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Instructor
Profile
Some Additional Guidelines
Philosophy
"My job is to challenge students to think so when they need
to think, it won't be such a challenge."
(Jeff Lewis, 2006)
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Class Format
The courses led by me are run in a modified
"Moore Method" style. This is a variation of the method developed and made
famous by R.L. Moore (1882-1974). Users of the "Moore Method" (or a
modified version of it) firmly believe:
"Every student has the
capability for creative and critical thinking and the method pioneered by
Moore has proven to be very conducive to recognizing, nurturing, and
developing this ability."
(from The Legacy of R.L. Moore-- Mission Statement,
http://legacyrlmoore.org )
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Mathematics is not a spectator sport. You must take an active role
in learning the subject. Through the use of the "Moore
Method," you will be
challenged to learn how to learn mathematics. This will involve reading
the textbook (assigned section(s)) before class, coming to class with questions on
things you do not understand (and asking them), as well as suggesting,
presenting, and solving mathematics problems from the text, problem
sets, other resources, and life experiences (the
Learning Pyramid).
"Failing to prepare is preparing to
fail."
(the legendary John
Wooden, retired UCLA basketball coach)
"We are in pursuit of perfection. We will
not catch it; ... But, in our pursuit, we shall achieve excellence."
(the
late great Vince Lombardi, Hall of Fame football coach and motivator
extraordinaire)
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The "Moore Method" takes a great deal of work on your part (and mine)
but it will be well worth the effort.
“Students learn mathematics only when they construct their own
mathematical understanding."
(in
the Core Mathematics handbook under "Communicate Effectively," United States
Military Academy, 2005-6. p. 9)
"The
only way to learn mathematics is to do mathematics."
(Paul R. Halmos, Hilbert Space
Problem Book)
The following is a quote from a colleague at JCCC
that closely resembles my position on learning--
- I am a firm believer in the student taking
an ACTIVE role in their learning process. It is proven that students learn
more by DOING than WATCHING. I use Discovery [Inquiry] Based Learning or
modified Moore Method for most of my classes. ... Be warned, I will expect you
to read, review, and practice material prior to that day's class. In this
regard, we can focus on specific examples, definitions, or theorems which you
are having difficulties [understanding] instead of having me try to guess what
[is confusing to you]. During a usual class meeting, you can expect interactive
discussion over the material assigned for that day. Problem presentation is a
big part of the discovery learning approach which is incorporated into my
"non-terminal" classes (College Algebra and above). Expect to present problems
on the board daily. The remainder of the class will be spent on group
discussion and hands on experimentation with problems including immediate
feedback for selected problems you will attempt during class.
(Christopher Imm, JCCC math
professor, from his "mini-" Instructor Profile <
http://web.jccc.edu/profiles/show/?id=cimm >)
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Expectations
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An education is an investment and
it should be treated like one. Learning takes time and interest for it
to grow. If time is not a problem, then a low level of interest can be
overcome. However, if time is short, then a high level of interest had
better be present. If both time and interest are available, then-- LOOK
OUT!-- there is no telling what can be learned (see also the Lewis
Learning Equation).
"It is not my aptitude but my attitude that
determines my altitude."
(the Reverend Jesse
Jackson on the television show "A Different World.")
"I had discovered that learning something,
no matter how complex, wasn't hard when I had a reason to want to know it."
(Homer H. Hickam, retired NASA
engineer, explaining how he could teach himself
trigonometry, calculus, and differential equations when he had "barely survived" algebra, from his book Rocket Boys.)
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Mathematics is more than
finding the correct answers. It is just as important to communicate the
process you used to find those answers.
"An idea is only a thought until it is communicated."
(Jeff Lewis)
"The successful problem solver must be able to clearly articulate
their problem solving process to others."
(in the Core Mathematics
handbook under "Communicate Effectively", United States Military
Academy, 2005-6. p. 9)
"It is not sufficient for the writer to believe it; enough
details must be given so that the reader will also understand and
believe. The burden of making oneself understood rests with the
writer."
