Western Washington University, Fall 2011
Math 124: Calculus & Analytic Geometry I
Instructor:
Dr. Stephanie Treneer
206 Bond Hall
stephanie.treneer[at]wwu.edu
(360) 650-3468
Office Hours:
2:00 to 2:50 pm MTWRF, or by appointment
Textbook:
Calculus: Single Variable, 5th edition, by Hughes-Hallett,
Gleason, McCallum et al.
Calculator:
A graphing calculator (TI-89 or similar) is required.
Prerequisites:
A C- or better in Math 115 or 118, or a score of 153 on the
Advanced Math Placement Test.
Course Overview: Math 124 covers Differential Calculus, which is the study of
the rate of change, or the derivative, of a function. In this class you will learn
what a derivative is, how to compute it, and how to use the notion of a derivative
to solve a variety of “real world” problems.
Course Objectives: The successful student will demonstrate:
1. Understanding of the concepts of limit and continuity, including the ability
to recognize when a limit does not exist or when a function fails to be
continuous.
2. Understanding of the limit definition of the derivative, and the
interpretations of the derivative as a rate of change and as the slope of a
function.
3. Understanding of the relationship between the graphs of a function and its
derivatives. This includes the ability to sketch graphs with given properties
and the ability to interpret given graphs.
4. Mastery of the computation of derivatives of elementary functions using
the power, product, quotient and chain rules.
5. Ability to determine the distinguishing characteristics of the graph of a
function (i.e. local extrema, concavity and asymptotes) using the derivative
tests and limits.
6. Ability to translate word problems (such as those involving velocity and
acceleration, optimization and related rates) into calculus problems and
solve them using derivatives.
The achievement of these goals will be measured by quizzes and exams.
Class time and Homework: A daily schedule for the course can be found here.
Generally, new material will be introduced Monday through Thursday. I will post
daily homework problems on the daily schedule of the course website, some of
which we may work on together in class. Homework will not be collected, but I
strongly encourage you to keep up with the problems—it is the only way to fully
grasp the material. Fridays will be reserved for revisiting material and discussing
problems, and for quizzes (more about these below).
Quizzes: There will be a quiz each Friday beginning in week 2 of the course
(except on weeks with exams). They will take up approximately half of the class
time, and the problems will be similar (but not identical) to the suggested
homework problems for that week. There will be no makeup quizzes, but your
lowest quiz score will be dropped.
Exams: There will be three midterm exams, and a final exam. Each exam will be
closed-book, and no notes will be allowed. The exams will be on October 7,
October 28, and November 18. Makeup midterm exams will only be considered
in the case of illness or emergency, and you must let me know of your situation
prior to the exam, and provide a doctor’s note. The final exam is comprehensive,
and is on Tuesday, December 6, from 1—3 pm. The date and time of the final
will not be changed, so you should plan your winter break travel so as not to
interfere with the exam.
Grading: Your grade for the course will be based on exams and quizzes as
follows:
20%
20% each
10%
30%
Quizzes
Best two exam grades
Worst exam grade
Final Exam
My standard grading scale is as follows: A: 90—100, A-: 85—89, B+: 80—84, B:
75—79, B-: 70—74, C+: 65—69, C: 60—64, C-: 55—59, D: 50—54, F: 0--49.
Attendance: Your attendance in class will not be recorded, however I strongly
encourage you to attend class regularly. Students who do so are far more likely to
succeed in the course. If you have to miss significant class time due to illness,
please let me know so that we can make arrangements to get you caught up with
the course material.
Sources of help: Please talk with me about any questions or concerns you may
have about the course, and make use of my office hours. In addition to my office
hours, there is help available in the Math Center (211A Bond Hall). This is staffed
by Math Fellows, and is also great place to meet other students to work with.