Prof. Keely's Math Online Web ~ Clark College, Vancouver WA |
This is a vital document, a contract between student and instructor.
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 | Refer to your INDIVIDUAL CLASS SYLLABUS (linked from your class
website) for class-specific information. That document along with this one make up the complete course syllabus. | ||||||||||
| Instructor information:
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| Course Requirements, Procedures, and Policies:
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| Distance Learning:
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| Supporting Information:
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Professor: Sally Keely, M.S., C.O.I. (Certified Online Instructor)
E-mail address: skeely@clark.edu
Phone (360) 992-2509
FAX (360) 992-2866 (Include my name, your name, and your course number.)
Online office hours: See web.clark.edu/skeely/contact.htm for schedule.
Campus office (BHL 138) hours: See web.clark.edu/skeely/contact.htm for schedule.
My math help
session (BHL 107) hours: See
web.clark.edu/skeely/contact.htm for schedule.
We will accomplish the specific course objectives through classroom demonstrations utilizing symbolic, numeric, and graphical methods of problem solving and interactive group discussions that improve conceptual understanding. This team approach will allow our class to be a collaborative learning community where you will actively engage in the learning experience. My role is to facilitate your learning through guided discovery in a challenging meaningful atmosphere. I am not here to teach at you, I am here to help you learn.
I love math! It is fun, exciting, aesthetically beautiful, and intriguingly vital. Thinking mathematically helps you to analyze and solve problems in an organized logical manner. I hope through this course you will improve your critical thinking skills and come to appreciate the usefulness of mathematics in your own life.
You must logon to Blackboard and complete the mandatory first-day online class orientation in your online math course by 11:59 pm on the first day of class. Failure to meet this deadline may result in your being withdrawn from the class or replaced by a waitlisted student under Clark's first week "no-show" attendance policy (see below). Read Mandatory First-day Class Orientation for detailed information.
Waitlisted students: The waitlist is operated by the registration department and eliminated on the evening of the second day of class. Through that time, if a registered student drops the class, the top person on the waitlist gets automatically enrolled. Registration will not inform you promptly. It is YOUR responsibility to check your waitlist status daily (click "waitlist status at registration dept's waitlist FAQs). If you are nearing the top of the waitlist, email me for modified orientation directions so that you won't be as behind once enrolled. If you are moved into the class, contact me by email that same day. Usually you will not get access to Blackboard until the following morning so we will have to arrange extended deadlines. If you fail to post to class on the day that you first get Blackboard access, you will be dropped as a no-show. On the morning of the third day of class I may offer spots to students who have completed the modified orientation as space permits. No permission to add will be granted after this time (in part because of the delay in getting new adds rolled into the Blackboard system) even if you have been on the waitlist.
I abide by the Clark's first week "no-show" attendance policy which states, "Students who fail to attend one or more sessions during the first five days of the quarter may be dropped from the class." It is very important to be visible in class every day this first week. To avoid being withdrawn under this policy you must post one message to any of the class discussion boards on each of the first four days of the class. Failure to do so may result in your being withdrawn from the class without notice. The official statement is available at www.clark.edu/admissions_fin_aid/registration/attendance_enrollment.php.
Attendance on Blackboard is required a minimum of three days each week. To be in attendance for the day you must logon to BB and read the discussion boards. For each week that you fail to meet this three-day attendance rule your final course grade may be reduced by one-third of a letter grade (e.g. from a B to a B-).
Online presence (posting to the discussion boards) is vital to the success of the class. For each two weeks (one week in a 5-week summer class) that you fail to post any messages to the "main classroom" discussion board your final course grade may be reduced by one-third of a letter grade (e.g. from a B to a B-).
If for two consecutive weeks (one week in a 5-week summer class) you fail to post any substantive messages to the "main classroom" discussion board your access to some class materials may be blocked. To have access restored you may need to conference with me, write a self-assessment, and/or participate in an improvement plan. From that point on you are considered "on probation" and access to class materials can be revoked at any time without notice.
