Discussion and Laboratory Syllabus

ASTR 2310

Discussion and Laboratory Syllabus

TA Contact Information:

Shannon HallEmail: Office Hours: W – 1:00 pm

R – 12:00 pm

Labs

Labs will be worth 25% of your course grade. Even while working in groups each individual will submit his or her own lab. I will take off points if phrases are copied word for word from a lab partner. Labs from the previous week are due before the following lab begins. To complete a lab report, answer the questions in the lab and do any analysis discussed therein. There will be no allotted times to make up a lab. Instead one lab will be worth extra credit if all labs are turned in. Labs will be from 7:00pm to 9:00pm in PS133.

Submissions

When you arrive at lab your lab packet from the previous week must be complete and ready to turn in. Labs should be legible, neatly organized, stapled, and free of raggedy or torn edges. Be advised that this will require some preparation prior to your arrival in class due to the lack of scissors/stapler in the lab. If these expectations are not met, labs will not be accepted. Late submissions will also not be accepted. Your work is expected to be of high quality. When answering questions in the labs give full answers. Technically “yes” and “no” are full sentences but I would like explanations with these answers. If you used an external resource (encouraged) please note where you found your information (page number of a textbook, website, etc.). You may also attach an extra page to include a graph or further explanation but please note on the lab to “see the attached page.”

Discussion

Discussion sessions give you the opportunity to work through specific problems in small and large groups. It is meant to be very interactive. Current physics education research shows that this is the best way to learn. We will have discussion at 3:00pm and 4:00pm in room PS234. I think you will find with the first week that it is worthwhile to attend.

Homework

Homework will be turned in at the beginning of class on Thursday.I will return it promptly the next week in discussion. Late homework will not be accepted. It should be legible, neatly organized, stapled, and free of raggedy or torn edges. The questions should be laid out neatly with listed known values at the beginning of the problem, a diagram, equations reworked in variable format before plugging in values, dimensional analysis, and finally your boxed answer. Points will be deducted if you fail to meet the formatting requirements. Please see the attached page for an example of how I would like every problem to look. As with labs, no late homework will be accepted, but extra credit will be given to one homework if you do all of them.

Questions and Concerns

If you have any questions about the material, will miss a discussion or lab, or have any other questions or concerns please feel free to contact me through email or my office hours.