Course Policies, Math 104 Calculus II, Spring 2026

Overview

This course is a continuation of the single-variable topics covered in Calculus I and a look at how some of these concepts can be extended to multivariable functions. We will only scratch the surface of multivariable calculus, but this should whet your appetite for the follow-up course Math 236 Multivariable Calculus.

One of the most fundamental, and most slippery, topics in mathematics is the relationship between the finite and the infinite. A recurring theme throughout the semester will be the relationship between an approximation and the exact value. One of the most beautiful aspects of calculus is that by taking better and better approximations and extending from the finite to the infinite, we will often be able to find a precise solution. The Tentative Daily Syllabus on the course webpage contains a detailed listing of the topics we will cover during the semester.

There are a lot of super cool ideas that we'll discuss in Calc II. You're going to learn a whole lot of math and a whole lot about yourself this semester!

Goals for a 100-level Mathematics Course

By the end of this semester you should:

• Be able to process technical information presented in written or visual form
• Be able to communicate mathematical ideas with other students, both verbally and in writing
• Appreciate the necessity of rigorous mathematical arguments
• See a connection between mathematics and other disciplines
• See the applicability of the mathematical thought process to other disciplines and in your daily life
• Be willing to approach a problem even if you do not know whether or not your approach will be successful. If it doesn't work out, try something else!

Goals Specific to Calculus II

You should gain a deeper understanding of:

• The definite integral as a process of accumulation
• The applications of the definite integral to measuring one-dimensional, two-dimensional, and three-dimensional quantities
• How to evaluate definite integrals exactly by u-substitution or integration by parts, and how to approximate a definite integral using numeric techniques if necessary
• The relationship between the finite and the infinite as illustrated by improper integrals and infinite series
• The importance of Taylor series in evaluating differentiable functions
• The added complexity when applying calculus to functions of two variables
• The geometric meaning of partial derivatives and directional derivatives
• How to optimize functions of two variables
• How to integrate a function of two variables over a bounded region by converting to an iterated integral

Expectations

Mathematics is a very active discipline that is best learned by doing rather than by observing. One of the features that makes your Wheaton education so special is that we have time in small classes to explore material together. The class meetings are not intended to be a complete encapsulation of the course material, but instead will focus on the major concepts from the Pre-Class Assignments and clarifying the more subtle ideas in the course. See the course webpage for more details of the structure of the class meetings.

You should expect to put in approximately 2 hours outside of class for each scheduled hour of class. In other words, expect to spend about 8 hours per week on calculus outside of the scheduled class meetings. There will be some weeks when you spend more time (e.g. working on exams), and there may be some weeks when you do not spend the full 8 hours.

The Honor Code

We operate under the Wheaton Honor Code for all of your academic work at Wheaton. This carries certain freedoms and responsibilities for both you as a student and me as a professor. I take this quite seriously.

Most likely, no Honor Code issues will arise this semester. If you are uncertain about whether a particular situation falls under the Honor Code, then please consult with me. However, if an Honor Code issue does come up, I will assume that you are prepared for the full consequences. Remember that you should write out, and sign, the following statement on all course work:

"I have abided by the Wheaton College Honor Code in this work."

Use of Artificial Intelligence

In this course, the only graded assignments where you may use generative AI software (such as Gemini, ChatGPT, etc) is on the Skills Problems Assignments. You can use the AI tools to check your answers to these problems or to get you a hint if you are stuck.

Note that you may not use these tools on the Problem Sets or any part of the Exams, either the in-class or takehome portions. If you use the tools, I will view it as a violation of the Honor Code.

Working with Other Students

I strongly encourage you to work with other students outside of class because I believe mathematics is best learned through collaboration. However, you should not turn in identical work to your partner(s); the answers that you give to the Problem Sets should represent your own thinking about solutions.

You should cite anytime that you work with another student on a Problem Set. If you fail to do this, I will view it as a violation of the Honor Code.

