NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS COLLEGE

COURSE SYLLABUS

COURSE AND INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

Course title: Anatomy & Physiology I

Course prefix, number, and section number: BIOL 2401 Section 0180

Semester/Year of course: Spring 2026

Semester start and end dates: January 12, 2026 – March 7, 2026

Modality (Face to face/Synchronous or Asynchronous online/Hybrid): Hybrid

Class meeting location, days, and times: Lecture Contact Hours completed online in Canvas

Lab meeting location, days, and times: Gainesville Campus Room 409 Monday & Wednesday

9:00 am – 10:50 am (Attendance Required)

Semester credit hours: Lecture 48 hours Laboratory 32 hours

Course description: Anatomy and Physiology I is the first of a two-course sequence. It is a study of the structure and function of the human body including cells, tissues and organs of the following systems: integumentary, skeletal, muscular, nervous and special senses. Emphasis is on interrelationships among systems and regulation of physiological functions involved in maintaining homeostasis. The lab provides a hands-on learning experience for exploration of human system components and basic physiology. Systems to be studied include integumentary, skeletal, muscular, nervous, and special senses.

Course prerequisites: None

Purchasing Course Materials

Starting in Spring 2026 NCTC is partnering with Barnes & Noble College (BNC) to make purchasing course materials easy and affordable.  When students register for classes, they are automatically opted in to the Lion Book Bundle which will provide students first day access to course materials.  In this program students are charged $24 per credit hour ($96 for a 4-hour class) as a fee on their NCTC student account. (This is labeled as “Book Fee” on NCTC invoices). Students may choose to opt out of this program, but would then be required to purchase needed class materials on their own. If opting out, students would receive a refund on their NCTC student account. Students may choose to opt out starting one month prior to classes beginning through the first week of class. Students might benefit from opting out if they are enrolled in classes that use OER (free course materials).  Note: The Lion Book Bundle applies to all classes a student is registered for in a given semester (both 16-week and 8-week). A student must either opt in or out for ALL classes—not each class individually.  If you want to take advantage of the Lion Book Bundle, no action is needed as students are automatically opted in.  If you would like to opt out of the program, you must go to the Opt-out page.

Click here for more information: Lion Book Bundle information

Required Course Materials:

INCLUDED in the Lion Book Bundle:

• Connect Online Access for Anatomy & Physiology: The Unity of Form and Function

NOT INCLUDED in the Lion Book Bundle:

Some materials are required for the course, but are not included in the Lion Book Bundle. 

• A Laboratory Manual for Non-Science Majors Microbiology (Located in your course as a PDF)
• Colored pencils
• Computer
• Microphone
• Web-camera
• Reliable Internet Connection

Students should have all the necessary materials by the start of the course. Homework assignments are due within the first week of class. Students concerned about having access to course materials should contact the instructor in the first week of the course. Failure to obtain the course materials is not grounds for extended due dates. 

Name of instructor: Mrs. Sherry Smith

Office location: Gainesville Campus Room 419

Telephone number: (940) 668-7731 ext. 4350

E-mail address: sherrysmith@nctc.edu

Office hours for students:

Monday: AP Tutoring via WebEx 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm

Tuesday: On Campus Office Hours 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Wednesday: Microbiology Tutoring 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm; On Campus Office Hours 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm

Thursday: Virtual Office Hours Via WebEx 9:00 am – 12:00 pm

SYLLABUS CHANGE DISCLAIMER

The faculty member reserves the right to make changes to this published syllabus if it is in the best interest of the educational development of this class. Any such changes will be announced as soon as possible in person and/or writing.

SUMMARY OF COURSE ASSIGNMENTS

List of graded assignments:

     Lecture Contact Hour Assignments (15%)

Lecture Homework (10%)

Unit Concept Application Exams (10%)

Unit Individual Mastery Exams (15%)

Clinical Projects/Activities (10%)

Laboratory Homework (5%)

Laboratory Exams (20%)

Comprehensive Final Exam (15%)

(Details for all assignments and their descriptions are provided in the Course Policies & Assignments Handbook Syllabus Addendum (BIOL 2401 Hybrid) (Spring 2026) located in your Canvas Course)

Final grade scale: 

A = 90% - 100%

B = 80% - 89%

C = 70% - 79%

D = 60% - 69%

F = 0% - 59%

Extra credit is not given, as bonus questions are offered to all students throughout the semester. Grades are not rounded as a result of bonus opportunities.

Late work policy:

Late work is not accepted. Students are expected to complete all assignments by the designated deadlines indicated in the course schedule (located in the Canvas Course “Getting Started” module). Failure to submit an assignment on time will result in a “0” for the assignment.

(Additional details regarding this course’s assignments and their policies are provided in the Course Policies & Assignments Handbook Syllabus Addendum (BIOL 2401 Hybrid) (Spring 2026) located in your Canvas Course)

SEE CANVAS FOR THE COMPLETE COURSE CALENDAR, OUTLINE, DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF GRADED WORK, AND OTHER RELATED MATERIAL.

COURSE POLICIES

Academic Integrity Policy:

Consequences for academic dishonesty in the course may include:

1) grade (“0”) on the assignment. If the assignment is within a group in which the lowest assignment is dropped, the assignment will not be able to be count as a dropped score. It will count as part of the grade.

2) A “Scholastic Dishonesty Report Form” will be submitted regarding the incidence.

