Natural Science 13:

Biology, Values, and the Third World

Course Syllabus - Spring 1993

Instructor:

Jeff Schloss
Phone: 6118; sec., 6151
Office: Whittier Science Building, #128
Office Hours: M F 3:00 - 5:00, or by appt.

Course Description: What is this course?

An introduction to how biological processes, and theories about them, both influence and are influenced by cultural values and lifestyle, with emphasis on Third World Issues. Discussion of population growth and the neo-Malthusian controversy, world hunger and the lifeboat ethics debate, biological theories of ethnic variation, cultural adaptations of indigenous peoples, Third World agricultural and health problems, equatorial natural history, tropical deforestation and deserttification, and the relationship of international development to poverty and environmental problems in Third World ecosystems.

Course Approach: How does this course fit in to my life?

The course will take an unapologetically applied approach to the above issues: it will attempt to address the question, "How can I respond appropriately as a Christian to the needs of those in the Third World?" and is specifically geared toward those intending to be involved in missions work or desiring to implement Third World concerns in their lives here.

Prerequisites: What do I need to take this course?

This is a general education course with no specific academic prerequisites. However, concurrent participation in Potters Clay, or previous Third World experience is strongly recommended. As with all learning, your best preparation is the desire to become who God wants you to be, and the recognition that you cant do it, or even desire it, without His help. The beginning of wisdom is...

Course Rationale: Why take this course?

Most people in our culture know less about the changes their bodies undergo through diet or aging or the changes nature experiences due to pollution or even the seasons, than they do about the changes in the prime time T.V. schedule, real estate market, or world of fashion. There is tremendous social pressure for our lives to revolve around the contrivances of culture - our culture in particular - rather than the handiwork of God. This limits our ability to both appreciate and serve Him. Our appreciation of Him is stunted by our inability to see His marvelous hand at work in the creation, Our ability to serve Him is impaired by our incompetent attempts to reduce and unwitting tendency to aggravate the suffering of others, particularly those in undeveloped nations. This class is based on the premise that we ought to think seriously not only about the things we fill our lives with, but also about the processes we draw our lives from - so that we may understand how our lifestyle effects life for ourselves and those around us. The class is a practical attempt to apply "life science" to make us better lovers and servants of Him who came that we might have "life--and have it more abundantly."

Course Objectives: Where are we trying to go?

The format of the course has some flexability buit into both individual and class activities, so that personal interests and group concensus can be accomodated. However, at the end of the course,
each student should have achieved at least two thirds of the following objectives:

1. Describe the philosophical, historical, and political context of Malthusianism - the view that overpopulation causes poverty and hunger. Give alternatives to the Malthusian perspective, and evaluate these from both biological and ethical perspectives.
2. Describe and critically assess individuals and views related to triage theory and lifeboat ethics.
3. Describe the basic structural features of reproducing populations (e.g. sex ratios, age pyramids) and relate these features to population growth. Explain the basic functional characteristics of populations (e.g. exponential & logistic growth, survivorship & mortality curves, NRR & ZPG).
4. Explain demographic transition theory and evaluate the data & debate surrounding it.
5. Explain the conditions and challenges facing global and Third world agriculture.
6. Discuss the processes of desertification, deforestation, slash and burn, salination, appropriate technology, and cash cropping as they relate to third world food production.
7. Discuss the impacts of the American food system on third world nutrition;.explain in detail the economic and cultural changes food systems (and ours in particular) undergo with development.
8. Evaluate the pros & cons of farming by industrialized agribusiness.
9. Evaluate the pros and cons of the "green revolution" for 3rd worlders.
10. Describe basic nutritional physiology and the biological causes & effects of malnutrition.
11. Discuss the historical and social impacts & causes of hunger.
12. Explain and assess the cornucopian vs. limits to growth debate.
13. Describe the history and social impacts of scientific racial theories in America and Europe.
14. Critique current perspectives & controversies in biological views of racial/ethnic variation.
15. Describe environmental adaptations of indigenous Third World cultures.
16. Discuss the relationship between sociological theories of religious nominalization and the posture of 1st World Christians to the Third World poor.
17. Explain sociobiological theories of altruistic behavior & social cooperativity, especially as it
relates to cross-cultural, sacrificial giving.
18. Describe the neurobiology of addictive behaviors and use it to critique Laschs view of
to the interaction of media and consumerism in our culture.
19. Describe the major global climatic patterns and explain how they generate 3rd World biota.
20. Describe the unique biological characteristics of Third World biological communities, particularly the tropical rain forests.
21. Describe the environmental problems of the Third World--pollution, deforestation, species extinction, etc; explain the impacts on local people and also on us in developed countries.
22. Discuss the relationship between environmental deterioration and poverty; assess the economic challenges to environmental reform.
23. Discuss the relationship of land reform, housing availability, fuel and firewood availability to quality of life in the Third World.
24. Discuss and critique the use of scriptural references to poverty and oppression as they relate to biological suffering in the Third World.
25. Evaluate the economic, political, philosophical, and biblical arguments for and against the ethical mandate to pursue a simple or subsistence lifestyle.
26. Describe and evaluate the effectiveness of individual and community efforts to make lifestyle changes here that establish cross-cultural understanding and reduce suffering in the 3 W.

