Mr. Wright's Biology 1A Website
"A caring community of scholars with a lifestyle of respect, kindness, and gratitude; striving for excellence in all that we do."
ABOUT BIOLOGY 1A
"Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one learned in school."
Welcome! It's a brand new school year, and I'm excited to begin teaching you all about life. In the relatively short history of this nation, we have never been as desparate for innovators and individual thinkers as we are today. While inherently unfair to your generation, it is currently true that the definition of "smart" has changed in just 20 short years. Intelligence is no longer correllated with the amount of information that you can retain, but the way in which you can generate, analyze and use information to solve problems. So, this class will prepare you to use resources, inquire, synthesize experimental procedures, generate data, analyze data and explore ways in which data can be used to improve our world.
With that being said, be ready to think. This nation needs you.
MY PHILOSOPHY
/ AUTHENTICITY
01
In English class, you write. In Gym class, you play. In Science class, you inquire. Inquiry is the process of developing ideas on your own. Throughout this school year, you will be expected to learn some material on your own (through intense studying), but you will also be expected to come up with ideas on your own. In other words, you will use the scientific method in order to familiarize yourself with how knowledge is actually generated in the scientific field. We will talk about this much more in class...
/ COMMUNICATION
02
Just like you, I am a human (H. sapien). Humans have the tremendous ability to communicate like no other species on Earth. Please use this to your advantage. If you have an issue, please don't hide it until the day before the marking period ends. Let me know as soon as possible, and we can resolve anything together.
03
/ DIVERSITY
I understand that all students learn differently. I also understand that all students are capable of learning. I will use many different teaching techniques to appeal to your different learning styles. If you ever need me to modify anything, we can always do that communication thing that I wrote about earlier...
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO
01
/ COME TO CLASS PREPARED
This is a very complicated goal. First, you need to come to class prepared with all of the materials in the class supply list. That, however, does not satisfy "preparation." I understand that 9th, 10th and 11th graders have probably come close to mastering the "school game." That is, you probably know how you can do the least while getting the best result. (Yes, I was once a student.) Unfortunately, that will not fly in my classroom. You need to come to class prepared to think, not sleep. If you are not actively thinking during class, you will get left behind. Please don't do this to yourself. Thinking is fun once you learn how much you can learn from it!
/ DO HOMEWORK
02
I don't give as much homework as most of your teachers. I trust that you understand that this doesn't mean that you don't have anything to do at home. You should be spending about 20-25 minutes/night on Biology, even if you do not have any homework from me. Study, review notes and get ahead.
/ BE OPEN TO A DIFFERENT WAY OF LEARNING
03
This year, we will be doing many activities that you have never done before. I will be using teaching methods like you have never seen before, and you will be learning like you have never learned before. Please trust that I know what you need to succeed in college and life. Everything that I do is for your benefit, even if it doesn't seem beneficial at the time. Don't be cynical, be open.
