Informal Description and Advice
Here is some additional, more informal information about the class
that should give you a better idea what to expect from this class, how
to enjoy it and do well, and help you decide whether or not this class
is for you.
- This class is a lot of work, but I think it's less work than
Calculus I.
- Falling behind in this course is not a good idea. If you're
confused about something, it's very important that you seek help
sooner rather than later. There are many people around who can
offer help. However, we can't offer assistance if we don't know
who needs it when. You need to take responsibility to seek help if
you need it. On a related note ...
- I do not expect all of the homework assignments to be easy; I
don't expect you to be able to sit down and do them easily the
first time. Don't let yourself get frustrated -- I strongly
suggest working with others and seeking help if you need it.
- In Calc II Maple will be more integrated into the course than
it was in Calculus I. Knowing how to use a computer algebra and
graphing system is important and, at times,
essential, if you're going to do "real-world" and not text-book
math. This may be frustrating for some, but I'm convinced it's
worth it.
- This class meets three times a week, with the Wednesday time
listed as a lab. My plan, however, is to treat the three meeting
times pretty much the same. That is, we'll do lab stuff during
class, and vice versa.
- In many more traditional math classes the textbook has a ton
of examples in them. The book we'll be using doesn't. The result
is that students sometimes find the homework to be challenging,
frustrating, and occasionally even annoying. However, I'm
convinced that this style of homework -- where there's not an
example just like the problem you're trying to do -- is much
better pedagogically. You'll learn a lot more this way.
- This course does covers pretty standard Calc II material. The
text book we're using is used at many other colleges and
universities in the U.S.
- Many of you haven't taken Calc I here this year, and might
not have taken and Calculus at all for a while. Don't worry. In
the past, people who have taken calculus elsewhere have done very
well in this course. We will review Calc I material as needed.
- This class is a lot of work. However, the workload is steady;
you'll be doing approximately the same amount of work each
week. We'll hit the ground running and try to get lots of stuff
done the next few weeks. The workload will taper off some toward
the end of the term.