Your grade depends on the following categories, with the indicated weights.
Participation and Presentation: 10%
Canvas Quizzes: 10%
Weekly Written Homework Sets: 20%
Midterm Tests (3 tests, 12% each): 36%
Final Exam: 24%
Numerical cutoffs in the final average (out of 100) needed for an A, B, C, D, or F are at the discretion of the instructor, but will not be more strict than a standard 10 point scale; e.g., 90+ is A- or better, 80-89 is B- or better, 70-79 is C- or better, 60-69 is D- or better, etc. The cutoffs for +/- are completely at the discretion of the instructor.
The general rule is: A is mastery and fluency with the subject matter, B is some mastery of some of the subject matter, and C is average but complete work.
Participation & Presentation is comprised of the following:
complete daily homework/mathematical tasks to prepare for class
attend and participate in class
give presentations of homework/mathematical tasks in class
There will be two flavors of Canvas Quizzes
For each section we cover in the Lay textbook, there will be a quiz covering the basic ideas of that section. These will be due at 11:59PM on the day we begin covering the section in class. Each quiz is accompanied by an optional mini-lecture video (10-20 minutes in length) and notes by me (with some possible rare exceptions).
You will watch and reflect on several YouTube videos by creator 3Blue1Brown in his series "Essence of Linear Algebra".
Homework sets will be posted in Canvas and be due each Wednesday at 11:59PM.
The current (tentative) schedule for the midterm tests is:
Friday 28 January. Sections 1.1 - 1.5. Basics of Solving Linear Systems, Computing and Interpreting Echelon Forms
Friday 25 February. Sections 1.7 - 1.9, 2.1-2.3, 2.8-2.9. Independence, Span, Dimension, Matrix Algebra
Friday 1 April. Sections 3.1 - 5.5. Determinants and Eigentheory
The university's final exam schedule is posted on the registrar's website: https://registrar.wfu.edu/calendars. [As of Tuesday 22 February, the Final Exam schedule has been updated to respect the schedule changes resulting from the Winston Weaver plant fire]. You can double check at the registrar's calendar, but the standard times to take the final exams are listed below.
MST121A (11am section): Saturday 7 May, 2-5pm
MST121B (12pm section): Friday 6 May, 2-5pm
Classroom locations for the Final Exam are TBA.
You should not make travel plans to leave campus before the final exam.
You may take the final exam at either of the times listed above (regardless of your section).
If you want to take the final exam with the other section (i.e., not the section you're registered for), you must notify me via email at least 3 weeks in advance of the end of the semester so we can make the adequate room arrangements (so email me by Friday 8 April)
If you want to take the final exam at the standard time for your section, no action is required on your part. This is the default assumption.
You are entitled to not take 3 final exams within a 24-hour period. Check the registrar's schedule now so you can plan according to the bullet points above.
Also check if you have any hard conflicts with other courses for our exam time and email me per the above bullet points.