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COURSE SYLLABUS - COLLEGE ALGEBRA
TULSACOMMUNITY COLLEGE, NORTHEAST CAMPUS
FALL, 2014
COURSE INFORMATIONTO CONTACT YOUR INSTRUCTOR
Course: MTH 1513Instructor: Rebecca Houser
Course Title: College AlgebraOffice #: A159(Academic and Campus Services)
Call #: 12460Office Hours: immediately after class, and by
Room #: A-2appointment
Time: 11:00 am - 12:20 pm M, WOffice Phone #: 595-7473 (msg. only)
Dates: 8-18-14 through 12-13-14E-mail:
TO CONTACT THE DIVISION OFFICE
Division: Science, Math and Engineering Office #: NEA 1130
Division Chairman: David SollarsPhone #: 595-7542
COURSE PRE-REQUISITE – A good working knowledge of signed numbers, and the ability to manipulate variable expressions and equations.
CATALOG DESCRIPTION - A continuation of MATH 0123 or MATH 0105, including relations and functions, graphing using transformations, algebra offunctions, circles and parabolas, polynomial and rational functions, systems of equations, matrices, exponential and logarithmicfunctions, sequences and series, and applications. Prerequisites: Two years of high school algebra and appropriate placement orACT score, or MATH 0123 or MATH 0105 with a grade of “C” or better, or their equivalent.
NEXT COURSE IN SEQUENCE – MTH 1613 Trigonometry, MTH 2193 Elementary Statistics, MTH 2513 Finite Mathematics, or MTH 2523 Business Calculus, depending on major.
TEXTBOOKS AND OTHER MATERIALS
-College Algebra, 11e, Lial, Hornsby, Schneider, Daniels, Pearson Ed, 2013
-Scientific calculator (one that does logs, ex, powers and roots and fractions)
-Access code for MyMathLab (PearsonMyLabandMastering) - REQUIRED
-Access to a computer (the FACETCenter is available) - REQUIRED
GENERAL EDUCATION GOAL STATEMENT – The General Education Goals are designed to ensure that graduates of TulsaCommunity College have the skills, knowledge, and attitudes to carry them successfully through their work and their personal lives. General Education Goals relevant to this course include: abstract thought and critical thinking (problem solving).
COURSE OBJECTIVES – upon completion of the course, the student will have:
- Graphed algebraic and rational functions through the use of transformations, intercepts, and asymptotes where appropriate.
- Examined exponential and logarithmic functions in graphic form, used technology to solve exponential and logarithmic problems and differentiate between growth and decay, discussed the concept of half-life, and written an equation modeling a set of decay criteria and used technology to solve.
- Solved a system of equations or inequalities and know that there exists various and different ways of doing so, and explored the importance of the role of technology in solving such systems, and made appropriate decisions as to the method to be employed in solving a system, and written a system of equations that model a given scenario.
- Distinguished between arithmetic and geometric sequences, used the specific function notation for sequences, understood convergence and divergence, and used formulas and technology where appropriate for finding terms and sums.
- Used technology to evaluate factorials and combinations, and to perform binomial expansions.
- Used the method of partial fractions to decompose a rational expression into a sum of smaller fractions.
TEACHING METHODS– Lectures, printed handouts, homework problems.
GRADING SCALE – your grade for this class will be based on the following scale:
288 – 320 points (90% – 100%) = A
256 – 287 points(80% – 89%) = B
224 – 255 points (70% – 79%) = C
192 – 223 points (60% – 69%) = D
Below 192 points (below 60%) = F
EVALUATION TECHNIQUES- evaluation will be made by the following. Grades will be determined by the percentage of 320 total possible points accumulated as follows:
39 Quizzes @5 points………………..………..…...195 points total
5Section Exams @ 25 points……………………....125 points total
TOTAL POINTS POSSIBLE FOR CLASS: 320
NOTES:
- Homework: There is no homework assignment as such. Instead, for each section of a chapter that is covered in class, you will take a Diagnostic Quiz in MyMathLab. The quiz will create a Study Plan for you based on the results of your quiz. This way, your homework will be based on the material that you personally need to practice. Once you have successfully completed the Study Plan, you will have the opportunity to retake the Diagnostic Quiz. You must pass the quiz with 80% correct in order to avoid having to repeat the Study Plan work, but each time you take the quiz, the Study Plan will be updated to reflect only the answers you got wrong. You may take each Diagnostic Quiz a total of 5 times. This work does not count towards your grade, but will ensure that you can earn a good grade.