This course is packed with material and activities. It requires your daily attention and online participation. Be an active participant! Don't procrastinate!
Refer to the course calendar (it is your guide to the course), read the online lecture notes, read a section in the online multimedia textbook, work daily practice problems (preferably the tracked tutorial exercises online). complete a graded assignment or discussion question, participate on the "main classroom" discussion board where you discuss math with your classmates/instructor, and investigate supplemental websites if needed.
Before "coming" to class you should:
- review and improve your recent class notes
- check the course calendar for the day's readings,
assignments, and deadlines
- read the section from the textbook assigned for the
day
- work through the accompanying online lecture notes and
explore any included hyperlinks
Online class participation is a major part of your overall grade (6 points per week). The success of this course is reliant on the interactivity on the MAIN CLASSROOM discussion board. Much of the learning in our online classroom occurs through discussions on this board. For full class participation points you must actively participate on the "main classroom" discussion board throughout the week. It is strongly recommended that you login to the class discussion boards and get caught up on the postings at least every other day. Note: participation points are earned for posts to the "main classroom" board only; posts to the other boards do not earn participation points.
To earn the full 6 participation points for the week you must post to the "MAIN CLASSROOM" discussion board:
a. (0-2 pts) QUALITY: at least one substantive message plus at least one mathematically substantive message,
b. (0-3 pts) QUANTITY: a total of at least three messages, and
c. (0-1 pt) FREQUENCY: on at least two different days of that week not all lumped within a single 24-hour period and with at least one being on a weekday*.
A substantive message is one that is relevant to the class, thorough, well-thought out, professional, and articulate. To be considered substantive your comments must be from your own understanding, in your own words, and advance the discussion significantly. Substantive messages may involve building on other's comments, suggesting alternative solutions, pointing out obstacles, and even at times, constructively disagreeing. Substantive postings are expected to be at least three sentences long. Messages that basically say "I agree", "Me too", or "Thanks", or those that ask "How do you do #15?" without including the steps you have tried so far are not considered substantive.
A mathematically substantive message is a substantive message that also includes complete mostly-accurate mathematical steps such as solving a problem with all work shown along with explanations to justify the steps. Essentially duplicating a previously posted solution is not considered mathematically substantive.
Logistic ("Where is the assignment?"), technical ("How do I download ..."), or social messages ("Happy Birthday!") will not count toward class participation or online presence in any manner. Labeling a message as "substantive", "mathematically substantive", "logistic", "technical", "social", or otherwise is solely at my discretion. See FAQs - categorizing posts for more information.
No attachments! Work should be shown in the body of the message and not in an attachment. Embedded graphics are fine, but attached files may not earn participation points at my discretion. See FAQs - attachments for more information.
* Definitions: When grading participation a "day" is from 12:00 am to 11:59 pm, a "week" is from 12:00 am Sunday morning to 11:59 pm on the following Saturday evening, and a "weekday" is from 12:00 am Monday morning to 11:59 Friday evening (except in math 107 and all summer term classes which are considered M-Th classes so Friday is considered a "weekend" day). The last day CPR points can be earned is Saturday of week 10 (Thursday of the last week in summer classes) or the "last day of ___ quarter classes" (as published by the Clark College Registrar) whichever comes first.
Discussion questions will be posted to the "weekly assignment central" (W.A.C.) discussion board biweekly (weekly in summer 5-wk classes). Your original response to the DQ must be substantive and is worth 75% of the points possible for that DQ (including content, spelling, and grammar). To earn the remaining 25% of the points you must respond substantively to at least one other person's post within 24 hours of the DQ due date/time. Spelling and grammar count on DQs! LATE dqs earn zero credit.
