Math 142: Trigonometry and Analytic Geometry
Section XW: self-paced extended education class
Summer 2003

Instructor: B. Wagner
Phone: 707-733-1921
Fax: 801-640-4214
E-mail: math142x@math.iastate.edu
WWW: http://www.math.iastate.edu/wagner

Course homepage: http://www.math.iastate.edu/trig/sp/xm03

TOPICS: Trigonometric functions and their inverses, solving triangles, trigonometric identities and equations, graphing, polar coodinates, complex numbers, standard equations of lines and conic sections, and parametric equations.


PREREQUISITES: Satisfactory performance on the math placement exam, two years of high school algebra, one year of high school geometry, or enrollment in Math 140.


TEXTBOOK: Precalculus: Functions and Graphs, by Barnett, Ziegler, and Byleen. Chapters 5, 6, most of 7, and 11 will be covered in the course, along with supplementary material on circular motion and rotation of axes. The textbook comes bundled with a solutions manual, CD-ROM, and Schaum's Precalculus Outline (ISBN #0074111140).
    Textbooks are available through the Iowa State University Bookstore online at http://www.isubookstore.com or by telephone at 1-800-478-0048.


COURSE STRUCTURE: This combined section of Math 141-142 will operate as a self-paced, web-based course with no formal lectures, offered through the Extended and Continuing Education office.

     Unit Exams: The course is divided into 9 units which you will have to complete consecutively. A detailed syllabus and directions for the completion of each unit will be given on the course website (see the Detailed Schedule page for Math 142). Instruction for each unit will be provided by readings from the textbook, homework problems from the textbook, and supplementary material available online and via CD-ROM. To complete the unit, you must take the Unit Pretest and the Unit Exam.

     Final Exams: There will also be one Trigonometry Final Exam after unit 6, and one Analytic Geometry Final Exam at the end of the course. However, this last exam is not comprehensive. See the Detailed Schedule page for the sections covered by each exam.

     All graded exams are taken over the World Wide Web, and the Unit Exams and the Final Exams must be taken in the presence of a designated proctor (see the proctor instructions for details). However, you can take the Unit Pretests and take practice Unit Exams from home or anywhere else on the web. See the Online Testing page for specific details and rules concerning online exams.

     There will be deadlines imposed for the completion of each unit, as well as deadlines for the two Final Exams, but in all other respects you will be able to work at your own speed. Thus, depending on your background and workload, you may be able to proceed quickly through the course.


GRADING:

Unit Pretests

45 point (5 points each)

Unit exams

180 points (20 points each)

Trigonometry Final Exam

100 points

Analytic Geometry Final Exam

75 points

Unit exams will be graded on the scale given below. In addition, your course grade is guaranteed if you make the grade cutoffs given in the table below. In other words, grade cutoffs will not be any higher, but could possibly be lower (this depends partly on the performance of the class on the two final exams).

85-100%

A

72-84%

B

60-71%

C

50-59%

D


Actual scales used in previous semesters are posted here.


AVAILABLE HELP: Extensive personal help will be available via a sophisticated online tutoring system. This online help will be available most days and evenings during the semester. The schedule and instructions are posted on the Online Tutoring page. Help will also be available from the instructor via email and fax. Additional advice and help resources are given on the Help page.


IS THIS COURSE FOR ME? This course may be appropriate for some students, and perhaps not for others. A student taking this course must be self-motivated and must actively seek help when needed. The course may be especially beneficial for students who have learned the material before and just need a review, and also for students who are simultaneously taking Calculus. Students who have trouble learning in a large lecture format may also benefit from this approach. Students who have never taken trigonometry may find the usual in-class format a better choice, but even in this case exceptionally self-motivated individuals should be able to take the self-paced version. The eLearner web site has some helpful information for students planning to take a course on the web.

This self-paced class has run for several years, and it has worked well for most students, especially those who followed the study guidelines and did not fall behind schedule. You may be interested in some grade distributions and comparisons from previous semesters of Math 141 and 142.


USE OF CALCULATORS: A good graphing calculator is required. The calculator must be able to do parametric plots in addition to usual plots of functions, and should be able to solve equations numerically (i.e., find intersections of curves). My own recommendation for this course is the TI-83+, which is an excellent, easy-to-use calculator that meets these requirements. However, many other calculators also meet the above requirements and will work fine in this course.

self-paced Math 141-142 home page