This course will use the Queen's University's enterprise learning management system OnQ. Visit the OnQ support webpage for details.
Access our OnQ page here.
Students will turn in their problem sets using the collaborative grading platform Crowdmark. Visit the Crowdmark support webpage for details.
The course grade will be based on the following rubric:
20% homework,
20% tests (5% each),
30% December exam,
30% April exam.
There will be three kinds of homework:
Readings are assigned daily, and listed on OnQ under "Content", in our Class Diary. You will be assigned a few pages from the textbook, which you are supposed to read before each lecture to help you understand the concepts. Readings will help you assimilate the concepts faster, and will allow you to ask clarifying questions during the lecture.
Daily exercises are a great opportunity to practice and refine your basic skills. Exercises will be assigned daily, after each lecture, from the textbook, and listed on OnQ under "Content" in our Class Diary. Daily exercises will not be collected or graded.
Problem sets consist of 3 problems each. They are harder than the exercises and may ask you to apply a technique in a mildly novel context, or to combine concepts that you have only seen in isolation. To succeed in the course, it is necessary to put effort into the weekly problem sets. Always make sure that you know the definitions of all the words in the question, have consulted the relevant sections in your class notes and textbook, and spent a significant amount of time thinking about how different concepts in the problem link together. You are strongly encouraged to collaborate with others when working on your homework assignments, but you must write up solutions independently, on your own. In accordance with academic integrity regulations, you must acknowledge in writing the assistance of any students, professors, books, calculators, or software. You will be uploading your solutions on Crowdmark, following the instructions provided here. Each of the three problems must be uploaded to Crowdmark separately. If you upload multiple pages per questions, make sure you submit them in order. Make sure that your final write‐up is clean and clear, shows the detail of your work, and effectively communicates your reasoning to the grader. Do not forget to write your name, student number, and acknowledge in writing the assistance of any students, professor, books, calculators, or software. Problem sets are posted on onQ in PDF format under "Content > Problem Sets" and in our Class Diary. Solutions are due each week on Wednesday by 5:00pm on Crowdmark. Late homework will not be accepted. There are 11 problem sets per semester. Your best ten problem sets from each semester will determine your homework grade (which contributes 20% to your final grade). The first week of the Fall term includes an additional Problem Set #0, with the purpose of familiarize yourself with OnQ and Crowdmark.
There will be four in-class tests, two each semester. Each test will contribute 5% to your final grade. The in-class tests will be fifty (50) minutes long. No textbooks, notes, data sheets, or electronic devices (calculators, cellphones, tablets, etc) may be used during tests. There are no makeups for missed tests. If you miss a test because of exceptional circumstances that are beyond your control and which could not have been foreseen, your test may be excused, provided that the circumstances can be satisfactorily documented. If a religious observance recognized by the University Registrar conflicts with an examination or test, please contact your instructor. To obtain this accommodation you must apply before the test or examination in question. Exemptions cannot be made for any athletic events.
The tests in the Fall term will be on the following dates:
Thursday, October 10, 2019;
Thursday, November 7, 2019.
The tests in the Winter term will be on the following dates:
Wednesday, February 5, 2020;
Wednesday, March 4, 2020.
The first exam will take place in December and will cover the material of the whole Fall term. It will be scheduled by the University Registrar (it could be anytime between December 4 and December 19, 2019, as per the Academic Calendar). Please do not make any December travel plans until the examination schedule is published.
The second exam will take place in April and will cover the material of the whole academic year. It will be scheduled by the University Registrar (it could be anytime between April 9 and April 25, 2020, as per the Academic Calendar). Please do not make any April travel plans until the examination schedule is published.
No textbooks, notes, data sheets, or electronic devices (calculators, cellphones, tablets, etc) may be used during the exams.
Tutorials provide an opportunity to review some of the ideas from class and work on the homework. Although all students are expected to attend at least one tutorial per week, students are welcome to attend both.
Tutorials will take place:
Monday 17:30-16:20 in Ellis Hall 324,
Tuesday 17:30-16:20 in Ellis Hall 324.
Help is available if you have trouble with homework or lecture material. The tutorials (Mondays and Tuesdays from 5:30pm to 6:30pm in Ellis Hall 324) are an excellent place to ask questions. You may also take advantage of the Math Help & Study Centre (in 201 Jeffery Hall) which is staffed by graduate students. You may drop by whenever the Centre is open, no appointment is necessary.
If you are struggling or are feeling overwhelmed, do not hesitate to seek help and contact your instructor or Counselling Services. Also consult the Health Resources available to you. More information is available here.
Students with disabilities who will be taking this course and may need disability-related accommodations, are encouraged to contact Queen’s Student Accessibility Services (QSAS) to register for support services, and to make an appointment to see the instructor as soon as possible. Please review the Rights and Responsibilities for students with disabilities.
If you are a current Queen’s student with Aboriginal ancestry, you can self-identify any time through your SOLUS account, following the instructions provided here.
If you have a preferred name or pronoun that you would like your instructor, tutor, or grader to use when addressing you, please let us know. See the Inclusive Language Guidelines and the Human Right’s Office for further information. If you want, you can officially update your preferred name here.
To educate yourself about pronouns, you are encouraged to read this publication by Queen's professor Airton Lee.
Since there are 200 people in the room, it is particularly important to arrive on time, remember to turn off your cell phone, refrain from talking, not pack up your stuff up until the end of the lecture, etc. Laptops and tablets may be used in class only for activities strictly related to the lecture (note taking, consulting the course webpage, or an electronic version of the textbook) and must not be a distraction for the rest of the class. Headphones and earphones are not allowed, with the exception of students with documented hearing impairment.
It is the obligation of each student to understand the University’s policies regarding academic integrity and to uphold these standards. As mentioned above, students are encouraged to work on homework assignments with others, but should write up the solutions individually, and acknowledge in writing the assistance of any students, professors, books, calculators, or software.
You must always show your work on all questions in the homework assignments, the tests, and the exams. This means that you must clearly write down all the steps that an average Math 120 student couldn't easily do in their head. An incorrect answer without work is an automatic zero, even if the error is minor. A correct answer without any work is especially serious, because it raises academic integrity concerns.
We try hard to accurately grade all exams, tests, and homework assignments, but please contact us if you think there is an error. All requests for regrading must be made in writing at most one week after the graded item is returned. If you request a regrade on a homework assignment, please email the grader in charge of grading the specific question.
View the grading assignments here.