Graded assignments will be posted to the "weekly assignments central" (W.A.C.) discussion board biweekly (weekly in summer 5-wk classes). Follow the specific submission requirements posted there. In most cases you are free to collaborate with your classmates or seek help from a tutor, but the work you turn-in must be from your own understanding. These assignments may entail working on a small group project with your classmates. In that case, individuals who do not actively participate with the group or do not substantively contribute to the assignment in a timely manner will not receive credit at my discretion. Spelling and grammar count on Assignments! LATE assignments earn zero credit.
Worksheets with (sometimes challenging!) practice problems may be made available approximately once per topic/chapter. In some classes these are optional practice problems that can be discussed freely on the "main classroom" discussion board and in some classes worksheets may be used as a graded assignment.
Each day you should work daily practice problems. Although these are not required to be turned in and do not earn direct points, you should work practice problems diligently every day to succeed in the course. See FAQs - homework for further info.
You can choose which source of problems to work depending on the sources to which you have access and how you best learn. I recommend that you work the tracked tutorial exercises (online in MyMathLab, Cengage, WebAssign, etc.) and take advantage of their self-help features such as "help me solve this". But students with a hard copy text may prefer to work the end of section text exercises instead which is fine! Just be sure that you are working problems (from either source) nearly every day and doing a sufficient number (at least every other problem). If you get stuck on a problem, post your question to the "main classroom" discussion board so a classmate or the professor can assist you. If other students post questions that you can help with, please share your wisdom! See FAQs - TTE for more information about the tracked tutorial exercises.
A weekly or biweekly online quiz covering recent material will be given. Quizzes are worth 10-20 points each. Depending on the class/term, your lowest quiz score(s) may be eliminated and/or you may be able to take the quiz twice (possibly different questions) with only your best score counting. (Quiz rules specific to your class are listed in your course calendar.)
All quizzes will be conducted online using a publisher's online testing system (MyMathLab, Cengage, WebAssign, etc.). Quizzes will be timed (meaning that once you click the link to access the quiz you will only have a certain amount of time to complete it and submit your answers). Quizzes will be accessible for 48 hours and cannot, under any circumstances, be taken outside that window of accessibility. Quizzes may cover material in the text, readings, lecture notes, class postings, and related materials. Quizzes will be primarily short answer or multiple choice and no work will need to be shown.
When taking the quiz, you may refer to the online text, your notes, any other printed resources, and use your grapher, but you absolutely may NOT discuss quiz questions or answers with any human until after the due time! After the due time you may review your quiz and discuss the quiz problems with your classmates in the "Quiz #__ thread" on the main discussion board.
Please refer to your individual class syllabus and FAQs - quiz info for more information about the quizzes.
A mandatory comprehensive final examination is required of all math classes. It is conducted online using the same testing system as the quizzes. The final exam is timed (2 hours), can only be taken once, is accessible for 48 hours only, and cannot be taken outside that window of accessibility. A "final exam information sheet" containing additional details about the final exam will be posted toward the end of the term (see the last week of the class calendar for link).
You will automatically fail the course if you do not take the final exam. If you have a dire emergency that prohibits you from taking the final as scheduled, refer to the final exam information sheet for direction on requesting a make-up exam. Note that I will require written documentation of the emergency or conflict and that I reserve the right to have you take a different possibly harder, longer, and/or oral exam at my convenience or deem your reason unacceptable and refuse to allow you to make-up the exam at all at my discretion.
If you stop attending class prior to the final exam, or if it is impossible for you to earn a D- or higher in the class even if you score 100% on the final exam, then you will not be given access to the final exam.
Regarding all graded work:
- LATE work will earn zero credit
If there is an unusual discrepancy between your ongoing daily work/scores and your quiz/exam work/scores, at my discretion I may require you to take a written and/or oral exam on campus to determine your level of knowledge and understanding of the course content and will then assign revised exam/course grades based on my professional assessment.
On rare occasions in an emergency, you can assure that an
assignment is not posted late by submitting it by an alternative method (such as
by FAX). Please see
FAQs - alternative submission options for more information. You must follow
the directions listed there for credit! (This is a good FAQ to print off and
save for future use.)
