Syllabus
This document is the course syllabus. Use the
navigation links below to navigate to specific portions of this
syllabus. Use the navigation links above to access the other
web pages that are a part of this course, e.g., "Instructor"
and Class Session Outline.
Overall Course
Objective
The overriding course objective is to advance
teachers' understandings about public health applications for
science instruction. Considerable attention will be on "the
built environment." Where possible, course content will
include mathematical applications.
Important Issues Related to Course
Content
Human and Animal Research. Human or animal
subjects research that is conducted by HSTA teachers and students
without advance IRB or Animal Care and Use Committee (ACUC)
approval by WVU is not a part of this course. If your students
plan to do any research that involves human or animal research,
contact Jenny Bardwell (jbardwell @ hsc dot wvu dot edu) prior
to beginning the research in order to develop the appropriate
application.
Safety of All Club Activities: All HSTA club
activities must be carried out in accordance with science
safety precautions for the regular
school classroom, which includes that students are not to do
any activities that involve human pathogens or human body fluids.
Here is the "Science Education Safety" website of the Council
of State Science Supervisors, which also provides links to other
valid safety resources: http://csss.enc.org/safety.htm
. If in doubt about the safety of an activity,
check with expert information sources or authorities before
doing it.
Additionally, this course may involve students in examining
the "walkability" of areas in your community. In doing
so, it is best to have students wear a reflective vest. It also
is important for them to follow general walking safety guidelines.
Some guidelines are given below.
• Walk only on the sidewalk, if available.
• Stop and look both ways before crossing a street, and
obey pedestrian walking signals.
• Cross the street only at marked crosswalks. For marked
crosswalks that do not have stop signs or lights/signals, make
eye contact with approaching drivers so they STOP before you
step out into the crosswalk.
• Before walking across a driveway or in parking lots/spaces,
watch for automobiles turning in or leaving/backing out.
• If there are no sidewalks, walk only on roadways that
have shoulders and always walk facing traffic.
• Wear retro-reflective material at dusk or night. Try
not to walk at night where there is no or poor lighting.
• Tempted to talk on the cell phone while walking in traffic
dense areas? Don’t do it!
• Unleashed “scary” dogs? Report them to the
animal control department.
Educational Activities and Human Energy Balance.
See "End Notes" at the end of this syllabus for issues
pertaining to involving students in activities on human energy
balance (calorie intake, calorie expenditure).
Course
Text Required
Urban Sprawl and Public Health. Full
citation: Frumkin, H., Frank, L., & Jackson, R. (2004).
Urban Sprawl and Public Health. Washington, D.C.: Island
Press. (Text provided at Fall workshop.)
On-Line Preworkshop Readings
The electronic readings listed below are to be completed before
the Fall workshop. You must have Adobe Acrobat Reader to view
PDF files. Links to each of the readings are provided below.
Building Awareness of the Built Environment. http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2002/110-11/niehsnews.html#buil
Impacts of Our Built Environment on Public Health: http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2004/112-11/editorial2.html
Sprawl: The New Manifest Destiny: http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/members/2004/112-11/focus.html
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Other Course Resources
and Readings
You will be asked to examine/read several of these resources
throughout the course (see Class Session Outline and Assignment
Details). Links are given to all that are online. You may choose
to examine or utilize others in providing learning experiences
to your HSTA club or classroom.
Bowe’s and Church’s Food Values of
Portions Commonly Used. Full citation: Pennington,
J., & Douglass, J. (2004) Bowe’s and Church’s
Food Values of Portions Commonly Used. Eighteenth Edition. New
York: J.P.Lippincott, Williams, and Wilkins. (If you do not
have a copy of this text, it will be provided at the Fall workshop.)
Compendium of Physical Activities. Full
citation: Ainsworth BE. (2002, January) The Compendium of Physical
Activities Tracking Guide. Prevention Research Center, Norman
J. Arnold School of Public Health, University of South Carolina.
Retrieved [provide the date] from the World Wide Web at http://prevention.sph.sc.edu/tools/docs/ documents_compendium.pdf
. If you do not have a copy of the Compendium, download one
at the URL provided.