25. The last, and most overwhelmingly important goal of this course is one which is any teacher is ironically unable to make happen--I pray that over the course of this semester we will grow in desire to seek abundant life in Christ over the "good life" in the world, and that we would increase in competence to represent the life-giving claims of Christ to people who have neither the abundant nor the good life.

Course Strategy: How do we get there from here?

This course will use a hybrid strategy of lectures, readings, individualized study guides, research papers, oral reports, class debates, written and oral tests, discussion, film critiques, research projects, and field trips to achieve its educational objectives.

Lectures:
Lectures will constitute the backbone but not the entirety of the course. They will set the direction of inquiry and will establish the context of the readings. Lectures will be used to explain, comment on, or integrate reading material, but (and it is extremely important that you recognize this), they will not exhaustively cover or comprehensively restate reading. Much of the reading will not be covered in lecture, unless it comes up in questions. And frequently lectures will contain material not covered at all in readings (since this is a college level course, some of what we will want to consider is not yet in suitable print form). A typical lecture session will start out with solicited questions over reading assignments, followed by a presentation, and concluded by a brief period of discussion. You should feel free, however, to raise questions or items for discussion at any time during the period. You will derive the most out of lectures if you come to class having read the material, and lectures will be given in a fashion that assumes you have done this. A schedule of readings and lecture topics will be provided during the first demonstration session, when individual report and debate topics are assigned.

Readings:
There will be three types of readings in this course. First, there will be assigned readings from the handouts, course texts, or reserve material that will be absolutely essential to read before a discussion session. Second, there will be material that will be lectured on, which you may read before or after (hopefully not during!) lecture. Third, there will be ancillary (sometimes optional) readings not discussed in class, which you may read at your leisure and comment on in your journals.

I know there are two strategies for doing readings. One is to do them after lecture, to amplify points that may be unclear from lecture. The other is to do them before lecture, and use lecture and questions to amplify what you may not have understood from the reading. (I guess a third is not to read at all!). I strongly encourage you to pursue approach number two, for three reasons. First, we will not discuss all aspects of the readings in lecture, so lecture will not be a comprehensive guide to what you are responsible for in the readings. Second, if you read material later and have questions, it is obviously too late to have them answered. Third, you'll get more out of the discussions in particular, and out of your education in general, if you come prepared to make the best use of the time you have paid for. An instructor, especially at a small college, should be something like a personal consultant you have hired. Would you rather pay for his time, and then read the manual on your own to try to teach yourself what you hired him to help you with? Or would you first read the manual and then use him to help you with the problems you know you have?

Midterm Examinations:
There will be two written midterm exams. They will emphasize concepts, principles, and integrative relationships. However, knowledge of facts and terms will be necessary for successful performance. They will have a mixed format of objective, short-answer, and essay questions. The scheduling will be flexible and will entail a take-home and in-class portion, to be discussed at the first lab session.
Final Examination:
A written final examination will be given on the date scheduled by the registrar and listed in the Spring schedule of classes. The final will contain a cumulative portion and a portion covering the material since the previous exam, and will have the same format as midterm exams. I do reserve the right to eliminate or make optional the final exam in response to class performance prior to that time.