(Charles Vanden Eynden, from
the preface to his book Elementary Number Theory)
- An interesting observation: Education
may be the only activity where its clients complain for getting more
than what they have paid to receive.
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Evaluation
- Coursework: This will include
assignments, quizzes, projects, presentations, etc. (i.e. any non-test
items).
- Assignments: Every section covered
during a course will have a problem set assigned which will guide
you through the concepts and skills needed to be successful.
- Quizzes:
Periodic quizzes may be given throughout the
semester. These quizzes will generally be over the current day's
assigned reading and/or problems from past sections.
- Projects: Depending upon the
course, projects may be required
(individual and/or group).
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Portfolio: Some courses may
require a
portfolio. A portfolio can be defined as "a multidimensional,
documented collection of a student’s work put together in an
organized way, including a reflective discussion of the materials
contained within."
(Zubizarreta, J. The
Learning Portfolio: Reflective Practice for Improving Student
Learning. Bolton, Mass.: Anker Publishing, 2004, p. 15.)
- Presentations: Students may be asked to take turns presenting
problems similar to (or the same as) those in the problem sets. The presentation order
is determined by using a semi-randomizing procedure. Obviously,
students must be in attendance when their name is called to
present a problem for points. It is also important that students
participate as audience members providing feedback to other
students as they present problems.
- Exams: Up to seven regular exams are given during the
semester (check the course schedule link for the exact number). No make-up exams
are allowed. In lieu of a make-up exam, the Final Exam
percentage will be used to replace the missed exam. However, if you know that you are going to miss an exam, you may take it
early (with the approval of Testing Services) or you may choose to use the
final replacement option. A written or oral format may be used for the
examination process.
- Final: A comprehensive final exam is
given at the scheduled time during finals week. The final exam
percentage will replace all lower regular exam percentages. Every
student is required to take the comprehensive final exam at the
scheduled time unless other arrangements are agreed upon (with Assistant
Dean
approval) before the scheduled date and time. Should a student miss the final, a
zero (0) will be recorded as the final exam percentage.
Extra Credit: I
DO NOT give Extra Credit
so please do not ask.
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Grading
System
- Johnson County Community College uses the
following grade system to indicate the level at which you have achieved the
education objectives of a class:
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A
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outstanding achievement;
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B
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highly satisfactory
achievement;
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C
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adequate achievement;
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D
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passing, marginal
achievement;
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P
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passing (credit earned,
but not calculated into your GPA);
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F
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no credit,
unsatisfactory achievement;
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W
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withdrawal without
academic assessment.
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- As a student, you may feel confident that the
grade you earn in this course will equate to a comparable grade in an
equivalent course anywhere you plan to transfer.
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Homework
- Homework is assigned from the text for extra practice
and extra examples. Daily work may be collected as group or individual
assignments. Therefore, it is important that you keep up. Student
presentations may also come from these problems and examples in the text.
- Homework is your chance to try things and make
mistakes without being penalized. It is your responsibility to check the
solutions in the solutions manual (available in the MRC and on
ANGEL) and/or
ask for clarification in class or on the
ANGEL Discussion Page. Please ask any
questions that you might have about the material because if you do not
ask, then I will presume that you have
attained understanding and I may test you over the topic(s).
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Attendance
- Attendance is not officially part of your grade
but you must be present to get credit for class activities done as a group
and/or as an individual. Late work will not be accepted. Should you miss a
class, it is your responsibility to obtain any missed information from a
fellow student. Office hours will not be used to replace a missed class.
- You must attend at least once during the
first two weeks of class or you may be administratively dropped from a
course. For face-to-face courses, being physically present in the classroom
will constitute having attended. In online courses, completing the
introductory assignment and registering any required software (Hawkes or
MyMathLab are examples) will constitute having attended.
