Physics
212 Course
Description
Introduction
Welcome to
Physics 212, Introduction to Electricity and Magnetism! In this course we will
discuss the basic laws describing electric and magnetic fields and how they
interact with matter. These topics are important, not only because they are
extremely interesting in their own right (their discovery was probably the most
important one in the 19th century), but also because they underlie almost all
of modern technology, from computers to telecommunications, all of chemistry,
and all of biology as well. Obviously completely understanding all that is beyond
the scope of this one semester course! We will therefore focus on the basic
principles, and their connection to applications from areas diverse as astronomy,
engineering, medicine, and zoology. It is our goal that at the end of this course
you will understand the main concepts of electricity and magnetism, be able
to apply them quantitatively for solving relevant problems, and appreciate qualitatively
how they play a role in nearly every aspect of our lives. The road to understanding
is not a particularly easy one, but the journey is well worth the effort. In
order to help you, we have devised a multifaceted approach intended to maximize
your conceptual understanding and ability to solve practical problems.
Overview
The basic
teaching philosophy of Physics 212 can be summarized as follows:
1. Introduction and first chance to think about it (prelectures and CheckPoints)
2. Untangle it (lectures)
3. Challenge yourself (homework)
4. Play with it (labs)
5. Close the loop (discussion)
The order
of the above items is critical.
The first exposure you will have to the material will be in the
prelecture (1).
These are new research-based multimedia presentations designed to introduce the key ideas/concepts of the lecture. Do this on your own prior to lecture (the assigned prelecture is listed for each lecture on the course planner).
This first step should be taken very seriously, as all of the following items
depend on this pre-exposure.
To get the most out of lecture your participation is required both prior to
and during each lecture! Before every lecture you will be required to work
through a brief "CheckPoint" on the Web. Each CheckPoint will probe your understanding
of the prelecture assigned for that lecture, and must be completed by
6am on the day of the lecture to receive credit. There are no "bad" CheckPoint
answers. You will receive full credit if you give it your best shot and answer
all the questions.
The
lecture
(2) will take the concepts from the prelecture and expand/explain them, usually
with the aid of demonstrations. The lectures themselves will be highly interactive,
and your participation is strongly recommended. Student questions and comments
in class are encouraged, especially related to concepts and problems you found
difficult in the CheckPoints. You will participate using the i>clicker and will get full credit if you give your best shot. You can also earn "extra-credit" for the questions you answer correctly.
The Web-based homework
(3) covering each week's material is due at 8am on the Tuesday of the
following week. This means you will have the background from the two prelectures and two lectures to guide you in finishing each weekly homework
assignment. Homework problems are designed to test your understanding of the
concepts as well as developing problem-solving skills.
The weekly
lab cycle (4)
is designed to give you the opportunity to explore the concepts
you have encountered in the prelectures and lectures in a hands-on
environment.
To cap things off, you will participate in a 2-hour weekly
Discussion section (5)
in
which you will work in groups of three or four students on instructional
materials designed to help you gain mastery of the previous week's topics.
There will also be open office hours every week to give
you one-on-one assistance if you need more help; do not be bashful about taking
advantage of these!
In order to succeed in Physics 212, you must not fall behind! This course
covers a large amount of new material. The understanding of new topics frequently
requires mastery of previous material. Unlike classical mechanics, you probably
have much less "intuition" about electricity and magnetism.
To help you keep track of "what is due when" we have put together a handy
Web based daily planner, available on the course
webpage.
Course
Component Details
You are required to complete a web-based prelecture and CheckPoint prior to each lecture. The prelectures are web-based multimedia learning activities that include embedded questions. You may attempt each question several times, however you must
eventually answer all questions correctly to complete the activity. You will receive 2 points for each prelecture you complete. Once you have completed the prelecture, the CheckPoint will be available. While we don't expect you to get correct answers to all of the CheckPoint questions, they will be checked for a good faith effort. Each completed CheckPoint is worth 1 point. There is no late credit for prelectures or CheckPoints.
Prelectures and CheckPoints are administered from the smartPhysics
server and can be accessed from the course Syllabus
or from the
smartPhysics link on the homepage. Your smartPhysics name is:
yournetid@illinois.edu.
Your initial password is your UIN. You can change your password using
the "account" link on smartPhysics.Lectures:
Since you will already have been exposed to the basic concepts through the prelecture, the lectures will spend relatively little time in the traditional lecture format. The primary focus of the lecture will be on expanding your understanding of the material based on your CheckPoint responses. This will take the form of interACTive learning segments (ACTs). During
these segments students will work in groups on a specific assigned question and
can discuss the results with other students and with the lecturer. This format allows the instructor to pinpoint problems in understanding and deal with them
before moving on. The purpose is to help you understand, and your participation
is critical.
In order to
provide an environment more conducive to participation and interaction, each student
will have an "i>clicker" with which to answer various questions during lecture. You will receive one point based on your participation in each lecture. You may also earn up to one additional "bonus" point for each lecture based on the fraction of the ACTs you answer correctly. These bonus points will be directly added to your Homework/Quiz final score. For example, if you get 50% of the ACTs correct in each of the 28 lectures, you would earn 14 "bonus" points that would directly increase your Homework+Discussion score.
