Not that kind of Weekend Update…

Delays

I hope you are all having a good (or good enough) weekend. I had a very busy week last week and haven’t had a chance to post the pre-class prep lessons for this upcoming Monday and Wednesday yet. We’ll still discuss 5.4 Comparison Tests and  5.5 Alternating Series in tomorrow’s Webex class and I’ll post the video and notes afterward.

I was hoping to return Test #2 to you by now, but I’m sorry to say I still haven’t finished grading. I promise to grade them as soon as I can.

Test #2 “Correction” Videos

I don’t usually accept test corrections after I return tests, but since Test #2 was our first test in this new format,  I’d like to make you a small offer to do something different to improve your grade. Instead of traditional test corrections, I’d like you to choose the one question you struggled with the most and shoot a video of yourself walking the viewer through a perfect solution. As long as your solution and explanation are perfect, I’ll replace your test grade for that question with 10/10. Otherwise, your original test grade will remain.

You have lots of freedom for how to shoot your video. You can narrate while you’re recording a screencast on a tablet, you can set up your phone to show you writing on paper…if you think of something more creative than that, even better! We just need to see you writing and need to hear your voice. (Let me know if you don’t have access to the technology to do this and still want to submit something.)

You shouldn’t just read your written work line-by-line to the viewer, you should explain your thinking. You’re the teacher now! Start out the video with a 1-minute introduction to the topic: what is the theory involved in what the question is asking you do to? What formulas will be useful for you to have? Set up the viewer to understand whatever you’re about to write. Then don’t just read your written work, make sure to explain why you’re taking each step you’re taking. Then include a conclusion explaining how you know you’ve answered the original question that was asked. The whole video will probably take about 5 minutes. Here’s a nice example. Pay attention to the narrator’s style. This will take some practice if you haven’t presented your own work in public much, so practice out loud before you shoot.

You’re also going to test out your video on your study group before submitting it. Any group member who gives you helpful feedback on your video will earn one participation point. It can be mathematical feedback about your solution or it can be technical feedback about the quality of your video. You will report who gave you helpful feedback using this form.

You will probably have to re-shoot your video to incorporate your group’s feedback. Don’t worry! Nobody expects you to be an expert the first time you do this!

Once your final video is ready, you can share it publicly online (on the OpenLab or as a public post on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook and share the link with me…if you shoot a TikTok, you’ll need to make sure someone without TikTok–like me–can still see it) and email me the link, or you can share it privately with me using Dropbox. I’ll post the Dropbox instructions here shortly.

  • Deadline for showing video to study group: Monday, April 27
  • Deadline for group feedback and report: Friday, May 1
  • Deadline for final video submission: Monday, May 4

Study groups (check your email from late March for group members’ contact info):

Group 1: Melvin, Fausto, Nafew, Risul, Reuben, Peter, Isaias

Group 2: Anik, Antonio, Parveen, Mariam, Sheriff, Israel

Group 3: Denny, Mamadou, Maftuna, Raisa, Elijah, Joanna

Group 4: Czar, Da Hong, Levaun, Inderpreet, Pablo, Frederick

Group 5: Garvin, Jared, Taraeah, Aarish, Renee, Tony

Test #2 Solutions

You’ll be posting a written solution for one Test #2 question on the OpenLab just like you did for Test #1. You can choose the solution from your video or another solution. Your post will earn you one participation point. Don’t forget to include the Test #2 Solutions category before you post.

Test #2 Solutions due Monday, May 4

Test #3a Review

You’ll be posting a written solution for one Test #3a question on the OpenLab just like you did for Test #1 and Test #2. Your post will earn you one participation point.  Don’t forget to include the Test #3 Review category before you post. Choose one of the topics in light green on the new schedule.

Test #3a Review due Monday, April 27

Test #3a will be given on Wednesday, April 29 (details will follow in a separate post).