I'm so glad you're in our MTH 111Z class! It's going to be a good term and a good year!!!
As a math teacher, I'm confident that everyone can learn to understand the math and algebra we will cover in our class. You're here as part of your academic journey and I hope that we can work together to deepen and expand your mathematical understanding this term.
Contrary to popular belief, no person is bad at math. I do know that plenty of people have had bad experiences with math. The good news is that everyone can have new and better experiences learning math. I'll do the best I can to help you do so, and I expect you to spend as much time and effort as needed for you to have a good learning experience this quarter.
Please know that I am here to support you and I appreciate you reaching out anytime you have any questions, be it a question related to our class, to you being a student at PCC, or anything else I can help and support you with.
Additionally, if you at any point find yourself not knowing something that I assume you know, please speak up! Math builds upon itself, so if there is a foundational concept you're not 100% sure on, let me know and we'll work through that, so you can succeed this term.
Side note:
MTH 111 was recently renumbered MTH 111Z. The two numbers are for the same class and you might sometimes see references to "MTH 111" and then "MTH 111Z" at other times. Don't worry if there's sometimes a "Z" and sometimes not. Either way, it really is the same class.
While I'll do my best to accommodate your learning needs this term, I want to be sure you have this resource list with information about childcare, work opportunities, unemployment benefits, food resources, health resources, and more that may help you navigate changes in your life this quarter.
Additionally, there are bound to be additional challenges that each of us face this term. If there is anything I can do to help you, please reach out. I am here to help you to the best of my ability both in class and in these trying times.
In case you missed it, be sure to check out the Resources for Students page (contained in the Introduction to Online Learning module), which has links to various resources available online and on PCC campuses.
If you face challenges affording food or housing, this will naturally affect your classwork. I want you to be successful and want to make sure you are away that PCC offers some resources that may help:
I want this class to be accessible for everyone and have designed it that way to the best of my abilities, trying to take into account the variety of learners that might be here. I would appreciate the opportunity to connect early on in the class with students who need accommodations because of learning differences.
As a college, PCC is committed to ensuring that classes are accessible. Accessible Ed & Disability Resources works with students and faculty to minimize barriers. If students elect to use approved academic accommodations, they must provide in advance formal notification from Disability Services to the instructor.
This term, in addition to eTutoring, PCC is delighted to announce that Academic Support Services for each campus will be offering free in-person and free online tutoring! Please visit the PCC Tutoring website to see what each campus is offering this term.
Get help dealing with personal or career concerns that may be impacting your academic success. Trained professional counselors can also assist you with decision-making, goal-setting, and personal development
The Portland Community College DREAMers Center provides a safer space for our Undocumented/DACAmented community. This space is for students to achieve their academic goals through the resources provided, gain leadership skills and receive financial and legal support.
A welcoming and inclusive space for our diverse student body, the Multicultural Centers were founded to address institutional racism and the unique needs of students of color at PCC. The Multicultural Centers support the academic achievement, leadership development, and advancement of students of color at PCC.
The Queer Resource Centers provide advocacy, education, leadership development, programming, and retention services for students with marginalized genders and sexualities to create an inclusive and intersectional campus climate promoting gender justice, sexual liberation, and equity for all people.
The PCC Veterans Resource Centers support student success by providing everyone a space with access to resources, information, and an inclusive community. They focus our efforts on academically, socially, culturally integrating current and former service members and their families into Portland Community College.
Women's Resource Center staff are here to offer connection, resources, and advocacy to support the success of all women and gender minority students. Students of all genders are welcome to all PCC WRC programming, events, and services.
The most comprehensive computer facilities on campus, the Computer Resource Centers are open to all currently enrolled PCC students. An orientation is required before using the centers.
From the Computer Resource Centers and Libraries, students can access their allocation of 100 double-sided pages of free printing per term. Please see the PCC Printing webpage for more information about printing on campus.
Welcome again!
You belong here and I'm glad you're in my class. I am excited to work with you this term.
I value the differences we each bring to the classroom and I appreciate having the opportunity to work with students of all races, ethnicities, religions, ages, documentation statuses, sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, abilities, sizes, shapes, socio-economic backgrounds, and educational backgrounds. I plan to learn as much from from you as I hope you plan to learn in this class.
Our class has several different components that come together to give you a complete experience.
In each module of the Content area of our course, you will find links to the blank lecture notes, the ALEKS homework, and the lab activities, as well as other resources.
As always, doing a little each day will help you to be more successful this term, but you should expect to put in about 6 - 10 hours of time outside of our class meetings each week.
The use of any AI tool (including tools such as PhotoMath, ChatGPT, or Google Lens) is not permitted for exercises on any graded assignment for this course.
Learning requires time and effort. AI can be used to assist in developing an understanding of general course concepts, but it cannot be used to complete any exercise on any graded assignment for our class.
All work (including answers submitted to ALEKS or work included as part of your lab assignments, on quizzes, or on exams) must be solely the product of your own efforts, without any AI system assisting you in answering the exercises or questions. Plagiarism and the use of external sources, including AI-generated work, for any answer or solution will result in a score of 0 on any assignment in which this technology is used.
