Class record · BIOL · MCAS

BIOL 3140

Research Methods in Organismal Biology · 1 instructor on record · 5 sections

What the course score is made of

71BC evaluations5 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2021 – Fall 2025

—Student reviewsno reviews — does not contribute

—RateMyProfessorsno ratings — does not contribute

That is the class itself, averaged across everyone who taught it. Who taught it, and how each of them scored, is the board below — that is what a student picking a section is actually choosing between.

What the challenge rank is made of

65thMore challenging than 65% of BC classesranked against every one we hold

93BC — “Intellectually Challenging”5 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College's own “intellectually challenging” question for this class only — students answer it positively about courses that stretched them, so it measures intellectual challenge and NOT grading, workload or quality. Almost every BC class scores high on it, which is why it is shown as a rank rather than a score.

What the workload rank is made of

78thMore work than 78% of BC classesranked against every one we hold

60BC — “Workload”5 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College reports workload for this class only as one of five bands, not as a number of hours, and it does not publish what the bands mean — so this site will not translate it into hours. Higher means more work, which is not the same as worse.

Organismal biology is the study of living systems of all scales that shape the structure, function, ecology, and evolution of individual organisms. Experiments that elucidate how organisms respond to biotic and abiotic environmental stimulus over broad time scales--from changes in behavior to adaptation--are crucial to understanding biological diversity. In this course we'll explore the concepts and analytical tools that frame experimental research in organismal biology. Through group projects and active learning exercises, students will first make hypotheses concerning how organisms respond in time, space, and behavior to changes in environment and then design experiments and instruments that produce data to evaluate these hypotheses. Topics covered will include reconstructing phylogenetic history and the evolution of organismal form and function, evaluating form-function relationships, and the correlates of spatial and temporal distribution of organisms. In addition, the development of an analytical toolbox--specifically, learning the principles of data science and statistical analysis--is a central theme of this course. BIOL3030 Comparative Vertebrate Physiology is not an enforced prerequisite but is recommended.

The only instructor on record

5 sections · nobody else has taught itFull record

Instructor	Overall	Workload	Challenge	RMP overall
Christopher KenaleyAssociate Professor of the Practice · Biology	765 records	78th	65th	5438 ratings · all classes

There is no ranking to read here: Christopher Kenaley is the only instructor with evaluation records for BIOL 3140, so the number is a record, not a position. The RateMyProfessors figure is their overall score across everything they teach, not their score in this class.

Also taught by Christopher Kenaley

3 other classes

Class	Instructors	Course score
BIOL 3030Comparative Vertebrate Physiology	115 records	81
BIOL 5380Topics in Biomechanics	14 records	87
BIOL 5410Research in Comparative Shape Analysis	11 record	100

Other BIOL classes

All of them

Class	Instructors	Course score
BIOL 2040Investigations in Molecular Cell Biology Lab	2176 records	87
BIOL 1310Anatomy and Physiology Lab 1	443 records	78
BIOL 1330Anatomy and Physiology Lab 2	443 records	76
BIOL 2210Microbiology for Health Professionals Laboratory	341 records	84
BIOL 4260Human Anatomy with Lab	135 records	86
BIOL 4330Human Physiology	128 records	85

The line

All 13 items · means across 5 records

The Professor4 items

Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.

8513th pctl

Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.

8613th pctl

Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.

8824th pctl

Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.

9130th pctl

The Course3 items

Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.

8317th pctl

Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.

8727th pctl

Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.

8615th pctl

Assignments & Feedback3 items

Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.

8935th pctl

Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.

8420th pctl

Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.

8937th pctl

Workload, difficulty & attendanceNot ratings

WorkloadHow much work the course took outside class, on Boston College's five-band scale — the band boundaries are not published, so this is not a number of hours.

6078th pctl

Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.

9365th pctl

Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.

754th pctl

Bar length is the rank against every comparable record we hold, not the raw score: BC's questions all have a median around 4.5, so a raw-scale bar would be nearly full on every row and would tell you nothing. Every bar is one ink colour — nothing here is graded green or red. The hatched bars are not ratings at all: a higher number on either describes a different course, not a better one.

Game log

5 sections · newest first

Instructor	Term	Sec	Instr	Course	Work
Christopher Kenaley	Fall 2025	01	89	87	60
Christopher Kenaley	Fall 2024	01	79	78	60
Christopher Kenaley	Fall 2023	01	59	50	—
Christopher Kenaley	Fall 2022	01	78	73	60
Christopher Kenaley	Fall 2021	01	77	69	60

How to read this boardInstructors are ranked on their record in this class only, never on their average across everything they teach. Scores are out of 100 — Boston College's 1–5 agreement scale, ×20, the way these numbers were printed for years. Workload is BC's own five-band figure, not a number of hours, and is shown as a rank. A dash means the question was not reported, and is never a zero.