NorthWest Arkansas Community College Spring 2008

Division of Science and Mathematics First Day Handout /Syllabus

Course: Math 2053, Finite Mathematics, WWW Credit Hours: 3 credit hours for transfer

Prerequisite: Math 1204, College Algebra, with a grade of C or better, or appropriate placement scores.

Instructor: Tracy Vaughan Office: MAT 01 Office Phone: (479) 986-6920

e-mail: Web Site: http://faculty.nwacc.edu/tvaughan

Math Department Secretary: Jill Witt, MAT 06, (479) 986-6900

Office Hours: Monday: 8:30 – 9:00 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. – 2:15 p.m.

Tuesday and Thursday: 8:45 – 10:40 a.m.

Wednesday: 8:45 – 9:00 and 11:45 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Friday: 8:30 – 9:00 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. – 12 p.m.

I will hold additional online office hours. Though these vary from day to day, I will check my e-mail at least once a day Monday through Friday (except Spring Break) and respond as promptly as possible (typically within 24 hours except on the weekends). If you send an e-mail and don’t hear back from me within 48 hours, please resend your message as I may not have received it. Please include your name and which class you are enrolled in within your e-mail.

Course Description:

A survey and applications course in mathematics designed for business, life science and social science students. Topics include a review of using a graphing utility, linear models, systems of linear equations, matrices, linear programming, the simplex method, set theory, probability, counting principles, statistics, and finance mathematics.

General Course Objectives:

Upon successful completion of this course students should exhibit mastery of certain knowledge and basic skills. These skills include, but are not be limited to:

1. Solving standard linear programming problems graphically and by using the Simplex Method.

2. Using Crown’s Rule to solve nonstandard linear programming problems.

3. Calculating future and/or present value for simple and compound interest and ordinary annuities.

4. Calculating payments to a sinking fund

5. Calculating the APR for a given interest rate.

6. Finding the amount of a loan payment and the number of payments to retire a loan.

7. Performing set operations and formulating, interpreting, and applying Venn diagrams.

8. Using basic counting techniques including the multiplication principle, permutations, and

combinations.

9. Computing probabilities, including conditional probabilities; calculating odds and expected values; and

applying Bayes’ Theorem.

10.  Organizing data; creating frequency distributions and histograms; and computing measures of central

tendency and dispersion.

11. Using the standard normal curve to find probabilities.

Text/Required Materials

Textbook: Finite, An Applied Approach, third edition, by Young, Lee, Long and Graening. Publisher Addison

Wesley, 2004.

Course Compass access code: This course uses MyMath Lab which is run through Course Compass (we do NOT use WebCT). To access the course you will need a Course Compass access code which can either be purchased with a new text (make sure you ask when purchasing your text) or it can be purchased separately either through the bookstore or online at www.coursecompass.com

Please note that through your online course you will have access to an online version of the text. It is up to you to decide whether you need the hardbound copy of the text or if the online version will be sufficient.

Graphing Calculator: This course will require the use of a graphing calculator. I recommend the TI-82, TI-83, or TI-84. TI-89, TI-92 or comparable calculators are not allowed. You may rent a TI-82 for the semester. To do this you need to go to the cashier’s window and pay a $15 rental fee. You must then bring your receipt and driver’s license to Jill Witt in MAT 06 and she will assign a calculator to you.

For equality purposes, I reserve the right to require that you clear your calculator of unapproved formulas and programs before each exam. I may randomly check to see that this is done. Remember, the use of a calculator should enhance the mathematics, not replace it. The process of obtaining a solution is many times more important for our purposes than the answer itself. Keep this in mind while doing homework as well as when taking quizzes or exams. I will assign partial credit on exams only when appropriate supporting work is shown.

Software Component

We will use the MyMathLab software in this course for doing homework assignments, taking tests, and using the discussion boards. There are more components of the software available to you that you are welcome to take advantage of. The three listed above are the ones that I require. The student support number for MyMathLab is 1-800-677-6337. Please let me know if you are having technical difficulties, but to get help for the problem call the support line.There is a great on-line orientation source at http://www.aw-bc.com/orientation/math.html. Go to this website and check out the links:

Getting Started with MyMathLabl Features of MyMathLab; Registering for MyMathLab

Otherwise, for instructions on getting started with MyMathLab, go to www.coursecompass.com and follow the instructions for student registration. The access code mentioned is in your new text and the course id for our course is VAUGHAN69916. If you have any trouble with this process, please contact me immediately. Once you are registered look for the first discussion board thread and let’s get started

Note: It is very important that you go through the Installation Wizard found under the COURSE INFORMATION link on your course page. Failure to do so will result in you not being able to access parts of your course.

Grading

Note: The grade ranges below are definitive. I do not round or curve. If you need a particular grade, please make

sure you earn at least the minimum number of points required to receive that grade. For example, 419 total points earns a grade of D, 539 points earns a B, etc.

A = 540 – 600 pts, B = 480 – 539 pts, C = 420 – 479 pts, D = 360 – 419, F = 0 – 359 pts

Allocation of Points

Your grade in this course will be based on the following:

Overall Homework Grade 50 pts

Quiz Grade (Best 10 at 15 points each) 100 pts

2 exams at 125 points each 150 pts

Final Exam 200 pts

Total points 600 pts

Discussion Board and Announcements

Announcements can be viewed on the MyMathLab homepage as soon as you enter your course. You are required to check this at least two or three times a week as I may post information about exams and other important items on these announcements.

