Welcome to the course webpage for the Fall 2021 manifestation of MATH 3: Precalculus at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

The official syllabus for the course is located here. Most (but not all) of the important information from the syllabus is summarized below.

Basic Course Information

• Prerequisites: MATH 2 or mathematics placement (MP) score of 200 or higher. or 5.
• Textbook: You are not required to purchase a textbook for this course. An optional textbook is OpenStax: Precalculus. All of the topics we will cover can be found in here. The book is available as an .html webpage and as a .pdf. The .html version is the easiest to navigate, but I recommend that you download the .pdf version in case you lose access to the internet for any period of time. You can also access the text through the Canvas modules or download the app onto your smart device.
• Communication: If you have a general question about math or about the course, the best way to get a response from me is to post it on the Ed Discussion forum, see below. If you need to talk to me about something private or of a personal nature, then you should contact me via e-mail or see me during office hours. Please do not message me via Canvas, because I do not check it.
• Meetings: This is an in-person course. We will meet MWF from 9:20AM - 10:25AM in Porter Acad 148.
• COVID-19 Policies: Masks are required at all time while inside campus buildings, including our classroom. You are required to wear a mask that completely covers your face and nose. Eating and drinking in the classroom is not permitted. If you need to eat or drink, you may quietly excuse yourself. Student’s without a mask and students who do not wear their mask properly will not be permitted in the classroom. Additionally, students are not permitted to be on campus unless they comply with all applicable campus vaccine and testing policies. Please review the COVID-19 screening, testing, and vaccination requirements here.
• Course Webpage: You're on it! All important information will be posted here.
• Teaching Assistant: Our TA is Erol Barut. You can contact him via email. Erol will hold weekly office hours and discussion sections. You are highly encouraged to attend these!
  • TA e-mail:
  • TA Office Hours: TBD via Zoom. Zoom info will be posted on Canvas.
  • Discussion Sections: Thursdays 2:40PM - 3:45PM via Zoom (tentative). Zoom info will be posted on Canvas.
  The first section meeting is on 9/30/21. Discussion sections are optional, but you can earn extra credit each time you attend.
• Canvas: The Canvas webpage will be primarily used for hosting grades and the Zoom information for TA office hours and discussion sections. Additionally, the textbook is accessible via Canvas. Login here: https://canvas.ucsc.edu with your CruzID and Gold password.
• Ed Discussion: In order to provide you with learning support outside of class, we will be utilizing the Ed Discussion at edstem.org. Ed provides a discussion forum for the course. You can ask ask questions about anything course related, and your classmates, the instructor, and the TA can respond. You should have already been added to the course.
• Edfinity: We will use the online homework management system edfinity integrated with Canvas. You are required to enroll in our course - the cost is 25 dollars per student. To enroll in our Edfinity section, please follow the steps below:
  1. Important: Upgrade to the latest version of Google Chrome or Firefox on a Windows/Mac computer. Other browsers like Safari and devices like Chromebooks can cause issues when you access Edfinity via Canvas.
  2. If you already have created an account on Edfinity, make sure you are signed out of edfinity.com.
  3. Log into Canvas.
  4. Click on the links in Canvas to launch into Edfinity.
• Accessibility: I am strongly committed to making my course as accessible as possible. If you encounter materials that are not accessible to you, or experience a barrier to your participation, please bring this to my attention and I will gladly work with you to ensure accessibility. I am also happy to honor any accommodations letters from the Disability Resource Center (DRC) that you would like to confidentially bring to my attention.
• Catalog Course Description: Inverse functions and graphs; exponential and logarithmic functions, their graphs, and use in mathematical models of the real world; rates of change; trigonometry, trigonometric functions, and their graphs; and geometric series.
• Course Content: We will cover approximately the following topics:
  • Functions including linear, polynomial, rational, radical, exponential, absolute value, logarithmic, trigonometric; definitions, evaluation, domain and range;
  • Inverses of functions, Algebra of functions, Graphs of functions including asymptotic behavior, intercepts, and vertices;
  • Transformations of quadratic, absolute value, radical, rational, logarithmic, exponential functions;
  • Equations including rational, linear, radical, polynomial, exponential, trigonometric, logarithmic, and absolute value;
  • Linear, nonlinear, and absolute value inequalities, Systems of equations and inequalities;
  • Characterization of real and complex zeros of polynomials;
  • Unit circle and right triangle trigonometry, Trigonometric and inverse trigonometric identities and formulas; and
  • Graphing trigonometric functions:  period, amplitude, phase shift, inverse trigonometric functions.
• Learning Outcomes: Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:
  • Graph functions and relations in rectangular coordinates, Synthesize results from the graphs and/or equations of functions and relations, Apply transformations to the graphs of functions and relations;
  • Recognize the relationship between functions and their inverses graphically and algebraically;
  • Solve and apply equations including rational, linear, polynomial, exponential, absolute value, radical, and logarithmic, and solve linear, nonlinear, and absolute value inequalities;
  • Solve systems of equations and inequalities;
  • Apply functions to model real world applications;
  • Identify special triangles and their related angle and side measures;
  • Evaluate the trigonometric function of an angle given in degree and radian measure;
  • Manipulate and simplify a trigonometric expression, Solve trigonometric equations, triangles, and applications;
  • Graph the basic trigonometric functions and apply changes in period, phase and amplitude to generate new graphs; and
  • Prove trigonometric identities.
• Schedule of Lectures: A schedule of lectures will be posted here. It will be regularly updated as the course progresses.
• Assessment Distribution: Your score is a nonnegative real number calculated as the weighted average of the following assessments. You can click on the links below to see more details about the assignments.
  • In-Class Assignments (10%)
  • Edfinity Exercises (40%)
  • Exam 1 (15%)
  • Exam 2 (15%)
  • Final Exam (20%)
  • Extra Credit (5%)
    You can earn extra credit by attending discussion sections and office hours. You will earn 1 point each time you attend a discussion section, TA office hours, or instructor office hours. You can earn a maximum of 3 points per week.
• Late Work Policy: I will not, under any circumstance, accept late submissions for reading assignments, daily assignments, or Edfinity exercises. Late submissions of weekly homeworks and exams are only accepted, at my sole discretion, in extreme circumstances, such as in the case of a medical emergency. Extreme circumstances must be brought to my attention as soon as possible and must be adequately documented.
• Letter Grades: Your final letter grade depends on your score. Final letter grades are assigned according to the following score ranges:
  

  Letter	Score		Letter	Score		Letter	Score		Letter	Score		Letter	Score
  A+	greater than 95		B+	86-89		C+	76-79		D+	66-69		F	less than 60
  A	93-95		B	83-85		C	73-75		D	63-65
  A-	90-92		B-	80-82		C-	70-72		D-	60-62

  
  Score ranges may be adjusted (to your advantage) according to class performance. Scores falling in be- tween two ranges will be rounded up. For example, according to the ranges above a final score of 75.1 will earn the letter grade C+ (rounded up), whereas a final score of 74.9 will earn the letter grade C (no rounding).