WeBWorK for Math 309, Fall 2014
General Information and Suggestions
WeBWorK allows you to open a homework set at a scheduled time, make a hardcopy to with you, and later submit solutions online later up until the due deadline.

When you submit an answer, WebWorK immediately tells you whether your answer is correct.  If not, you can resubmitt answers to any question as often as you like, without penalty, until the closing deadlline for the assignment. This allows you to try to find out what you did wrong and, I hope, to understand the question better.  

WeBWorK is supposed to be tool to help you practice with the more computational types of material in the course. You can help each other with ideas or hints on the problems, but in the end you are supposed to solve the problems yourself and submit your own work.  

Ultimately, WebWorK functions on an "honor system."  
  • Getting an answer from someone else just intereferes with an opportunity to learn. There's no time pressure to find the solution (if you don't put things off to the last minute).  When you miss a problem, you can just try again a bit later.
  • WebWork problems usually vary numerically from person to person so that just "knowing the answer somebody else got" usually won't help.  
  • Some exam questions are closely related to WeBWorK problems, so it's worth the investment to figure them out for yourself in the more relaxed WeBWorK setting
  • Finally, just getting a few points boost in your WebWorK score doesn't contribute that much to your overall course grade anyway.    
If there are indications (from the computer system, or otherwise) that you are not finding and submitting your own WebWorK solutions, this may constitute an academic integrity violation.

Look over the basic procedures for logging on, etc. at Introduction to WeBWorK for Students
A bit of supplementary information:

First Time Logging On   You will need a username and a password. Your username is your 6-digit WU Student ID Number and this is also your initial password -- not a great choice for a password -- so after logging in the first time, you should
immediately:
  • Change your password to something else
  • Use the menu to update your email address, if necessary.  This will let me or the WebWorK coordinator respond to any message you send us from within WebWorK. 
  • What if I forget my password?  Email webwork@math.wustl.edu or your instructor to have your password reset. 
WeBWorK is fairly easy to use, and any additional questions can probably be answered on one of the following pages.
Generally, for answers expressed as decimals, WebWorK will want 4-5 significant digits of accuracy to score a problem correct.  Whenever possible, enter exact expressions and let WebWork do the arithmetic for you:  for example, enter "sqrt(2)" rather than 1.414 and enter "1/3" rather than .333.  

When you need to enter an expression in WebWork, the syntax is what you'd expect for a graphing calculator -- for example,  x^2  is entered to represent x2, and sqrt(x) for the square root of x.  So you could just type in sqrt((1/2)^2 + 3^3) for an answer.

Be careful about parentheses: WebWorK won't accept an expression with unbalanced parentheses. And different computers may treat an expression like 2/3*4 in different ways: does it mean
(2/3)*4 or 2/(3*4)?  When in doubt, add an extra pair ofparentheses!
When you think you're ready, you can go to the WebWorK page, bookmark it on your computer, and get started on the first assignment.
 
Each WW question will be worth 1 point. At the end of the semester, your WeBWorK scores will be converted to %'s, the two lowest discarded, and the average all of the remainder will be your WebWorK score = WWSCORE and will count for 10% of your grade in the course.

WW1 should be open on Wednesday, August 27 (second day of class) at latest; and it closes at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, September 2.  WW2 becomes available online two minutes later at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday September 3 and closes at 11:59 p.m. the following Tuesday, September 9.  This will be the general pattern for WebWorK assignments throughout the semester.

Don't put things off to the last minute.  Some of the problems take some time, and you need to have extra time for more work if some of your answers are incorrect.

Your past WebWorK scores during the semester can only be viewed from inside your WebWorK account; a WW total score will be moved into the Grading Center in Blackboard at the end of the semester.