Lab Policies

Students' Rights & Responsibilities

Students and TA’s have the right to be treated with respect and appreciation for any differences of ethnicity, race, gender, age, sexuality or national origin by everyone in the community.

Students and TA’s have the right to expect an alcohol and drug free environment.

Students and TA’s have the right to expect the PTL Office to maintain appropriate rules to promote effective learning such as scheduling, cancellations, space, noise, conduct, rules of dress and cleanliness.

Students and TA’s have the right to confidentiality in all aspects of their experience within the Physics Department.

TA’s and students are expected to behave in the utmost professional manner. Crossing personal boundaries can be considered as harassment and abuse of the power relationship between TA and student.

TA’s and students have the right to report any unwanted advances or behavior, and expect corrective action on the part of the PTL Office and the Physics Department.

Attendance

Attendance is required at all labs without exception. If something disastrous keeps you from your scheduled lab, contact your lab instructor immediately. It is your responsibility to contact your TA in case of an emergency. Otherwise, we will assume you are playing hookie.

If you miss a lab, visit the FAQ page for instructions on what to do.

Missing two or more labs will result in an incomplete for the entire course.

Grades

Satisfactory completion of the lab is required as part of your course grade. Those with a lab average below 60% will receive a semester grade of F for the entire course.

Your professor will determine how much weight she will give to the lab grade on the final grade for the course. Different instructors have different policies in this regard – make sure you know what your instructor does.

Late Work

Any in-class work will be collected during lab. If you are not in class that day, you will receive an incomplete for that particular problem or problems. You should talk to your TA about this if you miss a lab session.

The lab reports are due a week after they are assigned, at the beginning of the lab session. Any work submitted late will not receive full marks. Your TA will explain to you her late policy on the first day of class. Any work submitted after 7 days from the due date will not receive credit.

Remember it is your responsibility to talk to the TA to make special arrangements. These can be made on an individual basis, and must be fully justified. There is no guarantee that your TA will concede to special arrangements.

Your Teaching Assistant

Your lab instructor is a teaching assistant for the Physics Department. Know how to contact her and what her office hours are. All TA’s will be available for one hour every week in their office to help you with any lab questions you might have. Use them as the great resource that they are.

You are expected to treat your TA with the same respect as you would any instructor within the Physics Department.

Rules of Conduct

Disrespect for anyone or anything in the lab will not be tolerated. It is your responsibility to make this classroom a safe space for everyone in it, including yourself.

In all discussions and group work, full respect for all people is required. All disagreements about work must stand and fall on reasoned arguments about physics principles, the data, or acceptable procedures, never on the basis of power, loudness, or intimidation.

It is OK to make mistakes. It is in fact, one of the best ways to learn. If you could perform every experiment with absolute perfection, and if you understood all concepts presented in this class, you would not be taking this class. The learning process involves making mistakes and learning from them. Everyone in the classroom had the right to be wrong and it is everyone’s responsibility to uphold that right.

Plagiarism and Cheating

It is perfectly reasonable and expected that you will share information and ideas with colleagues. The lab session is meant to be a collaborative effort, and students will come to the table with different ideas and approaches to resolving the problems. This exchange of ideas is encouraged. Since members of this class have highly diverse backgrounds, you are encouraged to help each other and learn from each other.

Plagiarism, however, will not be tolerated. Copying somebody else’s work, presenting data that is not your own, adding your name to a problem that you didn’t solve…. All of these examples are considered cheating. You can find a detailed description on what constitutes academic fraud in your student handbook. Whether intentional or unintentional, plagiarism has profound consequences, even expulsion from the University. As a general rule, students can work as a group in class, whereas reports and pre-lab work should be completed individually. If in doubt, ask your TA.

Equipment and Space

Hundreds of other students use this laboratory each week. Another class probably follows directly after you are done. Respect for the environment and the equipment in the lab is an important part of making this experience a pleasant one. The lab tables and floors should be clean of any paper or garbage. Please clean up your area before you leave the lab. The equipment needs to be left neatly at your station. If anything is not working properly, notify your TA immediately. If any equipment breaks due to mishandling or negligence on your part, you may be asked to refund the department for the cost of replacing that piece of equipment.

Computers in the Lab

The computers in the lab are also part of the necessary equipment. The same rules regarding negligence or mishandling also apply to them. Additionally, any changing of settings or installation of programs is strictly prohibited. Use of email and web browsing is restricted to lab-related necessities.

Food and Drinks

No food or drinks will be allowed in the lab. You will be asked to dispose of your food and beverages on your way into class, or you can leave your items outside and retrieve them when the lab is over.

Cell Phones, IPods, Newspapers and Other Distractions

Please get rid of any distractions during your lab session. Turn your cell phone off. Leave the newspaper and the exciting novel in your backpack. You are expected to be focused on what you are doing. Your TA can and will come up with creative ways to deal with distraction, and it might involve taking away the disruptive material – yes, even cell phones.