INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

GRADING CRITERIA

MSL Quizzes: (20% of Overall Average)*

All of the quizzes are done online using MyStatLab (MSL), which can be accessed through Canvas. You will be able to attempt each quiz at most 5 times before the due date and time. Each attempt must be completed in one sitting. (So plan ahead and make sure you have enough time to complete that quiz before you begin.)

Tests and the Final Exam: (80% of Overall Average)**

There will be 3 tests and a comprehensive Final Exam. Each test is worth 20% of your overall average and the Final will also be worth 20%, for a grand total of 80%. You want to make sure you are super ready for each test. NO MAKE-UP TESTS. Tests will be administered in class and you will be allowed pen/pencil, scratch paper (supplied by the instructor) and an appropriate calculator (when authorized by the instructor).

Test #1 – Monday, September 16^th – Chapters 1 and 2 and Sections 3.1 to 3.3

Test #2 – Wednesday, October 9^th – Sections 3.4 and 3.5 and Chapter 4 and Sections 5.1 to 5.4

Test #3 – Wednesday, October 30^th – Section 5.5 and Chapters 6 and 7

Final Exam – Wednesday, December 11^th from 2 – 3:50pm – Comprehensive (Chapters 1 through 10)

Homework (NOT FOR A GRADE)

The online homework is not a graded component of this course. However, choosing not to do them will GREATLY increase your chances of failing the course. The homework assignments are not designed to be fully completed for every section. (Basically, there are a lot of problems. Hopefully, more than you will need to master the material.) In my very humble opinion, if you are looking to make a 100 on every homework that will be a tough goal to attain. Instead, use these as practice to better understand the material and a source to ask questions for clarification. Quality is better than quantity.

Online Homework: A limitation of MSL is that the final answer is all that matters. As you will soon learn, on my tests the work that supports that final answer is FAR more important. (To be honest, on the tests I am far less concerned with whether or not your final answer is right or wrong. How well does the work you supply support that response?)

Offline Homework: There is a list of problems from the book given in Canvas. This can be a great place to reinforce the online materials. Since on the tests the work you supply is more important than the answers you find, this is a great place to get some practice.

*The lowest two (2) quiz grades will be dropped from the calculations of the final grade.

**The final exam is a comprehensive exam and must be taken by all students. The final exam may also be used to replace the lowest intrasemester test grade. 

NCBM Grade

There is a 2-hour NCBM (Non-Credit Based Math) class attached to this course. The grade for this 2-hour portion of the class will be based on your final grade in the Math 1342 portion. A grade of C or better will result in a P (Pass) and a grade of D or F will result in an F (Fail).

Grade Scale:   90 – 100% = A; 80 – 89% = B; 70 – 79% = C; 60 – 69% = D; Below 60% = F

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES (From Academic Course Guide Manual/Workforce Education Course Manual/NCTC Catalog)

All students at NCTC are assigned a student email address, also known as Lion Pride email. Lion Pride email can be accessed on the NCTC home page by clicking on MyNCTC, then the link “Lion Pride Email” to the left. After clicking the Lion Pride Email link, the Microsoft Office 365 window will open.
1. Enter your NCTC student e-mail address. (for example, Smithj123456@student.nctc.edu)

2. Enter your password (your NCTC Student ID Number, either 7 or 9 numbers).

3. From the list of Microsoft icons, choose MAIL.

4. You will be asked to set your language and local time zone (Central Time). Your account is now activated.

**It is the student’s responsibility to activate and regularly monitor the assigned NCTC (Lion Pride) e-mail account. Important announcements and notifications from the Admissions office, Financial Aid, or other college staff will be sent via the Lion Pride student email system. For communicating with classmates and instructors, students also have an option to communicate through Canvas. Canvas messaging is NOT the same as Lion Pride e-mail. Failure to read and/or receive NCTC e-mails (either in Lion Pride or in Canvas) is no excuse for not complying with any school policy. Be sure to regularly check BOTH the Lion Pride email as well as the Canvas inbox for important messages and information.

Last day to withdraw from a 16-week course with a “W” is Friday, November 1, 2019.

Regular and punctual attendance is expected of all students in all classes for which they have registered.  All absences are considered to be unauthorized unless the student is absent due to illness or emergencies.  It is the student’s responsibility to provide documentation as to the emergency for approval by the faculty member.  Approved college-sponsored activities are also excused absences.  The instructor is responsible for judging the validity of any reason given for an absence.  Valid reasons for absence, however, do not relieve the student of the responsibility for making up required work.  Students will not be allowed to make up an examination missed due to absence unless the absence is documented and excused by the instructor.  Student will be dropped from a class by the Registrar upon recommendation of the instructor who feels the student has been justifiably absent or tardy a sufficient number of times to preclude meeting the course’s objectives. Persistent, unjustified absences from classes or laboratories will be considered sufficient cause for College officials to drop a student from the rolls of the College. From Board Policy FC (LOCAL)

At North Central Texas College, students who test but do not meet the passing scores in ALL sections of the TSI Assessment or any other THECB approved testing measurements are required by state law to obtain TSI advising and continuously enroll in a formal college preparatory studies (developmental) program every semester until all TSI requirements are satisfied. TSI program attendance is MANDATORY. Non-compliance with the rules of attendance can result in a student being WITHDRAWN from the college preparatory and the college-level math courses. Withdrawals are subject to college policies as set forth in the college catalog.

MOBILE DEVICE POLICY

All cell phones, tablets, laptops and other electronic devices need to be put away during lecture and only used in class when directed by the instructor. It is distracting and rude to have these devices out during most meetings; however discreet you think you might be. Exceptions will be made on a case by case basis, so bring those to me individually. Any time you need to use these devices, quietly remove yourself from class, attend to your business and quietly return.

Recording Lectures: The use of any audio or visual devices to record any part of the course lecture needs to be cleared by the instructor BEFORE that class session begins. This does include but is not limited to video/audio recordings and pictures from a cell phone.

The Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) provides accommodations for students who have a documented disability. On the Corinth Campus, go to room 170 or call 940-498-6207. On the Gainesville Campus, go to room 110 or call 940-668-4209.  Students on the Bowie, Graham, Flower Mound, and online campuses should call 940-498-6207.

North Central Texas College is committed to both the spirit and letter of federal equal opportunity legislation, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, ADA Amendments Act of 2009, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (P.L. 93-112  https://www.nctc.edu/catalog/student-services/office-students-with-disabilities.html  

Scholastic dishonesty shall include, but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, academic falsification, intellectual property dishonesty, academic dishonesty facilitation and collusion.  Faculty members may document and bring charges against a student who is engaged in or is suspected to be engaged in academic dishonesty.  See Student Handbook, “Student Rights & Responsibilities: Student Conduct ([FLB(LOCAL)]”. 

Consequences for academic dishonesty may include:

1.  Zero on the assignment
2. Failing grade for the course

QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS?

Should you have any questions or concerns about the course, material, instructor or any other aspect of your NCTC experience, you should contact your instructor first using the information given at the beginning of this syllabus. If that fails to resolve the issue(s) you may contact the Division Chair, Dr. Elizabeth Howell. If that contact fails to resolve the issue(s) you may contact the Instructional Dean, Mary Martinson.

Tobacco-Free Campus:  NCTC restricts the use of all tobacco products, including cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigars, pipes, and smokeless tobacco, on campus property.

Campus Carry: Effective August 1, 2017, a license holder may carry a concealed handgun on or about the license holder's person while the license holder is on the campus of an institution of higher education or private or independent institution of higher education in this state. For more information, see the website at http://www.nctc.edu/police/campus-carry.html.