Grading

This course follows a flipped classroom model. This means that students are required to do pre-class preparation for the material of the week, including completing short pre-class assignments. Students will be evaluated on their pre-class preparation, their group work during class, and their performance in exams.

Examinations

The course will have a midterm and a final exam. The midterm will cover all material in the first half of the course (up to and including the material covered in the week before the midterm), and the final will be comprehensive.

Homework assignments

The course will have weekly assignments (except for a few weeks) of two types.

Pre-class mini assignments (individual)

Students will be required to complete a pre-class (mini) assignment before every class, unless otherwise indicated on Moodle's schedule for the week. Pre-class assignments will be made available on Moodle each Monday and will need to be submitted on Gradescope. The deadline for each pre-class assignment is midnight of the day before the corresponding class. Gradescope will allow late submissions for 10 hours past the deadline, but such late submissions will receive a 20% penalty. Pre-class assignments will be relatively short (typically a handful of questions), and will be based on the study materials for the week. These mini-assignments are meant to ensure students study the week's materials in preparation for class.

Post-class assignments (individual)

After each class (with some exceptions), we will post a post-class assignment on Moodle. Post-class assignments cover the material practiced during the class activities. Even though students work in the classroom in groups, each student will need to to complete the post-class assignments individually and submit them through Gradescope. Gradescope will allow late submissions for 10 hours past the deadline of each assignment, but such late submissions will receive a 20% penalty.

Extension policy

The time provided to complete assignments (~a week) already accounts for unexpected delays, other commitments, and navigating of personal constraints. No extensions to the assignment deadlines will be granted.

Review tutorial assignments

There will be three review tutorials offered during three separate weeks in the semester. The tutorials will be in a quiz form, graded automatically. Each tutorial will remain open for a week and students will be able to access it at any time during that week. Students will be allowed to attempt each tutorial an unlimited number of times. Questions will be randomized and slightly changed across attempts to discourage random guessing. Students will receive the grade for the maximum scoring attempt for each tutorial. The time provided to complete each tutorial (a week) already accounts for unexpected delays, other commitments, and navigating of personal constraints. No extensions to the tutorial deadlines will be granted.

Attendance

Attendance will be reported for each class through Moodle. Students will have to report their table and computer number through the attendance activity. The attendance module on Moodle will only be available from start of class and until 10:45am during each class. Attendance is self-reported, but the instructor and TAs will monitor the attendance report and verify who is present. Students should not sign in to the attendance activities remotely (i.e., while not in the classroom) under any circumstances. If a student is found to be misreporting attendance (marking attendance even though they are absent), the behavior will be considered cheating. The incident will be reported to the UMass Academic Honesty Board, and the student will be penalized (see the section on cheating below).

Excused absences: Absences will be excused for religious and medical reasons, and other extenuating circumstances. Personal commitments, workload issues, desire to attend conflicting events, will not qualify for excused absences. Any planned absences for allowed reasons need to be communicated to the instructor, in writing, at least a week in advance. In case of medical and other unplanned emergencies, students need to notify the instructor, in writing, within 48 hours of the missed class and provide appropriate documentation (e.g., doctor's note). Excused absences will not miss marks towards the attendance grade. No more than three absences will be excused for any student throughout the semester. Attendance will not be taken during the first class.

Leaving early: If you have reported attendance but you need to leave before the end of class, you have to notify the instructor first. If you do not, and you are found to be absent during attendance checks, this will be considered a misreported attendance and handled accordingly. Depending on the time and other factors, the instructor may permit you to leave without an attendance penalty, or remove you from the attendace rolls.

Engagement: Attendance assumes that you participate fully in the classroom activities and work together with your group. The TAs and the instructor will be monitoring team work closely. Students who do not engage in the class activities or do not contribute to the group work may be asked to leave the classroom and may receive penalties on their participation grade. Non-classroom business, such as online shopping, engaging in chats and social networks, and working on other courses' assignments, is not allowed during class time. Students who are found to engage in such activities repeatedly will be asked to leave the classroom and will receive grade penalties.

Final	20%
Midterm	20%
Pre-class assignments	20%
Post-class assignments	20%
Review tutorial assignments	10%
Attendance and participation	10%

At least one exam and half of the pre- and post-class assignments are required for a passing grade.

Policies on cheating and plagiarism

The course is designed around group work and collaboration in the classroom. You are encouraged to discuss the content of this course with anyone you like inside and outside of the classroom. When working in groups, you can divide the work as you see fit, but you are expected to contribute equally and ensure that everyone in your group understands the steps in each activity. Feel free to look-up any information on the web or other sources that you may find useful. You are also encouraged to point other students to content you have found useful.

Assignments, exams, and tutorials are to be completed individually. Plagiarism, cheating, and other forms of intellectual misconduct will be dealt with severely.

Attendance has grade implications in this class. Misrepresenting attendance, such as singing in while not physically present in the classroom, is considered cheating, and will not be tolerated.

All cheating cases will be forwarded to the UMass Academic Honesty Board. The penalty for the first offense is a full letter grade reduction in the final course grade (e.g., a B+ would be reduced to a C+). Any subsequent offense will result in a failing grade for the course.

Conduct and policy of inclusion

When working in teams, disagreements may arise. We expect you to resolve them as you would do in real life: you discuss the options until you reach an agreement on how to address each problem. That said, we expect and demand that you treat everyone in your team, and in the entire class, with respect. We will not tolerate instances of bias and discrimination based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religious, or political beliefs. All students are also encouraged to take a moment to report their preferred pronouns on Spire.