BIO156-Rio Salado

Lizzyru · Dec 8, 2009

Hi RestlessMom,

I took BIO 156 and CHM 130 at the same time but from different schools. I took CHM from Rio and had same experience as you did. After reading posts on this site, I learned that Phoenix College offers BIO 156 online and so that's what I did. It was great. I loved it and finished the class with 97%! I highly recommend it. The class is entirely online, including take home tests, quizes and Unit Exams. I was really happy with the lesson plans. I also took BIO 201 and 202 from PC. 201 was great but 202 got bit tricky. I just took my unit exam for 202 and finished a week and half early. It's super flexible and you can go as fast as you can.. or stay on schedule with the rest of the class. I loved the flexibility. I highly recommend BIO 156 at PC vs. Rio.

Good luck to you & best wishes!! :nuke:

miteacher, ADN, MSN · Dec 13, 2009

I am taking BIO 156 at Rio Salado, and I don't recommend it. I am normally an A student, however this course is difficult for me. I already have a bachelors and am a teacher and still am having a tough time. You basically are teaching yourself and the professor is not much help at all.

I have A's on all my quizzes and essays but you have to achieve a certain score on the midterm and final to pass the course. You have to take the tests at a testing location and they are not open book. Even if you do well on the assignments and not so well on the tests, you cannot pass the class because they require a minimum score on the tests even if your points would average out to be a B or C. I barely passed my midterm in the course. The course goes all over the place, and is not well organized or put together. The professor I have doesn't seem to care much and doesn't give much instruction as to what material to study on the midterm or final.

I would not recommend it. When did you take the course at Phoenix College? Is it still offered online?

Lizzyru · Dec 13, 2009

Hi. Yes, BIO 156 is still offered at Phoenix College. I am not sure if there are any open seats left for spring semester but it's worth a check. The lesson plans clearly gave you an idea of what you needed to learn for the quiz's and tests, plus they are open notes/books which encourages you to keep a really good, clear and concise notes. Besides the quiz's and tests, you have Unit exams which you take every 4 lessons and these exams are timed exams. I am so glad I took this course from PC! I can only imagine how badly I would have done with Rio.

miteacher, ADN, MSN · Dec 13, 2009

Thank you for answering my question. I checked and the online course is closed. I'm wondering if it's offered in the summer. I am debating on whether I should take it in person at Estrella ( I live in Avondale) or whether I should wait and take it online at Phoenix College next time it's offered. I am going to apply to the fast track LPN program so that wouldn't affect me applying because the only requirement is the NET test and the CNA requirement, so I could wait if I have to.

How many minutes did you have to take the tests or quizzes online? How many questions did you have? Did you have essay questions? Did you have a lab kit where you performed the labs at home? RIO has a book & lab kit, and you do the labs yourself at home and then write up reports for each lab. Some of the labs had quizzes as well.

Lizzyru · Dec 14, 2009

Hi there. I just looked at my old Syllabus (from PC) and here is what it says about the test & exams:

Three Take-Home Tests

70 points each = 40% of total grade
60 multiple choice (1 point each) and 2 short essay response (5 points each)

Multiple choice items are written from the critical focus points and questions in the lesson Instructional sections.
Short essay response items are taken from the Expressing Your Learning section of the lessons.

THT1: Lessons 1-2
THT2: Lessons 5-6
THT3: Lessons 9-10
THTs can be taken for one week following the deadline.

Three Unit Exams

100 points each = 60% of total grade
80 multiple choice (1 point each) and 4 short essay response (5 points each)

Multiple choice items are written from the critical focus points and questions in the lesson Instructional sections.
Short essay response items are taken from the Expressing Your Learning section of the lessons (Items selected WILL NOT be repetitive of those selected for the THTs.
Exam items are randomly selected from a question database. Each test will contain a unique mix and arrangement of questions.

From what I can remember, the THT are not timed but each Unit Exam has to be completed within 60 min. It can be bit stressful but if you keep a really organized notes, it's not a problem at all.

Good luck!!

miteacher, ADN, MSN · Dec 14, 2009

That sounds much better than Rio Salado. The midterm and final are my problem with Rio Salado. Thank you for taking the time to look up the information for me. I appreciate it.

smileyperson · Dec 15, 2009

I'm almost finished with the 8 week version at Rio - had CHM130 there too. This class has been difficult, but I have a 95% with nothing left to do but go over and take the final exam sometime this week. I only need a 75% on the final to keep my A, which means if I do well on the multiple choice (the computer tells you how you did before proceeding to the essays), I can basically blow off the essays.

If you take BIO156, be aware what you are getting is high school biology at a highly accelerated pace. You can plead your case with an advisor at the community college of your choice, and they will often let you skip BIO156 and head straight into BIO201 and 205. The my.maricopa.edu computer system tells you that you MUST have BIO156 to enroll in these other classes, but that is not so. I didn't know about this and I probably could have talked my way out of it at SCC.

That's not to say it isn't a good 'review' of the concepts you will need to know for 200-level Bio classes. I really had to stay sharp... my teacher was merciless about calling me out on an essay and taking away points if I didn't know what I was talking about. He was tough but fair. The midterm and final exam are 2/3rds of your grade, so your grade in the class is probably going to be close to your average on those exams. Lots of people who take classes at Rio seem to get high marks on the stuff they do at home, but don't do well on the exams. If that sounds like you then don't take science online.

I don't really feel like I needed to take this class. It was $300 for the tuition and lab kit, plus $20 for the book purchased used through alibris.com, instead of the Rio wallet-raping bookstore -- and most importantly 5-10 hours of my time every week for the last 8 weeks. If you've never had any biology at all, take 156... if you had biology even in high school, talk your way out of it.

kazpilot25 · Dec 18, 2009

I just finished the course and it was very difficult but manageable. I took the accelerated 8 week class and it was alot of info and work (2 assignments due every wednesday and saturday). The assignments themselves weren't too bad but the midterm and final were very difficult as you really had to study and know your stuff. I finished the course with a B and was happy with that. I had a pretty good teacher. I started the semester with another teacher but she was TERRIBLE, wouldn't respond to emails and would take points off essays with no explanation. She even gave me a 60/100 on one essay and her exact comments were, "Very well written, shows full understanding of the material". What? I dropped that faster than you could believe. Hope that helps.

miteacher, ADN, MSN · Dec 20, 2009

Has anyone taken BIO 201 or 202 online at Phoenix College? If so, how are the midterm and final handled? Did you take them online? Or is it in person at a testing site?

Lizzyru · Dec 20, 2009

Hi again.

Yup, I've taken both 201 & 202 from PC online and I actually just completed 202 a few weeks ago. There are no set midterm or final, but there are 4 Unit Exams that cover 4 lessons/exam, which is really nice in that you are only responsible for 4 chapters at a time. No comprehensive exams. These exams are timed with less than a min./question so unless you keep super organized notes on each lesson, it's easy to run out of time. Each min. you go over, a point is deducted from the exam.

I hope this answers your questions. :) If you have particular questions on online BIO classes offered at PC, feel free to PM or e-mail me. :)

Good luck to you and have a happy holiday season!!

flagguy · Dec 21, 2009

I just finished BIO156 at Rio. I was pretty satisfied with the interaction with the instructor. Midterm and final were not terrible I didn't think.

Good luck!