Welcome to our Calculus Learning Community.  A great deal of time and effort has gone into preparing for your participation and success in this course.  Together we hope to create a true community of learners and educators who will provide the support and encouragement needed for every member of the community to succeed. 

The Resource Center, in room 3232 and 7117, is equipped with many computers for your use.  The Center has been set up with your learning goals in mind.  It is hoped that you will feel at home here, and that you will feel that it is a comfortable place for you to go to study for Calculus, as well as for your other courses.   Our small rooms provide space for individual study, or small group study.  Our larger meeting room is ideal for review sessions with peer tutors.

The Center has three tutors devoted to helping you with your Calculus questions and with your online assignments.   Your professor’s office is very close to the Resource Center, and she will be very happy to help you with  questions during office hours.

Cooperative Learning techniques will be used in the classroom.  These techniques have helped many students find greater academic success.  In addition, students who are exposed to Cooperative Learning techniques learn valuable team skills that employers actively seek.  The rationale for this learning style is to provide students with the opportunity for higher level learning and understanding by actively participating in a cooperative learning group environment fostering teamwork, communication and problem solving skills.

Mathematica is a powerful mathematical program for which the Resource Center has purchased access for our students.  It is a valuable tool that helps clarify mathematical topics, and that leads students to a deeper understanding of the concepts of Calculus.  Many engineers use Mathematica in the workplace.  Familiarity with this program, as a student, could prove valuable as you move to the workforce in the future.  You will learn the basics of using Mathematica, in step-by-step labs designed especially for you, the beginner.

 My Math Lab is another exciting feature of our Calculus Learning Community.  This is an online classroom provided by the Addison Wesley Publishing Company, and it supports our supplementary text, Thomas’ Calculus – Early Transcendental.  My Math Lab, which will be referred to as MML, is rich with learning aides.  MML contains videos clips of instructors explaining many of the sections in the text.  The entire textbook is available online; text, as well as homework exercises.  The homework problems are linked to tutorial problems that will lead you step-by-step to a better understanding of the homework problems you are trying to solve.  The answers to odd numbered problems are also online. 

Required quizzes that your professor has made available for practice and mastery of the material are available in MML.  The publisher has also provided extra quizzes and practice problems that are not required, but which you may choose to do for extra practice.  All of these problems are algorithmically driven, which means that the examples are different every time you access them.  It is virtually impossible to run out of practice material.  MML provides an online grade book for the grades earned on required quizzes, as well as individual study plans for each student based on the grades earned on quizzes.  seq Text_Box  \* Arabic1

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MML also has links to helpful and informative websites.  In addition, it has capabilities for a group online bulletin board, e-mail links for everyone in the community, individual home pages, and more.

The Addison –Wesley Tutor Center in My Math Lab provides live tutoring for the odd-numbered exercises in your book.  Click the link under COURSE DOCUMENT online in MML, or contact the Tutor Center directly for help:  call:  1-888-777-0463, or FAX: 1-877-262-9774, email:  totor@as.com.  When asked for your special access code, please provide the Course ID for your MML course found above.

To register in MML, you will need a personal access code and the class access code listed in the table above.   Log onto the MML website, www.mymathlab.com and follow online directions.   Use of My Math Lab requires several downloads which are available the MML website.  

FINDING YOUR WAY AROUND IN MY MATH LAB:

If you go to the home page in My Math Lab, you will see an outline below the MDCC logo.  Each item in the outline is a folder.  If the folder is closed, it has a + sign next to it.  When you click on the + sign, it changes to a – sign, and it expands to show you what is in that “folder.”  

Many of the items, like the quizzes assigned by your professor, the videos, the multimedia textbook, and the practice problems are under COURSE DOCUMENTS.  This folder will probably be open when you enter the home page, and will, therefore, have a – sign next to it.  This folder contains most of the items you will be looking for.  These items are sometimes folders within the COURSE COMPASS FOLDER.  Simply click on the + sign on a folder within COURSE COMPASS to expand it.  For example, if you click on the + sign next to Chapter 1, you will see:  Tests Assigned by My Instructor, My Chapter Grade Book, My Chapter Study Plan, and Chapter Quizzes (provided by Addison Wesley).  Then you will see section numbers, such as, 1.1 Rates of Change and Limits.  If you click on the + sign next to this folder, you will see:  Video, Multimedia Text Book, Tracked Exercises (grade will go into your grade book for these, but will not be counted for credit by your professor), and Practice End of Section Exercises (the actual homework page from the Thomas text from which  your homework is taken.  Answers are also available.  Look for them below the list of sections.)   If you place your mouse over any of these titles and click, you will be taken directly to the site.  For example, if you click on multimedia textbook, you will see the text exactly as it looks in section 1.1.   The CHAPTER STUDY GUIDE is an excellent review of the chapter.  Click your way around until you feel comfortable in MML.  It’s easy and it’s fun. 

