Grading
Your grade will be computed according to the following scheme:
Problem sets and quizzes:
Each midterm exam:
Final exam:
30%
20%
30%
Exams will be curved but problems sets will not. In assigning the final letter grade, in addition to considering your numerical scores from each graded component of the course, I will adhere to the following guidelines:
Grades at Wellesley College are described in the Articles of Government as follows:
(a) Grade A is given to students who meet with conspicuous excellence every demand which can fairly be made by the course.
(b) Grade B is given to those students who add to the minimum of satisfactory attainment excellence in not all, but some of the following: organization, accuracy, originality, understanding, insight.
(c) Grade C is given to those students who have attained a satisfactory familiarity with the content of a course and who have demonstrated ability to use this knowledge in a satisfactory manner.
(d) Grade D is a passing grade.
(e) Grade F denotes failure and loss of credit for the course.
Here are more details about each component of the grade:
Problem sets:
The homework can be found on the assignments page. If the material we cover follows a textbook, you are responsible for doing the exercises from each section as it is covered in class. Every Friday, you will turn in the problems from sections covered the previous week (I will tell you precisely what to turn in each time). Problems sets are due by 5 pm and you can leave them in the envelope in the box on my door (or you can give them to me in class). You will be graded on the content, but also in large part on clarity and presentation, and will be expected to follow the guidelines from this document.
You are allowed to turn in any two homework assignments except the last one late, and they have to be turned in on the due date of the next assignment (so this usually means that you can turn in late assignments one week later than their original due date). Subsequent late homeworks will not be accepted.
It is very important that you keep up with the assigned work since the exams will be based on homework problems. Each homework assignment will contain some problems of the sort you have not seen before (i.e. of the sort not done in class or worked out in the textbook). The reason is that the best measure of a good grasp of new material is an ability to apply it in new situations, and problems that look unfamiliar at first glance are meant to test this.
An important note about homework collaboration and the Honor Code: You are welcome to work with your classmates (or tutors from the helproom when there is someone there able to help you with the mateiral) when solving homework problems. In the event that you have taken notes while working with someone else, you must put these notes away and recreate the solutions on your own as you write them up for submission. Using notes from a collaboration while writing up your homework assignment will be considered a violation of the Honor Code. In addition, you may NOT consult a written solution to a problem you are working on (whether it be online or in a book). Breaches in the Honor Code in any aspect of the course will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the college legislation. If you have any questions about this policy, please talk to me.
Two 20-minute quizzes will be given before each midterm exam, on Thursday, March 7 and Thursday, April 11. They will contain 3-4 problems that will be much like the ones you will encounter on the midterms. The idea is to give you practice with solving exam-like problems under a time constraint. Each problem will count as much as a homework problem (and will thus account for very little of your final grade).
There will be two in-class midterms. They will take place on Thursday, March 14 and Thursday, April 18. More detail about the midterms will be given later.
The final will be self-scheduled.
Quizzes:
Midterm exam:
Final exam: