Agriculture & Natural Resources 333
Food, Forests and the Environment
Syllabus, Spring 2005



Course Coordinators
Ms. Jamey Pavey Mr. Jonah Fogel
Graduate Assistant Graduate Assistant
Dept. of Forestry, Wildlife & Fisheries Dept. of Forestry, Wildlife & Fisheries
07A Morgan Hall 07A Morgan Hall
Phone: 974-1963 Phone: 974-6758
E-mail: jpavey@utk.edu E-mail: jfogel@utk.edu

Dr. David Ostermeier
Professor
Dept. of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries
274 Ellington Plant Science Bldg.
Phone: 974-8843
E-mail: daveo@utk.edu


Lecture/Discussions: MWF 11:15-12:05 in 123 Ellington Plant Science Bldg.
Section #11958 (3 credits)
COURSE DESCRIPTION: An overview of agriculture and natural resources. Environmental tradeoffs that have been, are and will be required to produce the food, fiber and other products needed to feed, clothe, and house a growing world population will be addressed. Included will be a consideration of the other amenities of our environment that contribute to the quality of life (wilderness, scenic beauty, landscape design, etc.). At the end of the semester you should have an appreciation for the breadth of these areas.

TEXT and RESOURCES: There will be no text for this course. However, reading materials will be provided for many of the topics covered. You will be responsible for this material in order to be able to discuss concepts and issues related to the topic. The class homepage will also serve as a nerve center for the course. Check the website for current announcements and class documents.

COURSE ORGANIZATION: Although Ms. Pavey, Mr. Fogel, and Dr. Ostermeier are the course coordinators, feel free to contact any of the instructors regarding questions or course issues. Lecture sessions will focus on a variety of technical areas related to Agriculture and Natural Resources. Professors from various departments in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, and possibly outside experts, will present lectures on these topics. These lectures will be followed by a discussion period and students will be expected to be active participants. During the semester, students will write a 10-15 page term paper on a subject of their choosing related to the focus of the course. Students should work with one of the course instructors and/or lecturers in developing a topic. As the semester progresses, students should be thinking about a topic for your paper as well as a professor who will review your outline and provide critical feedback on your outline.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS and DUE DATES:

1. Reaction Papers. You are required to complete eight over the course of the semester. Assignment details follow.
2. Exams. Exams will be in class essay style exams. Exam 1 will be on March 7 and will cover Sections 1-3, and Exam 2 will be during the scheduled final exam slot on May 5 from 10:15-12:15 and will cover Sections 4-6.
3. Research Paper. Outline due March 16, Paper due April 11.
4. Field Trips (Required). There are two field trips in this class. The first is March 7 and will be to one or more area farms to observe farm operations and conservation practices. The second is April 22 and is to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. These are required trips; if you absolutely cannot participate in one or both, you will be assigned a separate research project(s) of at least five typewritten pages.
5. Participation. Your participation grade will be based on attendance, your participation in discussion and lecture sessions, and leading a discussion session. Roll will normally be taken. This is a decent proportion of your grade, emphasizing the importance of attendance and participating in class discussions.

All grades will be assigned on the following scale:

A 90 - 100%
B+ 86 - 89%
B 80 – 85%
C+ 76 – 79%
C 70–75%
D 64–69%
F < 64%

ANR333
Reaction Paper Assignment

The goal of the reaction papers is to provide you the opportunity to discuss, reflect on, and apply the information provided in the course and through other events. You are required to complete 8 reaction papers over the course of the semester.

Options for reaction paper topics (you can complete any combination of the following to fulfill your requirement of 8):
Ÿ Each of the 6 sections of the course
Ÿ Any event listed on the Environmental Semester Website (http://environmentalsemester.utk.edu/)—look under “News, Events, Calendar” for the Calendar of Events
Ÿ Other events, films, etc., that are relevant to the content of the course—must be approved IN ADVANCE by one of the course coordinators.

What is a reaction paper? It is a 1½ -2 page single spaced paper (12 point font of Arial or Times New Roman) in which you analyze and comment upon course material or another event (seminar, film, activity, etc.), describing your thoughts, ideas, and reactions.

You should provide a brief (one paragraph) description of the topic of the paper. If it is a non-class event, you should include who sponsored the event, where and when it was held, what the primary audience was, etc.
The rest of the paper will be your subjective thoughts about the topic of the paper. You should reflect upon the topic, discussing the following:
Ÿ What was new or different information for you?
Ÿ What do you think about the conclusions reached by the speaker(s)? Provide support for your opinions.
Ÿ How do you think the background of the speaker(s) impacted conclusions reached? How do you think your background impacted your thoughts about these conclusions?
Ÿ Upon reflecting on this information, how has this challenged or changed the way you think about agriculture or natural resources? Feel free to bring in personal experience, if appropriate.
Ÿ Did the topic raise any questions for you? If so, what questions do you have?