Pedometers. Teachers who do not have a club
set of pedometers but want a set can obtain them from the instructor
at the Fall workshop.
On-line Resources and Databases. In addition
to the HSTA web site and WVU Libraries, below are a list of
other on-line resources that may be of use in this course and
in working with students.
Active Living Research http://www.activelivingresearch.org
Built Environment Collection, Environmental Health Perspectives
http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/topic/built.html
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/
CDC-HSTA Web Page on Resources http://www.wv-hsta.org/cdc_chc/project_resources.htm
found at the HSTA Web Site provides several resources that
may be of use in facilitating student learning activities
that deal with public health, including nutrition, physical
activity, and the walkability of communities.
Center for Health and Health Care in Schools http://www.healthinschools.org
Combined Health Information Database. http://chid.nih.gov/
Designing to Reduce Childhood Obesity http://www.activelivingresearch.org/downloads/childhoodobesity021105.pdf
Does the Built Environment Influence Physical Activity?
- Full Report: http://gulliver.trb.org/publications/sr/sr282.pdf
- Summary Report: http://gulliver.trb.org/publications/sr/sr282summary.pdf
Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) New Dietary Guidelines Really
Are New! ( By: Penland, J.) Washington, D.C.: USDA http://www.gfhnrc.ars.usda.gov/News/news_9912a.html
EPA Smart Growth
http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/
Fed Up! Winning the War Against Childhoold Obesity.
(By: Okie, S., 2005). Washington D.C.: Joesph Henry Press.
http://books.nap.edu/catalog/11023.html
Federal Resources for Educational Excellence http://www.ed.gov/free/index.html
FirstGov: The U.S. Government's Official Web Portal. Health
and Nutrition section. http://www.firstgov.gov/Citizen/Topics/Health.shtml
Google Scholar. Allows searching for scholarly/research articles.
http://scholar.google.com
Got Dirt? Access to PDF of gardening project for schools,
communities, childcare developed through CDC funded project:
http://dhfs.wisconsin.gov/health/physicalactivity/gotdirt.htm
Healthfinder. A Service of the National Health Information
Center, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. http://www.healthfinder.gov/
Healthy Community Design: Success Stories from State and
Local Leaders http://www.rwjf.org/files/publications/other/HealthyCommunityDesign.pdf
Institute of Medicine http://www.iom.edu/
Measuring the Health Effects of Sprawl: http://www.smartgrowthamerica.org/report/HealthSprawl8.03.pdf
National Academy Press. Many high quality texts on topics
ranging from agriculture to nutrition to urban development
can be read on-line. http://books.nap.edu
Our Built and Natural Environments. http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/pdf/built.pdf
President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports
publications. http://www.fitness.gov/home_pubs.htm
PubMed. A database of the National Library of Medicine. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?DB=pubmed
PubMed Central (PMC). National Institutes of Health free
digital archive of biomedical and life sciences journal literature.
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/
Science.Gov. This is a United States Government database
of select information--including research--in a variety of
science areas: Note especially "Agriculture and Food"
and "Health and Medicine." http://science.gov
Smart Growth On-line:
http://www.smartgrowth.org/default.asp
Travel and Environmental Implications of School Siting http://www.epa.gov/dced/pdf/school_travel.pdf
United States Department of Agriculture. http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/usdahome
West Virginia Healthy Lifestyle Coalition and West Virginia
on the Move (WVOM). This web site contains the report "Taking
Action to Address Obesity in WV," and links to specific
target populations/settings and articles , e.g., Healthy Kids/Schools
provides links to articles about soft drink consumption and
benefits of physical activity for children http://www.healthywv.com
WVU Libraries. The WVU
Libraries provides a host of electronic resources for
teachers. Take some time to peruse the library
home page and links therein, such as "reference
on-line." Some assignments in this course may require
you to use the WVU libraries on-line databases.
