BIODIVERSITY OF KENYA
BOT/GEO 496/596

Tentative 2011

Course Description
Course Prerequisites
Course Requirements and Evaluation
Pre-Trip Meetings
Research Project
Field Notebook
Post-Trip Meetings

Instructor: Dr. K.E. Medley, Professor, Department of Geography, Affiliate Department of Botany 219-A Shideler Hall, 529-1558, medleyke@muohio.edu

Course Description: This course is designed for students who want to learn about: 1) the natural history and ecology of tropical ecosystems in Kenya; 2) the indigenous cultures and human relationships with Kenyan environments; and 3) conservation issues from interdisciplinary perspectives. Biodiversity is a term used to identify the richness of earth's environments, from the genetics of species populations to the array of land-cover types across a regional landscape. We will try to capture both a basic and applied understanding of biodiversity in Kenya through field observations, interactions with field experts (researchers, guides, and local people), group discussions, and outside readings. The course includes pre-trip seminars that introduce basic concepts in Kenya's ecology and some conservation issues, a two-week intensive field experience in Kenya, and follow-up discussions and project presentations.

Course Prerequisites: The course expects basic training in the biological sciences that may be obtained through BMZ 115/116 or a related course, and requires permission of the instructor. It is expected that students will have broad interests that include biology/ecology, studies of human-environment relationships, and the conservation of natural resources .

Course Requirements and Evaluation: The final grade for this course will be determined by your attendance at all pre- and post-trip meetings, participation in field activities and discussions, a research project, and a field notebook. Below I provide guidelines and show the percentage contributions for specific requirements. Expectations are necessarily different for undergraduate and graduate students, but will be formally addressed in the evaluation of the research projects. Graduate students will be expected to complete a more extensive literature review for their paper.

Pre-Trip Meetings- 10% course grade. At least four meetings are scheduled prior to our departure for Kenya. The purpose of the first meeting will be organizational, addressing travel logistics and requirements for the course. Two sessions will focus on ecology, conservation issues, and topics for research in Kenya, and the last meeting(s) will provide an introduction to Kenyans with some basic training in Swahili.

Field Notebook- 50% (undergraduate) 40% (graduate) . Throughout the field trip, you are to keep field notes of all observations, comments from guides, and lectures provided by the research staff. These should become a part of a field notebook that includes daily sections:

a) Descriptive Observations: a summary of what you saw- animals, vegetation, human-environment relationships..

b) Record of Biodiversity: a species listing that should include detailed descriptions (use the provided guidebooks) of 3-5 new species each day;

c) Comparative Summaries: a paragraph (+) that compares the current day/site/observations with those during one or more prior days/sites.

You are expected to compile all your field notes, species records and essays collected during the course into a single, typed, and integrated documentation of the course. The journal should effectively communicate your new learning, reflections, and experiences during the course. The journals are especially nice when you can add pictures. The journal should serve as a main reference for the final project paper, and you should cite it directly in the text for that paper.

Research Project- 30% (undergraduate) 40% (graduate). Identify a research topic that will effectively link literature inquiry (outside references) with field observations and discussions on the biodiversity of Kenya. Use the trip itinerary and reading packet as a guideto topics--it should be clear that we will address a wide range of issues: the ecology of savanna vegetation, ethnobotany, animal behavior, endangered species conservation, grazing ecology, human relationships with natural resources, conservation issues in a developing country... Keep the topic potentially broad and flexible at first, so that it can gain focus and depth through the field experience. Consider three crucial steps in the preparation of this research project:

1. Project Proposals (Friday before the last pre-trip meeting)- Write a brief prospectus (2-3 pages) of your project that defines the research problem/question, shows how it matches possible experiences described on the trip itinerary, and places it in the context of related research. The statement should make references to (i.e., cite) some of the literature--you need to do some reading in order to develop the problem and context. It should also include a starting bibliography. Project statements will be uploaded onto the blackboard site (10% project grade);

2. Pre-Trip and In-Field Discussion- Be prepared to present a brief summary of your project for group discussion (10%);

3. Final Paper (Due at the start of Fall Semester 2011)- Friday of the first week)- A written research paper is due after thecompletion of the Kenya trip. The paper should meet four objectives: clearly define the problem/research question, present a well-developed review of the literature, provide support from field observations, and discuss important connections between the literature and the field experience. The paper must have these components, though you are free to determine their relative importance and organization in the final paper (80%).

**Papers are expected to average 10-12 pages (double spaced and including figures; i.e., not real long). Expectations for this research project will be different for graduate credit, with a greater emphasis placed on the depth of inquiry made into research literature.

Post-Trip Seminars and Evaluation- 10%.
1. Open Discussion/Informal Photo Exchange (to be scheduled within the first two weeks of Fall Semester 2011)- This session will serve as a time to highlight the big events from the trip and synthesize the field-learning experience. The emphasis will be on sharing views for those who did and did not participate in the trip (guests may be invited) and deciding on some options for the presentations;

2. Final Project Presentations- (plan on at least two intensive work and/or presentation sessions scheduled in Fall semester)- Each student is required to complete an oral, written, and/or poster presentation for the public. We will meet during the first two weeks of class to make a decision on the format for the presentation (see above) and then complete this portion of the course during the semester.

3. Post-trip evaluation- all students will be asked to complete a formative evaluation of the study program and to assess the learning experience as a capstone and global experience.