Dr. Mark E. Knauss, Professor of Biology

Department

Division of Science & Physical Education
Floyd Campus

Office

Walraven 338
(in the Science & Math office area)

Phone

706-368-7535

eMail

 mknauss@highlands.edu

Office hours

MW 8:30-11:30 AM; R 8:30-10:00 AM 

Courses Taught

BIOL 1010 Foundations of Biology

BIOL 2107 Principles of Biology I

BIOL 2108 Principles of Biology II

BIOL 2154 General Zoology

BIOL 2190 Principles of Nutrition




DR. K's TEACHING STYLE. . . WHAT TO EXPECT IN CLASS

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO!
So, you have registered for a class with Dr. Knauss - what do you expect?

  • Dr. K's teaching style is traditional lecture. IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS TO ARRIVE ON TIME, ALERT, AND BE PREPARED TO ACTIVELY LISTEN.
  • You will be expected to download PowerPoint files, print them as notes pages, and bring them to class for the purpose of taking notes.   IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS TO HAVE YOUR NOTES PAGES WITH YOU AND TO TAKE NOTES DURING CLASS!
  • Dr. Knauss uses PowerPoint slides in his lectures - more as an outline for his presentation of content than as content themselves.  IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS TO ATTEND CLASS REGULARLY!
  • Dr. Knauss DOES NOT include many pictures in his PowerPoint presentations, YET he makes frequent reference to diagrams, illustrations, and photos found in the text. IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS TO BRING THE TEXTBOOK TO CLASS!
  • Dr. Knauss tends to lecture rather quickly - there will be a tremendous amount of material to be covered in a limited amount of time.  IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS TO BRING A RECORDING DEVICE TO CLASS FOR THE PURPOSE OF RECORDING LECTURE!
  • Dr. Knauss's exam questions are based on what was covered in lecture.  IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS TO STUDY THE LECTURE NOTES AND USE THE BOOK AS NECESSARY!
  • Dr. Knauss's tests are difficult. IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS TO INVEST A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME, ENERGY, AND CONCENTRATION IN STUDYING FOR AN EXAM!
  • Dr. Knauss's tests are multiple-choice exams answered on Scantron forms.  IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS TO READ EACH QUESTION AND EACH ANSWER CHOICE VERY CAREFULLY!
 DR. K'S EXPECTATIONS . . .
 . . . FOR STUDENTS
  • You will read, comprehend, and adhere to the stipulations contained in the course syllabus
  • You will attend class on a regular basis,
  • You will arrive BEFORE the scheduled class time,
  • You will make sure that your cell phone is turned OFF before class,
  • You will not talk, text-message, or disrupt class time while Dr. K is lecturing,
  • You will not ask me to compute your grade,
  • You will not ask me if there is extra credit,
  • You will invest of your time, energy, and dedication to this course.
  • DR. K EXPECTS THAT YOU WILL DO YOUR ABSOLUTE BEST IN YOUR COURSE WITH HIM!
 . . . FOR HIMSELF
  • Dr. K will deliver content-rich lectures that are closely related to the PowerPoint slides,
  • Dr. K will make lecture as fun and interesting as possible,
  • Dr. K will not lecture beyond the scheduled ending time for the class,
  • Dr. K's exams will cover only the material covered in lecture,
  • Dr. K will return graded exams and assignments in a timely fashion,
  • Dr. K  grade lecture assignments and other submitted work usingwill rubrics to assign appropriatey objective grades,
  • Dr. K will compute grades strictly in accordance with the grading policy stipulated in the course syllabus,
  • DR. K EXPECTS THAT HE WILL DO HIS ABSOLUTE BEST IN THIS COURSE FORTHE STUDENT!


ADDITIONAL CLASS INFORMATION FOR STUDENTS
  • Sometimes, it will be necessary for Dr. K to cancel class.  Dr. K will make every effort to notify students of any class cancellation in  advance of the class meeting time.  Students will be notified by email and should, therefore, get into the habit of checking their GHC email account regularly and in a timely fashion.
  • Dr. Knauss has administrative responsibilities that will rarely impede his ability to arrive to class on time.  Students should keep in mind the standard 15 minute time accorded to Ph.D.'s in terms of starting class.

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Picture of Faculty Member

Dr. Mark Knauss

ABOUT DR. K

Dr. Mark E. Knauss has been a faculty member at Georgia Highlands College since 2002; he has been professor of biology since 2007.  

Knauss received his BS in biology from Delaware Valley College (Doylestown, PA) and his Ph.D. in biology from the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill, NC).  He began his teaching career with a position at Shorter College, where he taught from 1988 to 2002.

Dr. Knauss lives in Rome with his wife and three sons.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ABOUT DR. K

Dr. K was known at Shorter College as Jam Master K - he was the Master of Mayhem, Vicar of Volume, and Supreme Architect of the Freshman Biology Funk.

Dr. K has played an instrumental role in the development and operation of the educational assessment process at Georgia Highlands College; his colleagues refer to him as: The Assessment Guru


Dr. K is always right and seldom wrong.

IMPORTANT!