Math 161 D
Calculus I
Fall 2000

Course Participation

In particular, active participation in this course entails:

• Reading the text.

  Reading a math text is not like reading most other kinds of texts, and for some of you, it may require some practice to get better at it. Sometimes I will proived special reading activities for you to do to help you in this process. But even when I do not, you are responsible for the material in your book.

  Most often the content I give in class will not precisely duplicate what is found in the text, although it will be dealing with the same concepts and applications. If I ever lecture on a topic that is not in the text at all, I will be sure to point that out.

  When reading the text, try to do the following:

  • Read! Mathematics uses English (or some other natural language), so reading skills you have developed in other courses will be useful here too. Pay particular attention to beginnings, endings and transitions. This is where the author will be outlining what he has set out to do, what is important or interesting about it, or how he would like you to think about it. You might like to start by reading the beginning, the ending and the section headers, and then go back and fill in the details.

  • Write! Have some paper handy so that you can draw pictures, make your own computations, jot down notes and questions, etc.

  • Anticipate! Try to figure out where things are going. Why is the author interested in the current example? Why now? Could it have been done last week? Could we have waited until next week? Try to guess how things might work out and compare your intuition with the way things end up being. Try to guess what might be in the next section, the next chapter; then look ahead and see what's there.

  • Review! At the end of a section, see if you can say in a sentence or two what the main point of the section was. If the section includes a series of examples, look back over them to see how they are different and how they are similar.

• Doing other assigned readings. Occassionally I will assign readings that are not from the text. These might be accompanied by questions for you to think about or to answer in writing.

• Coming to class prepared. This includes both coming AND preparing. Coming is self-explanatory. Preparation for class includes:
  • doing any required reading (see above), and beging prepared to discuss it or ask questions about it;
  • bringing appropriate materials with you (text book, lab manual, notes, homework, calculator, etc. as appropriate);
  • have questions prepared so that you can ask them quickly and clearly (you might like to jot them down so that you can remember them easily at the proper time);
  • getting enough sleep. (No, I won't be grading you on how much sleep you get, but you will do better if you are alert enough to think when you come to class.)

• Participating in group work.

  Sometimes I will use class time to have you work in a small group on something. You are responsible for making the most of this time by staying "on task". Sometimes group work will result in something being turned in (by the group).

• Doing Laboratory Work.

  Some class periods will be spent in the Macintosh lab (basement of North Hall). Typically you will work in pairs and produce a small report. Good participation includes (in addition to the report) looking at the lab beforehand, and working through the lab in the manner it was intended to be used (rather than merely trying to answer the questions needed for the report). More on the labs later.

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