Evaluation

Your final grade will be determined by

Pre-Class Assignments	5%
Class Engagement/Participation	10%
Skills Problems Assignments	10%
Problem Sets	30%
Three Exams	45%

Pre-Class Assignments

The purpose of reading the text before class is that if you are familiar with the basic concepts and definitions, then the class meetings can be devoted to the major ideas and subtleties of the material. Mathematical understanding is built in stages, and you will absorb the material more quickly if the class meetings are your second exposure to the fundamental ideas.

The Pre-Class Assignments are posted on the course webpage and include three or so questions that you should be able to answer after you have completed the reading. You will submit your responses through Canvas.

I will grade the Pre-Class Assignments using a binary scale: If you make a serious attempt, you will get full credit, even if your answers are not completely correct. The purpose of these questions is to encourage you to engage with the material before class. If you've read the text and thought about a question but don't understand how to answer it, it is perfectly fine to say "I did the prep work but don't see how to approach this question." You'll definitely understand by the end of the class meeting!

Notice that the Pre-Class Assignments are due at 11:59 pm on Sunday! This will give me enough time to review your responses before our class on Monday morning. You will be allowed to drop two Pre-Class assignments at the end of the semester.

As the term goes on, you should find that reading the text before class becomes easier and allows you to be more efficient with the total time you spend on the course.

Here are a few guidelines for the Pre-Class assignments:

• Expect to spend 45 to 60 minutes before class for each reading assignment.
  You may not completely understand everything in the section, but the class meetings will be much more meaningful and the homework will be much easier for you if you have spent time with the concepts before class.
• Expect to re-read.
  A mathematics text is not light reading, so you should expect that it may take several passes through a section before you absorb the material. After we have discussed a section in class, go back and re-read the section. Many points will be much clearer.
• Be sure you understand the keywords.
  If you are unsure on some of the terminology, use the index to find where a term is defined.
• Read with a pencil and paper in hand.
  You learn mathematics by doing. If the text asks you to check the calculations, then do it!
• Reflect on what you have read.
  Every so often, stop and think about what you have read, how it fits in with past material, and where you think it is going.
• Keep this list handy.
  Save this list out to keep in your copy of the text, or bookmark this page, and re-read it every few weeks.
• If you feel the assignments are taking you too long, please come see me.
  The point of the reading is to help you learn the course material. If you feel that they have become an obstacle, then we can talk about strategies to help the assignments serve their intended purpose.

Class Engagement/Participation

A significant part of the class meetings will be devoted to working in small groups on problems that delve more deeply into the content introduced in the Pre-Class Assignments and discussed at the beginning of class. A substantial amount of your learning will happen during these collaborative sessions by bouncing ideas off of other students and seeing how other groups approach the problems.

I will determine your Engagement/Participation grade for each class meeting using a binary scale: You were present and engaged with your peers or you weren't. In particular, note that your Class Engagement/Participation grade is unrelated to how often you speak up in class or volunteer answers. The most common outcome in my classes is that the vast majority of students with good attendance earn the full 10%. I realize that there may be times when you have a valid reason for missing class. I'll be really flexible, so if you need to miss class, please let me know. Let's just keep the lines of communication open.

Skills Problems

There are basic computational skills that you will need to develop in order to understand the major conceptual ideas of the course. As your fluency with these skills grows, so will your ability to make new connections and apply the concepts from calculus. The Skills Problems are intended to give you a low-stakes mechanism to develop your computational skills.

The most important factor is that you give yourself the time to work on these problems. There are a plethora of online resources that you can use to check if your final answers are correct, and I encourage you to use them for this purpose.

You will submit your work on the Skills Problems through Canvas. These solutions do not need to be as thoroughly written as the Problem Set solutions since they are intended for your own reference, but you should clearly label each problem and keep them organized. I strongly encourage you to keep a notebook with your work for each Skills Problems assignment that you can use as a reference in reviewing for exams. I also believe it is important for you to identify which of your skills/techniques you are confident in and which ones you feel need more work. Part of these assignments is to fill out a very short form on Canvas that asks you to do this reflection.

