Quizzes and Tests in Math 170

Quizzes will be used to check how the class is doing with certain skills before we get to the tests. Quizzes may not be announced in advance, but if you don't pass there will be a makeup to take on your own and discuss with me.

Midterm. The midterm on Wednesday, 11/10, will have two parts; first an individual test for 45 minutes, then a group test for the rest of the period. The group test will have problems very similar but not identical to the individual test. Your score on the midterm will be a combination of your individual and group scores. Squeezing these two parts into a class period may leave you pressed for time. However, if you do not pass, I will provide makeup work so you can demonstrate your command of the material.

If you are sick and will miss the test, please email me as soon possible. When you are well enough to come back on campus, let me know the days and times you could do a makeup test. Because the test involves some groupwork, I will need to schedule a common makeup time for all those who are sick for the midterm.

Partial credit will be given if you explain your reasoning and it is applicable to a reasonable interpretation of the problem, even if some of your work is incorrect. On the other hand, a final answer alone, even if correct, may receive little or no credit if work needed to get to it is not shown.

There may be problems on the midterm like any problem we have done in classwork or homework, including the problems you were asked to do for yourself but not turn in. Study suggestions: Review your homework, especially any comments the TA wrote and any problems you don't remember or remember feeling unsure about. Use the "Check yourself" sections at the end of each chapter to recall what topics and skills we studied in each chapter. Review the quizzes. Look at the required portfolio entries. (Even if you are not planning to do the portfolio, the required entries indicate some of the concepts and skills I think are most important.) If you need more practice, rework problems, without looking at your previous work, or work unassigned similar problems. Here are some additional review and sample test problems.

Corrected Answers, hints, etc. for the review and sample test problems. (I had miscopied the last digit to the answer to problem 4. Thanks to Jennifer B for emailing me about the error.)
Some more review information presented in class on 11/8: Solution by diagram example for §3.1, Exer.3. Comments on vocabulary in chapter 3.

Forgot to mention before: You don't need a bluebook (room to work on the test, if you need more paper, ask), and you shouldn't need a calculator.

Office hours before the test:
Cris: usual Monday 2-3pm, plus extra Tuesday 11/9, 1-2pm, in Math lounge (PDL C-130).
JA: Wednesday 11/10, extra 10-11am plus usual 2-3pm, in PDL C-130.
Also you can email either of us for an appointment; suggest several times that work for you when you write.

Final exam: Final exam information and review problems (yellow sheets handed out at last class), including location of study session for Sunday and office hours on Monday. Note there are links to the midterm review (and answers to same) above. A link to some hints, final answers, and partial solutions will be posted here by sometime on Sunday.

The final exam will all individual, and because it comes at the end of the quarter, makeup work is not feasible. Therefore the final exam questions will be very closely modelled on the review material that I will give out on the last day of class. You may also turn in solutions to the review problems as an "insurance policy" for the final: If your final exam score is close to but below the passing cutoff, a good set of solutions for the review problems can make up the difference. In addition, you may do the Optional Portfolio to boost your final exam score. Time should not be a big factor on the final exam: usually most of the class is done early.

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Most recently updated on December 12, 2010.