Mat101/Applied Liberal Arts Mathematics
Grading Policy (Spring 2010)
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Course Title: Mat101/Applied Liberal Arts Mathematics
Instructor: Dr. Edward Conjura
Text: For All Practical Purposes:Mathematical Literacy in Today's World
by- COMAP (Consortium for Mathematics and its Applications)
Eighth Edition
(Please note that there are substantive
differences between the 7th and 8th editions )
Syllabus: Topics to be covered will be selected from the text. This
couse will cover a broad range of topics but we will not go
into great depth with any one of them. For example, we will
learn about topics such as statistics and mathematical
finance but we will only cover a small portion of what one would
normally cover in a single course devoted totally to such topics.
Course Syllabus
Meeting Times & Places : Spring 2010 Semester
Section 01 T/F 02:00OM-03:20PM
Room SC-P229
Section 02 T/F 04:00OM-05:20PM
Room SC-P229
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Mat101:Applied Liberal Arts Mathematics
Attendance and Grading
This course is graded on a "letter grade" basis and your
grade will primarily be determined by tests and homework. However,
factors such as class participation and work ethic may also be used
at my discretion to improve or lower a grade.
I personally believe that it is impossible to do well, or
even pass this course, without attending class lectures.
I also realize that sometimes events occur that may result in you
missing or being late for a class. We all get sick, and sometimes
things come up that require a change in schedule. If you provide
me with an acceptable reason for missed time, I will accept it.
However, as the following policy makes clear, I do reserve the
right to lower your final grade for excessive unexcused absenses
or tardiness due to your lack of regular participation in the course.
I also reserve the right to improve someone's grade for active and
productive class participation.
Three or more unexcused absences could result in a drop in grade
by as much as one letter. The same is true for five or more times
being late to class without a valid excuse. An unexcused absence
implies that you are late. For example, if you are late three times
and absent twice without acceptable excuse, your course grade could
be lowered.
Late or Missed Work:
Work missed because of an unexcused absence will be marked late,
with a percentage of the total credit deducted.
Assignments must be submitted in class unless other arrangements
have been established, such as submission through a computer
interface or dropping the assignment off in person.
Work left in a mailbox (electronic or otherwise) or slipped
under a door, etc will not be accepted and will be considered
late until submitted in the required manner.
If you miss the beginning of class and walk in at any time during
class to hand in work, it will be considered late unless a valid excuse
is provided. If you are not in class to hand in work, but give it to
someone else to submit, the same applies.
Responsibility For Knowing About Assignments:
Each student is responsible for assignments made by the professor
whether or not he/she is present during the class period
when assignments are made. Assignments will generally be made through
the web. However, there may be assignments made during lectures that
do not appear on the web.
Missing a test:
There will be three in-class tests, a homework portfolio (which will count
as a third test) and a final exam. Missing any one of them could
have a serious impact on your final grade. The only way a
makeup will be given is if the reason for missing the requirement is
considered by me to be legitimate.
If you are sick, a doctors excuse may be required. Not feeling well and
stopping by the college infirmary will generally not be accepted as a
reason for a makeup. You must also notify me as soon as possible if you
believe you will be unable to complete a requirement, preferably prior
to the due date. For an in-class exam, notifying me within 24 hours prior
is expected.
Work Submitted and Grading
Standards for Work Submitted
Your work will be graded on the basis of content (correctness) and other
academic and professional standards (academic honesty, timeliness,
neatness, organization, presentation style and completeness).
For example, individually collected paper assignments submitted should
be stapled, with no rough edges.
In the case of the homework portfolio, it must be in a binder.
Also, there should be nothing crossed out and it should be readable.
In general, work should be done in pencil or on a computer so that
minor errors can be corrected neatly. Credit will be deducted for
failure to do any of the above and/or the work will be returned
as unacceptable, depending on the extent and/or frequency of the problem.
