Introduction to ALEKS®
University of Phoenix
Math 208 & 209
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Slide Show Table of Contents
1. Background
information
2. Registration
3. Tools Tutorial
4. Assessment
5. My Pie
6. Learning Mode
– Explain
– Practice
7. Report
8. Worksheet &
Review
9. Quizzes
Slide 2 of 66
Back to Table of Contents
Section 1.
Background Information
Technical Support
E-mail tech support for ALEKS® is phoenix-support@aleks.com
UoPhx tech support is 1-877-TECH-UOP (1-877-832-4867)
UoPhx tech support for FlexNet students is 1-888-575-6009
University of Phoenix ALEKS® tutorial: http://corptrain.phoenix.edu/aleks/aleksintro.html
ALEKS® is a registered trademark of ALEKS Corporation.
What is ALEKS®?
ALEKS® (Assessment and LEarning in
Knowledge Spaces) is a Web-based learning
assistant, powered by artificial intelligence, that
enables students to learn math concepts at their
own pace. ALEKS® was developed at the
University of California by a team of gifted
software engineers and cognitive scientists, with
the support of a multimillion-dollar grant from the
National Science Foundation.
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Math 208
109 course concepts in ALEKS®
27 arithmetic prerequisites (pre-algebra)
19 real numbers -- Wk 1
24 solving linear equations & inequalities –
Wk 2
28 graphing linear equations & inequalities –
Wk 3
11 absolute values & systems of equations –
Wk 4
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Math 209
134 course concepts in ALEKS®
29 linear algebra prerequisites (Math 208)
18 exponents & polynomials – Wk 1
13 factoring – Wk 2
24 rational expressions – Wk 3(a)
27 radicals, rational exponents, & complex
numbers – Wk 3(b)
23 quadratic equations and functions – Wk 4
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When do ALEKS® accounts expire?
Login IDs for students will expire 15 weeks after the
student has registered in ALEKS®. The weeks are
counted from when the student registers for the first
time, whether or not the initial assessment is begun
or finished.
If a student needs longer to complete the Math
208/209 series, the student should contact
ALEKS® Corporation Customer Support
(support@aleks.com). ALEKS® Corporation will
normally accommodate reasonable requests for
extensions from students in these courses.
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How do I know when my
ALEKS® account expires?
• Log into your ALEKS® account
• Click on the OPTIONS (or OPTS) menu
item on the red/brown menu bar
• Your expiration date will be listed on this
options screen
• If a student needs longer to complete the
Math 208/209 series, the student should
contact ALEKS® Corporation Customer
Support (support@aleks.com).
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Computer Freezes
To minimize these problems, always...
1.Restart your computer before starting an ALEKS® session
2.Make sure no other programs are running because
ALEKS® is processor-intensive
If problems occur during a session, try these steps:
1.Click the “A” on the upper right of the ALEKS® screen:
2.Click the browser’s “Reload” button.
3.Restart the browser.
4.Restart the computer.
If these steps do not resolve the problem, contact
ALEKS® tech support at phoenix-support@aleks.com
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Java
• ALEKS® is implemented in the Java programming language
so it requires Java installed & enabled on your computer:
– Both Microsoft and Sun Java are supported
– TOOLS > INTERNET OPTIONS > ADVANCED tab
– Be sure the box opposite “JIT Compiler” has been checked.
• If Java is not installed on your computer, use the following link
to obtain Sun Java:
– http://java.sun.com/products/archive/j2se/1.4.1_07/index.html
– Select the Download link under JRE.
– After installing Java, check that it has been “Enabled” (see
above).
• As you work in ALEKS®, you can always click on HELP on
the menu bar for more assistance with the answer editor and
the tools. Further assistance with Java, if needed, is available
from ALEKS® Corporation Customer Support.
Slide 10 of 66
Back to Table of Contents
Section 2.
®
How to Register in ALEKS
Technical Support
E-mail tech support for ALEKS® is phoenix-support@aleks.com
UoPhx tech support is 1-877-TECH-UOP (1-877-832-4867)
UoPhx tech support for FlexNet students is 1-888-575-6009
University of Phoenix ALEKS® tutorial: http://corptrain.phoenix.edu/aleks/aleksintro.html
ALEKS® is a registered trademark of ALEKS Corporation.
How to Register in ALEKS®
To register as a student, you will need a Course
Code. The Course Code is supplied by your instructor.
You can register without the course code then add it in
later; although, you may have to complete an
assessment again.
The entire registration process takes about one hour—do not begin
unless you have at least an hour of time to spend. You can interrupt
the session, if necessary, by logging off and resuming later (by
logging back on).
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Register (2)
1. Go to the Center for Mathematics Excellence
and click on the “ALEKS for Math 208/209”
link.
