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

PreLectures+Checkpoints:

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 (smartPhysics.com) 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.

Homework:

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. 

The delayed feedback questions usually appear at the end of the assignment.   As the name implies, no feedback is given on any submission before the deadline.   Credit is given based on the last answer submitted prior to the deadline.  The purpose of these delayed feedback questions is to provide a test of your understanding of the situation described in the problem.  The idea is that if you understand fully the solution to the immediate feedback questions in a given problem, we believe you should be able to correctly answer the delayed feedback questions in that problem.  Once the deadline has passed, you can find out whether your answers were correct or not and if not, you are given a one week extension and the questions become immediate feedback questions; the maximum credit given for a correct answer after the initial deadline is 80%.

Homeworks are also administered from  smartPhysics.

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 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.

Lab Sessions:

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.

Exams:

The first three multiple-choice exams will be given from 8:00- 9:30 AM in Loomis 151. The dates are listed in the course syllabus. Bring a calculator and pencils to all exams. Attendance will be taken so you must bring your official university identification card. There are no conflict exams in the summer

session of Physics 212. Exam scores will be posted in the web gradebook within 24 hours of the exam. Please let the instructor know well in advance if

you have special needs.

James Scholars:

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.

Gradebook:

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.

Final Exam:

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 ALONG WITH A FULLY COMPLETED VERSION of this form. (Do not take them 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. YOU MUST ALSO BRING A FULLY COMPLETED VERSION of this form to 231/233 Loomis.

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. IN EITHER CASE YOU MUST ALSO BRING A FULLY COMPLETED VERSION of this form to 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.