Study Guide

Objectives (course unit)

Student
-is able to narrate given mathematical text and self-produced expressions/equations etc.
-is able to evaluate his/her own mathematical know-how
-can manipulate expressions and equations (by utilizing tools, if necessary)
-knows the concepts of function and proportionality
-identifies and is able to create an equation of a line
-knows Boolean algebra and is able to use truth tables
-is able to apply course contents in technical problem solving
-is able to act as a member of a group and take responsibility for one's own and the group's success

Content (course unit)

-Reading and presentation skills of basic software engineering mathematics
-Numeral systems that are used in software engineering (binary and hexadecimal systems)
-Power: powers of 10 and 2, multiplicative units, manipulation of expressions
-Solving an equation, solving a system of equations
-Concept of proportionality
-Equation of a line, concept of regression
-Concept of function, sine function
-Boolean algebra, truth tables
-Basic use of mathematical software (with the content themes listed above)

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1-2) (course unit)

-Knows the taught mathematical basic concepts
-Is able to do given basic level tasks by utilizing the group, if necessary
-Understands and is able to narrate given mathematical text
-Knows some engineering applications of the course contents

Assessment criteria, good (3-4) (course unit)

-Can handle expressions and equations within the span of course contents
-Can narrate and justify self-produced expressions and equations etc.
-Is mainly able to use mathematical notations and concepts correctly
-Is able to help other members of the group
-Can apply taught concepts in engineering applications

Assessment criteria, excellent (5) (course unit)

-In addition to aforementioned
*Can apply course contents in technical problem solving – even in new contexts
*Student can present self-written mathematical text clearly, logically and precisely

Location and time

Dates and times are shown in the students' schedule.

Exam schedules

The dates and times for partial exams:
Partial exam 1: TBA. No sign-up required.
Partial exam 2: TBA. No sign-up required.
Each partial exam can only be taken once, with no re-attempts.

Retake exams are stand-alone exams that cover the full course, and are not affected by partial exam or exercise points. The dates and times for the retake exams:
Retake exam 1: January 17th from 1 PM to 4 PM. Sign-up in Pakki required.
Retake exam 2: February 7th from 1 PM to 4 PM. Sign-up in Pakki required.
The exam classrooms will be announced in the course's Moodle page. A grade of 0 is required to participate in a retake exam.

If you received a grade of 0, you can attend at most two (2) retake exams. If you received a grade of 1-4, you can attend only one (1) retake exam.

If you are ill during an exam or cannot participate in an exam, you are expected to report your absence as soon as possible, preferably before the exam. An unreported absence results to obtaining 0 points from the exam.

Assessment methods and criteria

The course can be completed in two mutually exclusive ways:
A) Two partial exams, homework and other activities (recommended for an average student)
B) Retake exam only (acts as a stand-alone exam)

For the completion method A), the final grade is based on both partial exams, completed homework exercises and other possible assignments. To pass the course, a student must obtain at least 30% of the maximum points in each partial exam, and completed and submitted at least 30% of the homework exercises. Each partial exam can be taken only once.

Grade 0: a grade of 0 is required to sign up for the retake exams. In order to obtain the grade of 0, the student must have completed and submitted at least 30% of the homework exercises.

In order to sign up for the retake exam (method B) in Pakki, a grade of 0 or higher is required.

For the completion method A), participating in the retake exam is NOT required. For the completion method B), the final grade is only based on the retake exam, which covers the material of the entire course.

For both completion methods A) and B), the course is graded on a scale from 0 to 5. For both methods, the course grade is based on the percentage of points obtained:
30% of maximum score - 0.5
45% of maximum score - 1.5
60% of maximum score - 2.5
75% of maximum score - 3.5
90% of maximum score - 4.5
After the grade has been calculated using the above table, the final grade is determined by rounding the calculated grade to the nearest integer (i.e. a grade of 4.4 is rounded to 4, while 4.6 is rounded to 5).

Using AI:
If a student uses AI as a part of the solution for exercises, the solutions must be presented by using the terms, notations and methods used in the course implementation, and the student must be able to explain the intermediate steps.

Assessment scale

0-5

Teaching methods

Contact teaching, Independent learning, Lesson excercises, Homework, Group work, Problem-based learning, Collaborative learninng. Excercise assignments, Question-based teaching, Question-based learning, PC-excercises

Learning materials

Material, theory and exercises can be found in the Moodle page. They are sufficient in order to complete the course. If necessary, a student can use math books they have used before and/or online sources to obtain more information about the topics. A student can also borrow books in a local library.

MATLAB is available for free for TAMK students. It is highly recommended that students install MATLAB on their computer at the beginning of the course.

Calculators: on this course, it is enough to have a basic function calculator with features such as square root, power, sin, cos and tan.

Formula books: Only Tammertekniikka's "Technical Formulas" and MAOL's table book (typically available only in Finnish) can be used in the exam.

Student workload

The course requires approximately 135 hours of work, which includes
- contact teaching with the teacher, about 45 hours
- homework and possible group projects (teacher not present)
- independent studying
- exams

Content scheduling

Topics of the course are roughly:
- number systems
- using MATLAB
- reading and writing mathematics
- powers
- equations
- functions
- curve fitting

Completion alternatives

If a student has already acquired the mathematical skills taught in the course and wishes to complete the course without attending lectures and doing homework, they can negotiate with the teacher about simply taking the stand-alone exam on the day of retake exam 1. Note: the teacher has no obligation whatsoever to permit an alternative way to complete the course.

Practical training and working life cooperation

N/A.

International connections

N/A

Further information

This course mostly revises mathematical topics taught in a basic school level. If a student has completed high school level mathematics (or higher) with good grades, they may be overqualified for this course. If that is the case, they can negotiate with the teacher about completing the course simply via the final exam.