Acadmeic Dishonesty
ACADEMIC DISHONESTY WILL NOT BE TOLERATED. Any case of academic
dishonesty will be dealt with according to college policy, with
minimal recommended punishment generally being a grade of "F"
for the course.
Reference to any outside source must be provided with each
assignment. Failure to do so will be considered as plagiarism.
Teamwork
In this course you may choose to work in teams on things like
homework. You should find that working in teams will
improve your learning and it will help develop interpersonal skills
that are essential for success in the "real world".
If you do work in teams and the resulting work is collected,
only one body of work should be submitted. The names of all team
members must be listed in the documentation for work done. It will
be assumed that the percentage of work that each member contributed
to the final product is equal. If this is not the case, differences
in effort should be reported to me by the team.
Course Requirements and Grading
Grades will primarily be based on:
Four exams (three scheduled exams during the semester and a final exam)
Homework Portfolio
Class participation and board work may contribute toward
improving your grade.
The point weight toward the final grade of each of the above
will be approximately as follows:
Test #1 100 pts / approx. 20% (1hr 20min)
Test #2 100 pts / approx. 20% (1hr 20min)
Test #3 100 pts / approx. 20% (1hr 20min)
Homework Portfolio 100 pts / approx. 20% collected
Final Exam 100 pts / approx. 20% (3hrs)
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Total 500 pts / 100%
Homework:
Homework will be assigned for each topic covered in the course.
In general, it will serve as a basis for exams, and by doing
homework you are reinforcing your learning and preparing for tests.
A portfolio of your homework will be collected and graded. You must
maintain an individual notebook that will contain all of your homework
efforts. This notebook will be collected and graded near the end
of the semester.
It is required that you maintain your portfolio in a three-ringed
binder so that it will be easy to remove and replace work that
you redo and to reorder work if needed.
In all cases exam questions will be based on material found in the
homework assignments, class notes, and the text.
The Required Nature of Your Answers:
A VERY important thing to remember in this course is that final
answers are of no value without supporting work. Simply stating
a final answer, without supporting evidence, will generally be
graded as a poot to failing effort.
Your work must include the logic used and the process followed in
arriving at the final answer in order to be considered for full credit.
Please note that some correct final answers can be found in the back of
the text. Please also remember that sometimes the answers you see in
your text will not include the missing details that demonstrate logic
and process. On a test and in your homework portfolio you should not
in general submit incomplete answers like those found in the answer key.
If you do, it will generally not result in full credit when your work
effort is graded.
The homework portfolio and and the final paper must contain the
following information on a cover page:
name
course prefix, course number and course name
course meeting days/times (including semester and year)
instructors name
course meeting location
The final paper must include a Title Page
Homework Portfolio must include a
Table of content, which includes
assignment description
list of problems assigned and page numbers from book
date due
The following must appear with the answers to
homework questions:
chapter/section number
the page number
problem number
problem statement (at least enough of the problem
statement so a grader can make sense out of it)
Also, problems must be answered in the order assigned.
REMEMBER: Neatness is a virtue. Don't use pen unless you plan to do
perfect work and not make mistakes that need to be corrected!
Rubric that will be used to grade homework
The final assignment for the course will be to write a paper. Follow
the link below for specific requirements.
The due date is Tuesday, May 4 2010
Dr. Conjura will be in his office on May 4th from 1PM until 6PM
to collect papers. You must give the paper to him in person so he
can verify that you handed it in.
Rubric that will be used for grading of Critique/Paper
How Final Grades are Assigned
Final grades will be based on a 'curve' but cutoffs will not exceed
straight percentage (i.e. cutoff for an A will be no more than 90% of
total points, no more than 80% for a B, 70% for a C, and 60% for a D).
Homeworks will generally be graded on a straight percentage basis
and in-class tests will be graded on a curve which is <= straight
percentage.
During the semester only letter grades will be assigned (e.g. A, B
C, D and F). At the end of the semester, final grades will include
+/- grades (e.g. A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D and F).
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Last updated 1-19-2010