MATH 1111, Fall 2009
What you need to know before you sign up
How will this section of College Algebra differ from a traditional College
Algebra section?
Most sections of College Algebra at SPSU meet 50 minutes a day, five days a
week. The instructor is present four of those days, and the fifth day is
run by a student assistant. Three to four days a week are spent on lectures, and one to two days a week are spent answering
homework questions, working on additional problems, taking quizzes, etc.
Most sections have 35 to 38 students.
The workshop section of College Algebra will be very different. It will
meet Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for 1 hour and 45 minutes each day, and the
class size will be limited to 24 students. There will be no lectures.
In fact, the instructor will talk as little as possible and will
almost never give direct answers to questions. So what will
the instructor do? The instructor will prepare a worksheet for each class
day. You will learn the course material by completing these worksheets in
groups of three to four. You will use your textbook, your classmates,
your calculator, and your brain as resources. The instructor will observe
and ask you questions that will help you to better understand the
material. Sometimes you may be asked to solve problems up at the board so
that your classmates can see what you have done.
At the end of the semester, you will have covered the same material as the
students in the traditional sections - except hopefully you will know it even
better than they will!
If the instructor won't
answer questions, how will I know if my answers are right?
Part of the goal of this style of learning is to increase your confidence in
your mathematical ability. In the beginning, you will probably want to
spend a lot of time verifying your answers with your classmates and checking
them on your calculator. As the semester goes on, however, you should get
more and more confident in your ability to know when you've answered a question
correctly. If you get really stuck on something, you can always come to
office hours - the instructor will answer any questions you have in
office hours.
What will I be required
to do outside of class?
The most important thing you need to do is read the assigned sections in the
textbook before coming to class and complete the assigned study guide.
You won't be in a position to help your group members on the worksheet if
you haven't learned something about the topic for that day before coming to
class. You will also have homework assignments to complete. They
will generally be shorter than the assignments given to the traditional
sections, because you'll already be spending almost six hours a week in class
working problems. However, it will be very important to complete the
homework so you can see if you understand how to do the problems when you don't
have group members to help you through. Some homework problems will be
collected and graded.
Will there be exams?
Yes! (That probably wasn't the answer you were hoping for...) There
will be four exams during the semester and a final exam, and they will be very
similar to those given to the traditional sections. The exams will be
individual efforts - no working in groups on exam days! There will also
be occasional quizzes, most of which will also be taken individually.
Will there be an
attendance policy?
Attendance will be mandatory. Groups will be assigned ahead of time,
and if you don't come to class, you are letting your group members down - the
more brains collaborating on the worksheet, the better! Attendance,
participation, and coming to class prepared (that means
having read the book and completed the study guide) will count toward 10
percent of your grade.
Will a calculator be
required?
Yes, you will need a graphing calculator from the TI-83/TI-84 family of calculators. Calculators will NOT be allowed
on exams, but you will need a calculator in class to help you verify your
answers to the worksheet.
What are the benefits of
the workshop-style section?
Some have been mentioned already: The class will be smaller, which means more
individual attention from the instructor. You will become more confidant in your mathematical abilities, and you will
hopefully come to understand the material better than you would in a
traditional section. You shouldn't need to spend as much time on homework
as students in traditional sections. If you work hard, you can expect higher
grades, too. Research has shown that students in workshop-style classes
perform better not just in the semester in which they take the workshop-style
course, but in later semesters, as well.
This class is a good option for students who have trouble focusing during
a lecture and who like working in groups in a hands-on way. (If you don't
like working in groups, you should not sign up for this section!)
It's also a great way to get to know other students and form study groups
and friendships that can last well beyond one semester.
Note that this sort of learning environment can
only be effective if all students in the class treat one another with respect.
It is important that everyone feels comfortable asking questions and
offering suggestions without fear of being ridiculed by the other students in
the class. Failure to treat your classmates respectfully will result in
an attendance and participation grade of "0" for that day.
Repeated offenses, or particularly serious offenses, may result in an
instructor-initiated withdrawal from the course.
I think I want to sign
up. What do I do?
Go
ahead and register for the course as usual. In order to remain in
the course, you will need to sign a contract saying you understand
how this section will be run
so there won't be any unpleasant surprises for anyone. You will
find the
link to the contract below. Bring your signed contract to Dr.
McMorran in
the SPSU math office on the ground floor of Building D (you can pick up
a copy
there if you can't print it yourself) as soon as possible.
Students who do not sign a contract before the semester starts
will need to do so on the first day of class.
I have more questions.
Whom do I talk to?
Contact Dr. Jennifer Vandenbussche (jvandenb@spsu.edu),
the instructor for the course for Fall 2009, or Dr. Andrew McMorran (amcmorra@spsu.edu), the department chair,
and we would be happy to answer your questions.
Link
to Contract - Please complete this and bring it to the SPSU math office!
