Course Policies
Table of contents
About
This course is an introduction to logic and probability. Students will learn to identify arguments and their parts, learn to identify common reasoning errors, study the concepts used to evaluate arguments, and learn the basic elements of logic and probability. There will be an emphasis on the relation between deductive logic, inductive logic, and probability. The goal is to develop a broad understanding of the principles that guide human reasoning. Applying logic and probability to the study of reasoning is a major focus of investigation in diverse research areas, such as philosophy, logic, artificial intelligence, cognitive science, and psychology.
Resources
- Textbook: The textbook for this course is available online: text.phil171.org. All other readings will be available on ELMS.
- Tophat: Please signup for tophat using the join code 020609. You must sign up for the Top Hat Pro subscription. Tophat will be used for in-class questions during lectures and for interactive study guides to supplement the readings and lectures.
Campuswire: This term we will be using Campuswire for class discussion. The system is highly catered to getting you help fast and efficiently from both me and your classmates. Rather than emailing questions to me, I encourage you to post your questions on Campuswire. Find our class page at: https://campuswire.com/c/GCDE50B76/feed. You will receive an invitation email to join Campuswire (for free) at the beginning of the semester.
- Gradescope: We will use Gradescope for your weekly problem sets. You should access gradescope through the ELMS website. You already are added to the Gradescope gradebook.
Weekly Schedule/Due Dates
The tentative weekly schedule:
- Update to the course, including updates to the course website, updates to the online notes, updates to the weekly schedule, and announcements of the problem sets for the week will be announced at around noon Mondays.
- In-person lectures on Tuesdays and Thursdays 12:30pm - 1:20pm in LEF 2205.
- Throughout the week, use campuswire.com to ask questions about the problem sets, reading or lectures, or anything else you might want to discuss related to the course.
- Any new videos discussing the assigned problems will be made available Wednesday or Thursdays.
- Weekly problem sets (submitted through Gradescope) are due Fridays by 11:00 PM.
- The participation questions (answered via Tophat.com) are due Fridays by 11:00 PM.
Course Requirements
The course requirements are:
Participation: There will be weekly “participation questions” assigned via Tophat. Many of the questions will be asked and answered during the lectures. Some questions will be graded for participation only (e.g., you get 1 point as long as you answer the question before the deadline) and others questions will be graded for correctness (e.g., you get 0.5 points for participation and 0.5 points for correctness). Each student will receive 10% of the total points as extra credit (e.g., if there are 50 total points, then each student will receive 5 extra credit points). You are encouraged to discuss these problems with your classmates.
Problem Sets: There will be approximately 10 problem sets. Problem sets will be submitted through Gradescope (accessible through the course website). You can use your notes and the online textbook, but you should not discuss your answers with your classmates.
Exams: The exams will have an in-person component and an online component submitted through \href{https://umd.instructure.com/courses/1289360/external_tools/38832?display=borderless}{Gradescope} (accessible through the course website). There will be 3 exams given during the semester:
- Exam 1: Logic and reasoning (tentatively scheduled for week 6)
- Exam 2: Probability (tentatively scheduled for week 12)
- Final Exam: The final will be cumulative and given as an online exam during finals week. The final will be cumulative and given during finals week. Consult Testudo for more information about the time of the final exam.
Late Policy
There will be weekly practice questions assigned on Tophat (some of the questions will be answered during lectures). You must answer all the practice questions for the week by Fridays at 11pm. You will have more than one chance to answer the questions. Answers to the practice questions will be accepted up to 2 weeks past the due date. Practice questions submitted more than 2 weeks late will be accepted, but you may not receive full credit for the questions.
- Problem sets will be assigned each week (usually on Monday afternoons). You must submit your problem sets by Fridays at 11pm. The penalty for late problem sets is as follows:
- Problem sets submitted less than 24 hours after the due date: no late penalty
- Problem sets submitted 1-2 days late: assignments will be graded, and a small late penalty will be applied (0.5 - 3 points depending on how many points are assigned to the problem set).
- Problem sets submitted 3-7 days late: the problem set will be lightly graded, and you will receive at most 3/4 the total points for the assignment.
- Problem sets more than a week late: the problem set will be lightly graded, and you will receive at most 1/2 the total points for the assignment.
- Late exams will not be accepted (unless you contact me in advance to ask for a valid extension).
Grades
Grades will be assigned according to the following weights:
| Activity | Percent |
|---|---|
| Participation | 25% |
| Problem Sets | 40% |
| Exam 1 | 10% |
| Exam 2 | 10% |
| Final Exam | 15% |
See undergraduate catalogue for description of grades, e.g., A+, A, A-, etc.
Support
You are not alone in this course. It’s expected that some aspects of the course will take time to master, and the best way to master challenging material is to ask questions. For online questions, use Campuswire.
UMD has many resources available to help students. Below are links to some resources that you might find helpful.