AP BIOLOGY SURVIVAL GUIDE

Ms. Greenberg 2010 - 2011 What is AP Biology? Advanced Placement Biology is a first year college level Biology course. It is taught as a college course. This means that students are expected to be responsible and independent: enough to get help when it is needed, to do the reading and take the notes as needed, to be prepared for tests and laboratory exercises, to get lecture notes from classmates if a class is missed and to be proactive about seeing the teacher if problems arise. Information about the course can be found online: http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/ap-biology-course-description.pdf What are the goals of AP Biology? There are two goals to this course: 1) to give students a comprehensive first year college level Biology course 2) to prepare students for the AP Biology Exam that will take place May 9, 2011. Meeting these goals will require a lot of work from both students and the teacher. What is the most difficult aspect of AP Biology? The volume of material covered in the limited time available is the single biggest issue confronting students in AP Biology. We need to cover the entire textbook, and then some. If you look at the syllabus carefully, youll note that assigned reading covers almost the entire text. There will be some topic areas, such as ecology, and various specific objectives which students are expected to study independently and get help from the teacher when needed. All material is fair game on the AP exam. Due to all of the above, be ready to move at a fast pace! Do you need to bring your textbook to class? No! We will be using Biology 6th Edition by Campbell and Reece. Diagrams from the book will figure prominently in lectures, but bringing the books to class is optional. DONT LOSE YOUR BOOK! They are rather expensive and we do not have a lot of extras to go around. What other materials are needed for AP Biology? Students will need a large three-ring binder (or two). You will want to be able to organize lecture notes, reading notes, handouts, labs and tests for easy access and studying. The AP Exam in May covers the entire year. How you choose to organize your materials is up to you; if you need help, come get it! Be organized: as a general rule, no credit will be given for late work.

What is the structure of the AP Biology course? There are four major components to this course: reading, lecture, labs and tests. Reading Students are responsible for reading the assigned pages prior to each class period. There will, of course, be times when that is not possible, but it will be important for students to come to class with specific questions from the reading. Reading doesnt mean skimming a chapter in fifteen minutes, it means reading carefully, taking notes, writing down questions, making connections. Notes policy: every student has ONE chance per quarter to opt out of handing in notes on a particular unit. There will be no make-ups. Scoring less than a Bon the test for that unit means the notes must be made up see me to determine a due date. We MAY discuss possible alternate assignments to the notes after the first quarter. Lecture Most class periods will be devoted to interactive lecture. This is not always the most effective teaching method, but it is the only way to cover the curriculum in time for the AP Exam. Lectures will focus on the most important or difficult concepts; there simply is not enough time to cover everything in the reading. Lectures are also a good time for students to ask questions. Students who miss a lecture must get the notes from someone else in the class, then should come for help as needed. Lectures will not cover all the material students must know! Definitions and easier concepts are left to the student to master individually of course help is available. Check the copies of the teachers schedule to see when extra help is available. If at all possible, appointments should be made for help sessions before or after school. Labs The Advanced Placement curriculum includes 12 mandatory lab exercises. We will generally spend one period on the day before a lab is scheduled to pre-lab, then use a double period (a Tuesday or Wednesday, to do the lab. There are a few labs for which we will do an alternate version. In all cases, though, students will be given copies of the labs and if necessary data sets for analysis. The AP labs require extensive preparation time with limited (and often expensive) materials; there will be NO lab make-ups. Students who miss a lab must obtain data from classmates and must do their own work to analyze that data. Students who come to lab late will lose some lab credit. Labs and other non-test assignments count as 40% of the marking period grades.

Tests Tests count as 60% of the marking period grades. Tests will follow the format of the AP exam: multiple choice questions that cover any aspect of the material, whether lecture, reading, or lab, and essay questions designed to match those of the AP Exam in terms of scope (usually broad), detail and difficulty. Tests will be graded on a scale reflecting that of the AP exam (even though these are unit tests, they will not be easy). The AP Exam is written to be difficult; it is intended to produce an average score of 50% and then scaled. AP Biology tests will be difficult in order to prepare students for the AP Exam. Scaling procedures for each test will be explained when that test is returned. There will not be time to go over tests in class; students are welcome to see the teacher individually or in groups to go over tests. The AP Exam itself consists of 100 multiple choice questions to be answered in 80 minutes, and 4 essays to be answered in 90 minutes, following a 10 minute reading period. In general, an AP Biology test will consist of 1 essay question and 45 multiple choice questions to be answered in 57 minutes. The multiple choice section of the AP Exam contains several different levels of questioning, from simple memorization to data analysis. This section covers all the material and can be expected to be very detail-oriented. The essay section of the AP Exam also covers all the material, but generally offers students some choices in how to approach the questions. There is a trend towards a theme-based approach in the AP Exam, which does affect the essay questions. We will spend some time in class at the beginning of the year discussing the essays and how to succeed with them. Inquiry-Based Application This year we are implementing inquiry based exercises designed to take your thinking in biology to the next level. You will be completing several of these over the course of the year. There is a separate file posted on the website which describes the activities and choices you can make. Who can expect to do well in AP Biology? Students who do show responsibility in this course, who get help when they need it, who work hard, and who succeed with the labs and the tests can expect to do well on the AP Exam in May. Please note that ALL students are expected to take the AP Exam. I will share exam previous exam statistics with the class at the beginning of the year. A note on the midterm and final exams: The midterm exam will cover the entire first semester. Exam format will mimic that of the AP exam. The final exam is an alternate form of assessment, a bioethics project. Any student who does not take the AP exam will have to take a cumulative final exam covering the entire years curriculum. The final exam period June may be used for bioethics presentations; there is no senior exemption.

Important information about final exams: Due to issues two years ago regarding students who sat for the AP exam but did not take it seriously, I am reserving the right to give a final exam, along the same format at the midterm but covering the entire year. The exam would be given at the end of the year, with essays in class before exams start and multiple choice section during the appropriate period in exam week. If there is an exam, it would apply to the entire class. Grading Rationale I will follow the grading rationale set by the school; please note that I do not round up quarter grades. Student Suggestions Below is a list of suggestions made by former AP Bio students: Use the activities on the CD Rom that comes with the book. Start reading notes early, keep up with the syllabus! Getting notes done in advance leads to greater success. Use the practice tests from AP prep books. Buy your own book if you can, so you can highlight and make notes in the text. Get help early if needed for note-taking/study skills. Extra help Extra help is available before school, during mutual free periods, and after school by appointment. See my website for details. If I am not in the classroom (G3), try the Science Office (G1). Information will also be available on my page on the school website. You can get help via e-mail at bioteachersg@gmail.com. E-mail is checked up until approximately 8:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday. No guarantees about Friday or Saturday!