Home, 1/12 (last message)

Well, it looks like I enjoyed the break so much I forgot to update the page for the final time.

The course is over and the grades are in! You can get solutions to all the exams and see statistics on exam grades on the "scores and docs" page. Note that the final exam generally has a lower average than the others because the best students do not take it.

In spite of the numerous challenges inflicted on us by the coronavirus epidemic, I enjoyed teaching this course. Special thanks go to students who participated in class discussion - you make my job easier!


Home, 11/18

If you are taking the final, make sure you sign up for times Wed-Mon on the signup sheet whose link you got in the email informing you of the grade.

The final exam will have six pages and consist of problems like the ones on the exams during the semester. Therefore, to start preparing yourself for the final exam, make sure you can do all the problems on the four exams we have had. Also, work on the sample final exam. For additional practice, work on the joysheets we had during the semester.

Office hours during this week: Wednesday - Friday, 11-1, also on Zoom (morning office hour).


Home, 11/8

On Monday, we will work on sections 5.2 and 5.3, going over homework over sections 5.1 and 5.2 during the makeup hour. MyLab has been assigned for sections 5.1-5.3, due on Wednesday and Thursday.

Exam 4, covering sections 5.1-5.6 (if we get through all of them) is planned for Tuesday, 11/17. You will be informed later in the evening of your overall score so that you can decide if you are coming for the final exam on Wednesday, 11/17 at 1:00. If this is too short notice for some of you, we can arrange for you to take the final later in the week, or even the following Monday.


Home, 10/30

Exam 3, covering sections 3.1-3.5, 4.1 and 4.2 is scheduled for Thursday. See sample exam 3 on the "scores and docs" page for some representative problems.

Joysheet 9 is due on Monday. For some tips on how to work it, check out "in-class Joysheet 9" on the "scores and docs" page.

MyLabs due soon are those for 3.4, 3.5 (tonight) and 4.1, 4.2 (Saturday), as well as JIT 25, 27 (Tuesday, this is review for subsequent sections.)

On Monday, we start with a new section. During the makeup hour 4-5 on Monday, we will discuss homework from JIT 25 and 27, or any questions you may have over joysheet 9.


Home, 10/24

Exam 2 turned out pretty well - you can see the class statistics and find the solutions on the "scores and docs" page.

Joysheet 8 is due on Sunday. Find it either on these pages, or on Canvas. If you haven't turned in joysheet 7 yet (due last Saturday) do it this weekend, as I will be closing it.

On Monday, we start with a new section and discuss homework in section 3.3, which is due on MyLab on Tuesday.


Home, 10/18

On Monday, we will finish section 3.2 and start going over homework in sections 3.1 and 3.2, finishing it up during the makeup hour.

Thursday will likely see an in-class joysheet.


Home, 10/9

Exam 2 is scheduled for Wednesday, covering sections 2.1-2.5. Check out sample exam 2 to see some representative problems.

Joysheet 6 is due on Saturday. You can find it either on these pages, or on the submission page in Canvas. To help you work on it, you can look at solutions of the in-class joysheet - see the "scores and docs page".

On Monday, we will work on review material in JIT 21-23. On Tuesday, part of the class will be devoted to questions ahead of the exam.


Home, 10/3

Exam 1 turned out quite well - better than many of my recent College Algebra courses. Good job, class! You can see the statistics on scores as well as solutions on the "scores and docs" page.

Joysheet 5 has been assigned - it is due Monday. You can find it either on these pages, or on the submission page in Canvas. To help you work on joysheet 5, you can look at solutions of the in-class joysheet - see the "scores and docs page".

On Monday, we will continue with new material in sections 2.4 and 2.5. Exam 2, over chapter 2, is being planned for week after next.


Home, 9/25

Exam 1 will be returned next week.

On Monday, we will go over some homework in section 2.1, leaving the rest of homework discussion to the 4-5 makeup hour.


Home, 9/18

Exam 1, covering sections 1.1-1.6 is scheduled for Tuesday. Check out sample exam 1 on the "scores and docs" page to get an idea what the exam will look like. If you want more practice, find my personal page - it has links to previous College Algebra courses I gave, which have more sample exams. (Look at the ones after 2011.)

To maintain social distancing for the exam and to have everyone take it at the same time, we will split into two classrooms. Students who would ordinarily come to class on Tuesday will be in our usual classroom, room 303. The others will be in a nearby room on the same floor - you will be informed on Monday which one. Since I have not seen many of you during the semester, I may ask to see a picture ID, so make sure you have one with you.

On Monday, we will go over some new material in section 2.1 and take any questions you may have ahead of the exam.


Home, 9/12

Next week, we are doing two in-class joysheets. The first one, over sections 1.3 and 1.4, will be on Monday, the second one, over sections 1.5 and 1.6 on Thursday. After each of those, you will be given another similar joysheet that gets turned in. Please make sure you distinguish between the in-class joysheet and the other one when you submit your work and upload them in the correct place.

In-class joysheets - unless you are there in person, so I see you have done the work - always get submitted in the same place: Canvas/assignments/in-class joysheets. They need to be uploaded shortly after class is over - no late do-overs. These are graded for effort.

Other joysheets are uploaded in Canvas/assignments/Jk, where k is the number of the joysheet. These are graded for correctness. If you are answering on your own sheet of paper, rather than a printed one, position the answers as the questions are printed on the page - this will make it easier to grade. This means you should write the answers on two pages - do not try to cram everything on one page, as this is hard to read.

Sections 1.5, 1.6, and JIT 13 have been assigned on MyLab, they are due on Wednesday and Thursday.