Written/Oral Report:
There will be a modest paper required from you in one of two formats. It may be a research paper on a topic not covered in depth in lecture (e.g. Drug testing/marketing in the Third World, Infant Formula in the Third World, Toxic Spills & U.S. Companies, Birth Control, etc.; a list will be provided after the second week of class). Or it may be an analytical book review on a book treating a topic in Third World Biology or globally responsible livestyle. I have a list of books but am open to requests as well. Due date will be determined by the topic and your personal situation. Some topics are large enough that you may pursue a group paper. The findings of the research you did for your paper will be summarized for the class in a brief (5 or 10 minute) oral report. If you did a group paper, you may do a panel discussion. Depending on final enrollment, we may make optional this assignment.

Debate:
Each student will participate in a group debate. The debates will be over scientific, theological, or cultural controversies related to Third World problems. A list of possible topics will be handed out during the first discussion session. A more detailed description of the debate protocol is appended to this syllabus and will be discussed after the second week of class.

Intellectual Journals:
Many scientists, third world travelers & explorers, missionaries, political leaders, human rights & environmental activists, and other intellectually productive and creative people keep, and most of the persons we will study in this class kept, journals. A journal is more than a historical or even a personal introspective diary (although it should include elements of that). It is a record of your intellectual and spiritual development, a kind of "ships log" to the voyage you take in the discovery of ideas. It should be a chronicle of your thoughts, observations, feelings, insights, connections, analyses, and conclusions related to certain ideas and issues; but it should also contain your unanswered questions, sources of confusion, and possible plans for resolving them. As such it will serve as a history of your own growth, but it will also do something much more important--it will generate growth. Analogous to personal devotions, a journal will require you to confront your thoughts, or lack of them, in a regular, disciplined fashion. Much in education encourages us to treat our minds like many people treat their pet dog--feed it well and give it a warm place to sleep. But a mind (like a pet!) should not be merely full and comfortable; it should be playful, quick, curious, agile, and strong. A journal will contribute to this by forcing you to exercise and communicate with your own thoughts: you will let them out of the pen regularly. That, along with service, will hopefully result in an intellect that is not only well-fed but also well-trained. The journal is to be a running record of your encounter with, reflection on, reaction to, and application of the materials of this course. It is not a diary, if by that term is meant the record of one's emotional responses to day to day life exclusively. But note, good intellectual work never disregards emotion.

Length: You should commit to spending an average of 15-20 minutes per class session on your journals, which ought to result in 1-2 pages per entry . Some entries may be no more than several paragraphs; at other times you may find yourselves writing many pages on a single topic.

Form: The journal may be hand written (if you write legibly) or typewritten. Although you should not spend your time re-writing or re-typing what you have written, it is essential that the journal be legible. (If you have not yet learned to compose at the computer, you might use this assignment as an opportunity to do so. You will find it a great time saver.)

Content: A major portion of your journal should be devoted to the considering the concepts, ideas, propositions, etc. from readings, lectures, discussions, films, or the journal entries of other students that strike you as interesting or significant and that relate to the ideas considered in this course. You are not constrained by the concepts and conceptions of the course, i.e.. you may proceed beyond them, always assuming you stay within the broad focus of science, values, and the Third World. Some of what you write in your journal will be determined by class assignment. But other ones will be up to you. Possibilities include: 1. Informal responses to topics suggested by readings, films, lectures, or class discussions , especially personally relevant topics. Begin, perhaps, with stating a feeling - boy that alarms me...
2. Reflections on family, friendships, dating, hobbies, or other personal involvements as they relate to issues of lifestyle & Third World. Ask hard questions about things important to you.
4. Reflections on course structure & methodology, especially as it relates to intellectual content & personal relevance. Do a state of the course address:; or describe why youre challenged, bored,
irritated, encouraged, etc. by the issues, method, prof, or students of the class.
5. Short notes or memos to yourself about insights, questions, ideas for further reading or thought, relevant experiences. Try writing yourself a letter.
3. Prayers, or meditations on scripture as related to above. Try writing God a letter.
5. Dialogue with your own conscience: promises, goals, dreams, questions, resolutions, convictions. Think of what would be illuminating to rediscover or recall 15 years from now about yourself during this period of life. Leave yourself a strong enough statement of your present convictions so you can tell if you drift over the years.

