121 Policies
A. General
The course during this Semester commences on FRI Aug 21 and
concludes on FRI Dec 4.
Class meetings are on
MW from 1:30 until 2:45 in PSH-356.
THERE IS NO LECTURING at these class meetings. Instead, class time
is spent on collaborative activities in small, assigned groups. You
will, at times, be required to report your group's findings to the
entire class (see Active Learning).
Minimal preparation for each class meeting is to do the
reading assignment for that
day, and to answer the Reading Quiz questions (at Mastering Physics)
for that reading assignment. To more fully prepare for each class
meeting, also take an advance look at the homework problems which
will be assigned for that day (at Mastering Physics). A small
number of multiple choice questions will be asked during each class
meeting. These may cover the reading assignment, or may check your
comprehension of some topic that has been covered in the small-group
activities. You are expected to record your response to these
questions by logging in to your Turning Point account or by using
your Turning Point transmitter. You must
register your Turning Point
transmitter in order for your responses to be graded. YOU MUST USE
ONLY THE TRANSMITTER THAT YOU REGISTER AND NO OTHER. Use of another
student's transmitter is a case of academic dishonesty, just exactly
like cheating on a test. Any and all students involved in any such
incidents will automatically receive an E for the course, and may be
referred to the Dean for further sanctions.
RECITATION sections
occur weekly as scheduled, beginning with the 9:00 AM recitation on
FRI Aug 21. EXCEPTION: Recitations do not meet on FRI Sep 25,
FRI Oct 30, or FRI Dec 4, because our tests are being giving in
the physics testing center (PSH-563) on those days. The last recitation
meeting will be the 12:00 PM recitation on FRI Nov 20. This schedule
results in 12 recitation meetings for every student. The small-group
exercises which are completed at FRI recitations will provide an
introduction to the concepts, and problem-solving strategies, which will
be explored in detail in the following week's readings, classroom exercises,
and homeworks. Quiz 1 will be given at the beginning of the fifth
recitation meeting, on FRI Sep 18.
HELP-STUDY Sessions are for the students' benefit, but participation
is optional. Beginning MON Aug 24, the Help-Study Hall (PSF-186) will
be staffed by volunteer faculty and Teaching Assistants several hours each
day between 9:00 AM and 6:00 PM. Teaching Assistants associated with this
course, and your instructors, will keep some of their office hours in the
Help-Study Hall.
An E-MAIL account is available for every student enrolled at ASU.
Instructions for obtaining an e-mail account can be obtained at the ASU
Computer Commons. Important class information may be disseminated
through e-mail. The student will be responsible for receiving it. If you
currently have an ASU e-mail account, then you need do nothing. If you
have not recently used your ASU email account, then you should double-check
to make sure that your email is properly being redirected to your favorite
email address.
B. Turning Point and Classwork
You will use your Turning Point transmitter or software to answer Multiple
Choice questions during the class meetings. For the first two class meetings,
Turning Point questions will be considered practice questions, as you learn
to use your Turning Point transmitters. Beginning MON Aug. 31, at least
some Turning Point questions will be graded. You are always encouraged to
discuss Turning Point questions with your team and with others at your table,
but when answering, always think for yourself. A correct answer will be
counted as 3 points, an incorrect answer will be counted as 2 points, and
no answer will be counted as zero points; so the penalty for an incorrect
answer is very small. There are expected to be about 70 Turning Point
questions over the course of the semester, so the maximum possible Turning
Point score will be about 210 points. The final Turning Point grade will
be determined as a percentage out of 189 points (or ∼90% of all possible
points should the number of possible Turning Point points change.) Your
maximum Turning Point grade is 100%, i.e. more than 189 points will not be
counted as extra credit. Since only 90% of all possible Turning Point points
are required for a perfect Turning Point score, no opportunity is provided
to make up missed Turning Point questions. USING SOMEOME ELSE'S TRANSMITTER,
OR ALLOWING SOMEONE TO USE YOUR TRANSMITTER, WILL RESULT IN AN AUTOMATIC
FAILING GRADE FOR THE COURSE. It is your responsibility to make sure that
your Turning Point transmitter is in working order, and that your response
is recorded. See our Turning Point information page
for tips.
Classwork will consist of small-group exercises which are usually related
directly to the assigned homeworks. Your group will complete each exercise
on a portable whiteboard at your table location. Several times during the
semester, someone from your group will be selected to report your group's
results to the entire class; all members of the group who are present
on that day will receive a satisfactory or unsatisfactory grade based on
the quality of that report. The small groups will be rearranged twice
during the course of the semester. Your Turning Point grade plus your
classwork grade will count a total of 6% of your overall class grade.
C. Reading Quizzes and Homework
There is one Reading Quiz (RQ) for each of the 24 topics listed in our
Topic and Reading Schedule;
all Reading Quizzes can be found only at Mastering Physics (MP). Each RQ
is due at 1:30 PM on the day before the topic for that RQ is covered in
our classroom. The final question on every RQ
is an opportunity for you to ask for an in-class discussion of topics
which you may have found confusing in the reading, or in the previous
class. The Reading Quizzes will count 3% of your overall class grade.
