Who are the module instructors?

Several years ago, it was agreed (decreed) that all professors, those within the Department as well as Honorary Adjuncts that co-supervise a Biology graduate student, would offer a Graduate Module in any year in which they took on a new graduate student, and at least one module every three years.

If you are unsure about whether you should be giving a module this year please contact the module coordinator. Former module offerings can be viewed on a separate page. The call for modules goes out via e-mail in late August. Please send in the completed Instructor Response Form as soon as possible after the call for modules goes out. The new graduate students need to know what is being offered (and when) in order to plan their year. The module coordinator cannot provide the list of modules to the students until all descriptions have been received. Please see the time-line page for more details about the pacing of the module course.

 

I plan to give a module;  when should I schedule it?

A module can be scheduled anytime in the fall or winter term as long as it can be completed by 07 April 2024, and the grades submitted to the module coordinator, no later than 26 April 2024. The exact schedule for a module is the decision of the instructor, but dates and times are typically negotiated so that they are acceptable to all those who are interested.

Planning the exact dates and time should begin about a week after the deadline for students to submit their module inquiry forms to instructors (see time-line).  Scheduling should be completed by mid-October, because that is the deadline for all students in the modules course to send their module selection form to the module coordinator; this form finalizes their program of study for the course.

 

How should I format my module?

Modules typically run about 2 weeks, although some instructors do prefer to run longer modules (4 weeks). The content is determined entirely by the instructor. The majority of modules are based either on a lecture series or critical discussion of selected papers. However, we value a diverse set of modules, and are happy to have modules are based on lab techniques, computational biology techniques, or even a strong field component (e.g., "Macrofungi of Nova Scotia" offered in 2008/2009).  

The modules are usually based on the equivalent of 8 lecture hours (you can do more).

The format, and the method of evaluation, is entirely up to the instructor.  It is important to get the module completed, including the final grades, by the end of April (please see the current time-line).  Once you have computed the final grades for your students, send them to the modules coordinator (Joseph Bielawski: j.bielawski@dal.ca). The modules coordinator will compute an average for each student over the three modules they have taken, and will submit this average as the final grade for the modules course.

 

Booking a room for your module

Booking classrooms is done centrally at Dalhousie. To book a room you use an on-line room booking form [log in using the button at top-right of page; instructions are provided via a link at the bottom of this page]).  The staff in the Biology main office can provide assistance with room booking.  Usually, everything goes smoothly and security services will have come by and unlocked the room before class begins.  Rarely, however, you might find your room locked, so you should have the phone number for security services handy so you can give them a call (494-6400); they will send someone to come and unlock the room for you.

You can go on-line to view the capacity and resources available in the different rooms.  You might want to first try for something in the Life Science Centre (LSC). Note that the rooms in the LSC are organized in three different wings and a common area, a room in any of these areas should be sufficient. For small groups room 812 is a very good choice (contact department staff for assistance with booking). The study rooms in the Wallace McCain Learning Commons are excellent classrooms for small groups and can be booked on line here (use link at bottom of page).


Instructor Response Form

Following the official call for modules (typically mid- to late-August), please complete and email a copy of this form to the Module Coordinator (Joseph Bielawski: j.bielawski@dal.ca).

The form may be sent either as an attachment (Rich Text Format or PDF) or as text in the body of the message. If you are obliged to give a module under our current understanding and don't reply, the module coordinator will get back to you. So please reply.  Please see the time-line for specific course deadlines.

          Instructor Response Form as an RTF file

          Instructor Response Form as a text file