Fellow Reefkeepers,
After A LOT of work behind the scenes and preparation we are ready to start enrollment for MACO3 taught by Dr. Ron Shimek!! The MACO3 course will begin October 29th, so enroll ASAP!
To learn more about MACO, visit the MACO homepage at: http://www.reefs.org/maco
To sign up online, visit: http://www.reefs.org/maco/registration1.html
For those not familiar with MACO, or who were not enrolled in MACO1 (The inaugural course, taught by Dr. Ron Shimek)- In short...MACO is distance education for marine aquarists. We see a need in the hobby to bridge the gap between the "hobbyist literature" and some of the academic disciplines relevant to reefkeeping such as: biology, ecology, chemistry, engineering, etc. The goal of MACO is to "bridge that gap," by providing challenging and exciting online and interactive courses for the reefkeeper that wants to learn more about reefs and reef systems.
MACO is structured like a college curriculum, with all courses taught by a VERY qualified leader in the aquarium hobby - or a field of marine science. As a student, you will be expected to complete reading assignments, read and participate in "online lectures" and complete weekly quizzes. Some courses even have labs and projects! You can also expect that the professor will take the time to answer your individual questions, grade and return your homework assignments and labs, and make sure that you are getting the most out of MACO.
Commencing October 29th Dr. Shimek will be presenting a 15 week course on Invertebrate Zoology for Reef Enthusiasts. Registration for this course is now open.
We have decided to make the first week of the course FREE and open to EVERYONE, so that you can come by and "check it out" and see if MACO is right for you.
The course will be broken down into the following subject areas (by week):
1) Introduction
2) Multicellularity
3) Cnidaria
4) Cnidaria(cont'd)
5) Minor Phyla (Group A)
6) Nematoda,
7) Minor Phyla (Group B)
8) Annelids
9) Mollusks
10) Mollusks (cont'd)
11) Arthropoda
12) Arthropoda (cont'd)
13) Sipuncula,
14) Echinodermata
15) Chordata
Visit: http://www.reefs.org/maco/curriculum3.html to read a detailed description of the upcoming course.
If you want to hear a first hand review of Ron's course, written by one of the students, go to: http://www.reefs.org/maco/review.html
The course will be given COMPLETELY ONLINE, so students from around the world are encouraged to enroll! You will get "one-on-one" time with noted author and speaker Dr. Ron Shimek in the #maco chatroom to ask him questions about the course material. Dr. Ron will also be using the comprehensive textbook entitled Invertebrate Zoology, by Rupert and Barnes.
If you have any questions about the upcoming course, please post them to the MACO Questions/Suggestions/Feedback forum at: http://www.reefs.org/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=forum&f=20
I hope that everyone makes good use of this unique opportunity. MACO1 was a challenging and fantastic course, and MACO3 looks to be a winner!
Sincerely
James Wiseman
MACO Administrator
[ September 28, 2001: Message edited by: jamesw ]