- Quizzes: Once you have completed the Diagnostic Quiz successfully (80% or better), you are ready to take the Section Quiz. This quiz will be similar to the Diagnostic Quiz, but will have different problems of the same type, and will not have any tutorials available. You may take the Section Quiz a maximum of 3 times. The highest score will be your score for the quiz. The 5 points assigned for each quiz will be calculated by multiplying your percentage of correct answers by 5. For example, if you earn 80% on the quiz, your grade will be 80% times 5, or 4 points. The quizzes must be passed with a grade of 50% or higher in order to get the corresponding exam to open.
- Exams: Exams will be given online. In general, each exam covers one chapter (there are 2 chapters in which only 2 – 3 sections are covered, and each of these will be combined with another chapter to make one exam). You must make at least 50% on each of the Section Quizzes for the covered sections in order to get the exam to open. You may take each exam a maximum of 2 times, and the highest grade will be your score for the exam. The 25 points assigned for each exam will be calculated by multiplying your percentage of correct answers by 25. All exams will close at 11:59 pm on the day indicated in the Tentative Schedule. Be sure to start an exam early enough to have enough time to complete it before it closes. Also be sure that you have already completed all of the applicable section quizzes prior to trying to take the exam.
Practice exams are posted online for your use in preparing for the exams.
- MyMathLab – all of the homework (study plan)/quizzes/exams are contained on MyMathLab ( The Course ID for this course is houser36584. The ZIP Code for this campus is 74115 (you will need that as part of the login). If you purchase a text from the bookstore, it will come with the access code. If you prefer to use the text that is contained in MyMathLab, you may purchase the code online as part of the registration process (you will need to have a valid credit card to do this). The code may also be purchased individually in the campus bookstore.
When you create your login, you must use your TCC e-mail address as the address for your account. If you need help setting up your school e-mail so that it forwards to your personal e-mail, please ask for help.
ATTENDANCE POLICY– attendance will be taken in every class.
MAKE-UP AND LATE ASSIGNMENTS POLICY – If you are faced with a genuine emergency (death in the immediate family, serious illness, deployment, etc.), I will work with you to make it possible to complete work that you missed. A missed exam may be taken on Makeup Day, the last day of class. I will consider assigning an Incomplete for the class if it is appropriate (must have 75% of the course work completed with a C average), but be aware that the appearance of an Incomplete on your transcript can have very serious consequences on your financial aid.
COURSE WITHDRAWAL: The deadline to withdraw from this course is Friday of the 12th week of the semester. Contact the Counseling Office at any TCC campus to initiate withdrawal from a course ('W' grade) or to change from Credit to Audit. Check the TCC Academic Calendar for deadlines. Students who stop participating in the course and fail to withdraw will receive a course grade of “F,” which may have financial aid consequences for the student.
COMMUNICATIONS: Email: All TCC students receive a designated “MyTCC” email address (ex: ). All communications to you about TCC and course assignments will be sent to your MyTCC email address; and you must use MyTCC email to send email to, and receive email from, the instructor regarding this course.
GENERAL EDUCATION GOALS: General Education courses at TCC ensure that our graduates gain skills, knowledge, and abilities that comprise a common foundation for their higher education and a backdrop for their work and personal lives. TCC’s General Education goals are: Critical Thinking, Effective Communication, Engaged Learning, and Technological Proficiency.
