Introduction to Biology

Code: BIO14982L

6 ECTS

Duration: 15 weeks/156 hours

Scientific Area: Biological Sciences

Teaching languages: Portuguese

Languages of tutoring support: Portuguese, English

Regime de Frequência: Presencial

Sustainable Development Goals

3. Saúde de qualidade - Assegurar uma vida saudável e promover o bem-estar para todos, em todas as idades.

4. Educação de qualidade - Assegurar a educação inclusiva, e equitativa e de qualidade, e promover oportunidades de aprendizagem ao longo da vida para todos.

5. Igualdade de género - Alcançar a igualdade de gênero e empoderar todas as mulheres e meninas.

13. Ação climática - Tomar medidas urgentes para combater a mudança climática e seus impactos (*).

15. Proteger a vida terrestre - Proteger, recuperar e promover o uso sustentável dos ecossistemas terrestres, gerir de forma sustentável as florestas, combater a desertificação, deter e reverter a degradação da Terra e deter a perda da biodiversidade.

Learning Goals

Understand the origin of live and diversity of living organisms.
Distinguish and enframe the multiple life forms.
Understand, in a global vision, the human body functioning and the main systems.
Being able to plan and execute practical work, models and reports based on the learned contents.
Develop the skills to search for information and transmit it in a simplified way.

The Origin of life. Cellular metabolic processes that revolutionized life on Earth. Autotrophic and heterotrophic organisms. What are living organisms, its determining characteristics. The living organisms kingdoms. Diversity and morphological characteristics of bacteria, protozoa, fungi, plants, and animals, how and where to observe them.
Human Body. Digestion in humans: Digestive system, functioning and regulation. Food as a health factor. Blood circulation: The circulatory system, functioning and regulation. Human breathing: The respiratory system, functioning and regulation. Excretory systems and processes: Urinary system, skin and lungs, functioning and regulation. Female reproductive system and male reproductive system: functioning and regulation. The nervous system: Central and peripheral, functioning and regulation. Conditions of health and illness.

Teaching Methods

Exposition of contents using audiovisual materials and three-dimensional models, followed by participatory dialogue for students' clarification and self-evaluation. Carrying out group work to collect, observe and characterize living organisms, both in the laboratory and at field trips. Construction of models and their oral presentation to simultaneously apply the learned knowledge and self-evaluate the work done after evaluation by colleagues and teachers. Throughout classes, students are asked several times to research digital information and share it, followed by dialogue about this research, both in terms of form and content.

Assessment

Continuous Assessment: 1st Theoretical Assessment (40%) + 2nd Theoretical Assessment (40%), a report that includes field trips and laboratory classes (20%). Final grade 0-20 values.
The report must be structured as: Introduction, Summary, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusions and Bibliographic References (quotation 0 to 20 points).
Final Exam: Theoretical Assessment (100%)
Appeal Exam: Theoretical Assessment (100%)
Special Period Exam: Theoretical Assessment (100%)
Theoretical assessments are made up of multiple-choice questions, statements to identify as true or false, sentences to complete and a long answer question (0 to 20 points).
To pass the curricular unit, the student must obtain a final average equal to or greater than 10 points.
The minimum grade for all final or partial assessments must not be less than 10 points.