Course Overview

Agronomy 512 focuses on the capacity of soils to function as growth media for plant roots. As a soil's course of intermediate level (in this program), Agron 512 focuses primarily on the fertility aspects of soils. It applies, combines, and expands upon basic concepts learned in Agron 502. It discusses the impact of the soil physical, chemical, and biological conditions on plant root systems and vice versa. The course material is a summary of what we considered to be the most relevant information you need to know in order to support your critical reasoning when assessing and making soil management decisions. Consequently, it is important to fully understand the course information at the level of detail presented. You will be responsible for learning, reproducing, analyzing, and interpreting the information presented in the course material and assigned readings.

Study Tips

• Do not fall behind schedule! Be sure to check Agron 512 Course Calendar weekly for due dates.
• Start each lesson on the date indicated on the calendar. Complete one lesson each week. Allow a minimum of 6 to 8 hours per lesson (4 hours to do the lesson + 2 hours to do assignments and participate in discussions + 2 hours for text readings). Make sure to allow extra time for Lesson 7 (the largest lesson in Agron 512). Spread your study time over several days. Work ahead when you know that you will be out–of–town or unable to do a lesson during its designated week.
• Do each In Detail as you come across its link in the lesson. In Details contain required information (it may be asked in the exams). Visits to each 'FYI' and 'Try This' are also encouraged and exam questions may come from these pages as well.
• Do each Study Question and Try This! as encountered. They are designed to enhance your learning, to provide opportunities to apply the information presented, and to let you evaluate your understanding of the material. They often expand on the concepts and help you identify the important ones. Don't skip any!
• Assignments and Discussion Topics may be done as they appear or after you finish the lesson and readings. Be sure to submit all assignments and discussion postings on time.
• Assignments answer format. Your answer to Assignment questions will be individually evaluated. Consequently, it should stand–alone. In other words, it should cover the full scope of the question. Be thorough!
• Discussion Topics posting format. Discussion Topics are designed to promote the exchange of information and opinions among classmates. Consequently, I strongly encourage you to comment on each other's postings and make it as interactive and dynamic as possible.
• Bonus Discussion Topics about learning strategies. An experimental approach will be used to educate Agron 512 students about various categories of learning strategies. The intent is to expose you to various learning strategies and encourage you to share and learn different ways to learn a subject. This issue will be addressed in seven Bonus DTs scattered through out the semester. I strongly encourage you to comment on each other's postings. Many students have found this quite informative. Three bonus points will be given for participation.
• Interact with your classmates and instructor. Visit the discussion board often! Discussions need not be limited to the assigned topic––use the discussion board (or e–mail) to ask questions, share an interesting article or observation, or comment on current and relevant events. If you work ahead, be sure to go back and check the discussion board (and post your comments and responses to classmates) during that lesson's scheduled week.
• Lesson Reflection must be done by the due date. Question 1 will be graded according to content, organization, and grammar (8 points). Question 2 will be granted participation points (2 points).
• Presentation skills. Part of your grade in Agronomy 512 will be based on developing your presentation skills and evaluating the presentations of others (Lesson 13). If you are unfamiliar with PowerPoint, I encourage you to spend some time earlier in the course exploring its features.
• Do the text readings. Readings from the texts supplement the material presented in the lesson and are required unless stated otherwise.
• Brady, N.C., and R. R. Weil. 2002 or 2008. The Nature and Properties of Soils, 13th or 14th ed. Prentice Hall.
• Marschner, H. 1995. Mineral Nutrition of Higher Plants, 2nd ed. Academic Press.
• Troeh, F. R., J. A. Hobbs, and R. L. Donahue. 2004. Soil and Water Conservation: Productivity and Environmental Protection, 4th ed. Prentice–Hall.
• Other printed material provided.
• Something unclear? Consult with your instructor and/or classmates.

Course Schedule

Lessons are designed to be completed in one week. The suggested beginning dates are on Mondays. Your discussion board posting will be due about one week after a lesson's start date, usually on a Tuesday (except for Lessons 13, 14, and 15). Discussion postings must be completed by the assignment due date. However, subsequent discussion postings are encouraged anytime. Be sure to check the course calendar weekly for current start and due dates. Need extra time to complete a lesson? Contact the instructor in advance!

