Course Policies

Home | Organic Chemistry I
Organic Chemistry II | General Chemistry I
Frequently Asked Questions

The following are course policies for all of
Dr. Gangi's chemistry courses:

Attendance is usually taken during the daily quiz at the very beginning of class. Students not present at this time will be recorded as absent. If you arrive after this time and wish to be recorded as "present but late", you may submit a note at the end of class stating your name, the time you arrived, and the reason for not being on time. This is especially important on lab day because, if you are marked absent it will be assumed that you did not perform the laboratory experiment and will not be able to receive a grade for it.

Four one-hour tests will be given during the semester (three in Organic Chemistry II). All the material in the assigned chapters of the text as well as the material presented in class will be included in these tests. You can expect the tests to be given on the dates shown in the course's Outline of Learning Activities that you received. Unless there is a change, the dates may not be announced in class.

A short quiz based on each homework assignment (including assigned reading) will be given at the very beginning of the class that the assignment is due. All of the quizzes taken during the course will add up to an additional test grade. These quizzes cannot be made up so it is important that you not be late for class. Failure to take a quiz will result in a zero for all questions asked. Scoring on a quiz must be checked by the student immediately after it is returned.

All of the test grades (5 for General Chemistry I and Organic Chemistry I, and 4 for Organic Chemistry II) will account for 70% of your final grade.

Several formal lab reports will be required in the course. The report grades, along with an assessment of your lab work and lab notebook will make up 30% of the grade.

Examinations that are missed may not be made up except in the rare case of serious illness or other extraordinary conditions approved by the professor. A formal request for a make-up examination with the reason for the request must be given to the professor early enough so that the examination can be taken BEFORE THE NEXT CLASS PERIOD. Otherwise, a doctor's note or some other official document validating the absence will be required.

Experiments can be done in the laboratory only during the scheduled periods and therefore can not be made up. If Dr. Gangi has another section of your class and you wish to perform an experiment with them instead of with your class, you must submit a request in writing with a reason for the request and receive written permission before the experiment is performed.

Answers to questions on the daily quizzes are given immediately after the quiz is taken; therefore quizzes cannot be made up under any circumstances. Missing a quiz because of an absence will result in your receiving a zero for the question or questions asked.

WITHDRAWAL

The College's withdrawal policy requires that you complete a form on which your professor's signature is required. If you wish to withdraw from this course please schedule an appointment of approximately 10 minutes well before the last permitted withdrawal date (the end of the 10th week of a regular semester or two-thirds through shorter semesters) so that we can discuss the ramifications of your decision. If you wait until the last day, I may be in class or otherwise unavailable!

ELECTRONIC DEVICES

No phones or pagers are to be activated during class in a manner that would be disruptive. If necessary for an emergency use the vibrator option to be alerted and leave the room before responding. No recording of any type can be made without my express written permission. Your written request to record a lecture should include your name, the date, the class and section, and the reason for recording in class.

TUTORING

Students experiencing difficulty are encouraged to make use of the available tutoring services.

Peer tutoring and drop-in tutoring are available free of charge in room 603 of the Learning Resource Center (LRC) - the building to the left of the College Bookstore.

OFFICE HOURS

Location for consultation: Room C-160, College Center
Location of the posting of the times: Outside of C-160
Telephone Number: (856) 415-2168
E-Mail: rgangi@gccnj.edu

Please do not assume that I received a message that has been delivered by e-mail, phone answering system, mailbox, etc. unless you have received a confirmation of its receipt from me.

LABORATORY WORK

Pre-lab Preparations:

All laboratory work requires preparation so that experiments can be conducted safely and efficiently and so that the student will have full knowledge and understanding of the steps to be taken. Therefore, before coming in to the lab you must:

1. Read the laboratory directions and be prepared to take a quiz on the contents.
2. Perform all pre-lab calculations in your lab notebook. For example, if the directions call for a certain number of moles of a chemical, calculate the number of grams needed. If the substance is a liquid use its density to calculate the required volume.
3. Prepare your notebook for tables and graphs.
4. For Organic Chemistry classes you must also list in your notebook the physical properties of all reagents to be used in the experiment

Your laboratory notebook may be inspected for this material before the lab session.