Exam 1, covering sections 1.1-1.6 is planned for week after next, probably Tuesday.


Home, 9/7

Hope you had a good long weekend. I was so excited by it that I forgot to update our webpage at the end of last week.

On Tuesday, we will go over homework in section 1.4 and start with section 1.5. I anticipate an in-class joysheet over 1.3 and 1.4 on Thursday, and possibly our first exam during the week after this shortened one.

Don't forget that MyLab for section 1.4 is due on Wednesday.


Home, 8/28

Joysheets 1 and 2 are due on Monday. If you did not get yours, find them on the "scores and docs" pages. Once completed, upload them on Canvas/assignments/ J1 or J2

On Monday, will work on section 1.3.

Don't forget to ask for help if things aren't clear. Come to office hours, or join them on Zoom - links are on the main Canvas page.

Free tutoring information has been updated - the Ross center is now active.


Home, 8/22

Well, we weathered a whole slew of technological hiccups. Thank you for putting up with them. I am still waiting for a better connector to the in-class projector which will allow me to see the same image on the laptop and the projector, helping me write more neatly.

On Monday, we will discuss some homework from sections JIT.17 and 1.1, due on MyLab by Tuesday midnight. Afterwards, we will finish up section 1.2, but before we get to its homework, we will discuss homework from other review sections JIT 6, 7 and 14. Those sections will be due on MyLab on Thursday, and you can already get started on them. (JIT is the chapter "Just in time.")

My recommended method of doing homework is to look at the list of homework problems (found in "scores and docs"), work them out on paper - so you have a record for future studying - and only then go to MyLab to work on similar problems. (The statements of the problems are in the textbook, and you are not submitting anything written to me, you are only submitting homework assignments on MyLab. Written work that you submit to me will be in the form of worksheets.)

If you have not yet connected to the online homework and textbook through Canvas/modules/redshelf, it is high time you did so. See instructions here.

For your ease of writing notes while in class, I will attempt to post blank lecture notes in Canvas/Files before I cover them in class. (If I am writing the notes last-minute, you may not get the chance to print them, unless you are sitting right next to a printer.) Written (i.e. "filled in") notes will be updated as we cover the material, also in Canvas/Files. All recordings of class sessions, to the extent Zoom doesn't mess something up, are in Canvas/Files as well.


Home, 8/16

Welcome to the course! Look around to familiarize yourself with the layout of these webpages. To get to other pages, click on the links in the menu (or drop-down, if viewing on a smartphone). The most often-used pages are in the first line of the menu (or the first several choices of the drop-down). "Scores and docs," for example, has all the documents for the course.

Your first exercise is to find the syllabus on these pages and read it. (I will not be printing it.) The items there that are typically of greatest interest to students are from "Homework" to "Make-ups."

These pages will get more content as information becomes available. Check back often: useful information is provided in the "home" section (which you are reading), typically updated weekly.

Here are some specific items related to our COVID-19-tainted-semester.

Masks: To repeat the university's policy, they have to be worn while in class, my office, or in the building. They have to cover your nose and your mouth.

Canvas: If it hasn't been already, the Canvas page will be set up shortly. Canvas will mainly be the repository of class notes, class session recordings, your grades, and a place to upload homework. Information about the course and weekly messages will be posted to this website (also accessible from Canvas). (Why bother with the website outside of Canvas? Two reasons: it's easier to make updates to it, and it stays public, something I value, and you may grow to as well, as a service to future students of this same course.)

Textbook and online homework: In this course, you have signed up for "Inclusive Access," which automatically bills you for access to the online homework system and includes the e-book. Once I set up the Canvas page for our course, you can access these materials by following the instructions here.

Attendance: If you are reading this, you have received an email telling you which days to come to class in person. On the days on which you do not come in person, join the class via a Zoom meeting (see link on Canvas.) Both in-person and Zoom presence counts for the purposes of tracking attendance.

Sites to catch Zoom classes inbetween your in-person ones: When there is not enough time to go home for your Zoom class, try one of these sites:

Office hours: At most one person will be allowed in my office at a time. Of course, you have to wear a mask. I may take your temperature with a touchless thermometer, and you will be able to check mine with the same. If you come and see someone in my office, let me know you are there, so I may be able to help you concurrently while you sit in the foreroom, or we can all go to a larger room, if several students have the same questions. During office hours, I will also start a Zoom session through which you can ask questions. If I do not respond immediately on Zoom, please be patient, as I may have left the office for a short while.

Assignments and exams: To minimize handoff of physical objects between people and thus reduce chance of transmission of the virus, all assignments will be submitted and returned on Canvas. Exams will be taken in person as long as the university is running in-person classes.

Assignment submission: is through Canvas as PDF files only, to facilitate easier grading and return.

If you are scanning, resolution of 100dpi has been good enough for exam solutions, so it should be adequate for your assignments. (Resulting smaller files are quicker to upload and download).

If you don't have a scanner, take pictures with your phone, and try to lay the assignment sheet on a flat surface with good lighting. Use a lower resolution setting for the camera, to reduce final file size. Then use an app to bundle the pictures into a PDF. Some phones have native support for this, for others you can download a free app. Here are some that have been recommended to me: default notes app on the iPhone, Adobe Scan, Tiny Scanner, CamScanner, Notebloc.

Additional instructional hours: will most likely take the form of Zoom sessions in the late afternoon or evening for the purpose of discussing homework. They will not be mandatory, although, from past experience, many people will find them useful. We will have to find a time that will suit the most people.