SC/SS 115 Ethnobotany fall 2006 Syllabus

Wk

Day

Date

Area

Topic

1

Tues

15 Aug

Introduction

Outdoor: Ethnobotanical garden tour

1

Thurs

17 Aug

Botany

Outdoor lower plants field hike: Cyanobacteria, bryophytes, SVPs, lycopodium, ferns. WET MUDDY STEEP.

2

Tues

22 Aug

Ethnobotany

Balick and Lee presentations on ethnobotany and on integrative medicine.

2

Thurs

24 Aug

Ethnography

Lee on surveys.

3

Tues

29 Aug

Ethnography

Preparation for group presentations.

3

Thurs

31 Aug

Ethnography

Group presentations cyanobacteria, bryophytes, lycopodium, ferns.

4

Tues

05 Sep

Test One


4

Thurs

07 Sep

Ethnography

People, plants, and culture chapter two. Plants that heal lecture. Morinda citrifolia healing uses.

5

Tues

12 Sep

Botany

Plant collecting process.

5

Thurs

14 Sep

Ethnography

Healing plant individual presentations

6

Tues

19 Sep

Ethnography

Healing plant individual presentations

6

Thurs

21 Sep

Botany

Outdoor field trip: Gymnosperms and plants with economic value. Botanic garden road trip and walk.

7

Tues

26 Sep

Botany

Preparation for gymnosperm presentations

7

Thurs

28 Sep

Botany

Group presentations: gymnosperms

8

Tues

03 Oct

Midterm

 

8

Thurs

05 Oct

Ethnography

Balick three. Plants as food lecture.

9

Tues

10 Oct

Ethnography

Outdoor walk: Food plants of Nanyo

9

Thurs

12 Oct

Ethnography

Plants as food: Each cultural group brings a traditional food to share.

10

Tues

17 Oct

Botany

Outdoor field walk: Angiosperms: Vegetative morphology

10

Thurs

19 Oct

Ethnography

Balick four. Plants as the basis for material culture lecture.

11

Tues

24 Oct

UN Day


11

Thurs

26 Oct

Ethnography

Field trip: Marekeiso production

12

Tues

31 Oct

Ethnography

Material culture individual presentations

12

Thurs

02 Nov

Ethnography

Material culture individual presentations

13

Tues

07 Nov

Botany

Outdoor field walk: Angiosperms: Floral morphology. Sketch flowers.

13

Thurs

09 Nov

Test Two

 

14

Tues

14 Nov

Econobotany

URL Lab: World foods and fruits. Finding information on the web.

14

Thurs

16 Nov

Ethnography

Balick five. Entering other worlds lecture: Five types of psychoactive substances. Memes and Areca catechu.

15

Tues

21 Nov

Ethnography

Piper methysticum: Chemistry and Uses, Legends

15

Thurs

23 Nov

Ethnography

Field Trip: Kava cultural ceremony

16

Tues

28 Nov

Ethnogarden

Outdoor work with dirt: Ethnobotanical garden clean-up

16

Thurs

30 Nov

Ethnogarden

Outdoor work with dirt: Ethnobotanical garden BRING A PLANT TO PLANT! Take Home Final

17

Tues

05 Dec


Work period for final

18

Wed

06 Dec


Take home final examination due by 5:00 P.M.

Course notes

Course outline objectives

  1. Course Objectives
    1. Program learning outcomes
      1. Define and explain the concepts, principles, and theories of a field of science.
      2. Demonstrate basic cultural literacy of the Micronesian region.
      3. Demonstrate the ability to read, speak and write effectively in English about Micronesian Studies Program course content.
    2. Specific student learning outcomes for course
      Botanic
      1. Identify local plants by local and scientific names.
      2. Compare and contrast the distinguishing reproductive characteristics of different phyla of plants including mosses, seedless vascular plants, gymnosperms, and angiosperms.
      3. Label the key morphological features of the different phyla of plants including mosses, seedless vascular plants, gymnosperms, and angiosperms including the morphology of the reproductive structures.

        Ethnographic
      4. Communicate and describe the healing uses of local plants and the cultural contexts in which that healing occurs.
      5. Contribute, participate in, and experience eating local food made from plants and describe the production process.
      6. Communicate and describe the use of plants for transportation, for shelter, and in other material culture applications.
      7. Describe and observe the use, role, and importance of psychoactive plants within their traditional ceremonial cultural contexts.
      8. [optional] Participate in the development and maintenance of an ethnobotanical garden.
  2. Course content
    1. Cyanophyta, mosses, and seedless vascular plants
    2. Healing plants
    3. Gymnosperms
    4. Food plants
    5. Angiosperms: vegetative morphology
    6. Material culture plants
    7. Angiosperms: floral morphology
    8. Psychoactive plants
    9. [optional] Ethnobotanic garden
  3. Textbooks
    1. plantspeopleculture Plants, people, and culture: The Science of Ethnobotany. ©2005 Balick, Michael J., and Cox, Paul Alan. ISBN 0615129536. Distributed by the American Botanical Council, P.O. Box 144345, Austin, Texas, 78714-4345, Herbalgram.org, Phone: 512-926-4900
    2. A Photographic Atlas for the Botany Laboratory, 4th [or subsequent editions] Kent Van de Graff, John L. Crawley Samuel R. Rushforth. Morton Publishing Company
      phoatlasbotlab4th
  4. Required course materials: No specific materials.
  5. Reference materials: No specific materials.
  6. Instructional cost: Field trips or hikes to a local botanic garden where possible. Each term the course on Pohnpei also observes a kava ceremony.
  7. Methods of instruction: This course emphasizes participation via presentations by students, hikes on which students learn to field identify plants, the preparation of local foods to share with other students, field trips to botanic gardens and ethnobotanically relevant ceremonies. Students engage in group work, hikes, field trips, presentations. Other methods include lectures and guest speakers. Evaluation will include tests, a midterm, essay questions, and evidence of work done via presentations.
  8. Evaluation: No credit by evaluation.
  9. Attendance policy: As per COM-FSM policy in current catalog.
  10. Academic honesty: As per COM-FSM policy in current catalog.