Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

I believe that everyone can learn math. I want you to succeed in your studies, but I cannot do it for you. We will work together for you to master the necessary concepts. Your classmates will also be a resource. We will be doing quite a bit of group work in this class. In-class group work will be a combination of reviewing problems covered by the textbook sections and videos, along with activities designed to deepen your understanding and problem solving skills by applying the material in context. Group work participation is mandatory. If you are unable or unwilling regularly attend this course in person and work on math in a small group setting this is not the course for you.

There are videos available that are pre-recorded by a senior PCC math instructor that are available for every section of the text we cover. If you need to miss class occasionally due to illness or outside commitments, you can take notes on these videos instead of in class. There will be note outlines provided you can use as you watch/read and you should keep them for reference. You will be expected to attempt the WeBWorK problems after covering the material on your own outside of class time.

In person attendance is required. Your grade will be based on the following weights:

• 3-4 in-class Chapter Quizzes = 30% of the grade.
• Comprehensive in-person final = 30% of the grade.
• Online homework = 20% of the grade.
• Classwork participation, review problems, and groupwork = 20% of the grade.

You will need a digital or physical notebook where you can neatly organize your work on problems in the course, as well as your course notes. 

Make-up policy:

I do not allow makeups for missed in-class or group work. However, I will drop your lowest four scores to take care of any zeros you may have from being sick or otherwise not being able to make it to class. Make ups for missed exams are only considered under extreme circumstances. If you know that you will be missing an exam, you may schedule to take it up to one week late if I am notified at least 24 hours before the exam is scheduled. In the case of unforeseeable emergencies, I will require some form of documentation to allow you to take the exam at the earliest opportunity. Unless there is a documented and unforeseeable reason you needed to miss the exam, I can not allow exams to be made up if I am not notified after the class has taken it. I pledge to work with you to navigate difficult situations you may encounter this term, but there may be situations for which there is no satisfactory solution. I reserve the right to refuse any request by any student to make up a missed exam for any reason I deem fit.

Deadlines for WeBWorK assignments will not be extended for individual students for any reason. Instead, all WeBWork assignments may be submitted after the due date for 80% credit up until the final exam is scheduled for the class.

This is an in person class. That means the course is designed for students to attend 90% of all class sessions and can schedule their obligations to keep up with the work on a weekly basis. If you cannot guarantee regular attendance, or fall more than a week behind on the coursework for any reason, foreseeable or not, I cannot guarantee you will be able to make up the work and you remain enrolled in the class at your own risk.

Why You Will Succeed

The biggest reason you will pass a math class is because you have STRONG PREREQUISITE SKILLS and you have a Growth Mindset. If it’s been more than one term since you have taken the previous math course or its equivalent in High School or you got a C in the prerequisite course you may need to get your prerequisites up. The best way to do this is to take an ALC/ALM.

You will also find it easier to succeed if you find a study buddy or two to work with outside of class or to attend my office hours or the Tutoring Center. PCC's own national award winning math instructor, Jessica Bernard, and colleague, Wendy Fresh, have created a series of ten great videos about college math study skills specifically related to math called Any One Can Be a Math Person.

Time commitment:

You should expect to spend between 10-12 hours a week on our course. This means you will need to spend anywhere from 5-8 hours outside of class on the material. This is best done spread throughout the week in 45 - 60 minute sessions. So, plan to study for our class at least 4 times a week in addition to class time. 

PCC has Math Notation Standards:

The standards for MTH 95 are: Notation Standards for MTH 95 [pdf},  [pdf]

You need to have access to a computer and internet at least several times per week. You will need to make sure to have the following (further details/instructions are given during the first week):

• a PDF reader (such as Adobe Acrobat Reader) to read the PDF handouts,
• be open to or familiar with file management, email, and uploading documents,
• scan written documents to PDF format using a scanner or scanner phone app such as Adobe Scan (free), or Google Drive (free with your PCC account),
• a way to print PDF files for your written assignments or to print lecture note outlines (if you want hard copies)

• A way to access the online textbook eText version of ORCCA
• Additional resources for ORCCA

We will be using a free online practice software called WeBWork that you will be able to access through D2L.

A graphing calculator is not required for the course. Instead, we will use one of two free apps called Desmos (most likely) or GeoGebra for graphing when a graphing utility is appropriate.

The syllabus, schedule, and grades will be on D2L Brightspace.

Online video lectures made by a colleague are available to supplement my lectures or to use if you miss class. Pre-made lecture notes are also available to print before coming to class but are not required.

Students who need alternate formats to pdf for accessibility should contact me as soon as possible. I will be happy to work with you to provide alternative file formats such as html, docx, or even specially generated web pages that you and DRC will be able to more easily work with.