Math 100 Calculus Preparation
Fall 2007 – 2 credit course
Instructor: Patty Alessi: 255-8637, MT 212, pa31@cornell.edu
Course Assistant: Jillian Morales, jlm247@cornell.edu
Time and Place: Tuesdays and Thursdays: 12:20 – 1:10 p.m. MT 406
Objective: Math 100 is a preparatory course for Math 106 - offered in the spring semester and Math 111 - offered in the fall and spring semesters. Classes meet two times per week for 50 minutes. There are no recitations. Structure of class is both lecture and active student participation.
Credit: Two transcript credits, not applied to graduation but used to keep students in good academic standing. (letter grade only)
Description: Calculus Preparation, a preparatory course for calculus, introduces a wide variety of topics of algebra and trigonometry, which have applications in various disciplines. Emphasis is on the development of linear, polynomial, rational, trigonometric, exponential and logarithmic functions. Students will have a better understanding of the behavior of these functions in their application to calculus, because of the strong emphasis on graphing. Application of these mathematical ideas will be addressed in problem solving activities.
Text: Precalculus: Functions and Graphs, by Swokowski and Cole, 11th ed. (there are 2 textbooks and student solution manuals on reserve in the library in Malott Hall (4th floor) for your convenience).
Materials: Graph paper and scientific calculators (no graphing calculators). I have extra scientific calculators for you to sign out.
Homework: Homework will be collected weekly and selected problems will be evaluated.
Office Hours: Tutoring is available on a walk-in basis during the instructors and course assistants scheduled office hours (TBA). Each student is encouraged to attend office hours a minimum of once per week.
Prelims and Exams: There will be three Prelims (9/20, 10/25, and 11/29). All prelims are comprehensive.
Grading: The following points will be assigned during the course.
| Homework | 100 pts |
| Prelim 1 | 100 pts |
| Prelim 2 | 100 pts |
| Prelim 3 | 100 pts |
| Total | 400 pts |
Additional Information:
Since Math 100 – Calculus Preparation is a preparatory course for Math 106 and Math 111, the course has a unique format:
1. Twelve office hours per week are offered between the instructor and course assistant. Students are encouraged to attend office hours a minimum of once per week.
2. Since the class meets 27-28 times during the semester, the course is divided into 3 units (Units I – 9 classes, Unit II - 9 classes, Unit III – 9 classes). Units consist of 7 lectures, 1 review class and 1 in-class prelim.
3. Extra credit: Students may earn 4 extra credit points (added to their prelim grade) for composing a help sheet (1-page summary of the topics covered in the unit).
4. Students have the opportunity to raise their first 2 prelim grades by correcting errors on the prelims, working out additional problems similar to the ones missed on the prelim and meeting with the instructor or course assistant to demonstrate mastery of the topics/concepts. Additional information will follow.