The slides from each lecture will
be posted n the course webpage.
Each week
you are responsible for completing a computer-based homework assignment. These
assignments are graded and are an important part of the course. The only
way to really understand these topics is to work lots of problems.
The homework
assignments consist of both immediate feedback and delayed feedback questions.
The
immediate feedback questions,
as the name implies, give immediate feedback to your submitted answers.
All answers are judged as correct or incorrect, and for some specific
answers, we provide additional explanatory information about your
submission. There is no limit to the number of submissions you
can make to the immediate feedback questions and there is no penalty
assessed for extra submissions. Full credit is given if you submit the
correct answer prior to the deadline. In addition, for those
questions you do not answer correctly before the 8 am Tuesday deadline, we
give you a one week extension to do them and assign 80% credit for correct
answers. Included in the immediate feedback questions are
Interactive Examples that
have extensive help sequences designed to aid understanding.
Discussion
Sessions:
Each week
you will attend a two-hour discussion section conducted by a TA. These sections
will be active learning sessions in which you will work in small groups solving
problems provided to you by your TA. Discussion sessions are designed to aid
you in the understanding of the course material. You will find them beneficial
in preparation for the hour exams.
During each
discussion session, your TA will administer a short quiz (usually about 15-20
minutes in length) based on the material covered in the previous week's
prelectures, lectures
and homeworks. This quiz will be graded and recorded in the gradebook.
Each of
the nine two-hour laboratories will involve a series of activities, including
(i) setting up simple experiments to study topics studied in class, (ii) making
predictions about the outcome of your experiments, (iii) performing measurements
of different phenomena you have studied, (iv) analyzing your results, and (v)
answering questions concerning your results and predictions. In addition, at
the beginning of each lab, you are expected to turn in a "prelab",
a short set of questions designed to address the main topics of the lab. Prelab
scores are counted as part of the total lab score.
The Lab
sections start the second week of the course, and the first prelabs are due
at beginning of these sections.
The first
three exams are multiple-choice. All exams will be given at 7:00 pm. Exams 1 and 3 are on Wednesday evenings, and Exam 2 is on Thursday evening. The dates are listed in the course
syllabus. You will be assigned a room for each exam based on your discussion
section, and attendance will be taken by your discussion TA. Bring a calculator
and pencils to all exams. In addition, you must bring your official university
identification card to show upon request.
Conflict
exams will be scheduled for those with a legitimate schedule conflict. These
exams will be given at 5:15 pm on the same evening as the regular exam.
For those
of you intending to use Physics 212 to satisfy your James Scholar requirement
for an "honors" course, there are three things you must do:
1a. If
you are in Engineering, you must see Kate Shunk in 231/233 Loomis, to fill
out an Honor's Learning Agreement, which your lecturer will then have to sign.
1b. If you are in LAS, you must go to 270 Lincoln Hall to fill out the Honor's
Learning Agreement, which your lecturer will then have to sign.
1c. If you are in some other College, please see Kate Shunk in 231 Loomis,
and we'll figure out what the sign-up procedure is.
2. Complete the on-line registration
.
3. Turn in the 5 James Scholar assignments, which will be posted on-line.
The assignments will involve simple web-research, reading of articles, writing
descriptions, and simple calculations. We hope you will find them thought-provoking,
and that they give you a better apprecation for the wider application of
electro-magnetism to some of the latest cutting edge research and
technology.
Grading
Your final grade for Physics 212 will be based upon your total score on all the components of the course. The total possible score is 1000 points, broken down as follows:
|
Prelectures+CheckPoints+Lectures
|
100
|
|
Homework+Discussion
|
250
|
|
Labs
|
150
|
|
Hour exams (100 each)
|
300
|
|
Final Exam
|
200
|
The breakdown of total points versus course letter grade will be approximately:
A+ (950), A (920), A- (900), B+ (880), B (860), B- (835), C+ (810), C (780), C- (750), D+ (720), D (690), D- (610), and F (<610).
Note that we will NOT use the common 90/80/70/60 breakdown for letter grades; the cutoffs are generally higher. The reason for this is that for some parts of the course the average score is typically very high. For example, there is no reason you should not be able to score 100% on your web based homework and Pre-Flight assignments. You should also be able to do very well on Labs and Quizzes.
Prelectures+CheckPoints+Lectures:
There will be 28 lectures (1 pt) , each with a corresponding prelecture (2 pts) and CheckPoint (1pt).
Therefore, if you completed all of these activities, they would add to a total of 112 points (12 points more than the maximum allowed).
We adopt this procedure so that if you are sick, have a conflict, or just forget, you can miss a few of these activities without any penalty in your grade.
We do not give EX's for these course components. In addition to the 4 points/lecture listed, you may also earn up to 1 "bonus" point per lecture based on the fraction of the ACTs that you answer correctly during that lecture. These bonus points will be added to your Homework/Discussion score.