3) Students may be dropped from the course with a failing grade (letter grade of “F”)

(Additional details regarding this course’s academic integrity policy are provided in the Course Policies & Assignments Handbook Syllabus Addendum (BIOL 2401 Hybrid) (Spring 2026) located in your Canvas Course)

Artificial Intelligence Policy:  AI Use is Prohibited

This course assumes that all work submitted by students will be generated by the students themselves, working individually or in groups. Students should not have another person/entity do the writing of any substantive portion of an assignment for them, which includes hiring a person or a company to write assignments and using artificial intelligence tools (from UMass Amherst Center for Teaching and Learning)

(Additional details regarding this course’s artificial intelligence policy are provided in the Course Policies & Assignments Handbook Syllabus Addendum (BIOL 2401 Hybrid) (Spring 2026) located in your Canvas Course)

Attendance Policy:

Lecture

This course requires 48 lecture contact hours during the semester. In a traditional face-to-face course, these would be met by coming to a campus lecture that would total 6 hours each week.  We are responsible for meeting the same number of hours as those traditional courses, which do not include outside reading and studying. This course will have the required lecture contact hours met viewing lecture videos with quizzes and weekly reflection activities in Canvas. Your activities will take approximately 6 hours per week to complete for the contact hours to be met. As with a face-to-face course, this does not include your reading and study time needed to be successful. Students are required to complete both items for attendance credit. Failure to complete these components of the course is equivalent to skipping a lecture class and thus is grounds for being dropped from the course.

Lab

The required 32 contact hours for lab will be met in a face-to-face environment. Students are required to attend each scheduled laboratory session. Students are expected to arrive on time for lab and stay for the scheduled duration of the laboratory session. Student’s failing to meet these expectations will not be provided with that week’s post-lab quiz access code.

It is the responsibility of the student to amend their professional/personal schedule to meet the class expectations. Students who are absent from class (combination of lab and online) in excess of 9 hours of instruction may be dropped from the course. Students who elect to quit working in the course or who decide to no longer attend are required to complete the drop slip with the registrar’s office. Students who fail to participate and complete the drop slip will accumulate a grade of “0” on all incomplete assignments.

The instructor also retains the right to dismiss any student who exhibits behaviors distractive to the learning environment (i.e., talking while the instructor is providing instructions/lecture, entering or leaving the room while the instructor is providing instruction/lecture, disrespectful to other students or the instructor, etc.).  In the case of online interactions, disrespectful conduct/interactions with classmates in discussions, or team-based activities meets these criteria.

(Additional details regarding this course’s attendance and participation policy are provided in the Course Policies & Assignments Handbook Syllabus Addendum (BIOL 2401 Hybrid) (Spring 2026) located in your Canvas Course)

Withdrawal Policy

A student may withdraw from a course on or after the official date of record. It is the student’s responsibility to initiate and complete a Withdrawal Request Form.

Last day to withdraw from the course with a “W” is: February 16, 2026

Student Learning Outcomes:

Lecture Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course the student will be able to:

1. Use anatomical terminology to identify and describe locations of major organs of each system covered.
2. Explain interrelationships among molecular, cellular, tissue, and organ functions of each system.
3. Describe interdependency and interactions of the systems.
4. Explain contributions of organs and systems to the maintenance of homeostasis.
5. Identify causes and effects of homeostatic imbalances.
6. Describe modern technology and tools used to study anatomy and physiology.

Laboratory Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of the course the student will be able to:

1. Apply appropriate safety and ethical standards.
2. Locate and identify anatomical structures.
3. Appropriately utilize laboratory equipment such as microscopes, dissection tools, general lab ware, physiology data acquisition systems, and virtual simulations.
4. Work collaboratively to perform experiments.
5. Demonstrate the steps involved in the scientific method.
6. Communicate results of scientific investigations, analyze data and formulate conclusions.
7. Use critical thinking and scientific problem-solving skills, including but not limited to, inferring, integrating, synthesizing, and summarizing, to make decisions, recommendations and predictions.

Core Objectives:

Critical Thinking

Communication

Teamwork

Empirical and Quantitative Analysis

COLLEGE POLICIES

ADA STATEMENT

NCTC will adhere to all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations to afford equal educational opportunity. It is the student’s responsibility to contact the Office for Students with Disabilities to arrange appropriate accommodations.  See the OSD Syllabus Addendum.

AI STATEMENT

Absent a clear statement from a course instructor, use of or consultation with generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or other similar technologies shall be treated analogously to assistance from another person, agency, or entity. In particular, using generative AI tools to substantially complete an assignment or exam is not permitted. Students should acknowledge the use of generative AI (other than incidental use) and default to disclosing such assistance when in doubt.

When students use generative AI to replace the rigorous demands of personal engagement with their coursework, it runs counter to the educational mission of the college and undermines the heart of education itself. Artificial Intelligence, large language models, and technologies hold promise for deploying knowledge in service to others and accelerating the discovery of new knowledge. However, such technology poses new challenges to pedagogy and to integrity. Within the context of the teaching mission of the college and consistent with the Student Code of Conduct, the authority to define the appropriate use, study, and deployment of these technologies rests with the faculty.

Individual course instructors, in coordination with their divisions, set policies regulating the use of generative AI tools in their courses, including allowing or disallowing some or all uses of such tools. Course instructors will set such policies in their course syllabi and clearly communicate such policies to students. Students who are unsure of policies regarding generative AI tools are encouraged to ask their instructors for clarification.

STUDENT HANDBOOK

Students are expected to follow all rules and regulations found in the Student Handbook.

STUDENT SERVICES

NCTC provides a multitude of services and resources to support students.  See the Student Services Syllabus Addendum for a listing of those departments and links to their sites.

QUESTIONS, CONCERNS, or COMPLAINTS