2. You will go through the following 4 steps:
•
•
•
•
Registration (requires 5-10 minutes)
Tutorial (requires about 30 minutes)
Assessment (requires about 30-60 minutes)
Introduction to My Pie (requires 5-10 minutes)
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Register (3)
• Enter the Course Code if known at this time
• Enter your name as you want to be known on
the system
• Select a password
• When asked for your e-mail address, use your
UOP address if you have been issued one
• You do not need to enter a student ID number
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Move from Math 208 to 209
To move from Math 208 to
Math 209, click Options on
the ALEKS® toolbar…
…then click on the link to
change course. You will
have to do the initial
assessment for Math 209.
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Enter a Course Code
To enter your instructor’s course code
AFTER you have already registered
for the course and completed the initial
assessment, click Options on the
ALEKS® toolbar…
…then click on the link
to change course
code. You obtain the
course code from your
instructor’s syllabus.
Slide 16 of 66
Back to Table of Contents
Section 3.
Tools Tutorial
Technical Support
E-mail tech support for ALEKS® is phoenix-support@aleks.com
UoPhx tech support is 1-877-TECH-UOP (1-877-832-4867)
UoPhx tech support for FlexNet students is 1-888-575-6009
University of Phoenix ALEKS® tutorial: http://corptrain.phoenix.edu/aleks/aleksintro.html
ALEKS® is a registered trademark of ALEKS Corporation.
Tool Tutorial
After successful registration, you will be shown a
tool tutorial to learn how to use the Answer
Editor.
As you are working in ALEKS®, you can always
click on the Help button to see portions of the
tool tutorial again.
The tool tutorial takes about a half hour to
complete.
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Tool Tutorial—Screen Shot
The Tool Tutorial is
interactive. You practice
using each tool then
click Next.
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Menu Bar
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Back to Table of Contents
Section 4.
Assessment
Technical Support
Login page is http://www.phoenix.aleks.com
E-mail tech support for ALEKS® is phoenix-support@aleks.com
UoPhx tech support is 1-877-TECH-UOP (1-877-832-4867)
UoPhx tech support for FlexNet students is 1-888-575-6009
University of Phoenix ALEKS® tutorial: http://corptrain.phoenix.edu/aleks/aleksintro.html
ALEKS® is a registered trademark of ALEKS Corporation.
Assessment (1 of 2)
After successfully completing the tool
tutorial, you will be given an initial
assessment.
• This is not a graded test.
• Do not ask for help on this assessment.
• The assessment takes about an hour to
complete.
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Assessment (2 of 2)
• Have paper and pencil handy.
• Use a calculator only when provided by
ALEKS®.
• In the Answer Editor, enter only your final
answer—intermediate steps should be
done on paper.
• If you have forgotten how to use the
Answer Editor, click on the Help button.
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Assessment Screen Shot
Instructions and
feedback are given in
yellow text boxes. Be
sure to read all yellow
boxes carefully!
Answer each
question then
click Next.
If you don’t know the
answer to a problem,
click I Don’t Know. I
Don’t Know should be
used only if you are
completely unfamiliar
with the topic.
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Periodic Assessments
• You will be given periodic assessments:
– When initially registering for a class in ALEKS®
– After every 20 concepts you master (but not before 5
hours have elapsed since your last assessment)
– After every 10 hours in ALEKS®
– When scheduled by the instructor
– When all concepts from course have been mastered
• These additional assessments change the
learning level in My Pie.
• Take your time and do your best in each
assessment.
Slide 25 of 66
Back to Table of Contents
Section 5.
My Pie
Technical Support
E-mail tech support for ALEKS® is phoenix-support@aleks.com
UoPhx tech support is 1-877-TECH-UOP (1-877-832-4867)
UoPhx tech support for FlexNet students is 1-888-575-6009
University of Phoenix ALEKS® tutorial: http://corptrain.phoenix.edu/aleks/aleksintro.html
ALEKS® is a registered trademark of ALEKS Corporation.
My Pie
After completing the assessment, you will
be shown a graphical representation of
your algebra knowledge. This
representation is in the shape of a pie
chart and is called My Pie.
You can access the My Pie
by clicking this button on the
Menu Bar
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Screen Shot of My Pie
Each section of
the pie is a
different topic
cluster.
The dark part of
each pie section
represents the
topics you already
know.
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Piece with No Topics
Use the My Pie to
choose a topic to study.
Hover your mouse
above sections of My
Pie (but do not click the
mouse button) to see
topics you have the
pre-requisite
knowledge to learn.
When you hover
above a section of
My Pie, you will
see these yellow
text boxes. As you
can see, this
section of My Pie
doesn’t contain any
topics you are
prepared to learn.
