M130 Class Policies and other information

Fall 2003

 

 

CLASS FORMAT:  This section will rely heavily on instructor-guided small groups.  Each class period will begin with a small presentation of the new content/material and is then followed by activities that you will work on together in a small group.  The goal is to work together! Depending on your learning style, you may want to spend some moments in individual reflection on the activities but then you are required to work together with others.  I will be circulating around the classroom, asking or answering questions that will help facilitate your understanding of the material. 

 

PARTICIPATION/ATTENDANCE/DAILY WORK:  Attendance is important to you and your table partners.  When you miss class there is one less person to help in the class work.  Your participation in class is important to your grade and your group members.  A large portion of your class time will be spent working with others.  Hence a portion of your final grade will be determined by the work you accomplish in these groups. Each day there will be class work to be done at your table with your other table partners.  This class work will be collected with your weekly homework assignment.  This will be clearly announced on the homework page of your class website.  You will also be asked at times to present some of this work to the rest of the class, I will ask you in class if this is the case.  These assignments will total to 10% of your final grade.  If you are absent without prior notice to instructor for a valid reason, you cannot make up this work for points. It is your choice whether to attend for these assignments and discussion of text material; however the choice not to attend forfeits these “participation” points.

 

HOMEWORK:  You are allowed and encouraged to work with others to complete homework, unless otherwise noted.  Homework will be assigned on your homework page and a subset of problems collected at the beginning of class each Thursday unless a specific date is given.  Solutions for the previous day’s assignment will be available upon request; however, you are expected to use your peers before turning to this resource. Homework points are earned as follows: attempting and working on every problem and providing evidence of work, accuracy and nature of solution attempts, turning work in on time.  Homework is not accepted late.  A zero will be earned for assignments that are not turned in or are woefully incomplete.

 

Journals:  These will be emailed to me once every two or three weeks, approximately eight of these for the class.  See attached “What is a journal?” statement.  Some of these will be directed journal entries; others will be reflections on how your learning is going. They will not be accepted late; late postings will earn a 0.  When appropriate you may be asked to write some of your journals by hand, otherwise, they must be submitted within our class page in the webct system. 

 

Quizzes:  There will be 2-5 quizzes scattered throughout the semester.  These will be announced at least 2 class sessions prior to the one in which they are given.  These will cover homework material and class discussion.  No make-up quizzes will be given. 

Exams: There will be periodic in class exams (2 or 3) and 1 take home exam. The exam dates and material covered by them will be announced in class. It is the student's responsibility to find out what announcements he/she missed by coming late, leaving early, or missing class. A make-up exam will be allowed, provided that "official" documentation explaining your absence is supplied and notification of your absence is given prior to the exam by e-mail or phone message.  Your take-home exam will be your last exam for the course (before the final) and is usually due the week before finals.

 

 SPECIAL ASSIGNMENTS:  These may include written assignments, quizzes, exercise from you daily homework list and other activities to be completed inside or outside of class.  Assigned at the instructor’s discretion, they may vary from 1-20 pts and be assigned as group or individual work.  Special assignments may be graded either on a point system or using a rubric which will be turned back with student work.  These grades will go into the Homework portion.

 

 

Final Project: There will be a special project that will incorporate most of the material covered in this course. You will be required to use the computer lab and type up portions of your final report.   It will be a project that you could incorporate into your teaching portfolio. More information will be provided when the project is assigned.

 

Final exam: This is a mandatory exam.  To earn an A in the class a student must obtain at least a C on the final.  An F on the final will drop the student at least one letter grade (e.g. if you have an 89% before the final you will be dropped to a C).

 

 

TECHNOLOGY and MATERIALS: 

 

 

Grading Policy: Course grades will be assigned as follows: A= 90% or higher, B= 80-89%, C= 70-79%, D= 60-69%.  Your performance will be weighted as follows:

 

         Homework and journals and quizzes                   24%

         Daily work                                                      10%

           

         Hour exams                                                     40%

         Final project                                                     6%

         Comprehensive final exam                                 20%

                                                                               100%

In preparing your written work explain your thought process and provide justification for your conclusions. Neatness, correctness, and style will be considered in the evaluation of your papers. Although you are encouraged to work in small groups on your assignments, all work submitted under your name should represent your current understanding of the problems involved and should not be the copied work of another person.

Click here for the course agreement.  This needs to be submitted the second class session you attend.