2018 Spring Course Syllabus - Mathematics 0828.001
Course: Mathematics 0828.001.
Course Title: critical thinking and problem solving.
Time: Tu/Th 11:40 - 1:20.
Place: BH 160.
Instructor: Raymond F. Coughlin.
Instructor Office: 1033 WA.
Instructor Email: raymond.coughlin@temple.edu
Instructor Phone: 1659.
Office Hours: Tu/Th 11:30 - 1:30.
Prerequisites: none.
Textbook: none.
Course Goals: This course fulfills the Quantitative Literacy area of the program, one of the nine areas in Gen Ed. The goals of the Quantitative Literacy area are to help students: Communicate logical arguments and their conclusions. Understand quantitative models that describe real world phenomena and recognize limitations of those models. Recognize, absorb, and appreciate quantitative reasoning for solving problems that are part of everyday life. Retrieve, organize, and analyze data associated with a quantitative model. Understand the various sources of uncertainty and error in empirical data. Perform simple mathematical computations associated with a quantitative model and make conclusions based on the results.
Topics Covered: The course, Critical Reasoning, is a direct consequence of my years as Honors Director and pre-med advisor and what I saw was lacking in our students' development. In a snapshot, national standardized exams such as the GRE, MCAT and LSAT examine students' ability to solve problems posed at Bloom's sixth level of reasoning. Few of our courses get to the third or fourth levels. We get to the fifth level - Synthesis - by having the students answer question such as: How do you combine these three or four ideas to form a new structure? What would you predict or infer from these statements? What ideas must be added to these statements to make the argument valid? How would you create or design a new or similar type of reasoning or argument? What would happen if you combined these ideas or statement in a different order or pattern? We get to the sixth level - Evaluation - by having the students answer question such as: How would you draw a proper conclusion based on these value decisions? How could you resolve the following controversy or difference of opinion? How could you develop a valid opinion, judgment or decision based on these statements? Why is the following argument flawed? What criteria would you use to assess the validity of the following statements? These questions are the specific illustrations of the fifth and sixth levels of Bloom's taxonomy. They are the specific types of questions that appear on national standardized exams. More importantly, when you learn how to reason at this level you are well on your way to mastering the complex material in your major, and to solving the intricate problems you will encounter in your career.
Course Grading: A(94%) A-(92%) B+(90%) B(84%) B-(82%) C+(80%) C(74%) C-(70%) D+(68%) D(65%) D-(62%).
Exam Dates: Exam1 - TH 2-15: Exam 2 - TH 13-22: Exam 3 - TH 4-19: Final Exam - 5-8 at 1:00.
Attendance Policy: Attendance: You are expected to attend every class and you are responsible for all assignments made in class. You are allowed 4 absences. There is no such thing as an "excused" absence. For each absence after the fourth your grade will be lowered by one grade, so store up your absences for "emergencies." (Here is a word to the wise: most "emergencies" occur at the end of the semester, so plan on attending every class, in this course and all your courses.).
Any student who has a need for accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately to discuss the specific situation as soon as possible. Contact Disability Resources and Services at (215) 204-1280, 100 Ritter Annex, to coordinate reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities.
Freedom to teach and freedom to learn are inseparable facets of academic freedom. The University has adopted a policy on Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities (Policy # 03.70.02) which can be accessed here.
Students will be charged for a course unless dropped by the Drop/Add deadline date. Check the University calendar for exact dates.
During the Drop/Add period, students may drop a course with no record of the class appearing on their transcript. Students are not financially responsible for any courses dropped during this period. In the following weeks prior to or on the withdrawal date students may withdraw from a course with the grade of "W" appearing on their transcript. After the withdrawal date students may not withdraw from courses. Check the University Calendar (Opens in new tab/window) for exact dates. See the full policy by clicking here. (Opens in new tab/window)
The grade "I" (an "incomplete") is only given if students cannot complete the course work due to circumstances beyond their control. It is necessary for the student to have completed the majority of the course work with a passing average and to sign an incomplete contract which clearly states what is left for the student to do and the deadline by which the work must be completed. The incomplete contract must also include a default grade that will be used in case the "I" grade is not resolved by the agreed deadline. See the full policy by clicking here. (Opens in new tab/window)