SYLLABUS CHANGES: Occasionally, changes to the syllabus may be necessary. Students will be notified of any changes to the syllabus in writing.
DISABILITY RESOURCES: It is the policy and practice of Tulsa Community College to create inclusive learning environments. Accommodations for qualifying students in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act are available. To request accommodations, contact the Education Access Center (EAC) at or call (918) 595-7115 (Voice). Deaf and hard of hearing students may text (918) 809-1864.
TOBACCO FREE COLLEGE: Tulsa Community College is a Tobacco Free college in accordance with the Governor’s Executive Order 2012-01 and Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes, Section 1-1523 which prohibits smoking or the use of any tobacco products in all public places, in any indoor workplace, and all vehicles owned by the State of Oklahoma and all of its agencies and instrumentalities. This Order includes property leased, rented, or owned by TCC including, but not limited to, all grounds, buildings, facilities, and parking lots. Tulsa Community College’s policy includes a tobacco free environment on all campus and off-campus locations conducting TCC credit or non-credit classes. The TCC Campus Police is responsible for ensuring compliance with the Tobacco-Free Environment Policy. Violations of the policy may be addressed through issuance of campus or state citations.
ACADEMIC DISHONESTY: Academic dishonesty (cheating) is defined as the deception of others about one’s own work or about the work of another. Academic dishonesty or misconduct is not condoned or tolerated at campuses within the TulsaCommunity College system. TulsaCommunity College adopts a policy delegating certain forms of authority for disciplinary action to the faculty. Such disciplinary actions delegated to the faculty include, but are not limited to, the dismissal of disrespectful or disorderly students from classes. In the case of academic dishonesty a faculty member may:
- Require the student to redo an assignment or test, or require the student to complete a substitute assignment or test;
- Record a "zero" for the assignment or test in question;
- Recommend to the student that the student withdraw from the class, or administratively withdraw the student from the class;
- Record a grade of "F" for the student at the end of the semester. Faculty may request that disciplinary action be taken against a student at the administrative level by submitting such a request to the Dean of Student Services.
INSTITUTIONAL STATEMENT– Each student is responsible for being aware of the information contained in the TCC Catalog, TCC Student Handbook, TCC Student Code of Conduct Policy Handbook, and semester information listed in the Class Schedule. All information may be viewed on the TCC website: .
TENTATIVE CLASS SCHEDULE
Week 1 (Aug. 18, 20):M: Syllabus review
W: Sections2.1, 2.2
Week 2 (25, 27):M: Section 2.3
W: Section 2.4
Week 3 (Sept. 1, 3):M: LABOR DAY HOLIDAY
W: Section 2.5
Week 4 (Sept. 8, 10):M: Section 2.6
W: Section 2.7
Week 5 (Sept. 15, 17):M: Section 2.8
W: Section 3.1
Week 6 (Sept. 22, 24):M: Section 3.2
W: Section 3.3
Week 7 (Sept. 29, Oct. 1):M: Section 3.4 Exam #1 (Chapter 2) due
W: Section 3.5
Week 8 (Oct. 6, 8):M: Section 3.6
W: Section 4.1
Week 9 (Oct. 13, 15):M: Section 4.2
W: Section 4.3
Week 10 (Oct. 20, 22):M: Section 4.4 Exam #2 (Chapter 3) due
W: Section 4.5
Week 11 (Oct. 27, 29):M: Section 4.6
W: Section 5.1
Week 12 (Nov. 3, 5):M: Section 5.2
W: Section 5.3
Week 13 (Nov. 10, 12):M:Section 5.4 Exam #3 (Chapter 4) due
W:Section 5.7
Week 14 (Nov. 17, 19):M: Section 5.8
W: Section 7.1
Week 15 (Nov. 24, 26):M: Section 7.2
W: THANKSGIVING HOLIDAY
Week 16 (Dec. 1, 3):M: Section 7.3
W: No class – work on finishing quizzes and exams
Exam #4 (Chapters 5 and 7) due on December 5
Finals Week: No Final exam