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MATH 241 -- Spring 2007



Instructor:  Heather Finotti

      Office:  Ayres Hall, 303
      Email:  heather@math.utk.edu
      Phone:  974-4302
      Instructor Office Hours:   Mondays & Wednesdays: 9:00-10
                                            

                          


Lecture:  MWF 2:30-3:20, Ayres 129(Section 2)
                  MWF 3:35-4:35, Ayres 216 (Section 6)
          


Text:  Calculus: Concepts and Contexts (edition 3E); James Stewart (author), Thompson Brooks/Cole, 2005.

Class Website:  www.math.utk.edu/~heather/241Math.html

Homework:  Homework will be assigned by each Thursday and will be the focus of the discussions on
indicated Q&A Thursdays  or Fridays (see class calendar).  See homework web page for due dates.  There will be homework quizzes on Thursdays/Fridays (unless otherwise indicated, see  homework page for dates) as well, covering the assigned homework up to that point.


Exams:  (*tentative!)
Midterm 1:  Thursday, Jan 25
Midterm 2:  Monday, February 19

Midterm 3:  Friday, March 9
Midterm 4:  Friday, April 13

Final Exam: 
(2:30 pm Section) Thursday May 3, 5 pm
(3:35 pm Section) Wednesday May 2, 5 pm


Grading Scheme:
   
    Homework -- 20% 
    Midterm1 -- 15% 
    Midterm2 -- 15%
    Midterm3 -- 15%  
    Midterm4 -- 15%
    Final -- 20%
 

One homework quiz will be dropped. If your final exam score is higher than your lowest midterm score, the average of the final exam score and lowest midterm score will replace the lowest midterm score.

There will be 10 reading quizzes given randomly within the first two-thirds of the semester. These reading quizzes will be 1 point each and will count as extra credit toward your final exam score. My intention with these reading quizzes is to help you keep up with reading the appropriate section before coming to class (the class calendar shows which sections will be covered in any given lecture). They will not test understanding, but will serve to indicate whether or not you read the section or not. Research shows that reading the text before seeing the material presented in class can have an enormous effect on retention and understanding.

   
The grading scheme reflects my teaching philosophy.   True learning and mastery of material is an internal process, not something anyone can give to you or do for you.  Homework and time spent reading  (and rereading) and digesting the material  is essential to knowledge of the material.   So, the homework quiz score has the same weight as any exam.

Working in groups on homework sets can certainly be beneficial, however do your final homework writeups in your own words,  preferably alone.   If you attempt this and find you cannot in the end do the sets on your own, take this not as a sign of defeat, but a mere indication that there is still something that you need to learn in order to really understand the material.  Whether you seek help from me, fellow classmates, or from rereading the text is up to you, just don't give up!  Often the only difference between the students who score well and those who don't is a refusal to give up.