Math 121A (44612/44640) - Fall 2021

Linear Algebra I

Course Summary, Text & Syllabus

Assessment

• Homework is due at the Tuesday discussions of weeks 3--5 and 7--10 (see the syllabus). Solutions will be posted within Canvas.
• Quizzes will be given in discussion class on the same days homework is collected, and cover the same sections as the homework.
• The lowest two of seven homework scores and the lowest two quiz scores will be dropped.
• Midterm: during normal class time on Friday 29th October.
• Final exam: in the usual classroom during finals week
  • 11am class: Friday 10th December, 8-10:00
  • 1pm class: Wednesday 8th December, 13:30-15:30
  The exam will be comprehensive.
• The overall grade breakdown will (tentatively) be 20% Quizzes, 15% Homework, 25% Midterm, 40% Final. There will be no opportunity for extra credit.

Class Policies & Administrative Stuff

• Adds/Drops, P/NP changes & the Waitlist: This is handled centrally by the math dept, NOT the instructor. Being on the waitlist does not exempt you from any assessments.
• Make sure you attend the correct discussion section: the quizzes will be different!
• No calculators, notes, or cheat-sheets are permitted in the tests.
• A legible ID is required for the exams. If your UCI ID has a smudged picture, bring your driver's license or passport.
• Exam scores and overall percentages will not be curved. You will instead receive a letter-grade equivalent with your midterm score as a guide to how you're doing. The overall letter-grade cut-offs, incorporating homework and quizzes, will be decided at the end of term after the final exam is graded.
• Post-final grade-change requests will be ignored for any reason other than the incorrect recording of scores. You have until the date of the final exam to report any missing or incorrectly recorded scores in the Canvas gradebook.
• Your final exam will be available to consult, but not take away, next quarter.
• Academic Honesty: Harsh penalties are in place for students who are caught cheating or using unauthorized assistance in tests. Depending on the severity of the offense, you may be given a zero for the assessment, for the class as a whole, or even suspended from the University.

COVID-specific matters

• UCI's campuswide guidelines are the starting point: read 'em and follow! Particularly note:
  • DO NOT come to campus if you are feeling unwell.
  • If you want to request accommodations for any reason - particularly because of illness - contact the Disability Services Center (DSC) as soon as possible. Accommodations might include remote proctoring of exams, recorded lecture material, etc. You should not request accommodations directly from the instructor or TA.
• The purpose of dropping two quizzes and homeworks is to give everyone some leeway in case of sudden illness, it is NOT to artificially boost your grade.
• Office hours will be remote, at least at first, to avoid the possibility of large numbers of people in a cramped office. This may change if the pandemic situation greatly improves.
• Make-up quizzes will not be granted out of respect for TA's limited + shared office space. This is another reason for dropping two quizzes.
• Exam absences. If you cannot attend an exam (midterm or final) due to illness, do one of the following depending on timing:
  • If it is one or more days until the exam: contact the DSC and request reasonable accommodations.
  • If it is the day of the exam: contact the instructor as soon as possible.
  Be aware that make-up exams may not be possible in every circumstance.