Course Grading System

Descriptions of Expectations

• Assignments – Assignments are worth 15 points each (except Assignment 1.1 is worth 10 points). In your answer, quantity is not a substitute for quality and vice versa. WE WILL INTERACT MOSTLY IN A WRITTEN FORMAT. CONSEQUENTLY, IT IS PARAMOUNT THAT YOU EXPRESS YOURSELF WITH CLARITY.
• Timeliness – It is important that activities are completed in a timely fashion. This facilitates my scoring of assignments and discussion. I plan to give one day of grace after a due date and then penalize for late submissions. IF YOU CAN NOT COMPLETE AN ASSIGNMENT BY THE DUE DATE, LET ME KNOW BEFOREHAND WHEN I MIGHT EXPECT IT.
• Assignment Grading – I will be grading two types of assignments this term: contextual and participation. Contextual will be evaluated for context. Participation will be evaluated for your involvement; that is, you participated and gave a thoughtful response to the question asked or discussion generated. Assignments, slide presentation and review, midterm, and the final will be contextually graded. Discussions (topics and bonus) and Lesson Reflections will have both contextual and participatory grading. Please let me know if you have questions.
• Discussion Topics – Are worth 8 points for regular Discussion Topics and 3 points for Bonus Discussion Topics. You are required to contribute at least one posting on each Discussion Topic. You will receive full credit if you give a meaningful response. There are 14 regular Discussion Topics. During final grade assessment, up to an additional 33 points may be awarded based on level of contribution in discussions throughout the term. Consideration will be given to thoughtfulness of response, the number of entries on the topic, and contribution to the learning of colleagues. Commenting on classmate postings is HIGHLY encouraged. The instructor will tend to stay out of the discussion until the due date. Shortly after the deadline, the instructor will normally comment on the postings.
• Midterm Exam – Will include information from Lessons 1 through 7, inclusive. The exam will be closed book and will require memorization, calculation, deduction, and elaboration. Expect the exam to be challenging. (Midterm Exam must be completed by 5 pm and faxed to: 515–294–5506 to meet course deadline.)
• Final Exam – Will focus on materials covered in lessons 8 through 15, but will be comprehensive in nature and also cover materials from the beginning of the course. The final will be closed book and will cover about 80% new material (since midterm) and 20% old material. (Final Exam must be completed by 5 pm and faxed to: 515–294–5506 to meet university deadline for grade reports.)
• Lesson Reflection – Appears as the last “activity” in each lesson. Question 1 is the contextual portion of lesson reflections and will be graded according to content, organization, and grammar (8 points). Question 2 will be granted participation points (2 points).
• The purpose of this activity is to enhance your learning and information retention of important information. Some students tell us that they find writing a summary of the lesson in their own words helpful, whereas others consider this to be busy work. Therefore, to complete this activity, you have two options for the contextual portion (8 points). Reflection entries are due the same day as lesson assignments.

1. Contextual portion of lesson reflections (8 points). Do only one of these activities a) or b).
1. In your own words, write a short summary (one–half page or less) of the main points covered in this lesson, or
2. Identify three (3) key points that you learned in this lesson and write three (3) short paragraphs (each key point in a new paragraph containing only three or four sentences). Indicate the key point and why it was of interest or important. Can you relate this key point to your 'real world' experiences in a meaningful way?

2. Unclear items (2 points). If anything remains hazy, or you are unsure about some point, please ask! This is another opportunity for you to verify your understanding and to solicit clarification from the instructor. This question also serves to identify those topics that need improved presentation––future classes thank you! If you have a question that needs immediate attention, please send me an e–mail at teloynac@iastate.edu. I will respond to your questions in Lesson Reflections, but this will be after the due date.

• Final Grades – Will be assigned on a curve, including +/– grading. The curve will be developed using the range, mean, and standard deviation of student scores. Recall also that portions of your scores will be adjusted to 60% of listed points. I will post expected grades on the midterm to give you an indication of your performance.