Homework+Discussion:
There will
be 14 homework sets and 10 quizzes, for a total of 24 equally-weighted scores. Your
highest 22 scores will be summed to determine your combined "homework/quiz"
grade. Once this score is computed, your bonus points from lecture will be added, up to a maximum score of 250 points.
For example, if you had an average homework/quiz score of 90%, and 15 bonus points from lecture, your Homework/Discussion score would be
(.9 x 250) + 15 = 240.
No EX's are given for Homework assignments.
A MAXIMUM of THREE EX's are given for quizzes.
The quiz grade for any missed quiz in excess ot the three excused quizzes will
be ZERO.
Labs:
All 9 lab
scores will be used in calculating your total lab points at the end of the semester.
(No lab scores will be dropped.)
A MAXIMUM of THREE EX's are given for labs.
The lab grade for any missed lab in excess ot the three excused labs will be
ZERO.
You will
be able to view your grades on all components of the course using the course
gradebook, which is accessible from the homepage. During the semester, you
should check that your lab and quiz grades are correctly entered in the gradebook;
any problems here should be brought to the attention of your section instructor
immediately.
The final
exam will be three hours in length and will cover material from the whole semester.
Two final exams will be given. Please select the one you prefer before the deadline listed in the gradebook on the web.
All questions
about your course letter grade should be directed to the main lecturer.
Unexcused Absences, Excused Absences, and Course Credit:
There will
be no make-ups for missed exams, quizzes or laboratory work in Physics 212.
Unexcused absences from hour exams or quizzes will receive a score of AB, which
is numerically equivalent to zero. Similarly, prelabs or lab reports that are
not turned in at the time they are due and in the lab section for which you
are registered will be scored AB, unless an excused absence is granted.
As previously noted, there is a limit of THREE EX quiz
grades and THREE EX lab grades.
An excused
absence from an hour exam will receive the score EX. At the end of the semester,
hour-exam EX scores will be replaced by a weighted average of all of your non-EX
scores on exams (hour exams and final exam). Similarly, an excused absence from
a quiz will receive an EX and such scores will be replaced by the semester average
of all non-EX quiz scores
(subject to the limit of three such EX grades). EX scores for prelabs and lab reports will be treated
in a similar manner.
Typically,
EX scores for exams, quizzes, prelabs and lab reports will be granted
only in one of the following circumstances: (a) illness; (b) personal crisis
(e.g., automobile accident, required court appearance, death of a close relative
or friend, weather conditions preventing travel to campus); or (c) required
attendance at an official UIUC activity (e.g., varsity athletics, band concert).
In case
(a), go to the McKinley Health Center. After you have been seen, you will receive
a Visit Confirmation note that you should take to the course secretary in 231/233
Loomis. (Do not take it to an instructor.) She will make a a photocopy
of the note for the course record book and will distribute copies to all of
your instructors (lecturer, discussion TA, and lab TA). You may choose instead
go to a private physician and obtain a written excuse. That excuse should contain
your doctor's name and telephone number. Take the excuse note to the course
secretary for recording, confirmation, and notification of your instructors.
In case
(b) contact the Dean of Students' Office 333-0050. (At night this number is
referred to as the Emergency Dean). The Dean's Office will subsequently send
you a letter and a copy to the course secretary. She will place it in the course
record book and send copies to all of your P212 instructors.
In case
(c) inform your lecturer in advance that you will be missing an hour
exam and request an EX score. Similarly, inform your discussion TA if you will
be missing a quiz or your lab TA if you will be missing a laboratory session.
In addition, obtain a written note of confirmation from an official of the sponsoring
office and take that note to the course secretary for recording and distribution
to all of your instructors. Alternatively, request that the note be sent directly
to the course secretary in 231/233 Loomis.
If you miss
an hour exam for any reason, contact your lecturer and describe the circumstances.
He or she will consider the merits of your case and determine whether an EX score
is justified.
If you miss
a quiz or fail to turn in a prelab or lab report for any reason, contact your
TA for that activity and describe the circumstances. Your TA will typically
consult with one or more members of the course faculty before deciding whether
an I score is justified.
If you fail
to take a regular or conflict final exam in Physics 212, you will receive an
ABS letter grade for the course, which will be interpreted as a failure (F)
in your semester grade report. Permission to change an ABS letter grade to an
I letter grade (incomplete) can only be granted by an authorized member of the Dean's Office
of your college. If an I grade is granted, you must take a replacement final
exam before the deadline specified in UIUC Code of Policies and Regulations
Applying to All Students.
If you miss a considerable number of quizzes
and labs in the course, you may choose to either receive a letter grade for
the course by accepting the grades of zero in those assignments that are in
excess of the three allowed EX grades for each component, or you may
request an I (incomplete) grade in the course from your Dean, in which case
you will receive a letter grade in the course when those missed activities
are made up in the following semester.
Only the dean of students can authorize an
extension of time for course completion (i.e., change the F to an INC). See Article 3, part 1 of
the
Student Code.
