Instructor. Eric Hsu, SCI 211, erichsu@sfsu.edu
Class Meetings. TuTh 11:00-12:15 in TH 404
Office Hours. By appointment at erichsu.acuityscheduling.com.
Web Page. Link at http://math.sfsu.edu/hsu
Prerequisites. Officially: Math 335 and concurrent enrollment in Math 370, or consent of instructor. Unofficially: this is your last Spring as a math major.
Bulletin Description. This course builds on students’ work in upper division mathematics to deepen their understanding of the mathematics taught in secondary school. Students will actively explore topics in algebra, analysis, geometry and statistics.
Informal Description. This is not primarily a class about teaching, it is a math content class delivered via interesting teaching. Much research shows that amount of coursework in mathematics does not correlate to teaching effectiveness. One issue is that the undergraduate curriculum usually is not explicitly linked to high school mathematics. This course is a chance for us to return to high school mathematics with advanced mathematical tools and maturity. We will look at key questions that come up in high school classrooms, and consider rigorous answers as well as explanations accessible to students.
Learning Objectives. Students will be able to (1) analyze and prioritize key big ideas from the high school curriculum, (2) analyze high school mathematics content both with rigor and in a way accessible to students and (3) see the use of mathematical reasoning in the work of teaching (for instance, in understanding student thinking, connecting student creativity to class content, making connections across the curriculum, finding extensions to the standard content).
Evaluation of Students. Assignments will be weighted: Homework (400 pts), Exams (400 pts), Projects (100 pts), Class Contributions (100 pts). Course percentage will calculated out of 1000 pts and percentages in the interval [90%, ∞) will receive some kind of A, [80%, 90%) some kind of B, [70%, 80%) some kind of C and [60%, 70%) some kind of D. (-∞, 60%) is an F, but that won't be an issue, right? Grades will be posted to iLearn through the semester.
Homework. Homework assignments are to be done in groups of 1-4 students. A group should submit a single write-up, with members and their contributions clearly listed, typically on the following Sunday by 11:59pm. Post it to iLearn (or in cases of dire technological failure, email). At most one Late Homework is allowed, which needs to be submitted by the following Monday 11:59pm. Do try to start the new assignment on the weekend so you can ask questions on Tuesday, and certainly by the Thursday before.
Exams. In-class exams will be based on homework, so even though HW is created in groups, you must ensure that you can answer the questions independently. My current plan is to have 2 big quizzes (100 pts each) and a final for 200 pts. The final exam will be given on Tuesday May 21 2013, 10:45-1:15.
Final Project. Details to come.
Textbooks and Software. None required, except that your assignments must be typeset and e-mailed. They should be in a single PDF or Word file with your name in the file title. LaTeX is best, but you may find Equation Editor easier.