Project Exam

The final examination in this course is a project exam. It is a mandatory component of the course and accounts for 30 per cent of your final grade.

Introduction
The project exam is a term paper (approximately 2500 3000 words or 1012 pages) on a topic of particular interest to you. You will communicate with your tutor as you develop your project idea and submit a proposal at the end of Unit 2, and you will complete and submit your project exam after you have completed your final assignment. Both components form your grade for the project exam: Proposal: 5 per cent Final written paper: 25 per cent While you will complete and submit your proposal after Unit 2 and the final project exam after Unit 4, you are encouraged to read through the project exam and its requirements at the beginning of the course. If you are uncertain about the project exam requirements or have any questions, you can ask your tutor at that time.

Instructions
This section includes detailed instructions for completing your project exam.

Choose a Topic
You are expected to choose a topic with which you have some personal interest or connection. You may wish to investigate a plant that is of personal interest to you or a plant-people interaction that you find particularly interesting. You are encouraged to explore the spiritual, political, or economic aspects of the interaction, but you are required to include biology and natural history information upon which these interactions are based.

Additional Topic Ideas

If you dont have a personal connection to a specific topic or if you havent yet identified a particular issue of interest, here are some additional topic ideas that you might consider for the project exam: Design a wildlife garden for your backyard. Explain what wildlife species you will want to attract and support, what their requirements are, and how your garden design will meet those needs. Visit a museum near you and discuss the artifacts that are made from plant materials. Botanical illustration: Take a look at the art and the science involved, including the individual artists. Bee plants: Which ones are most important and why? Choose a plant that has a special significance to a culture and try to explain why it is so. Plants as fuel: through history and into the future. Plants as anti-fertility agents. Marine algae as a potential source of food for humans. The management of non-timber plant resources of our forests. Choose a specific forest area and look in depth at the issues. Take a close look at a local weed. Where is it from? What are the social, biological, and ecological reasons for it being a weed? How does that information help us to control its spread? Chose an important crop and look at its history of domestication. Who first domesticated it? What were the selection criteria that led to its present varieties? How was it distributed? The opium poppy: blessing or curse? Intellectual property rights and indigenous peoples plant knowledge. The role of the slave trade between Africa and the Americas in the movements of plants. Maize is the staple food of some African cultures today, yet it is a New World crop. How did this come about? Coffee cultures. Botanical symbols in religions of the world. Medically effective herbalism of any particular cultural group. Plant products in cosmetics. The botanist as archaeologist: how the two fields of study are related.

 Vegetarian cultures: do they have any universal properties? Ecological remediation: how might plants be used to restore damaged landscapes? Note Keep in mind that regardless of the topic or research question you choose, you will need to develop a clear thesis and provide evidence from your research to support your argument (i.e., to defend your position). Consult Study Room 399 for detailed guidance on developing and writing research essays.

Developing the Project Exam

We recommend that you take an organic approach to building your research paper. Keep notes of ideas, points, and issues as you work through the course units. Start writing before you start your literature research! Get your own voice on paper first, including the questions that you have in your mind. Then research to explore your own thinking further, to learn what others think of the issue, and to find facts that support or refute your initial views. Answer the questions that were on your mind. Develop a draft proposal as you are formulating your ideas and locating research sources that you intend to use. After you have completed Unit 3, submit your polished proposal to your tutor, who will evaluate your proposal and provide feedback. (See Proposal for the Project Exam for details.) When you are writing your project exam, revise your draft as you go along. Keep each of your drafts (BISC 399 Project draft 1, 2, 3, etc.). This helps you follow the evolution of your own thoughts.

Proposal for the Project Exam

The proposal for the project exam is worth 5 per cent of the total grade (30 per cent) for the project exam. There are two components to the proposal: A one-page description (5 marks) An annotated bibliography (2 marks for each annotated reference; total of 10 marks)

Proposal Requirements
In paragraph form, provide information on your research topic and the major issues you intend to examine. The one-page description must include a working thesis statement. You also need to include an annotated bibliography (following APA or CBE style) for five references that you will use in your research. Each citation should be followed by a brief (around 100 150 words) descriptive and evaluative paragraph. The descriptive aspect of the annotation involves describing the main ideas presented in the source. The evaluative aspect of the annotation informs the reader of the quality of the source and its relevance to the essay topic. For more information about annotated bibliographies, consult the TRU Library website. Follow the link How do I . . . ? and then What Is an Annotated Bibliography. Note Your final paper should include at least ten references, and at least five of these references should be peerreviewed.

Submitting Your Proposal

Complete your proposal for the project exam and email it to your tutor for evaluation and feedback. Follow the same submission procedures as outlined for the assignments, using the phrase Proposal in the subject line of your email so that your tutor can easily identify your submission.

Completing and Submitting the Project Exam

After you have completed Unit 4, complete your final project exam and submit it to your tutor for evaluation. Follow the same submission procedures as outlined for the assignments, using the phrase Project Exam in the subject line of your email so that your tutor can easily identify your submission.

Criteria for Evaluating the Project Exam

Whether the instructor agrees with the thesis or the conclusions is NOT a criterion that will affect your grade, so dont try to write something with that in mind. The final written paper is worth 25 per cent of the total 30 per cent for the project exam. It will be marked out of 90. The following criteria will be used to evaluate the project exam: THEME Topic/thesis/theme clearly stated Is well researched and includes all relevant ideas and considerations Appropriate sources accurately cited

/9

ORGANIZATION Thread of argument builds throughout paper Arrangement of points and evidence is effective No rambling or repetition Points are given weighting relative to their importance to the thesis or theme INTEGRATION Provides a clear theoretical and conceptual framework Demonstrates understanding of concepts of sustainability Understandable to an interdisciplinary audience ARGUMENT Argument convincing and well supported Good, convincing support for all ideas Reasoning is explained clearly and includes specific references Awareness of other interpretations and comparison with yours Realistic vision of the future CREATIVITY Illustrates a unique voice of the author Offers insight about a significant issue Shows risk in thought WRITING AND CITATION Writing clear, concise, and easily followed Correct sentence structure, grammar, spelling, and punctuation References properly and consistently cited and recorded using APA or CBE style TOTAL

/9

/18

/27

/18

/9

/90