The Laboratory Notebook:

The laboratory notebook should be bound by cord and measure about 8-1/2 x 11 inches. It should be kept separate from the lecture notebook. At the beginning of an experiment its name and the date are recorded. Work done on subsequent days should also be dated. All data is to be entered in the notebook at the time it is taken. Data is never taken on scraps of paper and then rewritten into the notebook. Although a notebook should be legible, completeness rather than neatness is what counts.

If you make an error, do not tear the page out of the notebook. Instead, the data should be crossed out (but not obliterated) and the reason for the error, if known, should be noted. The proper maintenance of a laboratory notebook is an important part of laboratory procedure.

You may have one or more partners in lab. Never the less, each partner is expected to enter all data in his/her notebook. Don't depend on your partner's notes.

Laboratory Reports:

Laboratory reports will be required for the experiments. Although you may have one or more partners in a lab, each student is expected to submit an individual report showing independent work.

Since learning occurs during a student's involvement in a laboratory experiment, a student must be present for the experiment in order to have a laboratory report considered for a grade.

A cover sheet and lab report results sheets will be made available for each report and must be used. These reports must be submitted no later than at the beginning of class two periods after the experiment is completed. Reports received later than this will have one point (out of a possible 10 points) deducted from their grades. Reports WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED more than one period after they are due, this will result in a zero for the report. Reports can be submitted in class ONLY (don't put them in my mailbox, or give them to a secretary, or fax or e-mail them to me).

These reports should contain:

1. An introduction.
2. A brief description of the experiment.
3. Completed Calculations and Results sheet(s) .
4. Conclusions drawn from the experiment.
5. And in the Organic Chemistry classes you must also include the physical properties of all substances involved such as the molar masses, densities, boiling and melting points, refractive indices, and any other properties which may be appropriate.

Laboratory Teams:

A laboratory team consists of two students. The make-up of these teams will be determined on lab drawer check-in day. On rare occasions three or more students may be assembled into a team by the instructor. Students must never put together teams of more than two students without the instructor's explicit permission! Your lab team must check out the contents of its lab drawer on check-out day. Failure to do so will adversely affect your lab grade!

It has been said that the chemical laboratory is safer than the average home. This is because laboratories and their contents have been carefully designed for safe operation and the scientists and technicians who work in them have been trained to consider safety an important aspect of their work.

A lecture on "Safety in the Laboratory " will be given during a class period just prior to your first laboratory experience in this course. In this lecture general safety practices will be discussed. Then, before each experiment is begun, you will read the boxed-in SAFETY REMINDERS that are included in your lab manual for that experiment.

You will not be able to do lab work until you have attended the "Safety in the Laboratory" lecture. If you cannot attend on the date shown in the course's Outine of Learning Activites that you received you must arrange with the instructor to attend the lecture on one of the few other days that the "Safety in the Laboratory" lecture is given.

The instructor gives additional lab instructions just before each lab session. If you are not present for these instructions you will not be permitted to do the lab.

Here are three safety rules that can be given now:

1. Do not bring food or drink into the laboratory at any time regardless of whether an experiment is being performed.
2. Report all injuries regardless of how slight they may seem to you.
3. Wear safety goggles in the laboratory whenever an experiment is being performed regardless of whether you are doing lab work. Goggles are supplied to your class and are shared with other classes. You may wish to purchase your own personal pair at the College Bookstore.

In cases of cheating, plagiarism, or fabrication, faculty have the authority to impose an academic sanction which is reasonable and commensurate with the violation.

STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

If any students in class have special needs, or think they may have special needs because of learning disabilities or other kinds of disabilities, please feel free to discuss this with me.

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