Format

Course Structure

Overview & Grading

The class will follow a semi-flipped format. Specifically, a typical lecture will include:

• reading assignment and preview problems that will need to be completed AHEAD of the lecture;
• in-class problems that will build on the preview problems and be used to explore the material covered in the preview problems;
• lecture component that will be used to expand on or clarify material from the reading assignment.

This format works ONLY if students have completed the reading assignment and preview problems ahead of the class where they will be covered. As a result, students are expected to turn-in (using Canvas) their preview problem at the beginning of each class, and a student will be (randomly) selected to provide a brief overview of their solution to the preview problems. Preview problems will NOT be graded based on correctness of the solution, but based on whether or not there has been a genuine attempt at solving them using the material from the reading assignment, i.e., solutions that demonstrate an honest effort will get a grade of 1, while solutions that don't will receive a grade of 0.

In addition to reading assignments and preview problems, homeworks will also be assigned (typically one every two weeks). There will be four (4) 15 minutes quizzes spread out over the semester that will be held at the beginning of class with the lowest score being dropped (alternatively, this allows to miss one quiz for personal reasons), and two exams that will each cover complementary segments of the course material (see tentative schedule for details). The relative weights of these different components in determining a student's overall grade will be as follows:

Preview problems	5%
Homeworks	30%
Quizzes*	15%
Exam 1**	25%
Exam 2**	25%

NOTE: I WILL NOT GRADE ANYTHING THAT IS NOT WRITTEN LEGIBLY. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO ENSURE I CAN DECIPHER WHAT YOU SUBMIT. PREVIEW PROBLEMS AND HOMEWORKS ARE AVAILABLE IN SOFT COPIES, AND MUST BE SUBMITTED ELECTRONICALLY USING CANVAS.

* There are 4 quizzes with the lowest score being dropped (alternatively, this allows you to miss one quiz for personal reasons), so each quiz counts for 5%

** The two exams are complementary and will cover separate material. Exam 1 will cover material from the 1st lecture till the lecture preceding the exam, while Exam 2 cover the remainder of the material.

Quizzes and exams will be open-book and access to personal notes, homework solutions, and other related material will be allowed. Note though that because quizzes are only ~15 minutes long, spending time searching for material in the book or your notes will typically not be a good idea.
Computer access will also be allowed, though NOT INTERNET QUERIES. Students found issuing Internet queries for additional information during a quiz or an exam will get an AUTOMATIC F for the class. There will be NO exception.

Reading Assignments

Reading assignments are intended to get you ready for the next class, so that you can participate during the discussions and ask questions aimed at clarifying what you may not have understood in the material. Reading assignments will typically be from the textbook itself, though additional material, e.g., from some of the online textbooks and notes in Online resources may also be used.

Preview Problems

They are assigned ahead of each lecture and meant to test your understanding of the material covered in the reading assignment for the lecture. You will be expected to turn them in (using Canvas) before the start of the corresponding lecture. One or more students will be selected at the beginning of a class and asked to describe how they have approached solving each preview problem. Student selection will be random but without replacement to ensure that students go through approximately the same number of turns. Successfully completing the preview problems will require reading the assigned material, as well as in most cases being proactive by asking questions on Piazza. Generic questions of the form "How do I solve Problem X" won't be entertained, but otherwise students will be provided with as much help as necessary to successfully complete preview problems.

Quizzes

Quizzes will consist of one or two very short problems/questions meant to test students' understanding of material covered since the previous quiz (or the start of the class for the first quiz). They will be open book, open notes, and open computer (though not Internet access), but given their short duration, there won't be much time available to search for answers in the books or your notes.

Homeworks

Homeworks will be assigned approximately every two weeks. They are meant to offer a more in-depth assessment of students' mastery of the course material than quizzes. Homeworks will consist of multiple problems, often from the textbook, which will target material covered since the previous homework was assigned. Like preview problems, homeworks are expected to be turned in on their due date before the start of class (see #Late and Make-Up Policies for possible exceptions to this rule).

Exams

The course has two exams, exam 1 and exam 2, both counting for 25% of your overall grade. The dates for the two exams are as indicated on the Course Syllabus. The two exams are complementary in their coverage, with exam 1 including everything covered up to an including the lecture preceding the exam, and similarly, exam 2 including everything from the lecture immediately following exam 1 up to the last lecture of the semester. Exam 1 will be held during a scheduled class time approximately half-way during the semester, while exam 2 will be held during the time-slot allocated by the university for the class' "final exam."

Late and Make-Up Policies

Due date policy: Homeworks and preview problems are expected to be turned in at the start of class on their due date, by uploading an electronic copy in Canvas.

Exams: There will be no make-ups or adjustments for missed exams except for duly documented medical emergency or family emergency reasons.

Quizzes: There will be no make-ups or adjustments for missed quizzes except for duly documented medical emergency or family emergency reasons. Note though that since your lowest quiz score will be discarded, you are equivalently allowed to miss one quiz.

Homeworks: There will typically be no extensions for homeworks, as it will only make it harder for you to complete the next assignment. However, because emergencies and/or special circumstances can arise, a single 48 hours extension will be granted to students who ask for it at least 48 hours before the homework's due date.
In addition, if you have already used your one-time 48 hours extension or failed to ask for it 48 hours in advance, you will also be allowed a one-time 48 hours extension but with a 50% grade penalty. In other words, if you ask for an extension at the last minute, you will be allowed this once, and if your point total on the homework is, say, 90/100, your actual grade for the homework will be 45/100.

Collaboration Policy and Academic Integrity Violations

A copy of the McKelvey School of Engineering Academic Integrity Policy is available here, and it applies in its entirety to this course. Make sure you are familiar with it. A more comprehensive description of the policy and the process followed for alleged violations is described here, as it pertains to undergraduate students.

Violations of the Academic Integrity policy, be they in the form of cheating during a quiz or an exam (e.g., copying another student's answer or seeking to find it on the Internet) or submitting material that is not your own (e.g., by reusing solutions found on the Internet, or from previous years, or copied from another student) will result in an immediate referral to the registrar's office for formal investigation. Students found in violation will have it entered in their record, and receive a penalty commensurate with the severity of the violation. It can range from a negative score for the assignment, or exam, or lab in question (it will cost you more than not turn anything in), to a grade of F for the course. Instances of a second confirmed violation will automatically result in an F for the course.

• Preview Problems & Homeworks: You should complete them on your own, but you are not prohibited from discussing them with others. Turning in a verbatim copy of someone else work is, however, not acceptable and will be considered an academic integrity violation. The minimum penalty if you are found guilty of such a violation is an automatic grade of -5 points for a violation affecting a preview problem and -x/2, for violations affecting homeworks, where x is the maximum possible grade for the homework. Higher penalty may be levied, including an F for the class, depending on the severity of the violation. Those decisions are at the discretion of the instructor. Note also, that besides being counter to the principles laid out in the School's Academic Integrity Policy, submitting work that is not your own, be it for preview problems or homeworks, will only make it harder for you to assimilate the class' material and subsequently apply it, including in the context of quizzes and exams.

• Quizzes and Exams: Collaboration is obviously not allowed, and any attempt to "share" answers with others will be considered an academic integrity violation and treated as such. In particular, if found guilty, it will result in at least an automatic grade of -10 for a quiz (quizzes have a maximum grade of 10) or -50 for an exam (exams have a maximum grade of 100). Alternatively, depending on the severity of the violation, a grade of F may be assigned. A similar policy holds for violations involving making Internet during an exam (although exams are typically structured to make any such attempt pointless).