If you are not familiar with the database search procedure,
please study the Database
Search document.
WVU
Library Distance Education . Service If you reside
outside of a 50-mile radius of WVU, you are eligible to
use the Distance Education services. Through this service,
you can obtain free up to 30 hard copies of journal articles
to which the library subscribes (but which you cannot access
electronically). Visit the above site to learn the services/resources
available to you.
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Class Contact Time
A 3-credit semester course at WVU has 45 contact hours (includes
breaks) and attendance is expected. Additionally, individuals
are expected to devote at least two hours to readings/study
and assignments out of class for every hour of contact time.
The Class Session Outline shows the class contact time (second
column) and out-of-class assignments (third column) for each
week of the course. See the section below on Grading to ascertain
how "attendance" of the class contact time affects
your course grade.
As part of this 45 hours of contact time, it is expected that
you will devote 16 hours to HSTA club meetings. The remaining
29 hours of contact time is distributed across the items below.
- 11 hours attending the entire Fall workshop (Morgantown
9/16-17 or Madison 9/23-24 site, 6-9 pm Friday and 9-5 pm
Saturday). As part of the Saturday afternoon session, attend
(a) both parts 1 and 2 of the Walkability sessions OR (b)
the New Lifestyles Project and Food Composition/Pedometers
sessions.
- 18 hours engaged in VISTA WebCT "threaded discussions"
in Discussion folders. At the Fall workshop, teachers will
be oriented to the use of VISTA and how to conduct threaded
discussions. Prior to the Fall workshop, read the material
at the two links below:
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Class Session Outline
The Class Session Outline is accessed through the "Class Session
Outline" link on the top of this page. It shows
how the class contact time is spread across each week of the
course and gives the "out of class" readings and other
assignments to complete each week.
Assignments
This course has several assignments (readings, threaded discussion
postings, Internet investigations, and written papers) that
you will complete "in-class" (during class contact
time) and "out-of-class." The Class Session Outline
lists each of these assignments and respective due
dates.
The "Grading" section below shows the point value
of each assignment and provides a link to the directions for
completing each assignment. So you have quick access to these
assignments, the "Assignment Detail " web page on the course
navigation bar also provides a list of these assignments with
the instructions.
All written papers need to be word processed--size 10 to 12
font--and submitted as email attachments to the instructor jim.rye@mail.wvu.edu.
Additionally, your lesson plan needs to be shared with your
colleagues by posting it to the Lesson Plans discussion folder
in VISTA.
Assignments are not accepted late unless a request deemed acceptable
to the instructor is made prior to the due date of that assignment.
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Grading
The course grade is based on 100 points: 90-100 points = A;
80-89 points = B; 70-79 points = C; 60-69 points = D; <60
points = F. These points are determined as follows:
- Four "out of class" assignments--72 points, divided
as shown below. Due dates are given on the Class Session Outline
and Assignment Detail web pages. Each assignment below also
is linked to the Assignment Detail web page.
- Initiating
posts (7 of them for "in-class" assignments)
you make to initiate threaded discussions in the VISTA discussion
folders -- 28 points (4 points per posting). (due Tuesday
of each week that we have VISTA threaded discussions, beginning
Oct 3-7; see Class Session Outline)
- Class attendance--up to 20 points will be deducted for not
attending the HSTA Fall workshop, and up to 6 points will
be deducted for each discussion folder in which you do not
sufficiently "participate
and monitor." Additionally, points will be deducted
for not emailing the instructor as requested on the Class
Session Outline.
Also, all written assignments are to be submitted on time in
order to earn any points for the assignment. Only under
special circumstances will the instructor permit you to make
postings late or submit written assignments late. This permission
must be obtained and granted in advance.
Assignments turned in as electronic files will not be returned,
so please keep a copy. Late assignments are not accepted unless
a request deemed acceptable to the instructor is made in advance.
