Math 246 Exams, Fall 2013
There will be three in-class exams and a two-hour final exam. These exams
are the only Major Scheduled Grading Events for this course.
These exams and their (optional) review sessions are scheduled as follows.
- In-Class Exams:
- Tuesday, 1 October
- Tuesday, 29 October
- Tuesday, 26 November
- Final Exam:
- Monday, 16 December, 1:30pm - 3:30pm
- Review Sessions:
- Sunday, 29 September, 3:00pm - 5:00pm in ARM 0126
- Sunday, 27 October, 3:00pm - 5:00pm in ARM 0126
- Sunday, 24 November, 3:00pm - 5:00pm in ARM 0126
- Sunday, 15 December, 3:00pm - 5:00pm in SKN 0200
No calculators, books, or notes may be used during these exams.
All items except pens, pencils, and erasers must be off the
desktops.
You are expected to handwrite and sign the University Honor Pledge.
In-Class Exams: The three in-class exams will be worth 100
points each. Make-up exams will only be offered to those with a
legitimate excuse. If you miss an in-class exam and if you
- have a 5 or better on at least one of the quizzes covering the
material on the exam (excused quizzes exempted),
- and earn a C- or better on all the other exams
(including the final),
then your score for that exam will be replaced by the average of
half your final exam score and your lowest other in-class exam
score. In all other cases if you miss one or more in-class exams
then your score for each missed exam will be zero. If the
University closes on the day of a scheduled in-class exam, the
exam will be given the next lecture time the class meets. You
may appeal the score you receive on an in-class exam by submitting
your exam plus a note stating which problems you wish to have
regraded to Professor Levermore. An appeal for the first or second
exam must be made within two weeks of the day the exam is given.
An appeal for the third exam must be made by Final Exam review.
Final Exam: The two-hour Final Exam will be worth 200 points.
It will be based on the entire course, including material covered
after the third in-class exam. It will be common for all Math 246
sections. If you miss the Final Exam, and if by the next day you
present a legitimate, well-documented excuse showing that for
reasons beyond your control it was absolutely impossible for you
to take the Final Exam, and if you have taken all the in-class
exams and have a C- or better at the time of the Final Exam, then
you will receive a grade of I for the course. In all other
cases a score of zero will be assigned for the Final Exam and your
course grade will be evaluated accordingly. If the University
closes on the day of a scheduled final exam, then it will be given
whenever the University reschedules it.
Disabled Student Services (DSS): If you have a disability
that might affect your performance on these timed exams, you may
contact the DSS
office in Shoemaker Building. If they assess that you merit
either private conditions and/or extra time then they will give
you forms with which you must notify your instructors. This
notification must be renewed for each course each semester.
Because instructors must be notified of the DSS assessment at
least one week before you use their service, you should arrange
for it well in advance. Once I have been notifed, you may
arrange to take your exams at DSS with the extra time they
indicate by giving me a "Test Authorization Form" one week
prior to each time you plan to use their service. Your
testing time at DSS must overlap the entire in-class exam time.
Bombs Away: If the score on one of your in-class exams is
more than twenty points below the scores you got on your other
two in-class exams and half your final exam score, it will be
declared a "bomb", and treated as if you missed it (see above).
This means you must have a 5 or better on one of the quizzes
covering the material on the exam and earn a C- or
better on all the other exams (without missing any) and for
this policy to apply.
Study Advice: The best way to study for in-class exams is
(in order of importance):
- work the Sample Problems before the review,
- study the relevant quizzes (solutions are on-line),
- do the assigned homework,
- study examples in the on-line notes and Matlab text.
The best way to study for the Final Exam is
(in order of importance):
- work the Sample Problems before the review,
- study all in-class exams (solutions are on-line),
- study all quizzes (solutions are on-line),
- review the assigned homework,
- study examples in the on-line notes and Matlab text.
Solutions to the sample problems will be posted on this web page
shortly before the review. Many of these solutions will be
discussed during the review. If you cannot attend the review
then send a trusted spy. The sample problems for an exam can
help you in several ways:
- They give you a relatively compact yet comprehensive set of
problems upon which you can focus your study. They cover
most of the material that might be on the exam, so serve as
a good review of everything. This is why they are "sample
problems" rather than a "sample exam".
- They use the wording of questions that will be used on the
exam. This is especially important on the common final exam
where you may see vocabulary used by other instructors for
the first time.
- The posted solutions will show what is expected of you.
This leaves little room for excuses like you "did not
understand a question" or "did not understand how far to
carry out an answer".