If you need technical help, you can email the Student Help Desk at shd@pcc.edu
In general, we want to be sure everyone has the opportunity to gain as much from every meeting as possible, as well as feel comfortable engaging in class. Please be sure to keep the following in mind for every class meeting:
The best way to contact me is by email. You can email me directly from your PCC email account or by using the D2L Brightspace email system which can be accessed from the Classlist. You can use the Classlist to send an email to me and/or your classmates.
Please include a relevant subject section of your email. D2L Brightspace will automatically include the course number and CRN for the course you are taking with me, and it's helpful for me if you keep this in the subject line.
Sample email subject line: [MTH 111 - CRN XXXXX]: Confused between Inside vs. Outside Transformations
Due to federal privacy laws and concerns about privacy, all email communication between instructor and student shall be done via PCC-assigned email addresses. Email sent from using the Classlist in D2L will be sent by your PCC-assigned email address, so this is an acceptable method for emailing your instructor.
All email responses from your instructor will be found in your PCC email account, which you can access via MyPCC or via http://google.pcc.edu.
Emails sent from personal, non-PCC email accounts will not receive a response.
I will be checking email daily on weekdays. If you contact me by email and include a proper subject, you can expect a delay or no response. Email sent on weekdays will be answered within 24 hours. Email sent after 2 PM on Friday will be answered no later than the following Monday.
There is a lot of information about the course below, and I encourage you to read it fully both now, and again when we're a couple weeks into the course. As a brief summary, here's what a typical week will look like:
We will have graded Lab Activities for each content section of our course.
There are two portions to each Lab Activity, a group portion and an individual portion. Both portions will be completed while working with your group. For the group portion, your group will turn in a single copy of the exercises and this common grade will apply to all group members. For the individual portion, you will turn in your own individual work and you will only be graded for your own individual submission. Both portions will count towards your Lab Activity grade.
Lab Activities are graded for accuracy, notation, and completeness of written explanation. The work will be assessed according to the MTH 111 Documentation Guidelines.
Your single lowest combined Lab Activity score (group + individual score) will be dropped from your overall course grade calculation.
For every section of the lab manual that we cover, there will be two online assignments in ALEKS for you to complete. The homework for every section covered in a given week is due the following Sunday at 11 PM.
The first assignment is an ALEKS LESSON. This is a dynamic or adaptive assignment and you will only need to work on topics that you have not yet demonstrated to ALEKS that you have mastered.
The second assignment is an ALEKS HOMEWORK. This is a fixed assignment with typically 5 or 6 exercises related to what we covered in class and what you covered in your ALEKS LESSON.
Always complete the ALEKS LESSON before you attempt the ALEKS HOMEWORK. You can retry the ALEKS LESSON as many times as you want. You can only attempt the ALEKS HOMEWORK exercises two or three times, so you want to be sure you have practiced the topics in the ALEKS LESSON first.
This work is assessed primarily for the numerical accuracy of your answer. You do not need to submit anything on paper for your ALEKS assignments.
If you have any questions on your ALEKS assignments, please reach out to me as soon as possible.
There will be two quizzes during the term. All work will be done individually, without the use of notes, textbook, or calculator. Quizzes must be completed cleanly, legibly, in pencil, and your work will be assessed for presentation/communication of your mathematical thought process, as well as numerical correctness of your answers. The work will be assessed according to the MTH 111 Documentation Guidelines.
Quizzes will usually be announced in class two class meetings prior to the quiz date.
If you miss a quiz, reach out to me as soon as possible. Makeup quizzes cannot be completed once any work is returned or the key is posted.
There are three exams (Exam 1, Exam 2, and the Final Exam) during the term.
These exams will be paper and pencil exams that are completed individually. You'll write out all your work (just like on your worksheets and quizzes) and your work will be assessed according to the MTH 111 Documentation Guidelines.
Note that our curriculum guidelines dictate that these exams must be no note and closed book. Additionally, these exams will have a "no calculator" portion and "calculator allowed" portion.
Any hand held calculator will do, but you may not use a mobile or web accessible device such as a cell phone, tablet or laptop. If you need to borrow a scientific calculator for the exam, please let me know in advance and I will bring one for you.
If you are unable to take an exam on an exam date, reach out to me as soon as possible. Makeup exams cannot be completed once any work is returned or the key is posted.
The final exam cannot be taken at a different time, unless granted by the policies in the class schedule or in extreme circumstances. The final exam will not be returned to students.
If extenuating circumstances arise for you at some point in the term, contact me to discuss your options regarding late work. My general late work policy for various assignments is the following:
Because communication is an integral part of mathematics, the PCC Mathematics Departments have certain requirements for how work should be written. You should read and become familiar with the MTH 95 Notation Standards that the PCC Mathematics Department created, as they will help you earn full credit on your assignments.
As an additional resource, I've created an abbreviated version, which I call the MTH 111 Documentation Guidelines.
