the excuse is valid or not.   If administration drops you, you may appeal that decision.

After the first two weeks, administration doesn't take any action based on attendance after the first two weeks (according to the new policy D0900).  However, I'm still required to take weekly attendance.  Every Sunday I will examine your point total recorded in Blackboard.  If I see you have NOT earned ANY points for this class in Blackboard within a seven-day period (Sunday – Saturday), I will record you as absent for the week. Instructors no longer have the option to drop students who do not participate in class activities but according to policy D0900, there are no negative consequences for missing classes past the second week.  I'm not particularly fond of this new administrative policy. Students may drop themselves up to the last two weeks of the class in Self-Service.

Some students like to work ahead of schedule.  To accommodate those students, I will mark you as present for the week if your point total (as shown in the Blackboard grade book) is at least what you see in the table below (which is roughly equivalent to a “C” student progress).  Check the daily schedule to see which week we are currently in.

 Week 16 is the exam week.

I will email you when I see you are in jeopardy academically.  If you have not earned 100 points on the day I submit progress reports (see the daily schedule), I will consider you "academically absent" and I will record you as absent and will continue to do so as long as you are below the 100 point total.  I will do the same if you have not earned 200 points by the 12-week mark (see the daily schedule).

Important: Please read the welcome message in Blackboard for class procedures.  This message can be found in blackboard at the very top of the content area and is titled "Welcome to Astronomy - Phys 225".  There you will find a short video about this class, a short survey (worth 5 points) which requests information I need to get you set up in this class, and a link to the "daily schedule".  The video gives details about tests, assignments, research topics and information on due dates.  There are some things you will need to do immediately.  They are:

• Log into blackboard and access this class
• Access your MATC email account (there is even a procedure which lets you forward your MATC mail to another email account)
• Send me answers to an initial survey (details are given in the "welcome" folder and also worth 5 bonus points)
• Introduce yourself in the discussion board (and also worth 5 bonus points)

• Any student who has not done any work in the class within the first two weeks of the class will be dropped from the course. Simply introduce yourself in the discussion board and send in the initial survey (in the "Welcome" folder) and you will be OK (see the daily schedule also found in the "Welcome" folder).

I hope you enjoy this course in astronomy. You will not be required to do any complex mathematics in this course. However, we will present many ideas and concepts in this class, and this is the material I will stress on the evaluations. The course can be broken down into these main topics:

The History of Astronomy
Models of the Universe
Coordinate Systems and Calendars
Orbital Motion and Eclipses
Tools used by Astronomers and Laws of Physics
Our Solar System
Stellar Astronomy
Galactic Astronomy
Evolution of the Universe

Blackboard

This class is administered through a program called Blackboard. You will find links to all class related materials (including this syllabus) by visiting the MATC web site and logging on to Blackboard.  You will want to verify your access to blackboard soon after this introduction.

Evaluations

There will be 5 tests worth 100 points each. All 100-point tests are taken online through blackboard.  I will drop your lowest test score .... meaning only the highest 4 test scores will count.  If you miss a test during the time it is open, that test automatically becomes the lowest test score and will, therefore, be dropped.  You will receive a zero for any additional missed tests.  I'm offering you a chance to prepare for each test with a practice quiz (worth no points).  The final exam is comprehensive, is worth 300 points, and is taken with your instructor in a "virtual classroom" on a smart phone OR through a third-party proctoring service (SmarterProctoring).   There will be several times available for you to take the exam (based on your schedule), but you must verify your ID and the materials allowed as aids.  Details will be provided about a month before the class ends.  Students missing the final exam (or not following the ID check procedures) will receive a zero. No make-up is given for missing the final exam except in extreme and documented circumstances (and at the instructor’s discretion).  Make every possible effort to contact your instructor PRIOR to the end of the exam period if an emergency prevents you from taking the final exam.

Homework Assignments

You are required to watch four videos from the NOVA mini-series ORIGINS.  Each video assignment is worth 25 points for a total of 100 maximum points for the entire series.  Details regarding this assignment can be found in the icon labeled Assignments in blackboard.  In addition, all students are required to learn the basic functions of a planetarium program (any virtual sky program but one called Stellarium is free) for a maximum of 100 points.  Details regarding this assignment can be found in the icon labeled Assignments in blackboard.    Finally, all students are required to submit answers to research topics for a maximum of 100 points.  Please see the Daily Schedule for completion times.

Grades are determined as follows:

 

	Point Value	Location in Blackboard	Due Dates
5 Unit Tests (each worth 100 points)	400 total (lowest dropped)	Quizzes & Tests	Look in the Daily Schedule (each test is only open for a limited time)
Comprehensive Proctored Final Exam	300
Required Video Assignments (NOVA - Origins)	4 @ 25 pts each = 100	Assignments	Due before the last day of class (please don't wait that long)
Virtual Sky program (Stellarium software)	100	Assignments	Very helpful if learned in Unit 1.  Due before the exam period opens (but see the Early Bird Special for additional privileges)
Research Topics	5 @ 20 pts each = 100	Research Topics	You are required to answer one question in each of the 5 topics listed.  There are strict due dates for each topic.  See the Daily Schedule for due dates.
Extra Credit	40 pts	Assignments	Due before the last day of class (Please don't wait that long)

There are 1000 possible points you can earn in this class. Your grade is based on a percentage basis of that total.

Due Dates

Unit tests are available over a generous range of dates.  See the Daily Schedule for the exact dates the tests will be available.  If (for any reason) you miss a test during the times it is open, that test automatically becomes your lowest score and will be dropped.  There are no make-up dates for missed tests unless you provide your instructor a valid and documented excuse PRIOR to the date the test closes (or you cash in your "early bird" bonus).   You may complete the required NOVA - Origins assignments anytime before the last day of the class.  The required Stellarium planetarium software assignment must be done prior to the exam period but please do not wait that long to get this done.   I offer an Early Bird Special for any student who completes the Stellarium assignment early.  This offer grants you bonus privileges (see the announcement in Blackboard for details).   Research topic questions closely follow the lecture material ... therefore, each topic question has a range of dates that you should submit your answer in.  Please pay close attention to the research topics due dates because once I post the answers, I cannot accept any late work.   It is a good idea to submit your work to the research topics well ahead of the due date.  If your response is incorrect, needs alterations, and/or corrections, you can resubmit work as long as the answers have not been posted.

Important Additional Information

Please look over the syllabus addendum and course outcomes folder listed in Blackboard.  There you will find much more information related to such things as: the skills you will obtain by taking this course (course outcomes and competencies) , ADA statements, student code of conduct, grade appeal processes, procedures for dropping the class, how and where to get help, and much more.

I hope you enjoy this class...Good Luck!

Links

Some GREAT general links:

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Worldwide Telescope (free download here)

Get the latest space news at

http://www.nbcnews.com/science/space    http://www.space.com/news/    http://www.spacedaily.com/    http://news.discovery.com/space    http://www.universetoday.com/ https://www.technology.org/category/space/
 

Study Guides / Lecture Notes

Test 1 The sky and coordinate systems, Ancient History of Astronomy
Test 2 Modern History of Astronomy, planetary motion and models, gravity
Test 3 Orbital properties of the moon, Laws of Physics, Tools of Astronomers, Probes
Test 4 The Solar System
Test 5 Stars, Galaxies and the Evolution of the Universe