Homework will be assigned weekly on the course homework page. You have to follow the rules spelled out there or your homework won't be graded and you will get a 0 score for that assignment. The homework corresponding to material covered during a given week is due the following Wednesday in your TA's box on the 6th floor of the AP&M building. (This is so you can ask questions about it during Tuesday's discussion: try to get a good head start during the weekend). No late homework will be accepted.
Assignments will be graded on a fairly coarse scale based on spot checks for correctness and completeness; your two lowest scores will be dropped. You may check your answers to odd-numbered problems in the back of the book, but you need to turn in solutions, not just answers. You may discuss the homework problems with your classmates, but you must write your solutions on your own. I am aware that it is not hard to find solutions manuals on the internet. While these might be a useful tool for studying for the exams, copying said solutions on a homework assignment will result in a negative grade for that assignment.
The homework load for this course is heavy at times, but it is essential for learning the material. Be organized, and don't leave things for the last moment. (You cannot complete the homework assignment if you start on Tuesday night.) Work in small installments, and ask questions in section and during office hours.
There will be two midterms and a final. Due to scheduling constraints it is not possible to give makeup exams. However, because of the grading scheme, you can miss one midterm, for whatever reason, without penalty. On the other hand, missing both midterms will seriously harm your grade and make it very difficult to pass the course. In addition, you have to pass the final in order to pass the class. Please note that by signing up for this course, you are agreeing to sit for the final examination at this date and time. It is your responsibility to ensure that you do not have a schedule conflict involving the final examination; you should not enroll in this class if you cannot take the final examination at its scheduled time. Please check the dates now to make sure that you have no unavoidable conflicts!
Calculators and notes will NOT be allowed for the exams. If you learn the material properly, then you should not have to memorize a lot of rules or formulas. (For Math 20C you will not be expected to evaluate any arcane integrals on the exams, although you should know basic techniques of integration such as substitution.)
To obtain full credit for an exam question, you must obtain the correct answer, put a box around it, and give a correct and readable derivation or justification of the answer. Unjustified correct answers will be regarded very suspiciously and will receive no credit. The graders are looking for demonstration that you understand the material. Divine inspiration is not mathematical proof. To maximize credit, cross out incorrect work.
Exam grades cannot be changed, unless there is an egregious error such as adding up points incorrectly. If you don't understand why you lost points on a question, please ask; but the number of points deducted cannot be changed, because we grade all the exams together according to the same standards and regrading individual exams would be unfair to everyone else.
Disabled students requiring accommodations for exams must submit to the instructor a "letter of accommodation" from the relevant office at least two weeks in advance.
Cheating is unacceptable. Any student caught cheating will be reported to higher authorities for disciplinary action. For more details, please refer to the Academic Senate policy regarding final examinations (These are the rules!)
Grades are calculated as follows:
There will be no switching whatsoever between discussion sections, unless it is official, through the registrar.