Your course grade will be determined by the percentage of the total possible points that you accumulate throughout the course from class participation, DQs, graded assignments, online quizzes, and the final exam. (Please refer to your individual class syllabus for total points possible.) Course grades are calculated by dividing your total points accumulated by the total points possible, rounding decimals down to the nearest whole percent, and assigned according to the following scale:
| 100%-93% A | 92%-90% A- | 89%-87% B+ | 86%-83% B |
| 82%-80% B- | 79%-77% C+ | 76%-73% C | N/A C- |
| 72%-70% D+ | 69%-65% D | 64%-60% D- | 59%-00% F |
Some notes:
If this course is a prerequisite to another math course, you need at least a "'C" to continue onto the next math course and any grade lower than "C" will require you to repeat this course before moving on. Note that I do not assign "C-" grades.
Failing to meet the attendance requirement may impact your final course grade.
Scores will be updated in Blackboard's online gradebook throughout the term. In the case of a grade discrepancy, contact me a.s.a.p. I may need to see documentation to justify a grade change, so keep all your email submissions and graded feedback until after you get your final course grade.
Current grade percents will be available at most three times in a 10-week class, usually: at the beginning of week 7, at the end of week 10, and post-final. Watch for announcements in Blackboard.
Grades are kept confidential between student and instructor. For legal reasons, Clark College will not allow grades to be discussed over the phone, by email, or publicly posted.
If you would prefer I do not send any scores, feedback, or comments regarding your progress in the class via email (for privacy reasons, for instance in case your email account or computer is shared with other family members), please so indicate in the first-day online class orientation form.
If you have extenuating circumstances beyond your control such as an ongoing medical emergency and are unable to complete the course this term, you may see me privately with written documentation to request an incomplete (I-grade). It is you that must initiate the incomplete request, I'm not legally allowed to recommend it. There are potential adverse ramifications (e.g. financial aid) you must consider before requesting an I-grade. And there are certain stringent conditions you must meet including having completed at least 80% of the course with a grade of "C" or higher. I reserve the right to refuse your request.
A = Clearly stands out as excellent performance. Accomplishes far more than the minimum requirements. Has unusually sharp insight into material and initiates thoughtful questions. Integrates ideas previously learned from this and other disciplines. Anticipates next steps in progression of ideas. Rarely makes any mistakes. “A” work is of such a distinguished caliber that it could be put on reserve for all students to review and emulate.
B = Grasps subject matter at a level considered to be very good. Accomplishes more than the minimum requirements. Is an active listener and participant in class discussion. Articulates subject matter well both verbally and in written form. "B" work indicates a high quality of performance and consistently solid work. Earning a "B" should be considered a high grade.
C = Demonstrates a satisfactory comprehension of the subject matter. Accomplishes the minimum course requirements and objectives. Communicates the subject matter at an acceptable level for a college student. Has a generally adequate understanding of all basic concepts. "C" work represents average work and is the most common grade earned.
All work turned in by:
| posting to the discussion boards must be on the correct board, under the required thread, have the appropriate subject line, be substantive in content, and not basically duplicate a previously posted comment. |
| email must have the required subject line and be typed in the body of the message (no attachments). |
| fax must include my name, your name, the course number, and assn title. |
| snail mail or by hand must be on 8.5"x11" paper with your full name legibly written at the top of the first page along with the date, the course number, assn title, and stapled in the upper left hand corner if more than one sheet. |
All work turned-in must:
| be written in a clear organized manner, |
| utilize proper mathematical notation and format, |
| have final answers indicated clearly, |
| be properly labeled and submitted correctly, |
| AND be turned-in on time. |
Work not meeting these requirements may earn zero credit.