Reminder about Plagiarism: Copying
and pasting into a discussion message posting or a written assignment
information from Internet sites or from hard copy print material
without using quotation marks (or block style if > 40 words)
and citing the author/title (etc.)
and Internet site where relevant is plagiarism. Instances of
plagiarism will result in no credit for the posting or written
assignment. Additionally, it is expected that the majority of
all postings and written assignments will be in the students'
own words. Discussion folder postings and written assignments
that are mostly quotations from other sources generally will
receive little credit.
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End Notes
Please read each of these End Notes before the
end of week 1 of class.
Syllabus Changes . The instructor reserves
the right to make changes in the course syllabus.
Academic Integrity. "The academic development
of students and the overall integrity of the institution are
primary responsibilities of WVU. Academic dishonesty is
condemned at all levels of life, indicating an inability to
meet and face issues and creating an atmosphere of mistrust,
disrespect, and insecurity. Faculty, students, and administrators
have shared responsibilities in maintaining the academic integrity
essential for the university to accomplish its mission." (West
Virginia University 1998-2000 Graduate Catalog, pp. 45-46.)
Social Justice Syllabus Statement. West
Virginia University is committed to social justice. I
concur with that commitment, and expect to foster a nurturing
learning environment based upon open communication, mutual respect,
and non-discrimination. Our University does not discriminate
on the basis of race, sex, age, disability, veteran status,
religion, sexual orientation, color or national origin.
Any suggestions as to how to further such a positive and open
environment in this class will be appreciated and given serious
consideration. If you are a person with a disability and
anticipate needing any type of accommodation in order to participate
in this class, please advise me and make appropriate arrangements
with Disability Services (293-6700).
Notes About Educational Activities that Involve Body
Weight, Other Related Health Information, or Physical Activity.
An individual's body weight, dietary intake, and other
related personal health measurements or information are confidential.
In doing educational activities involving such health information,
no student should be forced to disclose this information in
a manner where other students could link the information to
that individual. The provision by students of personal health
information for educational activities should always be voluntary
and anonymous.
A practical way to get around using students' personal health
information is to use "examples" that are not drawn
from anyone in the class, e.g., "Let's figure out the kcal
expenditure of walking at 3.5 mph for an individual who weighs
125 lb...150 lb (etc.)" If there is a need for group data--such
as for analysis/statistical applications--the data can be fictitious
(constructed by the teacher). Alternatively, the teacher can
ask for students voluntarily to submit data anonymously. For
example, students privately write the step count on an index
card/slip of paper and fold it, and the teacher directly collects
it in a box or envelop. If there was a desire to collect the
same health information over time, the student would need to
come up with and remember a code, e.g., a short nickname that
includes at least 2 numbers--such as "super 32"--or
some combination of 5 letters and numbers, such as "bebe2".
The student would include the code along with the health information
that is turned in. The information collected is entered by the
teacher into a database that can be shown/utilized for classroom
instruction.
Additionally, any educational activity on the topic of overweight/obesity
needs to be done in a manner that is respectful of all individuals
regardless of body weight. With minors, we do not use the term
"obese." Rather, we use the term "overweight"
(meaning Body Mass Index for Age and Gender is > 95th
percentile) or "at risk for overweight" (meaning Body
Mass Index for Age and Gender is > 85th percentile
but < 95th percentile). Be careful not to use language or
situations that would offend individuals who are overweight.
If students are going to be walking outside as a part of any
educational activity, make sure the walking route does not put
students in harms way relative to automobile traffic or otherwise.
See the links about safety in the Walking Routes section of
the web page, "Kcal
Expenditure of Walking." For educational activities
that involve doing physical activities beyond walking: It is
generally best to make doing the actual physical activity voluntary
and to check in advance with your school nurse and/or physical
education teacher to insure that the activities are done safely.
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Last
Updated on September 06, 2005, by Jim Rye