Additionally, I will demonstrate proper documentation for our course material in all class presentations.
If you ever have questions about appropriate documentation, please send me an email or make an appointment to discuss this with me during my student support hours.
| Activity | Total Number During the Term |
Points per Activity |
Total Number of Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lab - Group Portion |
16 | 2 | 32 |
| Lab - Individual Portion |
16 | 8 | 128 |
| ALEKS Lesson |
17 | 5 | 85 |
| ALEKS Homework |
17 | 3 | 51 |
| Quizzes | 2 | 25 | 50 |
| Exam 1 | 1 | 100 | 100 |
| Exam 2 | 1 | 150 | 150 |
| Final Exam | 1 | 212 | 204 |
| Total | 800 |
| Letter Grade | Grading Scale by Percentage |
Grading Scale by Points** |
|---|---|---|
| A* | 90 - 100% | 720 - 800 |
| B* | 80 - 89.99% | 640 - 719.99 |
| C* | 70 - 79.99% | 560 - 639.99 |
| D | 60 - 69.99% | 480 - 559.99 |
| F | < 60% | < 480 |
*In addition to the points and percentages stated above, to earn an A, B, C, or a P for the course, you must also have at least a 68% weighted average on your three exams.
**Should there not be 800 points possible at the end of the term, the Grading Scale by Percentage will be used.
Students are solely responsible for adding, dropping, or withdrawing from any class, as well as for selecting their desired grading option. Please review PCC Registration Policy for more information
The following are the different grading options that are available to you for this course. For more information, please go to the PCC Grading Guidelines.
Please note that all of these options have different deadlines. You can either view PCC's Drop/Withdrawal page or find the deadlines by going to MyPCC and clicking on the 'See your drop and withdraw deadlines' link under in the Term-to-Term Checklist section of the MyPCC Home tab.
If you would like to audit the course, you must discuss this with me, obtain my approval, and we must complete the process with the Registration office by 5 PM on the second Tuesday of the Term. Students can view course specific deadlines from the MyPCC Home tab, 'See your drop and withdraw deadlines' link.
If you would like to drop the course, you must officially drop the course using MyPCC by 10 PM on the second Tuesday of the term. Students can view course specific deadlines from the MyPCC Home tab, 'See your drop and withdraw deadlines' link.
If you decide to withdraw from the class, you must officially withdraw using MyPCC by the tenth Saturday of the term. Students can view course specific deadlines from the MyPCC Home tab, 'See your drop and withdraw deadlines' link.
If you would like your grade for the class to be assigned using the Pass/No Pass system, you must change your grading option through MyPCC by the tenth Saturday of the term. Students can view course specific deadlines from the MyPCC Home tab, 'See your drop and withdraw deadlines' link.
Note that a Pass represents satisfactory achievement for which the student would have earned a grade of C or better under the A-F letter grade option outlined above.
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Portland Community College is committed to creating and fostering a learning and working environment based on open communication and mutual respect. If you believe you have encountered sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, sexual assault, or discrimination based on race, color, religion, age, national origin, veteran status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability please contact the Office of Equity and Inclusion at (971) 722-5840 or equity.inclusion@pcc.edu.
PCC is a sanctuary college. For more information and resources, please see PCC's Resources for Undocumented and DACA Students webpage.
The instructor reserves the right to modify course content and/or substitute assignments and learning activities in response to institutional, weather or class situations.
Please review the PCC Payment Policy for information on payment and enrolling in courses. You can see your balance or access your bill online in the MyPCC Paying for College tab.
The Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook establishes students' freedoms and protections as well as expectations of appropriate behavior and ethical academic work. The Handbook includes items such as the Policy on Student Rights, the Policy on Student Conduct, and the Academic Integrity Policy.
Students are required to complete this course in accordance with the Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook. Cheating includes any attempt to defraud, deceive, or mislead the instructor in arriving at an honest grade assessment, and may include copying answers from other students or using unauthorized notes during tests. Plagiarism is a particular form of cheating that involves presenting as one's own the ideas or work of another, and may include using other people's ideas without proper attribution and submitting another person's work as one's own. Dishonest activities such as cheating on exams and submitting or copying work done by others will result in disciplinary actions including but not limited to receiving a failing grade. For further information, review the institution's Academic Integrity Policy.
Students assume full responsibility for the content and integrity of the coursework they submit. Work submitted by a student must be original work completed by the student. You may get help when working through problems and exercises, but then you must rework the problems on your own before submitting the work to me. The worksheet must be entirely your own work. No one other than you may write your assignments (unless granted by an approved PCC Disability Services accommodation).
Two or more people may not submit identical or nearly identical documents. If this occurs, the minimum consequence will be that the grades will be one-half the score for each person for the 1st offense. At a minimum, a grade of 0 will be earned for any further offenses. More than one offense may result in disciplinary actions including but not limited to receiving a failing grade for the course.
Discussions about exams are not permitted until the grades for the respective exam are posted. Please be aware that there is always the possibility that a student has not taken the exam yet, and you are responsible for withholding any information about the exam.