Beginning Algebra Course Guide
Summer 1. 2006
Instructor Information:
Seamus Mulryan
Office hours by appointment only
319.398.5899 ext. 3209
seamus.mulryan@kirkwood.edu
http://www.kirkwood.edu/faculty/smulrya
Course Information:
Beginning Algebra (MT-010D)
Provides for the development of the skills needed for success in Intermediate Algebra. Includes
the study of properties of real numbers, equations and inequalities of one variable, introduction
to graphing, operations and factoring polynomials, operations with rational expressions and
equations. Credits: 3.
Section Information:
MT-010D-CRF25, Synonym #018675
10:00 – 11:50 AM, MTWTh. Linn Hall, Rm. 339
Course Materials Needed:
Beginning Algebra, Addison Wesley, Custom 2006 Edition, by Bittinger and Ellenbogen.
Student Solutions Manual
A standard scientific calculator will be allowed. Graphing calculators are not allowed on exams. Cellular
phones, palm pilots, or other devices will not be allowed as substitutes for calculators. No audio devices
may be used during class.
Learning Outcomes, Objectives and/or Competencies:
Students will be able to utilize concepts and formal operations of beginning algebra in order to
solve mathematical exercises appropriate to preparing them for Intermediate Algebra. These
include, but are not limited to: solving equalities, inequalities, and rational equations; solving by
graphing; using order of operations; factoring polynomials; and solving application problems
utilizing concepts learned in class.
Assessment of Student Learning:
Homework: YOU ARE EXPECTED TO PRACTICE CONCEPTS AND PROBLEMS USING THE
SECTION EXERCISES EVERY NIGHT AND OF YOUR OWN VOLITION, and questions regarding
homework is welcome before class begins and in the first 5 minutes of class. Remember that you have
a solutions manual. If you have additional questions, please schedule an appointment. Mathematics
requires a lot of practice! Homework is not graded because a) you have a solutions manual and b) your
effort will be reflected in your exam performance.
In-Class Exams: Your exams will be comprised of three to five long-form problems and a set of
multiple-choice questions. The grade for your exam will be the average grade between the multiple
choice and the free-response parts. Long-form problems will be graded on partial credit. All exam
questions come from your text! This means that you have access to all of the questions that will appear
on the exam! There will be an exam after every two chapters, and problems from previous chapters will
appear in the multiple-choice section of every exam. THESE WILL ACCOUNT FOR 70% OF YOUR
GRADE.
Take-Home Exams: There will be a take-home exam for each chapter that will be comprised of 30
multiple-choice questions. THESE WILL ACCOUNT FOR 30% OF YOUR GRADE.
Grading scale:
B+ = 87 – 89%
C+ = 77 – 79%
D+ = 67 – 69%
A = 92 – 100%
B = 82 – 86%
C = 72 – 76%
D = 62 – 66%
A- = 90 – 91%
B- = 80 – 81%
C- = 70 – 71%
D- = 60 – 61%
F
= below 60%
Make-up Policy:
MAKE UP EXAMS ARE GIVEN ONLY WITH PRIOR PERMISSION. YOU MUST HAVE APPROVED
ARRANGEMENTS MADE BY THE SCHEDULED EXAM TIME, NO EXCEPTIONS. THERE IS A
MAXIMUM OF 1 MAKE-UP EXAM PER SEMESTER.
Learning Expectations:
- You are expected to carefully read each section and work through the examples in the text prior to
the material being covered in class. If you must miss a class you are responsible for learning the
material before the next class and for knowing any schedule changes regarding exams.
- You are responsible for the material covered in class and that is exemplified in your text and in your
section exercises.
- You are responsible for taking the exams at their scheduled times.
- Attendance will help decide borderline grades.
- If you need accommodations for a disability you must file an application with Learning Services in
133 Linn Hall.
- Cheating/plagiarism: 1st offense = 0 score; 2nd offense = F grade for the course (also, see section
below).
- To be successful in this course, you must practice new and review problems and concepts as often
as possible. If you are experiencing problems, please contact me or talk to me after class.
Plagiarism Policy:
According to Webster, to plagiarize is “to steal or pass off the ideas or words of another as one’s
own…to use created productions without crediting the source…to commit literary theft…to
present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source.”
Kirkwood Students are responsible for authenticating any assignment submitted to an instructor.
If asked, you must be able to produce proof that the assignment you submit is actually your own
work. Therefore, we recommend that you engage in a verifiable working process on
assignments. Keep copies of all drafts of your work, make photocopies of research materials,
write summaries of research materials, hang onto Writing Center receipts, keep logs or journals
of your work on assignments and papers, learn to save drafts or versions of assignments under
individual file names on computer or diskette, etc.