You are not required to post to the discussion board any certain number of times. However, I will often post course information on the weekly forum and you need to check the discussion a couple times each week for information. Please feel free to post questions to each other and to me on the discussion board. I will, however, usually let a fellow student field a question on the discussion board, if possible. If you have a question for me, personally, please e-mail me. If it is a question about a particular homework problem, hit the “E-mail my Instructor” button. You can access the Discussion Board using the Communication button on the left side of your MyMath Lab course.

Discussion Board Rules: Always be courteous to your fellow posters. No foul language or rude or discourteous behavior will be tolerated. This is our “class discussion” forum so we will treat each other with respect and courtesy. If someone does not adhere to this policy he or she will be banned from discussion. And remember, if you have a homework question for the teacher, it will be more expeditious for you to use the “E-mail my Instructor” button on your homework page.

Homework Grade

You will have assignments from 26 sections of the text. Each assignment is done on computer, turned in electronically, and graded automatically through the MyMathLab program. Each assignment has a corresponding deadline designed to keep you on track to be prepared for quizzes and exams. You may resubmit your homework if you are not satisfied with your grade. You may submit your homework as many times as you like and it will be available for resubmission even after the deadline has passed. After May 1 homework will no longer be accepted for submission. Your overall homework grade will be worth a maximum of 50 points.

To access the homework, click on the Course Documents link on the left side of your screen and then on the link under “Homework Assigned by My Instructor. Remember to submit often. Even if you have not completed the whole assignment it is a good idea to submit at least once each time you work on homework. If you don’t submit there is no record of you having worked on an assignment. If you are reworking homework problems to study for a test, make sure you follow the directions about how to either work to change your grade or not, whichever is appropriate.

Quizzes

We will have 12 quizzes worth 10 points each. These will not have to be taken at an approved proctor site. They will be graded automatically through the MyMathLab program and will NOT be assigned partial credit. There will be a corresponding deadline and time limit for each quiz. You may take each quiz up to 3 times before the deadline. I strongly recommend that you take your quizzes as early as possible. Waiting until the last minute may result in an inability to submit your quiz if you then have technical difficulty. Only your best score for each quiz will be considered for your overall grade and I will count only your best 10 quiz scores in calculating your final grade in the course. There will be no make-ups on these quizzes. If for any reason you are unable to take a quiz before the deadline you will receive a grade of 0 for that quiz.

To access the quizzes click on the Course Documents link on the left side of your screen then click on the “Tests Assigned by My Instructor link and then the appropriate quiz link. Notice that each quiz has a time limit and must be completed within that amount of time.

Please practice writing down all work done on homework and quizzes so that you will be prepared to show your work on exams.

Exams

Two exams and a final exam are taken online but must be taken in an approved proctored test site. The final exam will be comprehensive with review material from the first two exams and new material covered after Exam #2. For each exam there are corresponding time limits and deadlines. Furthermore, exams may be taken only once. Partial credit above what is given by the computer may be awarded on the 125 point exams and the final exam. To receive partial credit you must show appropriate supporting work. To help encourage you to show your work in order, I will print off “tests” with blanks for you to show your work on each problem. Failure to do so will result in no additional partial credit consideration. All paper used during a test must be turned in to the proctor.

You may not leave the testing room and/or presence of the proctor at any time and return to work on your exam. If you experience a technical difficulty of any sort during an exam, you must report it immediately to the testing personnel. If you leave the testing facility or otherwise wait until the test is over before you report a problem, you have assumed responsibility for that difficulty and the exam score is final. You do NOT get to retake tests.

Please get in the habit of writing out the work that you do on your homework and quizzes because when I ask you to turn in scratch work on your exam the only way I can assign additional partial credit is to be able to grade your work.

NO MAKE-UP EXAMS WILL BE GIVEN FOR ANY REASON. You may take exams anytime prior to the deadline so please, please, please, do not wait until the last minute!! If you take an exam on the late deadline I will NOT regrade for partial credit. You may replace ONE of your 125 point exams with your adjusted final exam score, if it helps your grade. In that way, if you miss an exam (one only) you may replace that grade.

To access the tests click on the Course Documents link on the left side of your screen then click on the “Tests Assigned by My Instructor link and then the appropriate test link. Notice that each test has a time limit and must be completed within that amount of time.

Exam Deadlines:

Exam #1 deadline—Wednesday, February 27

Exam #2 deadline—Thursday, April 10

Final Exam deadline-- Thursday, May 1.

Only formula sheets supplied by the instructor will be allowed on exams

Note: If you are taking your exam in the Testing Center, you need to follow the Center’s policies for setting up exams see the Testing Center schedule at http://www.nwacc.edu/LDC/testingcenter/index.php You will need to check availability and schedule your time appropriately or risk not being able to take an exam.

If you live out of area it is your responsibility to set up testing at an approved testing site and must have my approval at least two weeks before the testing deadline. Particularly, you will need to check with the remote testing site that they will allow you to download the appropriate plug-ins or, if not, ask if they will they receive a faxed or e-mailed copy of the exam.

Extra Credit: You may earn 5 bonus points on each exam by completing the posted reviews for the exam with a score of at least 80%. Furthermore, these reviews must be completed PRIOR to taking the exam to earn the bonus points.