Saint Michael's College
Calculus 211A
Fall 2006
Instructor: Joanna Ellis-Monaghan (please call me Jo) Office:
E-Mail: jellis-monaghan@smcvt.edu
Phone: 654-2660
Office Hours:
Office Hours: For course
questions--11:20-11:45 in
Text: Calculus, Early Transcendentals,
5th Edition,
by Stewart. One of the major goals of this course is learning to read
mathematics, i.e. to be able to understand and apply the definitions and
theorems presented. Read your text repeatedly and in detail! There
are on-line student resources for the text available at http://www.brookscole.com/cgi-wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid=M20b&discipline_number=1&product_isbn_issn=0534393217
Class Web
Page/e-college: The 'point of entry' for this class is eCollege at www.smcvtonline.org.
I will post class communications here (a copy of this handout for example).
There are also links to the in-class demonstrations, as well as your Maple
labs. I will also use this page to notify you in the case of class
cancellation, homework hints, answers to frequently asked project questions, or
grade postings. You need to check it regularly. You can also find direct
links to the class material from my home page at http://academics.smcvt.edu/jellis-monaghan/
(click on 'Courses'). I also archive past courses here, and these can
be a valuable resource.
Calculator: Since we will be using Maple, you
do not need a fancy calculator for this class. Depending on the
technology available, you will either be able to use Maple on tests, or a very
simple, non-graphing, calculator, i.e. one with trig functions, e, p, ln, log, and exponents, but nothing fancier. No graphing or symbolic
calculators may be used on tests. If
you bring one, you will be asked to leave the room until you have an acceptable
one. You are
likely to need the instruction manual that comes with your calculator--don't
throw it out!
Study groups: You may form your own study group
(2-4 people) or wait for me to assign you to one. You are encouraged to
study/work together—prepare for exams, discuss homework and Maple labs,
but each person must turn in individual work.
Homework: There are two types of homework
sets for this class: Study and Challenges. The study problems are graded
collectively and are due the class period after the material is covered. You
will be allowed to drop the your 4 lowest grades on the study problem
sets. The study problems are representative of the kinds of questions you
can expect to be asked on an inclass test. You should practice them until you
can do such problems without looking at the book or your notes. There is a
study guide on reserve at the library. Challenges are in-depth problems
designed to stretch and deepen your understanding of the material. You are encouraged
to work on these in your study groups. The challenge problems will be
individually graded and collected at the end of each chapter.
Homework must conform to
the following:
Maple: Maple is a Computer Algebra System
(CAS) and an indispensable computational and visualization tool. You will
use it in almost every math course at St. Mike's, and will find it useful in
other disciplines as well. There will be several comprehensive Maple labs throughout this course.
Notebook: You should keep a careful notebook containing class
and text notes, formula lists, sample problems, homework, corrected tests,
etc. A complete, well-organized notebook is vital as you will be able to use
your notebook to compile a single sheet of notes to use on each hour test, and
four sheets for the final.
Take-home preparation
tests: There will
be two such tests, one given 9/29, due 10/18, and one given 11/15 and due 11/28.
Midterm test: There will be a cumulative midterm
on Tuesday, 10/24.
Midterm Project: We will be exploring the seashell morphology in this
class. Details to follow.
Final Exam: The exam will be 1:00-3:30 am on Tueday,
December 12. The
final will be cumulative, with emphasis on chapter 16.
Grading: Regular homework--15%, Maple
labs--12%, Midterm project--17%, take home test average --17%, midterm
exam--17%, final exam--22%.