Most students only received a general overview of science material, whether from their freshman year in classes like earth science and astronomy or during their senior year because they waited to take these underclassman courses until the semester they graduated. Science was not for everyone, but for those majoring in the subject, or just those students who enjoyed an interesting and sometimes unusual class, more lay in store for him or her besides basic star charts and sedimentary rock layers. Herpetology, which was the study of reptiles and amphibians, was a course offered as an upper level elective in the biology category. Taught by Professor of Biology Dr. Mike Plummer and Assistant Professor Dr. Nathan Mills, this unusual class was offered as an “on demand”course only, meaning that it was not regularly offered every semester. “Dr. Mills and Dr. Plummer are both passionate about reptiles and amphibians which can make all the difference,” junior Katylyn Kersey said. “Their hands-on approach is a great learning tool and makes things so interesting. It keeps us engaged.” Through this course,students were able to get a chance to closely examine specimens through lecture and labs.The course offered a four-hour lab every Tuesday afternoon, giving students the opportunity to learn a great deal of material in one sitting.The first half of the semester, the students spent their time learning the names of the reptiles and amphibians in the lab so that during the second half they would be able to travel in the field and catch, track and observe the specimens in their natural environment. “We get to go out to rivers and streams and look under and in stuff to see what we can see,” Kersey said. “To an organism biology person, that’s pretty exciting!” Although the labs were a main part of the course, the discussions in class were also important to the learning. Kersey said most in-class learning was all discussion based which helped her to focus and challenge herself intellectually. She was able to gain a better grasp on the subjects they were studying from both the in-class discussion and from the hands-on learning during their lab hours. “Once you actually get into the study of these guys, you’ll quickly see that these [specimens] are some of the most fascinating creatures Earth has to offer,”Kersey said.“They can survive in the most extreme environments, that’s why they are just about the only animals found in desert environments and why some snakes can go for as long as two years without eating.” More than just for academic learning, Kersey also cited spiritual understanding as a benefit of this course. “We can see how amazing God’s creation is through looking at how these specimens have evolved,”Kersey said.“They are spectacular adapters and they’re not all scary, some of these guys are really cute!” Although snakes,salamanders and other types of reptiles and amphibians were not for everyone who wanted to finish their science electives,those who enjoyed these creatures appreciated the interesting study of herpetology. “All in all, it’s a very atypical class that’s very refreshing,” Kersey said. [Katie Ulliman] [biology, physical sciences] 171 Delivering Senior biology students present their final work Senior Alisha Hassell transfers liquids in her biology class lab on Nov. 27 in the Pryor-England Science building. She and other microbiology majors completed labs in various classes in order to meet class requirements. [Jonathan Lindsay]
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