Math 1B Syllabus
Course Description
This Pre-Calculus course is designed to prepare students for a Calculus course. This course is
taught so that students will acquire a solid foundation in algebra and trigonometry. The course
concentrates on the various functions that are important to the study of the calculus. Emphasis is
placed on understanding the properties of linear, piece-wise, exponential, logarithmic and
trigonometric functions. Students will learn to work with various types of functions in symbolic,
graphical, numerical and verbal form.
Text
For this course we will be using Precalculus by Barnett, Ziegler and Byleen. A loose-leaf version
of the book packaged with ALEKS software is available from the UCI bookstore. (Note: They
will ship books!) ALEKS software is mandatory for this course. You will not be able to access
the assignments or exams without it. You can either buy the software bundled with your text
from the UCI bookstore, or buy ALEKS directly from the company website at www.aleks.com .
Course Assignments
All of the homework/assignments for this course will be done in the software system called
ALEKS. In ALEKS, you will be able to assess your current Pre-Calculus knowledge and then
work through problems covering the content material of this course. All of the lessons for this
course are embedded in ALEKS. There are no lectures for this course, but there are numerous
short topic videos and instructional items available. For more information on how to use
ALEKS, please see the "ALEKS" portion of the course website.
Exams
There will be one midterm and one final exam for this course. More details about the dates and
logistics of taking these exams can be found under the "Examinations" portion of the course
website.
Course Grade
Grades in this course will be determined based on your ALEKS assignments and one midterm
and one final exam according to the breakdown:
15% ALEKS Intermediate Objective # 1
15% ALEKS Intermediate Objective # 2
30% Midterm Exam
40% Final Exam
Letter grades will be assigned based on the student’s total percentage according to
97+ : A+, 93-97 : A, 90-93 : A-, 87-90 : B+, 83-87 : B, etc.
Topics
In this course, you will be learning about the following material. Note that each student may
work through the material at his or her own pace and not every student will follow the topics in
exactly this order. The first midterm however will cover all the material prior to that exam on
this list.
SECTION
R1-R4
1.1
1.2
1.3
1.5
1.6
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
4.1
3.6
5.1
5.3
5.5
6.1
6.2
6.3
6.4
6.6
7.1
TOPIC
Algebra Review
Linear Equations
Linear Inequalities
Absolute Value in Equations and Inequalities
Quadratic Equations
Additional Equation Solving Techniques
Functions
Graphing Functions
Transformations of Functions
Quadratic Functions
Polynomial Long Division
Inverse Functions
Midterm
Exponential Functions
Logarithmic Functions
Exponential and Logarithmic Equations
Angles and their Measure
Trigonometric Functions: A Unit Circle
Approach
Solving Right Triangles
Properties of Trigonometric Functions
Inverse Trigonometric Functions
Basic Identities and Their Use
7.2
7.3
7.5
8.1
8.2
Sum, Difference and Cofunction Identities
Double-Angle and Half-Angle Identitites
Trigonometric Equations
Law of Sines
Law of Cosines
Final
Math 1A Syllabus
Course Description
This pre-Calculus course is designed to prepare students for Calculus course. It is taught so that
students will acquire a solid foundation in algebra. The course concentrates on the various
functions that are important to the study of the calculus. Emphasis is placed on understanding the
properties of linear, polynomial and rational functions, including inequalities and complex
numbers. Students will learn to work with various types of functions in symbolic, graphical,
numerical and verbal form.
Course Assignments
All of the homework/assignments for this course will be done in a software system called
ALEKS. In ALEKS, you will be able to assess your current pre-calculus knowledge and then
work through problems covering the content material of this course. All of the lessons for this
course are embedded in ALEKS. There are no lectures for this course, but there are numerous
short topic videos and instructional items available. For more information on how to use
ALEKS, please see the ALEKS portion of the course website.
Exams
There will be one midterm and one final exam for this course. More details about the logistics of
taking these exams can be found somewhere.
Course Grade
Grades in this course will be determined based on your ALEKS assignments and one midterm
and final exam according to the breakdown:
15% ALEKS Intermediate Objective # 1
15% ALEKS Intermediate Objective # 1
30% Midterm Exam
40% Final Exam
Letter grades will be assigned based on the student’s total percentage according to
97+ : A+, 93-97 : A, 90-93 : A-, 87-90 : B+, etc.
Text
Precalculus by Barnett, Ziegler and Byleen. E-book version packaged with ALEKS.
Topics:
Section
Topic
R1
Introduction, Algebra and Real Numbers
R2
Exponents and Radicals
R3
Polynomials: Basic Operations and Factoring
R4
Rational Expressions: Basic Operations
1.1
Linear Equations
1.2
Linear Inequalities
1.3
Absolute Value in Equations and Inequalities
1.4
Complex Numbers
1.5
Quadratic Equations
1.6
Additional Equation Solving Techniques
2.1
Cartesian Coordinate System
2.2
Distance in the Plane
2.3
Equations of a Line
2.4
Linear Equations and Models, Review
Midterm
3.1
Functions
3.2
Graphing Functions
3.3
Transforming Functions
3.4
Quadratic Functions
3.5
Operations on Functions, Composition
3.6
Inverse Functions
4.1
Polynomial Functions and Models
4.2
Real Zeros and Polynomial Inequalities
4.3
Complex Zeros and Rational Zeros of Polynomials
4.4
Rational Functions and Inequalities
Final