Janet Bickham's Online Basic Math

All information for the FALL 2009 semester is now posted and students should begin working in the class and in the MyMathLab computer software as soon as possible. Be sure to send your online orientation quiz to your instructor as soon as possible. More information about that may be found below. This class begins August 24, 2009, and all work must be completed and turned in and the final exam must be taken no later than December 8, 2009. Please be aware that this class is a computer math class that uses an Interactive Math program to enhance your math learning experience. You will be doing your work off campus but will be coming to campus to take tests either in the ACC Testing Center that you select on your online Orientation Form, or in an ACC Office for Students with Disabilities upon submitting to me an appropriate ACC accommodations letter.

For information about the book and computer program/software, please begin by reading through the MATD 0330 Basic Math Skills section of http://www.austincc.edu/mparker/acadsys/pictures.htm. More information about the MATD 0330 Basic Math Skills book (called Prealgebra) and software is found in these web pages and handouts.

There are no prerequisites for Basic Math Skills (MATD 0330). The course covers arithmetic of whole numbers, fractions, decimals, and signed numbers. It also includes applications involving these operations, geometry including perimeter and area of rectangles, squares, triangles, and circles, some beginning algebra (such as solving simple linear equations), and a few other basic math concepts.

Basic Math Skills is designed to be the first course in a 3-course Developmental Math sequence. The other two courses are Elementary Algebra and Intermediate Algebra. Students who pass Basic Math Skills will have a solid foundation in arithmetic of rational numbers, solving linear equations, and the beginnings of polynomial arithmetic.

Please note that once you have begun taking math classes at ACC, you may NOT skip math classes. Therefore, this paragraph applies only to those students who are trying to determine the correct initial placement into a math course. Please be aware that if you begin in this math course, you will have to take two other math courses (MATD 0370 Elementary Algebra and MATD 0390 Intermediate Algebra) before taking MATH 1314 College Algebra or MATH 1324 Math for Business and Economics (if you need either of these math courses for your degree or as prerequisites for higher level math courses or for other courses needed for your degree). If you think that this course may be too easy for you, you may want to try doing the Review for the Elementary Algebra Pretest. If you are able to understand and work correctly at least 30 out of the 42 problems on this review, then you are probably ready to take Elementary Algebra. However, please be aware that it is NEVER a good idea to begin at a level of math that is too difficult for you. In order to move up to Elementary Algebra, you will have to take and pass a Pretest with a minimum score of 70% correct at the beginning of the semester to verify that you truly are ready for the course. Schedule changes ("adds and drops") must be handled very early in the semester, so please take care of this right away. If you have any questions about which course is the correct level course for you, please contact me.

So how do you begin in this class?

1) To help determine whether this is a reasonable type course for you, complete the following two handouts posted at http://www.austincc.edu/jbickham/handouts:

a. Is Computer-Mediated Math Right for You?

b. Is Distance Learning Math Right for You?

2) Make sure that you have the minimum computer requirements posted at http://www.austincc.edu/jbickham/rightclass#Minimum. You will also need reliable high-speed internet access in order to participate in this course. ACC now provides email addresses for students, and all ACC faculty are required to send class correspondence to students using those email addresses. Therefore, you MUST activate these ACC email accounts now. However, you may transfer emails automatically from these accounts to your regular email accounts if you wish to do so. For more information about how to activate these accounts and also how to transfer your emails if you wish to do so, please refer to http://www.austincc.edu/accmail/. Emails sent to the class will also be posted as announcements in Blackboard at http://acconline.austincc.edu/.

3) Read through all of the links on the left side of the page, and please let me know if you find any bad links or errors. Please also read through the handouts posted at http://www.austincc.edu/jbickham/handouts and let me know if you find any mistakes in those, particularly in the Syllabus and Weekly Schedule. Be sure to get the handouts for MATD 0330 Basic Math Skills, and not for my other 2 developmental math courses.

4) If after doing all of this, you are sure that this is the correct class for you, then buy your MyMathLab Kit (with or without a printed copy of the book because the Kit comes with the book online) now. Register for MyMathLab by following the instructions at http://www.austincc.edu/jbickham/mymathlabinfo.pdf. Information about purchasing brief temporary access for those with short-term financial issues is at http://www.austincc.edu/jbickham/tempmmlaccess.pdf. You will also need notebook paper, pencils (or pens) with erasers, and an inexpensive very basic 4-function calculator like the type allowed while taking the THEA or T-COMPASS, to be used much later in the semester, including while taking the final exam.

5) All information necessary to complete the online orientation is now posted, so please submit your online orientation quiz in Blackboard now. You do NOT need the MyMathLab Kit or book in order to complete the online orientation. Just read the information in the web pages and handouts, and you should be able to answer the questions. After you have completed the online orientation quiz and have received feedback explaining what you missed and where to get that information, if you still are unable to find the information you are looking for, please contact me. If you have not completed the orientation by Friday, August 28, you may be dropped from the course.

6) Get started in the Weekly Schedule right away because the first assignments are due by the beginning of Week 2.

7) I will be emailing the entire class with more information regularly. Please keep in mind that I have many students I am dealing with, and the beginning and end of the semester are my busiest times because that is when most students contact me by telephone, by email, and in person, wanting help. I am also working as fast as I can to get all reviews created and tests into all of the Testing Centers and Offices for Students with Disabilities, and I will be emailing you to notify you as soon as those are ready for you to begin taking. I am working as fast as I can to assist everyone, so please be patient until you hear from me. I will be returning your messages as soon as I can and I will also be contacting the entire class with more information soon.

My goal is for my students to achieve victory over the math concepts and therefore succeed in my classes!

You have to do your part in order for this to occur!