This is not an independent study course. The success of this course depends on everyone being an active participant! We are an online learning community - participation is essential if we are to learn with each other. You are expected to read every post on the "main classroom" discussion board and to contribute with frequent substantive messages. We all share the responsibility for the development of the class through interactivity, conversation, and collaboration.
One of the most commonly requested skills that employers ask professors to incorporate into college classes is talking about mathematics and scientific process in small groups. They find those graduates who attain this skill are better critical thinkers and problem solvers, even when the job is non-math related. This is your opportunity to practice these skills in preparation for a team work environment.
Use good threaded discussion "netiquette" such as:
| Focus on one subject or problem per message. |
| Use appropriate clear subject lines. |
| Reply to messages within that thread and start new threads for new topics only. |
| Keep purely social conversations on the student lounge board. |
| Be professional, courteous, constructive, friendly, and supportive. Think before you hit send! |
| Avoid using all caps since it is generally viewed as SHOUTING. |
| Use humor carefully. The absence of face-to-face cues can cause statements to be misinterpreted as criticism or flaming. |
| Using emoticons such as :) or ;-} may help you express your feelings. |
| Flaming (angry, antagonistic criticism) will not be tolerated!!! Let's all treat each other with respect. |
| Give credit where credit is due. Cite all quotes, references, and sources. |
All assignments and assessments have strict deadlines, will not be accepted late, and cannot be made up even in the event of technical difficulties. Technology and the internet do fail sometimes, so, don't procrastinate just in case! See FAQs - tech difficulties. If you are having trouble posting to the discussion board or accessing the materials, get help immediately. Every day you delay may cost you points. The Clark eLearning Department is eager to help with any Blackboard technical problems.
Clark College has identified six college-wide abilities
that form the foundation of our educational emphasis. They are communication,
critical thinking/problem solving, effective citizenship, global/multicultural
awareness, information/technology, and life-long learning. This class will
emphasize:
(A) critical thinking/problem solving,
(B) communication, and
(C) information/technology.
The college has also listed general education outcomes under
the guidelines of these abilities. This course will focus on the quantitative
skills outcomes which are:
(i) comprehend the content and evaluate the quality of quantitative information;
(ii) use appropriate vocabulary and notation of quantitative methods;
(iii) analyze and solve quantitative problems using appropriate methods; and
(iv) interpret and explain solutions to quantitative problems.
Your #1 source of help is each other! Participate on the "main classroom" discussion board regularly. Many students find it extremely helpful to form ongoing study groups. Groups can meet in-person on or off campus or online in the Blackboard's real-time open chat room. Either type of meeting can be arranged via the "student lounge" discussion board.
If you are able to come to campus, there are two drop-in tutoring centers where you can
get free one-on-one assistance with math. Free online tutoring is also
available. See Support Sites for MathOL for details
and schedules. That page also links to graphing calculator help sites.
If you have a disability or medical condition of which I should be aware, please let me know. Any student requiring auxiliary aids, services, or other accommodations should contact the Disability Support Services office at 992-2580 or 992-2835 (TTY) as soon as possible.
Anyone interfering with the educational process is subject to summary removal by the instructor and may be referred to the Dean of Students for disciplinary or other action.
You are expected to conduct yourself with integrity. You must comply with the Clark College Student Rights and Responsibilities Act and the Clark College Student Code of Conduct (www.clark.edu/about_clark/policies/student_code.php). If you cheat, or aid someone else in cheating, you violate a trust and do yourself and the college a disservice.
You WILL NOT:
You WILL:
Failure to abide by these rules or any suspicion of cheating will result in the following actions:
You are expected to treat your classmates, your Professor, and all College employees with respect and professionalism.
I consider this math online syllabus and your individual class syllabus to be contracts between you and I. I agree to abide by all of the policies and procedures contained herein, and by staying in the class, so too do you. If there is anything in either document with which you cannot or will not abide, you should withdraw at once.
Originally written: 2000-05-25
Last revision:
2008-08-04 03:19 PM
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Copyright ©
2000
Sally J. Keely.
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