The Skills Problems will also be graded on a binary scale: If you make a serious effort, you will get full credit. You will be allowed to drop one Skills Problems assignment at the end of the semester.

Problem Sets

You will have a Problem Set due most Thursdays at 11:59 pm that consists of approximately four problems from the textbook or other sources that are usually more conceptual and require more explanation than the Skills Problems. These problems should be well-written and well-justified, and I will grade them fairly leniently. You will be allowed to drop one Problem Set assignment at the end of the semester.

There will be a Final Problem Set due during Finals Week that will consist of a few problems based on content not covered on the exams as well as a cumulative component. This assignment will count for the equivalent of two Problem Sets. You cannot drop this Problem Set from your grade.

I have high expectations for the presentation of the Problem Sets. If you do not follow these guidelines, I reserve the right to return your Problem Set ungraded. I am not being unnecessarily annoying about this. Learning to carefully organize your thoughts and clearly communicate them is one of the most important skills you will learn in college.

• Do not turn in your first attempt at each problem. You should expect to re-write and organize your solutions.
• You must put your name and date on the first page of each assignment, clearly label each problem, and answer each problem in order.
• Your writing must be clear and legible.
• Your solutions must be well-written, using complete sentences to justify your results where necessary.
• A list of answers without explanation is not acceptable and will be graded accordingly.
• Here is a good rule of thumb to follow when writing up your problem sets:

  Write your solutions so that you could hand them to a student who took Calc I last semester and they could understand your explanation.

• If you write in pen, there should be no scratch-outs.
• You will also submit your Problem Sets to Canvas as pdf files.
• Remember, if you do work with someone else on the assignment, you should indicate that in a note on the top of your paper.

Exams

The purpose of the exams is for you to demonstrate your understanding of the course material and, just as importantly, to give you feedback on where your understanding is strong and where you may need more work. See the Tentative Weekly Syllabus for dates of the exams. The exams will all follow a similar format:

• There will be an in-class portion that emphasizes more straight-forward computations and fundamental concepts that you will be able to complete within the time limit. This portion will count for 60-80% of each exam.
• The remainder of the exam will be takehome and consist of longer problems that would be more difficult to complete during the limited time of the in-class portion. You will have several days to work on these problems.

I will provide more details about the structure of the exams as the time gets closer.

I know that exams can be stressful, especially with the other academic, extracurricular, and family commitments that you may have. To try to reduce some of this stress concerning your grade, I will weight your exam scores by differing amounts: Your lowest exam score will count 20% of your exam grade, the second lowest will count 30%, and the highest will count 50% of your exam grade. For example, if your four exam scores are 71, 82, and 93, then your overall exam average will be 85.3.

Academic Integrity and Exam Policy

• Proctoring: The in-class portion of the three exams in this course will be proctored.
• Procedures: You must comply with all proctoring instructions, including placing materials on the floor except for those specifically allowed. Failure to comply will be treated as an Honor Code violation and may result in a failing grade for the exam or the course.
• Pledge: By submitting an exam, you affirm the Honor Code Pledge: “I have abided by the Wheaton College Honor Code in this work.”
• Consequences: Honor Code violations discovered during or after the exam (e.g., through analysis of unusual answer patterns, comparison of exams, or external reporting) may result in academic sanctions, up to and including an F for the exam or the course, and/or referral to the College Hearing Board.

Getting Help with Calculus

Please come see me during my drop-in office hours! No appointment necessary! If you have a conflict and cannot make my office hours, please email me, and we can set up an appointment for another time. You should also take advantage of the no-additional-cost Peer Tutoring that is staffed by advanced math students. A link to the schedule for Peer Tutoring is posted in the document of Resources and Support - Spring 2026 that contains more information about available campus resources, such as Academic Advising, the Life and Career Design Institute, the Counseling Center, etc.

Remember that the goal of the course is to help you learn Calculus and develop your mathematical thinking! If there's any point where you feel that the structure of the class isn't working for you, please come by and we can figure out some possible strategies.