Move to another
section of My Pie.
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Piece with Two Topics
The way to succeed with
ALEKS® is to keep
choosing topics, study
the lessons, and do the
practice problems. After
you master each topic,
that section of the pie will
show more of the dark
color. Remember, the
dark colors show topics
already mastered. The
overall objective of your
UoPhx ALEKS® account
is to master all sections
of My Pie.
This section of My Pie
shows two topics that I am
ready to learn. I can
choose either one of those
two topics by clicking on it.
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Pre-requisite Skills
The green portion of the pie indicates the prerequisite skills for this course. Work on that
green piece first. Work on it quickly so you can
understand the new concepts that we’ll be
learning in class.
Work on the green concepts as
soon as possible. In order to
succeed in class, your green
section should be completed
during the first week of class.
Slide 31 of 66
Back to Table of Contents
Section 6.
Learning Mode
Technical Support
E-mail tech support for ALEKS® is phoenix-support@aleks.com
UoPhx tech support is 1-877-TECH-UOP (1-877-832-4867)
UoPhx tech support for FlexNet students is 1-888-575-6009
University of Phoenix ALEKS® tutorial: http://corptrain.phoenix.edu/aleks/aleksintro.html
ALEKS® is a registered trademark of ALEKS Corporation.
Topic Title Page
When you choose
a topic, you will
see a title page
like this. It shows
you a sample of
the problems in the
topic.
If you think you
can do this type of
problem without
additional help,
click Practice.
If you would like to
read the lesson
about this type of
problem, click
Explain.
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Practice vs. Explain
Remember:
Remember:
The Practice button gives
you problems to solve
without providing any help
on how to do them.
The Explain button gives the
step-by-step solution to a
particular problem (the one
that was displayed just before
you clicked Explain.
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Learning Mode -- Explain
Explain mode is
actually a mini-lesson
or lecture on the
chosen topic. Study
the lesson and the
examples in the
lesson.
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Highlighted words in dictionary
Click on highlighted (colored
and underlined) words or
phrases to open the
dictionary. The dictionary
contains additional information
about this word.
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Correlation to Textbook
At the end of the
explanation, you may see a
correlation to the textbook
(chapter and section) so
you can read more about
this topic.
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From Explain to Practice
After studying the
Explanation, the textbook,
and the Companion Web
site, click Practice.
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Learning Mode -- Practice
In Practice mode,
you will be given
about three to five
practice problems.
Work each problem on
paper then enter the answer
in the Answer Editor. If you
need help using the Answer
Editor, click Help.
After entering the answer, click Next.
You can also return to the explanation
(lesson) by clicking Explain.
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Instructions & Feedback
Look for the yellow
arrows—these indicate
hints to solving the
problems.
Instructions and feedback
will be in yellow, text
boxes. Read this
information carefully.
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Using the Calculator
Use the ALEKS®
calculator only when it is
available. Do not use
any other calculator
when using ALEKS®.
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Help when in Learning Mode
If you need help using the
Answer Editor, click the Help
button on the Menu Bar for a
list of Answer Editor tutorials.
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Ask a Friend
You should learn to use the special
features of the Learning Mode, especially
the explanations and the mathematical
dictionary. A button marked Ask a Friend
may also appear from time to time.
Clicking on this button will prompt the
system to suggest the name of a
classmate who has mastered the topic on
which you are working.
Slide 43 of 66
Back to Table of Contents
Section 7.
How to Submit a Report
Technical Support
E-mail tech support for ALEKS® is phoenix-support@aleks.com
UoPhx tech support is 1-877-TECH-UOP (1-877-832-4867)
UoPhx tech support for FlexNet students is 1-888-575-6009
University of Phoenix ALEKS® tutorial: http://corptrain.phoenix.edu/aleks/aleksintro.html
ALEKS® is a registered trademark of ALEKS Corporation.
ALEKS® Report
After each assessment and at the end of each
week, you may be asked to create an ALEKS®
report. Be sure to check your class syllabus
to see if your facilitator wants a report
submitted. Most facilitators use their own
ALEKS® account to view your report.
If you do need to submit a report, click on
Report in the ALEKS® toolbar.
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ALEKS® Report (1 of 4)
The top portion of the report
will show your current My
Pie.
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ALEKS® Report (2 of 4)
The second part of the ALEKS®
report will show those topics you
have recently mastered (“What
you can do”).
“and many other more
elementary concepts” gives the
complete list of topics mastered.
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ALEKS® Report (3 of 4)
The third part of the ALEKS®
report will show those topics
you will be learning next
(“Ready to Learn”).