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Calculators/Computers
- A calculator is highly recommended. The type of
calculator (graphing, scientific) depends on the class level and personal
preference. Use of
computers and their software is encouraged. The JCCC Math Resource Center (CLB
212) has a computer lab with an abundance of mathematics software.
- In an attempt to keep materials available as much
as possible, every course section will have a
ANGEL
link for student use. It is suggested that students visit their section's
ANGEL
site often to stay current. My definition of often is daily
(minimum) but
your definition of often may differ from mine. However, I will take for
granted that you have seen anything posted for 24 hours or more.
NOTE: Due to Mathematics Department
policy, calculators with computer algebra systems (CAS) may not be used on the
final exam.
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Availability
- Official office hours are posted in the syllabus
and at the top of all my public website pages but other times are available by
appointment. As mentioned before, office visits will not be used to
replace missed classes. Furthermore, virtual office hours will be held on
ANGEL at scheduled times during the week with the e-mail and discussion page
options of
ANGEL available 24 hours per day,
7 days per week (server problems and/or software maintenance may decrease the
availability).
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Some
Additional Guidelines
Lewis Learning Equation
You should be familiar with the continuous
compound interest formula (Pert)--
A(t)=Pert.
I feel that learning follows a very similar path
and the "Lewis Learning Equation" uses the same format but with the
following parameters:
- P is
your incoming previous knowledge of the subject;
- e is
your effort put forth to learn a subject
(this is not a constant value like it is in the
continuous interest formula);
- r is
your interest [or attitude] (as a rate) towards a subject;
(your interest or attitude towards a subject can determine whether
your effort promotes growth or decay);
- t is
the amount of constructive time you spend on a subject;
- A(t) is
the amount of knowledge you have attained after time t.
As with continuous compound interest, in the Lewis
Learning Equation, your rate of interest [or attitude] and your amount of time are what
can significantly affect the growth (or decay) of
learning (see also: Expectations).
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Goal
Student autonomy is the ultimate goal. Our
objective will be to learn how to learn. Not only will this help you in mathematics
courses but you will find it works with other
subjects (and life) as
well. To achieve autonomy, we are searching for EUREKA:
(borrowed from the story about Archimedes and the
density of gold)
Attaining EUREKA is a neat feeling and
quite an accomplishment. It means you have reached the point of no return:
YOU HAVE LEARNED HOW TO LEARN!
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The "Real World"
One of the things that I hear every semester from
at least one student is:
"How is this going to help
me in the real world?"
Well, I have news for you-- THIS IS THE REAL WORLD!
Your ability to learn new
things will play an important role in your future. Technology is changing the
world too fast for you to be a passive learner. It is necessary to take an
active role and learn how to learn on your own. This is much easier
to say than it is to do but it will be well worth the effort. By possessing a desirable and unique ability, you can make yourself
indispensable
to your employer.
The secret to being successful in the
professional world today (more importantly, tomorrow) will be your ability to learn. Not to be
taught but to learn. When you are out at work and you need to acquire new
information or learn a new skill, you will probably have to go it alone--at
least, if you want to get ahead. In fact, the next time you use public
transportation (trains, subways, and airplanes) at the same time as professional
people, look around at what they are doing. Many are reading
books or manuals.
Back in high school, you had a teacher
explain every little detail to you. In college, although we are here to help you and
guide you, the main thing we are trying to "teach" you is how
to learn. So, as your mathematics professor, I am not here to teach you mathematics;
I am here to show you how to learn mathematics, and to help you in that process.
This is quite a change from high school. However, the sooner you realize the
distinction, the quicker you will start to get the most out of your college
education (see Dear Student).
Remember, the ultimate goal in your college education should be autonomy.
Ironically, if you do your job and I do mine, then, by reaching autonomy,
you won't need people like me to do my job. How many occupations can
make that statement?
(parts of the
above from Keith Devlin)
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