The inability to authenticate your work, should an instructor request it, is a sufficient ground for
failing the assignment.
In addition to requiring a student to authenticate his/her work, Kirkwood Community College
instructors may employ various other means of ascertaining authenticity – such as engaging in
Internet searches, creating quizzes based on student work, requiring students to explain their
work and/or process orally, etc.
Drop Date(s):
Students dropping a class during the first two weeks of a term may receive a full or partial tuition
refund. The details of the refund schedule are available from Enrollment Services in 216
Kirkwood Hall.
The last date to drop an individual class this term is November 15, 2005. An add/drop form may
be obtained from any academic department office or from Enrollment Services. You must obtain
the signature of the instructor or the academic dean of the department to drop a course. The
form must be returned to Enrollment Services by the deadline. Students who drop a course will
receive a “W” grade for the class. A grade of “W” has no effect on the student’s GPA.
Students who quit attending a class, but who do not drop, will receive either an “F” or and “FW”
depending on the student’s last date of attendance. Both of these grades have a negative
impact on the student’s GPA.
Students may also opt for a total withdrawal from all of their classes. The last date for a total
withdrawal is December 9, 2005. A complete withdrawal requires the signature of a counselor. A
grade of “W” will be assigned for all courses.
Final Exam Information:
The final exam for this class is scheduled on JUNE 30 at 10 AM. Taking the final exam at a
time other than the assigned time requires the approval of your instructor.
Americans with Disabilities Act:
Students with disabilities who need accommodations to achieve course objectives should file an
accommodation application with Learning Services, Linn Hall 133 as soon as possible.
School Cancellations:
When Kirkwood classes are cancelled or delayed due to inclement weather, all classes at all
locations are cancelled. The announcements will indicate whether the cancellations apply to day
or evening classes. The following broadcasters will be notified:
AM 600
AM 800
AM 1450
AM 1550
WMT
KXIC
KMRY
KCJJ
FM
FM
FM
FM
88.3
91.7
94.1
98.1
KCCK
KSUI
KRNA
KHAK
FM
FM
FM
FM
102.9
104.5
105.7
107.9
KZIA
TV
KDAT TV
KOKZ TV
KFMW
2
7
9
KGAN
KWWL
KCRG
Courses offered in area high schools will be cancelled when the school district in which the
courses are being offered is closed. If the school district is closed for the day, the classes to be
offered during the day and evening hours in that school district will be cancelled.
Other Information:
None.
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
WEEK OF
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
May 22
Pre-test
1.1 – 1.3
1.4 – 1.7
2.1 - 2.2
2.3-2.4
May 29
NO CLASS
2.5 - 2.6
2.7 & 3.1
CH 1 EXAM
3.2
3.7 & 4.1
CH 2 EXAM
4.2
June 5
3.3 – 3.4
3.5 – 3.6
Thursday
Friday
June 12
4.3 – 4.4
4.5 – 4.6
4.7 – 4.8
CH 3 EXAM
5.1
June 19
5.2 – 5.3
5.4 – 5.5
5.6 – 5.7
CH 4 EXAM
6.1
June 26
6.1 – 6.2
6.3 – 6.4
6.5
REVIEW
CH 5 EXAM
FINAL
EXAM
Tips for Doing Well in Mulryan's Mathematics Courses
1.
Come to class.
Attendance is not part of your grade. However, we cover a lot of
material in class, and explanations are given for the material in your text. Coming to class,
hearing the explanations, and working on in-class practice problems will help you do well.
2.
Do the practice exercises.
Doing section exercises at home every night
targets and helps you build skills and understanding that I expect you to know and have for
the exams.
3.
Do extra problems. Doing the section exercises is really only half of the work you
do at home for this course. If you have to look at your solutions manual to solve a problem,
you need more practice. Choose other like problems to solve until you can do them without
looking at the solutions manual. Then do one or two more. I cannot emphasize this
enough.
4.
Read ahead.
You should always have read the section we will cover in class before you
come to class. Doing so will plant seeds of ideas and understanding that can then better
flourish during class lectures and exercises.
Note: In college it is expected that, on average, one is to work approximately 3 hours out of class for
every hour in class, or 9-12 hours per semester-week per class in order to be successful in that
class. Remember that, on average, a full-time student is just that: someone who is a student fulltime, or a student who studies approximately 40 hours a week for a 16-credit semester load.