There is one assigned Homework (HW) for each of the 24 topics listed
in our Topic and Reading Schedule;
all Homeworks can be found only at MP. Due dates for each HW are available
on the MP Assignment list. In general, assignments for topics discussed in
class on MON are due by 11:59 PM the following MON and assignments for
topics discussed on WED are due by 11:59 PM the following WED, but the
official due dates are always the ones found at MP. Please take a look at the Tips for Using MP.
A total of approximately 1800 HW points will be possible. The final
homework grade will be determined as a percentage out of 1620 points
(or ∼90% of all possible points should the number of total HW points
change.) Your maximum homework grade is 100%, i.e. more than 1620 points
will not be counted as extra credit. There may be HW extra credit
opportunities throughout the semester to help you obtain the necessary
1620 points. Your HW percentage will count 10% of your overall class
grade.
820 HOMEWORK POINTS ARE REQUIRED FOR
A PASSING GRADE IN THE COURSE.
D. Graded Group Exercises
Eleven of the 12 recitation meetings will consist of a graded group
exercise which will be distributed at the beginning of recitation and
completed within your assigned small group. Exercises will be the same
for all groups in a given recitation. Exercises will be solved as a
group, but each student will write up his or her own solution; solutions
will be graded individually and returned the following week. Your two
lowest graded group exercise scores will be dropped. THERE ARE NO
MAKE-UP GROUP EXERCISES FOR ANY REASON, with the following EXCEPTIONS:
once (AND ONLY ONCE), you may arrange with your TA to attend an alternate
121 recitation; a list of 121 recitations for our class can be found
here.
E. Quizzes
As posted in the schedule,
the four quizzes will occur on FRI Sep 18 (at recitation),
FRI Oct 9 (at recitation),
WED Oct 28 (in class before the review session for Test 2),
and WED Dec 2 (in class before the review session for Test 3).
Each quiz will consist of a multi-part HW-style problem for
which you will be required to show your work in detail.
Quizzes may cover any topics introduced or explored during
recitations or classes which have met before the quiz is
given. TA's will grade the quizzes out of 25 points; partial
credit will be given. The lowest of your four quiz scores
will automatically be dropped when averaged; therefore,
there are no make-up quizzes for any reason.
Your quiz average will count as 12% of your overall class
grade.
F. Examinations
The three tests will cover material indicated in the schedule by
topic numbers. Each of the three tests will consist of about
15 multiple choice questions, and will be given online, through
WebAssign, on computers provided by the physics department in the
Physics Testing Center (PSH-563), under the supervision of recitation
TA's. The online tests have a 75 minute time limit and the testing
center will be open from 9:00 AM - 1:30 PM on the
test days.
On the test days, recitation will be cancelled, and you will take
the online test in the testing center during your recitation time. The final exam, on MON Dec 7 from
12:10- 2:00 PM, will be 40 MC questions; it will be
comprehensive, and it will be given in PSH-356 with assigned seating.
Examinations are governed by the following policies:
In figuring your test average, the lowest of the three MC test scores
will automatically receive half-weighting when averaged ( i.e. will
be regarded as being worth half as much as the other two MC tests).
Academic dishonesty on an examination will result
automatically in a failing grade for the course and referral to
the Dean for further sanctions. Cheating in any form will not be
tolerated! You will be required to sign a statement of academic
integrity for each test.
A full set of test rules is
available at the course web site.
The use of hand calculators is permitted. However, YOUR
CALCULATOR MAY NOT CONTAIN STORED PHYSICS EQUATIONS.
Test paper (including scratch paper) will be provided. Bring
only your pencils and calculators.
Your scratch paper will include any necessary constants and
a few equations; before the test, a copy of the scratch sheet
will be available on the class website.
In the event of a fire alarm occuring during an examination,
students will be asked to gather their belongings and leave the
testing room as expeditiously as possible. Those students whose
testing was interrupted by the alarm will then be given the
appropriate amount of extra time to finish their tests, or else
given an entirely new test, once the exam is able to resume.
G. Final Grades.
The final course grades will be determined with the following weights:
Turning Point and other Classwork: 6%
Reading Quizzes: 3%
Homework (total points out of 1685): 10%
Recitation Exercises (drop 2 Exercises): 4%
Quizzes: 12%
MC Tests: 50%
Final Examination: 15%
A MINIMUM OF 820 HOMEWORK POINTS IS REQUIRED FOR A PASSING
GRADE IN THE COURSE.
The scale for final letter grades will ultimately
be determined by the overall class performance. However, any student
who earns 80% of all possible points can expect to receive an A of some
type (A-, A, or A+); students who earn 65-80% of all possible points
can expect to receive some type of B, and students who earn 50-65% of
all possible points can expect to receive a C or C+. Don't
depend solely on your instructors to figure your grade correctly.
For a more detailed explanation see
HOW TO FIGURE YOUR FINAL GRADE (usually posted later in the
semester).
H. Withdrawal
Withdrawal policies are established by the University (see the
ASU Calendar.)
The deadline for course
withdrawal is Nov 4.
Lecture Schedule