Spring 2016 AGRON / E E / MTEOR 518
Response to Mid–term Evaluation
Dr. Brian Hornbuckle
March 23, 2016
What follows is my response to the comments I received from the mid–term evaluation that
was part of Problem Set 7. Thank you for the comments!
Assignments
• If you are having trouble with MATLAB, please come and see me, I’ll be happy to help. If
my door is open, I’m available. I have included several examples of MATLAB code and will
continue to do this during the rest of the class.
• I’ve chosen to have homeworks due on Tuesday for a few reasons. First, all of the material
you will need to complete the homework will have been covered in class by Thursday. This
allows you to start the homework during the weekend and come ask me questions on Monday
so that you are able finish it on Monday night. Second, the Tuesday schedule gives me the
opportunity to get the graded homework back to you as soon as possible, potentially by the
next class period. Third, this condensed schedule (Tuesday due, return Thursday) allows
students the best opportunity to stay on track, getting questions cleared up before we have
gotten too much farther into new material.
Lectures
• There is no policy regarding a five–minute break within Tuesday/Thursday classes which
meet for 90 minutes. What I will try to do in the future is hand back homework in the middle
of class instead of at the end. That process will take some time and allow you to step out for
a few minutes if necessary.
Mid–term Exam
• There is no policy regarding when students are allowed to leave an exam. Obviously every
student has their own pace. When I was a student, I was usually there until the end. Some
students will finish early. Don’t be discouraged if you are still working when other students
have finished, it does not mean that you are taking too much time. We had the mid–term
exam outside of class to make sure there was no time pressure. We will again have two hours
for the final exam, and I intend to write an exam that can be completed by everyone within
that time period.
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Professor
No concerns.
Blackboard and Syllabus
• Evidently there is still a syllabus web page at some address that is not updated. Please
provide me with that link and I’ll contact IT to get it fixed.
• In the past I posted grades through a link on the syllabus, identifying students by a random
number that remained the same throughout the course. I’ve recently begun using Blackboard
only to record grades because of privacy issues. I’m afraid this is a necessary step.
• Someday when I have time I’ll type up my notes and write my own book. But it’s not going
to happen soon! : )
MATLAB
Again, if you need help, come see me.
Areas that Need Improvement
• When asking questions I will wait longer to give you more time to look over what you have
written and what is on the board.
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