Below are the basic categories of assignments and requirements for this course and their relative weight in determining course grades.

Electronic Notebooks

We do expect that you maintain a "notebook" for this course, but not the traditional hard-copy notebook. On the course website, there will be a folder established for each person enrolled in the course. It is expected that you submit all of your assignments and other coursework by dropping them into this folder. In class, we will walk you through the procedure to do so. Throughout the course, the instructors will peruse the folders periodically to see that you are maintaining its contents regularly--keeping your assignments up-to-date and keeping it organized.

In order for ease of reading and opening all such assignments, it is expected that all assignments will be submitted in HTML. If you are not an HTML-savvy person, do not fret. From the beginning of the course, we will review how to use popular HTML editors such as Netscape composer and Adobe Go Live. These editors allow you to create HTML documents in WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) mode and will assist you in learning the "innerworkings" of HTML gradually

Attendance and Participation -- 15%

	It is impossible to succeed, much less grow, in this course without these elements.
	Active participation is expected to qualify your attendance.
	All readings must be completed for class discussion. This is a sign of active participation.
	All absences must be excused in advance if at all possible. If illness or emergencies occur, please notify the instructor as soon as possible and follow university guidelines about such situations.
	If a class session is missed, it is the responsibility of the student to obtain notes, materials, and assignments from other classmates first and the instructor secondly.

Meta-lessons -- 15%

"Meta-lesson" is a term, our colleague (Tim Hendrix) coined several years ago when trying to describe what would be an appropriate entry for a class reflective journal. Literally, it means "lesson behind the lesson." In this course, we ask that you complete a reflective journal of meta-lessons with an entry for each class session. Usually, one healthy paragraph or approximately 1/2 page is sufficient. It is difficult to prescribe someone's reflection!

Maybe your day's entry might be directly on the discussion or activities from that day's class. Perhaps, it was something more "behind the scenes." An example? Suppose we were doing a math activity in class one day in groups, and something about the way we formed groups or the dynamic of your group interaction struck you as important information about teaching/learning. That would be an appropriate "meta-lesson"--we probably didn't discuss those issues in class explicitly, but the reflections we have about the "background" issues are often what we remember and employ in our own teaching.

We will expect to see that regular attention to maintaining these metalessons will evident in your folders. Name them transparently, i.e., "metalesson8_28.html" would be the metalesson for August 28.

Principles and Standards Project-- 25%

	One of the components of this course is to develop a familiarity and understanding with the NCTM and ISBE standards for mathematics.
	You will work in groups to complete this project, but each person will be responsible for a specific portion of the project.
	Your group will present a standards based mathematics activity to the class which is appropriate for your focus age group and content area.

Field Exercises -- 20%

Each student will complete 2 field assignments. These will include:

	Observation of a math lesson taught by your cooperating teacher.
	Planning and conducting a math lesson either jointly with the cooperating teacher or independently with supervision by the cooperating teacher. The lesson must fit into the curriculum scope and sequence of the field classroom.

Final Project -- Module or Unit Plan -- 25%

	One of the components of the course is to develop a unit, or module, of mathematics instruction.
	You will work in groups to complete this project, but each person will be responsible for an individual lesson of the unit.
	These modules will be presented to the class in the last week of the semester.

Evaluation and Related Course Policies

A core assumption of this course is that all enrolled participants will bring both an open mind and a critical attitude to their work. Openness in this situation refers to a willingness to consider teaching in settings and grades beyond one’s first preferences, as well as to the capacity to find hidden opportunities in assignments, individuals and settings whose parameters and/or apparent limitations were not expected. A critical attitude refers to the capacity to see both the strengths and weaknesses of practices and situations while still withholding judgment on them. It also refers to the capacity to evaluate and question one’s own assumptions and past experiences. Students whose comments, interactions with others and written work all display evidence of openness and a critical attitude will be favorable evaluated.

Another core assumption of this course is that all participants are responsible adults capable of interacting with each other and with elementary students and school personnel in a professional and responsible manner; of being on time for class and field experiences; of being appropriately dressed; and of being prepared. Be aware that if you do not conduct yourself in a responsible, professional manner, or if you are late for class or field experiences or are absent without notice or excuse, you risk your grade and your standing, not only in this course, but most likely in the program as well.

Late assignments will be accepted only with pre-approved consent of the instructor. No work will be accepted after Friday, December 1.

Grades will be based on the following general rubric.

Grade Type Description Percentage Range A  A+ Consistent, timely preparation and attendance, thoughtful and substantial contributions to discussion and presentation, and well-written and solidly analytic papers/products will result in an "A." 98% -100%  A 93 - 97.9%  A- 90 - 92.9% B  B+ Consistent preparation and attendance, occasional contributions to discussions and presentations, and papers/products that "cover" a topic will result in a "B." 88 - 89.9%  B 83 - 87.9%  B- 80 - 82.9% C  C+ Inconsistencies in preparation and attendance, occasional contributions to discussions and presentations, and "thin" papers/products (in length or substance or both) will result in a "C." 78 - 79.9%  C 73 - 77.9%  C- 70 - 72.9% D  D We refuse to consider +'s and -'s in this category. Failure to attend class regularly or contribute to discussions and presentations, coming to class unprepared, and writing in a manner completely unacceptable for someone with senior standing at this university will result in a "D" or an "F," depending on circumstances and the extent of deficiencies. 60 - 69.9% F  F Less than 60%

One should be really quite concerned at achieving anything lower than a "B" range grade during the practice teaching experience. No matter how you interpret letter grades, a "C" grade in this course would reflect that you have not attained an adequate level of understanding, synthesis, and application to enter the profession as a practicing mathematics educator. Please keep track of your grades and see your instructor if your grades fall below the B range.