In order to successfully complete this course, you must demonstrate your understanding of the course materials by:
Here is an overview of all of the different types of assignments in the course. You can find detailed directions for the assignments and the grading rubrics in the unit where they are assigned.
Note: All test (quizzes and exams) questions, as well as all related materials, including the cadaver pictures, constitute copyrighted, proprietary material of the publisher and may not be photographed, reproduced or distributed by students in any manner.
You will write a short paper on a medical problem that you, a family member, or a close friend has/had that relates to the particular course content that we are studying during one of the units in this course. The due date for this assignment will depend on the topic you select and its application to the subject matter of the course (i.e., if your medical problem is a bone-related disease, then it would be assigned right after we finish the skeletal system).
After you post the paper, you must lead a discussion with your classmates, who will respond to your post with questions and provide extra information pertinent to your post. You are also required to read the medical experience papers shared by your classmates and respond to at least 2 of them on each Medical Experience discussion board.
The medical experience assignment provides you with an opportunity to correlate your learning in this course with a real-life situation or clinical applications. College-level research and writing are required for the medical experience discussion as well as in any other content-related interest you may develop as you study the material of this course.
The unit quizzes are a reflection of the proctored assessments. They can help you monitor your learning, familiarize you with the testing environment in Canvas, and prepare you for the proctored assessments.
The purpose of the quizzes is to prepare you for your exams and allow you to see content areas that might still be a challenge for you to recall without looking up answers. For that reason, quizzes are to be taken on your own without using any outside help. That includes your text, notes, any electronic devices, or web sites other than the quiz website, or other human beings. According to your Student Handbook, doing any of these things is a clear violation of NOVA's academic integrity policy, which reads in part (emphasis is ours):
Be sure you have read the full text of the NOVA Student Handbook and the Academic Integrity Policy. It describes academic integrity in detail and lists the consequences of working without academic integrity.
Photographing the screen will also be considered an infraction whether it's for your personal use or for sharing with others.
There is a lab assignment in each unit. Human Anatomy and Physiology is a lab science. You are expected to satisfy the lab requirements for this online course. It is as much a vital part of the study as critical concepts. The lab assignments allow you to interpret data, make correlations, apply concepts, and identify infrastructures of the human body.
There are two parts for each unit's lab assignments, including Practice Anatomy Lab and graded lab activities. Practice Anatomy Lab (PAL) is a lab study tool that gives you access to a full range of actual anatomy lab specimens. It is required, and please use it to study and prepare for graded lab activities, exams, and quizzes.
There are six exams in the course. You are required to take the exams in a proctored environment. The proctored assessments provide you with an opportunity to demonstrate that you have achieved the learning objectives and are ready to move to the next level of the study of human anatomy and physiology. You can find the information on how to take a proctored exam in the Taking Proctored Assessments section of the Syllabus.
Exam preparation sheets and unit-level learning objectives are provided for you to prepare for the exams. You will also find the questions in the lab assignments in the exams.