M 121 - TRADITIONAL DELIVERY - COLLEGE ALGEBRA - SPRING 2016 - Wilson 1-134
Course Supervisor: Dr. Heidi Staebler-Wiseman
Email: h.staeblerwiseman@montana.edu, Office: WIL 2-252, Ph: 994-5365
Required: College Algebra eText by Kirk Trigsted; 3rd Edition
Course covers chapters R-5.4. NOTE: The MSU bookstore
sells hard copies of the text that come with access to the online e-text.
Also required: Student Video Notes packet - only available at MSU bookstore.
Math Learning Center (MLC): Wilson 1-112; Mon – Thurs: 9 am - 8 pm; Fri: 9 am – 3pm
Your Cat Card is required for entry/exit.
Calculator: TI-83 or TI-84 graphing calculators are recommended, but lesser scientific calculators will work.
NO cell phone calculators are allowed during testing.
Prerequisites: these MUST be verified.
 C– or above in M096 (M101) or M097 (M103) or 100 level college course or an equivalent college transfer course.
 MPLEX (Math Placement Exam): level 3 or higher.
 Math ACT score of 23 or higher OR Math SAT score of 540 or higher.
Is Math 121 the Right Course for You? This course is primarily a preparation for precalculus and calculus.
It is the prerequisite for M151 (Precalculus), M161 (Survey of Calculus), and Chem141; and can be used as a
prerequisite for Stat216 (Elementary Statistics). M121 is one of the core math courses (satisfies Q requirement), but
if you merely need to fulfill core you should be taking M145 (Liberal Arts Math) instead. Questions? See an
instructor outside of class or see your advisor.
Course Environment / Structure:
Although this is a “traditional delivery” class, you are expected to actively participate in the class.
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Your instructor will strive to use a "dialogue" form of lecture in which questions will be frequently utilized. You will
be asked to contribute to solution processes for examples that are worked in class. In addition, you should put
forward your own questions. This greatly enriches the class.
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Students will be seated in groups and are expected to work on and discuss mathematics together. Portions of the
class will be devoted to students working in groups on problems. You should first attempt to work on such
problems for a couple of minutes yourself, but then share ideas and discuss with others in your group.
There may be times in which you will be asked to do some preparation outside of class (such as watching a
video lecture or two AND taking notes) so that more time can be allocated to student problem solving in class.
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Your instructor will primarily utilize the Student Video Notes (VNs) that are available for purchase at the MSU
bookstore, but may also provide supplemental information / problems / activities. Please put the VNs and
loose-leaf paper in a 3-ring binder and bring the binder to class every day.
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There are lecture videos available online in My Math Lab that match the VNs. These allow you to see the
material covered multiple times for sections that give you difficulty, but they do not replace coming to class.
Online Homework (REQUIRED!!): Done in My Math Lab – you MUST purchase access
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You will complete your own personal algorithmically-generated problem sets. Thus, you MUST have regular
access to the Internet outside of class. The online HW problem sets will generate individual HW grades, but you
are encouraged to work with others to solve them.
Only use Firefox or Chrome as a browser! Others will eventually cause problems, even if they work initially.
Each assignment has a deadline. Deadlines may fall on a weekend. You only have 1 or 2 days to complete
assignments, so plan ahead. You CAN work on an assignment after the deadline with a 20% penalty.
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Extremely valuable aspects of online HW are that you will receive immediate feedback regarding your work and
you can utilize links within the MML website. In addition, you can email your instructor with questions –
something we strongly encourage! 
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BUT, we also know that true knowledge of mathematics means you can write coherent organized problem
solutions where each step of your work is shown, and proper notation is used. Hence, this will be emphasized in
class and on quizzes and exams.
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This syllabus is subject to changes. All changes will be announced in class.
Quizzes: Quizzes will be announced at least one class period in advance. They are designed to provide students
with feedback about their understanding of course content and help them prepare for the next exam. Quizzes may be
individual, group, or take-home. They cannot be made up unless: 1) the absence is excused (e.g. school related or
doctor documented), 2) you notify your teacher of the need for a make-up the day of the quiz (before class starts) at
the latest, and 3) a reasonably-timely arrangement can be made. You must provide written documentation to support
an excused absence. Two low quiz grades will be dropped at the end of the semester.
Mini-Exams, Mid-term Exams & Comprehensive Final Examination: Everyone will complete two miniexams in class and each of the 3 regularly scheduled common-hour evening exams (dates listed on the semester
schedule) as well as a comprehensive final exam. These are the same exams taken by all sections of M 121.
Please arrange your personal schedule!
Absence for an Exam: If you have an MSU academic or athletic conflict with a mid-term exam or the final exam
as scheduled, you must contact the course supervisor at least three school days before the exam. If you have a
work conflict, make arrangements with your employer so that you can take the exam as scheduled. If an unexpected
emergency arises, contact the course supervisor immediately. Any missed exam that is not excused will be a zero –
which leads to failing the course. If an excused exam cannot be made-up or made-ahead within two days of the
scheduled time, the Final Exam score will replace the missed exam score. Alternate final exams will be given only
for very unusual circumstances – you must be here the morning of Tuesday May 3 !!
Attendance/Participation/Preparation: A portion of your course grade will be devoted to active engagement in
classroom activities. You will receive an “Attend/Part/Prep” score every non-quiz / non-exam class session. Some
days this score may be based solely on attendance, although points could be deducted for arriving late or leaving
early or disrupting class. Other days your instructor may base the score on things such as: a warm-up problem, a
group worksheet, an exit problem, a journal entry, completing assigned video notes before class, etc. There are many
options available to your instructor.
MWF Sections: Two low scores will be dropped – essentially giving students two “free” unexcused absences.
TR Sections: One low score will be dropped – essentially giving students one “free” unexcused absence.
Expectations for Students during Class: What you do during class contributes to or detracts from your
learning AND the learning of others who are paying for the course.
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Make every effort to be on time and not leave early. Sit near the door if you know you might have to leave.
Make sure your cell phone is off and do not use it during class, even for texting, unless there is an urgent reason.
If you will have an open laptop, sit on the side or rear of the room.
Talking, even in low tones, when your instructor is talking is more disruptive than you think. So, keep it to a bare
minimum and only class-related. HOWEVER, please do jump in with questions. Others likely have the same
question and it makes the class much more interesting.
BUT, please actively talk with others when you are working problems at your seats. It is great for the room to get
noisy then!
You should always be thinking with the instructor, not merely following him/her and writing information down.
Be prepared enough for class so that you can actually try to think one step ahead of your instructor! Good
preparation allows you to focus on details and connections so that you can gain depth of understanding.
If you have a documented disability for which you plan to or might request an accommodation(s), please see
your instructor outside of class and contact Disabled Student Services as soon as possible.
Course Grades: The weights assigned to each portion of your grade are:
Attend/Part/Prep – 8%
Homework – 8%
Quizzes – 8%
3 Mid-terms and 1 pair of Mini-exams – 13% each
Comprehensive Final Exam – 24%
Grading Scale:
A ↔ 90 - 100%
C+ ↔77 – 79%
B+↔ 87 – 89%
C ↔ 70 – 76%
B ↔ 80 – 86%
D ↔ 60 – 69%
F↔ 59% or less
Academic Integrity: If a student is found to engage in an act of academic dishonesty, appropriate university
offices will be notified and procedures described in the Student Handbook and/or MSU Catalog will be pursued.
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This syllabus is subject to changes. All changes will be announced in class.