PHYSICS 352/354 Course Expectations (2005/2006 Kolena)
TEXTS	Physics, by Walker The Way Things Work, by Macaulay (there are two versions: one has "New" in the title and one doesn't)
CLASS	The pace of the class will be brisk, partly because I will assume that you already know a good deal of physics (because you have done the assigned daily readings and have studied the worked examples suggested). We will solve problems from Walker virtually every class day, so please bring your text to class each day. You are required to have two lab journals of the specified type. We might be taking lab data on any day, or we might be discussing lab work already in your journals, so you need to have your journals with you every day, except of course when they have been handed in for grading. I also expect you to have your working (!) graphing calculator with you every day. You are required to have printing privileges, because you will need to print during lab. Of course, I expect you to be on time for class. "Late" means being seated after I start class (which I intend to start exactly on time -- real time, & in physics we have radio-controlled clocks) at 8 a.m. or immediately after lunch; for other classes I will be more tolerant unless you are consistently late. Consequences of being late are posted in the 352/354 classroom and on a handout that each of you will receive or find on the class website.
	EXPECTATIONS
READING	The course syllabus is a rough guide to the order of the topics that we will study this trimester.  Refer to it often; you are allowed to read ahead!  The course web site address is www.phy.duke.edu/~kolena/physics05f.html It is your responsibility to make sure that you know what is expected of you for the next class in the way of textbook reading, homework, and labwork. All assignments will be available on the web. Please get into the habit of checking the web site daily (but not printing it, please!); I will try to have any relevant messages and assignments posted by 6 pm. I cannot emphasize enough how important reading the relevant text sections and studying the worked examples in advance of my talking about them are to your success in this class. Reading a physics book and studying worked examples is quite unlike reading a novel or a social studies text. More about this sometime in class.
WRITING and WORKING ONLINE	Assigned written homework problems (typically one, two or three per week) will typically be due by 5 pm in the black box on the table outside my office (Bryan 438).  Since you may be used to written assignments due only in class, remembering to turn in the homework in may be taxing. Persevere, since LATE HOMEWORK WILL GENERALLY NOT BE GRADED BUT, if you should forget to turn it in on time, you do need to turn it in asap, since you will receive some partial credit even for turning in a written assignment slightly late, as long as this happens no more than 2 times per trimester. You should be solving at least as many problems on your own as I assign. After completing the assigned reading each night, you should attempt a few conceptual questions or non-asterisked problems from the back of the chapter in Walker. If you cannot solve them pretty immediately, it means that you need to re-read the appropriate sections and re-study the worked examples more carefully. As we dig deeper into a subject, you should also be working extra problems of the * or ** type from Walker. Keep all these extra worked problems organized in your notebook; they may be traded in for extra class commitment credit if a test performance is below expectations. Homework MUST be stapled if more than one page. There is a stapler mounted on the 4th floor Bryan wall across from room 441. Often lab instructions will be available a day or more before we actually do experiments. Read them beforehand. Links to the instructions will usually be on the class website. Lab expectations are available in the Physics 352/354 Lab Guide handout. Tests will happen 2 to 4 times each trimester & usually on lab day. Since tests will often cover 2 or 3 chapters of material, cramming for them the night or weekend before will be of minimal value. If you have kept up with the reading and succeeded in conquering the homework by yourself every day, tests will seem easy.
TUTORIAL	Physics teachers and senior tutors will be available most every M - Th for at least an hour. Use this opportunity! Check the posted tutorial schedule on the physics hallway. If you need physics assistance, you are expected to use tutorial as the first source of assistance outside of class time.
OFFICE HOURS	My teaching blocks are CDE this trimester.  You are welcome to visit me in my office, to talk about physics or anything else. I will particularly try to be available after class and one or two afternoons of the week, though I expect you to use tutorial nights as your main source of out-of-class assistance.
HONESTY	You will receive a copy of the Physics Department Honesty Policy; it is also posted in the classroom.
CLASS COMMITMENT	Since tests in this class will occur less frequently than in some of your other classes, they will count proportionally less toward your total grade than in many other classes. What this really means, of course, is that you will be tested every day in class in a variety of ways; examples of such are in the following (non-exhaustive) list: coming to class and turning in your work on time showing enthusiasm in your learning working problems beyond the ones required for turn-in taking useful notes asking questions of your own and answering mine in class challenging explanations or examples that leave you confused convincing me that you did the assigned daily reading being prepared for and taking leadership in labs following verbal and written instructions, especially in lab helping your classmates where appropriate re-doing returned tests or labs that do not earn at least a grade of B taking initiative in getting missed notes & assignments from a classmate (or the web) after an absence getting extra help from me outside of class and at tutorial when appropriate posting problem solutions when the option arises presenting 2 to 4 problems to the whole class each trimester Your class commitment grade is my assessment of how committed you are to making this class a successful learning experience not only for yourself, but also for the rest of the class. You are encouraged to talk with me periodically during the year about your class commitment grade.
GRADING	Pre-final-exam Trimester grades will be based on 20% for Class Commitment 40% for Homework/Labwork (minimum 20 homework assignments, including online; minimum 12 labs) 40% for Tests (2 - 4 in number) In figuring the final trimester grade, your final (trimester) exam will count 15% - 25%.  The following grading scale applies to all work in this class A: 83 -- 100 B: 70 -- 82.99etc C: 60 -- 69.99etc D: below 60