Procedure: Do not wait until just before you think journals may be due to begin writing. Entries should be made at least once for every class period, as you reflect on things before the next class period . I will not announce in advance when I will collect the journals. You should bring them to each class session, and there will be a grade penalty for not doing so.

Exhortation: The journal is an amazingly easy way to contribute an A or B toward your grade in here by simply exercising diligence. It is also an easy way to sabotage an otherwise excellent grade through negligence. For your own growth and also your grade, please keep up!

Position Papers / Reviews:
Several short position papers (1-2 pages) or reviews of movies, essays, or speakers will be assigned as issues arise in class discussion or scheduled assignments. In contrast to journal entries, the position papers should always be typed, a minimum of two pages in length, and will be collected on the class period following their assignment. They should reflect "informed analysis" rather than pure personal feeling or speculative opinion, and will be evaluated on the basis of documentation, accuracy, and clarity, rather than depth of feeling or genuineness of motivation.

Study Questions / Quizzes:
Since we will not be discussing all the reading in class, for many of the as reading assignments you will receive study guides that "lead you through" and emphasize main points. These are designed to help you understand (and do!) the reading and prepare you for tests. They will also help you develop a sense of what constitute important points in written material, so that you may learn to make such judgements for yourself. There also will be periodic in class quizzes emphasizing the main points only of the previous lecture or reading due that day. These are also designed to help you stay current in your study, develop a sense of what is considered important, and give both of us feedback on how well you understand the material before a major exam is given.

Class Contributions:
Hopefully you will come to experience this class more as a learning community than as a mere lecture hour. Part of your ability to perform in an academic setting and contribute to learning involves your ability to communicate, cooperate, stimulate, criticize, convince, educate, argue,
contemplate, and give & receive correction in a group--i.e. to contribute to and receive from the efforts of others to learn. Your contribution to the class will be graded, in part by your peers, with respect to the following:

Participation: Contributions to and attendance at class and especially discussion sessions. It is not merely the extrovert who excels here; it is the diligent, attentive, and thoughtful student who is able to ask pertinent (not necessarily brilliant) questions, volunteer appropriate comments, and give alert answers.

Collaboration: Certain attitudes are critically important to successful scholarly collaboration. Is the scholar courteous in all intellectual exchange, or does s/he use sarcastic or ad hominem arguments? Is the person willing to be corrected, or is s/he always right? Is s/he willing to give credit for the good idea of another, or does his/her own thinking usually have preeminence? Is s/he willing to firmly correct error, or does s/he timidly defer to mere personality rather than logic or fact? Is the person willing to confront and express grievances in person, or does s/he let it generate ill feeling or criticism behind the back of another. Does the person appear to give undue weight to the arguments of a few others, i.e.. does s/he show favoritism with respect to intelligence, eloquence, gender, age, personality, neediness, etc. After a semester together, patterns of individual behavior emerge. We will evaluate each other on this.

Extra Credit: Extra credit may be obtained by doing a "literature verification"-- running down an idea, question, quotation, or citation brought up in class for which we lack appropriate documentation from the original literature. I am open to other suggestions for extra credit as well. However, the idea is not merely to come up with one extra or higher academic hoop for you to jump through, i.e.. it is not to involve merely generating more work for yourself. The task should benefit the class by stimulating, verifying, or amplifying an area of inquiry.

Grading:

All grading will be done using class ID numbers. I apologize for the apparently impersonal nature of this process, but I believe it is the best way of assuring you that your grade is as uninfluenced as possible by any bias whatsoever. Major assignment areas will contribute equal proportions according to the following breakdown The remaining 2% may be taken from your highest grade.

