Discussion sections (Sections CD2 - CD7):
Prerequisites: Math 220 and Math 230 are prerequisites for this course, and you should have either (1) taken these classes (or equivalent classes elsewhere) or (2) passed proficiency exams for these classes, or (3) received a score of at least 4 on the AP Calculus BC exam. During the first two weeks of the semester a form will be handed out where you will need to indicate which of these three qualifications (1)-(3) you have satisfied.
Homework: Assignments from the text will be given each lecture hour. Homework will not be collected or graded, but you should do these assignments in order to be prepared for quizzes and exams. Solutions will be provided.
Quizzes: Quizzes will be given about once a week. The quizzes will cover material from the past 2 - 3 lecture hours. The problems on the quizzes will be similar or identical to problems worked out in the discussion sections or assigned as HW problems. If you attend the lectures and discussion sections and keep up with the homework assignments, you should have no problems with the quizzes. The quizzes will be given during the Tuesday/Thursday discussion sections. The specific dates may vary, depending on the amount of material covered in the lectures, but will be announced in advance during the lectures (but not posted on the website).
Midterm Exams: There will be three Midterm Exams, given during the regular class hour, one on each of the three chapters (Chapters 11 - 13) covered in this course. The dates for these exams are September 27, October 25, and November 29. Detailed exam syllabi, practice exams, and review material, will be posted about two weeks before each exam date.
Final Exam:
The Final Exam will cover material roughly equivalent to 2 Hour Exams,
and will be cumulative. It will take place
Saturday, December 16, 7 pm - 10 pm, the slot assigned for
this class according to the
Fall 2006 Final Exam schedule. (There is no conflict or combined final for
this class.) The above slot happens to be the last possible final exam
slot and will force all of us (students, TAs, prof) to stay on campus
longer than we might wish, but that's just the luck of the draw - I
have no say in this matter.
Make sure to plan your travel over the holidays accordingly.
University regulations are very strict about taking
the Final at the assigned slot; in particular, you cannot take the
final at an earlier date in order to accommodate travel plans.
Policy on missed quizzes: There will be no make-up quizzes. A missed quiz will count as 0 points unless you have a legitimate excuse, such as illness, or a field trip for another class, and can show appropriate documentation for it, such as a doctor's note in case of illness, or an instructor's note in case of a field trip. With a valid excuse, a missed quiz will be marked as "excused". This simply means that your quiz average will be based on the remaining quizzes (with the lowest score dropped), i.e., it will be just as if the "excused" quiz had never taken place.
If you think you qualify for an excused quiz, get in touch with your TA as soon as possible, but no later than a week after the quiz was given, and provide him/her with appropriate documentation. In case of illness, make sure to get a note from your doctor or hospital personnel.
Policy on missed hour exams: Missed hour exams are treated similarly, i.e., marked as "excused" if a valid excuse is presented (no make-ups), but with one significant difference: The absence from an hour exam has to be documented by a letter from the Dean. (For quizzes, other documentation - such as a note from McKinley - is sufficient, though a letter from the Dean would, of course, also be acceptable.) To get such a letter issued, go to the Dean's Office at 300 Student Services Building, 610 East John St., phone 333-0050, explain your case, and ask to send a letter to the instructor. The people there deal with these situations all the time and have form letters that they are happy to send to instructors if they believe you have a valid excuse (e.g., illness, but not, for example, oversleeping). One major advantage of going through the Dean's Office is that you can take care of any other missed classes at the same time by having letters sent to all of your instructors.
Calculator policy: Calculators are not allowed in exams and quizzes; exam and quiz problems will be written such that they do not require a calculator; calculators would be a hindrance and distraction, and in most cases completely useless. You do not need to bring a calculator to the lecture or discussion sections. (I don't carry a calculator with me either.) Occasionally, you may need a calculator to do a homework problem, though the majority of homework problems will be of the no-calculator variety. For the calculator problems, a basic calculator is sufficient; you do not need graphing or programmable calculators.
Curving: Exams and quizzes will be graded "on a curve"; the curve will be a function of the difficulty of the exam and the overall performance of the class and will be announced after grading is complete. There will be no additional curving at the end of the semester.
Drop scores: The lowest quiz score will be dropped at the end of the semester. Note, however, that no exam scores are dropped; all three exam scores count in full.
Viewing your scores: All scoring will be done by a computer program, and you will be able to access your accumulated scores and see your current grade at any time. (The grading program we will be using is not the Campus Grade Book, but a program developed specifically for mathematics classes by Professor Dan Grayson. Detailed instructions on how to access your grades will be given later.)