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ALEKS® Report (4 of 4)
The final part of the ALEKS® report gives your
history in this subject, with a bar graph for each
assessment. Blue shows the assessment
results, green shows progress in Learning
Mode following that assessment.
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Submitting a Report
Your facilitator MAY ask you to submit a report—
check your facilitator’s syllabus instructions to
be sure. Most facilitators can view your report
in their instructor account and do not need
you to submit a report.
IF you are asked to submit a report, the next four
screens describe how to submit it depending on
the type of student you are. You only need one
of these four screens:
–
–
–
–
On-campus, classroom students (Slide 52)
Directed studies students (Slide 53)
FlexNet students (Slide 54)
Online campus students (Slide 55)
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How to Submit a Report if you
are a Classroom Student
Create the report and e-mail it to yourself (not to the facilitator). Note
that the email will simply have a link to view your report online.
Print the report and submit it to your facilitator during the next class
session. Some facilitators may ask you to email the report to them instead
of bringing a printed report to class. Ask your facilitator for his or her
preferred method of submission.
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How to Submit a Report if you
are a Directed Studies Student
Create the report and e-mail it to yourself or print out the report for your
records. Note that the email will simply have a link to view your report
online.
In addition, email the report to the facilitator.
Slide 52 of 66
How to Submit a Report if you
are a FlexNet Student
Create the report and e-mail it to yourself (not to the facilitator). Note that the
email will simply have a link to view your report online.
Then cut and paste the link into an Individual forum message and post it into
your Individual forum.
Be sure to create a subject for your email, such as Wk 4 ALEKS Report.
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How to Submit a Report if you
are an Online Student
Create the report and e-mail it to yourself (not to the facilitator). Note that the
email will simply have a link to view your report online.
Then, cut and paste the link into an Individual forum message and post it into
your Individual forum.
Be sure to create a subject for your email, such as Wk 4 ALEKS Report.
Slide 54 of 66
Back to Table of Contents
Section 8.
Worksheet & Review
Technical Support
E-mail tech support for ALEKS® is phoenix-support@aleks.com
UoPhx tech support is 1-877-TECH-UOP (1-877-832-4867)
UoPhx tech support for FlexNet students is 1-888-575-6009
University of Phoenix ALEKS® tutorial: http://corptrain.phoenix.edu/aleks/aleksintro.html
ALEKS® is a registered trademark of ALEKS Corporation.
Worksheet
At any time you feel you need
additional practice or review of
the topics, you can print a
Worksheet (click “Worksheet”
on the Menu Bar). The
worksheet is a PDF document
so you’ll need Adobe Reader
6.0 to view and print it.
The answer key for the
worksheet is available from
your facilitator.
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Review
At any time you would
like to review the
concepts you have
learned, click Review
on the Menu Bar.
A more-extensive review
and printed worksheets
are also available from
these links.
Slide 57 of 66
Back to Table of Contents
Section 9.
Quiz
Technical Support
E-mail tech support for ALEKS® is phoenix-support@aleks.com
UoPhx tech support is 1-877-TECH-UOP (1-877-832-4867)
UoPhx tech support for FlexNet students is 1-888-575-6009
University of Phoenix ALEKS® tutorial: http://corptrain.phoenix.edu/aleks/aleksintro.html
ALEKS® is a registered trademark of ALEKS Corporation.
Weekly Quiz (1)
• You will have a graded, weekly quiz in
both Math 208 and Math 209. These
quizzes may be
– instructor-created -or– administered by ALEKS®
• If your facilitator chooses to use ALEKS®
to provide your quizzes, the next slides
explain how to “take a quiz.”
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Weekly Quiz (2)
Quizzes may also appear
automatically depending
upon how the facilitator sets
up the quiz.
ALEKS® expects exact, complete
answers. If you have been working in
Learning Mode, you will know what
type of answers ALEKS® expects.
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Weekly Quiz (3)
IMPORTANT:
Be sure to click on this
button to submit your
quiz when you are
finished.
At the top of each screen of the quiz
is a box similar to this one. You’ll see
a button for each problem on the quiz
(you may do the problems in any
order you want). The current quiz
problem will be marked orange.
Problems you have completed are
marked gray.
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Weekly Quiz (4)
After clicking the button to
Submit Quiz, you will see this
screen. Be sure to click Next to
finish submitting your quiz. If you
do not click Next, your quiz is not
submitted properly.
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Weekly Quiz (5)
You will see this screen if you have
submitted your quiz properly. Check the
quiz report shown here. If you believe
you answered correctly but it is marked
wrong, or if you have questions about the
problem, be sure to contact your
facilitator.
Quiz scores are automatically submitted
to the facilitator. You do not need to send
the scores to your instructor.
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THE END
Screen shots and the ALEKS® logo were used by permission.