Debate 14%
Journal 14%
Position Papers / S.G.s 14%
Midterm I 14%
Midterm II 14%
Final 14%
Report / Contributions 14%

TOTAL 98%

Miscellaneous:

Suggestions or complaints:
Come see me or drop me a note (signed or unsigned). Please let me know about your frustrations or satisfactions - the end of the semester is too late to do any good! Because you are graded strictly by number, there is no way anything you say can influence your grade for good or ill.

Academic dishonesty.
This class operates on the honor system. That means you are trusted to be more committed to God's values than the desire (yours or your friends') to earn high grades. If you are aware of a breach of integrity, you are expected to inform the instructor or give the person the opportunity to tell the instructor him/herself before you do so. If one does confess, a minimum penalty may be invoked. Failure to report dishonesty will be treated in the same fashion as the dishonesty itself. Academic dishonesty includes:
1. Cheating: using or providing unauthorized sources for an exam or piece of work (including prohibited use of reserve references, communication about contents of difficulty of an exam, etc.)
2. Plagiarism: submitting the work of another as your own. A direct quote or even a portion of a sentence must be given proper credit. If they're not your words or ideas, don't pretend they are!
3. Falsification: giving false information in regard to any academic undertaking (e.g.. doctored research results, false or altered quotes, phony excuses or forged signatures, etc.)
Late and/or Make-up Work
To paraphrase Jesus's teaching on the Sabbath, "Deadlines were made for students, and not students for deadlines." While deadlines are necessary, it is not the deadline itself that is important, but your learning. Therefore, in teaching smaller classes I am committed to being flexible with students. With a class of 25 or more, however, I have found through experience that it is simply impossible for me to keep up with a constant, or even a trickling stream of late work. When that happens, the coherence, timely feedback, and learning for all suffer. For that reason, and with regret, I will not accept late work under any circumstances in this course. Also, if you miss a class session, it will need to be your responsibility to obtain notes, assignments, brief handouts, or - and this is very important - course announcements from fellow students.

Class Devotions:
Sprinkling some prayer throughout a course or singing before class does not make a Christian College. A Christian education demands much more that that. But to accomplish the "much more", I believe we must achieve at least the "that", i.e.. we are and must function as the Body of Christ. I would like to take time each Thursday to exercise the privilege of sharing together as brothers and sisters, seeking to reaffirm the context and ultimate reason we are studying together. Please feel free to bring a scripture, a song, a praise, prayer request; especially appropriate are quotes or reflections related to issues we are discussing as a class or experiencing as a college community.

Reading Materials: (alphabetically by senior author; * = text available in bookstore)

Our Demographically Divided World.
Lester R. Brown & Jodi L. Jacobson. 1986. Worldwatch Institute. Washington.

The Changing World Food Prospect: The Nineties and Beyond.
Lester R. Brown. 1988. Worldwatch Institute. Washington.

In the Rainforest: a Strange, Beautiful, Imperiled World. *
Catherine Caufield. 1984. University of Chicago Press.

Poverty and the Environment: Reversing the Downward Spiral.
Alan B. Durning. 1989. Worldwatch Institute. Washington.

World Hunger: Twelve Myths. *
Frances Moore Lappe & Joseph Collins. 1986. Grove Weidenfield.

Missionary Earthkeeping. Ghillean Prance. 1992. Prepublication Manuscript.

Reprint packet for each student; Reserve readings in library.


This Syllabus:
There are many views of course syllabi, from legally binding contracts to simple descriptions of lecture sequnces.I distribute this class syllabus as a summary of what I would like to do with you over the course of the semester in order to help you learn as much as you can about the Biology of Third World Issues - and hopefully even enjoy it along the way. In a sense, it is a route map to a particular educational destination. I want to be quite clear that my commitment is to reaching that destination, not to the route, i.e., to your learning and not this syllabus. While I will not deviate from the description of this course or the academic policies & procedures described in the college catalogue, I reserve the right to modify, add to, or delete specifics of this syllabus in response to emerging educational needs or opportunities for the class.