Administrative info.
- Office: Olin 109A
Office Hours: Mo 2-4PM- Tu 10:15--12:30PM
Th 11:00--1PM
+ whenever I'm around and available
- Phone: 465--2208
E-mail: glarose@umich.edu
WWW: http://www.mathcs.nebrwesleyan.edu/~glarose
Math/CS WWW: http://www.mathcs.nebrwesleyan.edu/
This page: http://www.mathcs.nebrwesleyan.edu/~glarose/classes/calc/
Grades: http://mathcs/~glarose/classes/calc/grades/
(username for the grade page is your first initial and last name --e.g.,glarose; password is your student ID number)
Text: Calculus, 2nd edition, by Hughes-Hallett et al. We will cover most of chp 1--6 this semester.
Something else Character consists of what you do on the third and fourth try.
James A. Michener.
Goals: This is a first-semester, college-level course in calculus. Our goals are for us all, by the end of the semester, to
to have had fun accomplishing all of these, even if (or despite the fact that) it took a lot of time and effort.
- have a better overall conceptual understanding of functions and their graphical, numerical, analytical, and verbal representations,
- be better able to see functions modeling real-world applications and to develop mathematical models in this context,
- to understand derivatives as rates of change and as local linear approximations,
- to understand definite integrals as accumulations of a rate of change and as Riemann sums,
- to be able to use these understandings to solve problems, especially those arising in the context of real world applications,
- to be able to mechanically calculate the derivatives of simple and complex functions and combinations of functions,
- to understand the relationship between derivatives and integrals,
- to have a basic ability to use Mathematica
- to have improved skills at problem solving and critical thinking: at dissecting a complex problem, determining steps in its solution, determining the solution, and testing whether it is reasonable,
- to have improved skills at writing about and explaining the mathematics that they have done, and (deep breath)
Expectations:: Learning is done actively with work, not by sitting by and observing, and I therefore expect you to work hard to accomplish our objectives. However, work should not be onerous, nor should it be completed in a vacuum without assistance. You may therefore expect me to do everything possible to allow you to learn as much as possible and enjoy doing so.
Learning, and Course Organization: This course is like a health club: you have paid money to enter it and accomplish something which it facilitates, which will require a great deal of work on your part, and activities in which you may expect your `personal trainer' (me) to have structured to maximize your gain. This structural intent motivates all of the activities in the course: they are chosen to provide an environment in which learning occurs effectively---and require that
- we actively participate in and work at learning,
- we work cooperatively in groups---studies show that people learn and accomplish more than they could on their own when working with a group (being able to do this is also required by any professional career, from business to engineering!); and
- we articulate verbally and in written form the material that we are learning---it is also well-documented that such activity significantly enhances learning (and, of course, the ability to write precisely is demanded in any career).
32% TAFKATs 24% Comprehensive Final 16% Projects 14% Homework, Labs & In-Class Work 8% Portfolios 3% Reading Homework 3% Communication Journals
- TAFKATs[1] are tentatively scheduled for 18 Sept., 12 Oct., 11 Nov., and 4 Dec.
- Projects will tentatively be due on 21 Sept., 2 Nov., and 11 Dec. They require a 3--8 page solution write-up, and will be worked on by groups of two people. Groups change for each project, and are assigned by fiat.
- Reading Homeworks are short, daily homeworks which will serve to (1) get you to actually read the book, and (2) act as a springboard for our understanding of the material that you have read. These will be graded at the beginning of class by inspection on a 0--2 scale, and will not be accepted late.
- Homework may be expected to be due daily.
- Portfolios will be due approximately every third Friday, and include three mandatory and one optional component. The components must be clearly written in good, complete sentences, and are (1) an explanation of a concept (which will be announced in class), (2) a worked homework problem having to do with this concept, with explanation of how and why each step of its solution was undertaken, (3) an explanation of how the concept and mathematics in the worked problem relate to the other mathematics we have studied, and (4) (optional) a communication journal entry.
- Communication Journals will be due approximately every third Friday, and consist of 2-3 sentences about anything that you would like to comment on or ask about.
(those activities formerly known as tests)
Another something ``One can't complain. I have my friends. Someone spoke to me only yesterday.''
A.A. Milne
- Makeups: I do not give makeups or allow alternate times for TAFKATs except in cases of medical emergencies or if we have agreed to it (e.g., because of sports involvement) at least a week in advance.
- Late Work: I reserve the right to give arbitrarily small amounts of credit for late work, so plan on doing all of your work on time---see me if you are having trouble with the homework, rather than just stopping doing it.
- Letter Grades: I do not give letter grades until I am required to do so at the end of the semester. At that time anyone with an overall score in the 90s is guaranteed some sort of ``A,'' etc. I may also adjust these boundaries between letter grades down (but not up) if I see fit at the end of the semester.
Administrative Info
- NWU's ADA Statement: ``NWU seeks to maintain a supportive academic environment for students with disabilities. To ensure their equal access to all educational programs, activities and services, Federal law requires that students with disabilities notify the University, provide documentation, and request reasonable accommodations. If you need accommodations in this course, please notify me so that I can verify that the required documentation is filed with the Academic Affairs Office and that your accommodation plan is in place.''
- Academic Integrity: Academic integrity is one of the basic principles of a university community. Nebraska Wesleyan therefore both encourages and expects the highest standards of academic honesty from all students. The Student Code of Conduct states that ``cheating, plagiarism, or other forms of academic dishonesty'' are subject to disciplinary action. Refer to the Student Code of Conduct for additional information. Any student who violates these principles of academic integrity will fail this course.
Gavin's Calc Syllabus
Last Modified: Sun Aug 23 16:22:51 CDT 1998
Comments to glarose@umich.edu