Syllabus

General course description

Prerequisite: Satisfactory score on (or exemption from) ELM; MATH 102 with minimum C grade or satisfactory score on placement examination.

Description: This course deals mostly with trigonometry, the study of triangles. We will also discuss conic sections.

Course objectives

As far as I know, most students taking this course plan to take Calculus next. To do well in Calculus, you need a solid understanding of trigonometry, not to mention algebra. My goal is to help you learn what you need to know to do well in our department’s Calculus sequence: Math 206, 207, 208, and 209.

Requirements

Basis for evaluation: There will be homeworks, quizzes, a midterm, and a final. There will be a quiz (almost) every Wednesday, probably at the beginning of class.

Grading system

Homework will be worth 10% of your final grade, quizzes 25%, midterm 30%, final 35%. Your two lowest quiz scores will be dropped with no questions asked.

If you have an unavoidable schedule conflict with a quiz, midterm, or final, please let me know as soon as possible. Two weeks in advance would be reasonable.

I can’t imagine that you would be absent for one quiz, much less that you would miss three of them. Still, let’s imagine that you somehow have valid reasons for missing all three. For example, let’s say that you have been abducted by an extraterrestrial spaceship. In that case, you should show me some serious documentation (such as a notarized affidavit from Agents Fox and Mulder) for all three missed quizzes.

The letter grade you receive in this course will reflect how well prepared I think you are—based on your performance on the homeworks, quizzes, midterm, and final—for the topics in our department’s Calculus sequence that depend on understanding the material in this course.

I will use plusses and minuses with the letter grades, when they’re warranted. Note: there is no A+ grade for any class.

I will abide by CSULA’s policy on incomplete grades; see

www.calstatela.edu/univ/advise/bb/Grade_Related_Information/incomplete.htm

for more information.

Topical outline

The following is the preliminary day-by-day plan for the course. It could change at any time. It’s only here to give you an idea of what to expect this quarter.

Sept. 26	Mon.	Introduction
Sept. 28	Wed.	Discuss section 5.1
Oct. 3	Mon.	Discuss section 5.2
Oct. 5	Wed.	Quiz on sections 5.1-5.2; discuss section 5.3
Oct. 10	Mon.	Discuss section 5.4
Oct. 12	Wed.	Quiz on sections 5.3-5.4; discuss section 5.5
Oct. 17	Mon.	Discuss section 5.6
Oct. 19	Wed.	Quiz on sections 5.5-5.6; discuss section 6.1
Oct. 24	Mon.	Discuss section 6.2
Oct. 26	Wed.	Midterm on sections 5.1-6.2
Oct. 31 (Halloween)	Mon.	Discuss section 6.3. Best Costume prizes awarded.
Nov. 2	Wed.	Quiz on section 6.3; discuss section 6.4
Nov. 7	Mon.	Discuss section 6.5
Nov. 9	Wed.	Quiz on sections 6.4-6.5; discuss section 7.1
Nov. 14	Mon.	Discuss section 7.2
Nov. 16	Wed.	Quiz on sections 7.1-7.2; discuss section 7.3
Nov. 21	Mon.	Discuss section 7.4
Nov. 23	Wed.	Quiz on sections 7.3-7.4; discuss section 9.1
Nov. 28	Mon.	Discuss section 9.2
Nov. 30	Wed.	Quiz on sections 9.1-9.2; discuss section 9.3
Dec. 7	Mon.	Final exam

Students with Disabilities

If you require any special accomodations, please let me know ASAP, so you and I can work with the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) to arrange whatever you need.

Exit exams

If you’ve taken this class before and you feel that you know the material in it thoroughly, let me know—you may be able to take an exit exam for the class at the University Testing Office. This exam will enable you to skip this class (although you will not get credit for it). Let me know if you plan to take the exit exam.

Academic Dishonesty

I’ve tried to set things up so that the only way to cheat in this course will be to do something really, really, really, really BAD, such as copying someone else’s answer during the midterm. So if you do something like that, I will be merciless and unforgiving. In particular, I will follow CSULA’s Academic Dishonesty Reporting Procedures to the letter. See <www.calstatela.edu/usu/csdp/StudentRights15.html> for more details.

Add procedures

The following is from a memo I received:

We will make every effort to place permits on the system so you can register before the next class meeting. In most cases there is no excuse for a student not being registered by the second week of classes. The University is taking the add deadline very seriously. There is no guarantee that a late add will be approved. The add deadline is Oct. 6, 2005. Late adds are for students who for no fault of their own were unable to register for a class by the add deadline.

Department Office

Also from the same memo:

No homework, term papers, exams, or finals from students will be accepted in person or by FAX [in the Math Dept. office].

Cell phones and pagers

Turn them off at the beginning of each class, please. Thanks! (Also, please remind me to turn mine off at the beginning of class.)

$$$ for books

From the Associated Students Inc. website:

Apply every 5th week of the quarter to have an opportunity to be awarded $150.00 for the following quarter! Please review the criteria listed below before picking up an application. Only students that meet these criteria will be considered for the book voucher program.

Must have completed at least three (3) quarters at Cal State L.A.
Must have a cumulative CSULA G.P.A. of 2.4 or higher.
Must be enrolled for at least four (4) units of evening courses at CSULA for the quarter you area applying for.
Must be employed at least thirty (30) hours per week and provide employment verification (a letter from your employer indication your work hours on your employers official letter head).
Please supply a print out of your class schedule from the campus website or the registrar's office showing proof of enrollment.

See <www.calstatela.edu/orgs/asicsla/index.php?page=generalservices> for more details.

Note: any of this could change at any time

I’ll let you know if it does. But if you’re not in class when I mention the change—or if you’re in class but spacing out—you’re still responsible for knowing about it.