 80%  Three (3) classroom tests, and a required comprehensive final exam:     

            1   Tests may consist of multiple-choice questions and questions that require that all work be  

                  shown.

            2    There are no make-ups. 

            3    If you miss a test, the final exam will count twice replacing the missed grade.

            4    If your final exam grade is higher than any of your 5 chapter tests, the lowest grade will drop and                    the final exam will count twice replacing the lowest grade.

            5    If your final exam grade is lower than any of your chapter tests, it will only count once.

 6  If you know in advance that you have to miss a test, you may be able to arrange to take a test               early.  You must make an appointment with the instructor well in advance to take a test earlier           than your class.

             7   The law prohibits me from giving any grades over the phone or by e-mail.

                  Final grades are available on Star Service starting at 11PM on the Saturday after final exams.

 10%  My Math Lab Quizzes; 

1.       There is one quiz assigned by your professor in MML for each lesson covered in each chapter.

2.       You will be given two attempts and unlimited time to take these quizzes.  Only the better grade of the two attempts will be used in the quiz average.  If you take a quiz only once, that grade will be counted.  If you do not attempt a particular quiz, the grade for that quiz will be zero.

3.       You may use your book or your notes while taking these quizzes.    

   5%   Satisfactory Completion of Mathematica Labs:

             1.   You may seek help with your labs from the tutors in the Resource Center.

  5%   Service Learning:

             1.   Assignments will be explained in class.

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 100% 

COURSE GRADING SCALE:

 A:  90 – 100; B:  80 - 89.9; C:  70 - 79.9; D:  60 - 69.9; F:  below 60          

__________________________________________________________________________________

HOMEWORK PARTICIPATION:  All students are expected to complete all homework problems prior to the next class meeting.  If, upon arriving to class, there are homework difficulties that cannot be quickly resolved by the members of the groups, students should put the page number and problem number on the front board.   If any student knows how to do a problem in question, s/he shall put the solution to the problem on the board.  Please indicate the page number, problem number, and your name on the board.  Begin this procedure prior to your professor’s arrival and continue through to the completion of the attendance roll.  Of course, it is hoped that the solution you present on the board is correct.  However, you will not be penalized for a reasonable but incorrect attempt at a solution. 

CHEATING:  Any student found cheating, will receive an F for the course.  If the student subsequently withdraws from the course, your professor will issue forms to have the W changed to an F on the student’s transcript.

ATTENDANCE:  Roll will be taken at the beginning of every class.  It is the student's responsibility to attend each class and to pick up any handouts, and also to find out the date of each exam. Test dates on the syllabus are tentative. 

Please be prompt.  Late arrivals are very disturbing to your professor and disruptive to fellow students.  You should plan to leave enough time to allow for traffic, parking, inclement weather, etc.  If you must leave a class early, please advise your professor before class begins. 

INSTRUCTOR DROPS:  Approximately 6 weeks into the term, your professor will purge her class roll of non-attending students.  This is a college requirement.  No-shows or students with 2 consecutive unexcused absences will be dropped from the course. This may jeopardize your full time, scholarship, or financial aid status.  You are advised not to count on this process if you wish to drop a course. It is the student’s responsibility to drop a course before the drop deadline if s/he wishes to receive a grade of w.

TEST ADMINISTRATION:  No one may leave the room once they have begun taking an exam.   If a student leaves the room during an exam, your professor will collect the test and grade the test as a completed exam.  The test will not be returned to the student for completion when they return to the room.

BEEPERS AND CELLULAR PHONES:  Beepers and cell phones must be turned off at all times when the student is in the classroom.

STUDY TIME:  You should spend a minimum of two to three hours studying outside of class for each hour of lecture.  It is important that each homework problem be completed before the next class.  Save your old tests and completed review sheets to study for the final exam.  It is better to study math a little bit each day, than to cram in marathon study sessions twice a week.

OFFICE HOURS:   Your professor urges you to avail yourself of her individual instruction during office hours.  Do not wait until you are in trouble.  If you have been absent or late to class, please read the lesson you missed and come to the office prepared with questions. 

STUDENT PROGRESS:  There is ample support for each student through the facilities of the Resource Center, My Math Lab, and your professor’s office hours.  Each student who has met the prerequisite, and who puts forth an honest effort in completing the required work should be able to succeed in this course.  Your professor feels that it is her role to act as a facilitator in helping each student achieve success.                   

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Dr. Pavlov Rameau can be reached at:

or at the Foundation for the Advancement of Higher Education, Inc. FAdHiEd: To help all people reach their highest potential!
Send mail to rameaup@fiu.edu with questions or comments about this web site.  Copyright © 2003-07 Pavlov Rameau, Ph.D.  All rights reserved.  The opinions expressed on this site do not necessarily reflect those of Florida International University.   They are Dr. Rameau's and should be interpreted with the sense of humor that is at their source.   Copies, links and references to other authors are protected under the "educational purpose" section of the U.S. copyright laws.  Last automatically updated 09/12/2010 10:48:33 AM. 
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