You should also consider potential applications, discussing the following:
Ÿ How have you applied or related the information that you gained from this section or event in your daily life? For example, in news reports or articles you have read or heard, discussions you have had, observations you have made, etc.
Ÿ What is the relationship of this information to other information from this course or your other sources of information about agriculture or natural resources?
Ÿ How might you apply this information in the future as a student, as a citizen, in your potential work, as a consumer, etc.?
Ÿ Note: It would be useful to peruse the local newspaper, news magazines (Time, Newsweek, etc.), environmental magazines (Audubon, etc.), and some websites (such as Environmental News Network (www.enn.com), Agriculture Online (www.agriculture.com), Envirolink (www.envirolink.com), and USDA (www.usda.gov)), for more opportunities to apply the information.

Do not feel confined by the questions in the preceding guide. They are meant to serve as prompts only. Once you have covered the topics that are indicated, feel free to discuss anything else that is relevant and that you are interested in.

The reaction papers can be submitted via e-mail to jpavey@utk.edu or to the Digital Drop Box (under Student Tools) on the website, preferably as a Microsoft Word Document.

Due dates are as follows, but it is suggested that papers be turned in earlier—as soon after the completion of a section of the course or an event as possible, so the topic is still fresh in your mind:
February 18 Friday 2 Reaction Papers Due
March 18 Friday 2 Reaction Papers Due
April 8 Friday 2 Reaction Papers Due
April 27 Wednesday 2 Reaction Papers Due

Papers that are turned in late will be docked 5% for each weekday late.

The Reaction Papers will be graded based on the following criteria:
Ÿ Thoroughness—did you answer the required questions? Did you follow directions? Did you integrate course material into your discussion as appropriate?
Ÿ Thoughtfulness—Did you present your thoughts and ideas in a clear and thoughtful way? Is it evident that you took the time to reflect and consider applications?
Ÿ Comparison—In general, how did your work compare with the rest of the class?


ANR333
Research Paper Assignment
Basic Outline Due March 16, Paper Due April 11

The objectives of this assignment are threefold:
1. To acquaint you with a specific agriculture/natural resource issue of sufficient depth so that you can write a critical/analytical paper.
2. To help you understand and practice the process of researching a topic, analyzing information, and writing a paper on that topic.
3. To improve your critical/objective thinking and writing skills.

Part of the paper will naturally be informative, but at least some of the paper should be analytical and/or critical. I underline the emphasis on analysis because this is often where student papers are weakest. One way to help insure an acceptable level of analysis is to make 'analysis' part of your objective. It is important that your analysis be done in a way that is objective and requires that you critically evaluate the subject you are writing about. We filter the world we experience (stories, information, fact/knowledge, experiences, etc.) through our passions, interests, perspectives, and ways of thinking that we have developed. In an objective paper like this, it is important that you go beyond this and critically evaluate multiple sides and sources of information relative to a subject and then, using objective criteria, develop thoughts, conclusions, recommendations, etc. Almost all issues in agriculture and natural resources have pros/cons, tradeoffs, impact people in multiple ways, etc. Consider these multiple sides of the issue you address and do so as objectively and critically as you can.

Paper Requirements and Grading.
Ÿ Submit an outline (due March 16).
o This outline must contain your objectives and be as specific as possible. For us to provide effective feedback, it is imperative that we understand the following as clearly as possible: what you want to do in the paper (objectives), and how you are going to do it (paper methodology and outline of major topics and conclusion).
Ÿ Obtain objective information on your topic.
o For some topics this may be a process of weeding through a wide variety of material. For others, pertinent sources may require more digging.
o You should consult several (at least 5) sources and these must include at least three non-web based sources. These can include personal sources such as telephone discussions with knowledgeable people.
o If advocacy sources are used, an attempt should be made to use some balance in these sources. Advocacy sources--as opposed to objective, scientific sources--are those which advocate for particular positions and/or interests.
o All sources should be cited in text and listed in a “References” or “Literature Cited” section at the end of the paper, using an appropriate citation style.
Ÿ The paper should be more than a re-phrasing of what you have read.
o From your readings you gain information. In your paper, discuss your analysis of the information you have read. As indicated earlier, some parts of your paper will need to be informative. However, other parts should be analytical--your analysis, your paper.
Ÿ Organize your paper well and use headings and subheadings to help the reader follow the flow of the paper.
o In writing this or any objective paper, there should be one primary goal: to translate your objectives, analysis, and thoughts to the reader.
o If because of poor organization, poor sentence or paragraph construction, or other such reasons, the reader gets lost, has to constantly stop to figure out how this relates to that, or for other reasons becomes distracted from your main train of thought, you have lost your audience. In doing this, you have defeated your goal.
Ÿ A paper should contain an introduction and a conclusion section.
o A good introduction briefly tells the reader the objective(s) and general intent of what the author is going to discuss. Clearly specify your objectives.
o A good conclusion not only summarizes major points but more importantly concludes the paper with thoughts (implications, short discussion of pertinent factors not considered in the paper, etc.) that the author wants to leave the reader with.
Ÿ Details/hints
o Double-space
o 10-15 typewritten pages plus literature sources.
o Use 12 point Arial or Times New Roman font
o Don’t put two major thoughts in one paragraph. There is nothing wrong with short paragraphs.
o Be careful of long sentences. Often, they are confusing.
o Start early and set a draft finish date a week or so before it is due, so that 3-7 days are between the draft and final edits.

Grading will be based on how well you meet the objectives of this assignment and complete the requirements noted above.