110.201 Linear Algebra - Spring 2010

Prerequisite:

Calculus I

Instructor:

Caterina Consani

Office:

Krieger 410 B - Office hours: Wednesday 3:00pm-4:00pm and by appointment.

Text:

O. Bretscher, Linear Algebra with Applications, 4th ed.*

Exams:

There will be two midterm exams in class; the first one will be on

There will be no make-up exams. If a midterm exam is missed with a valid excuse (i.e. with the instructor approval), the grade for the missed exam will be a weighted average of the grades obtained on others/subsequent exams. The grade for an unexcused absence from a midterm exam will be zero. Documentation of reasons for absence must be obtained from the Office of Academic Advising. Anyone needing special arrangements for exams must notify the instructor by the second week of classes. The TAs will hand out the exams in section, when they are graded. No math. books and/or papers and calculators are allowed during the exams. At exam time you will be asked to leave purses, handbags, backpacks etc near the front desk.

Homework:

There will be weekly assignments, posted on this course website usually on Thursday and they will be collected on the next week's section meeting (on Thursday for all sections). Talk to your Teaching Assistant on how to turn in a homework if you cannot go to class, but do not give it to to the instructor. The TAs grade the homework. On this web-page you will find the sections from the text that you should be reading before to come to class. The instructor will try to observe this pre-determined schedule, but she might slow down or speed up if necessary. So it is important that you check regularly this course webpage. Late homework will not be accepted. Homework will be used to help decide borderline grades, but rememeber that homework is the essential educational part of this course. You cannot expect to work problems on exams if you have not worked lots of homework problems. Therefore, the instructor encourages you to spend an adequate time on homework regularly, each week. You can work together on the homework, in fact we encourage you to do so, but you should always write up your own homework solutions in your own words. The TAs will notify the instructor if the homework has been done faithfully or not. The best way to be sure you are doing the homework correctly is to join a study group. You can ask your TA to help set up study groups.

Grading:

Your final grade will depend on your performance on the exams and on your completing the homework. The relative weights we will use are: Homework = 10%, Midterm Exams = 25% each, Final exam = 40%.

Overall Performance:

First Midterm average: 73% (standard deviation 19.4); Second Midterm average 61% (standard deviation 21.2); Homework average 90%; Final exam average 73% (standard deviation 17.7). Global average: 70%.