Section 11 General Course Policies

  1. Any concerns or questions regarding these general policies, the teaching assistants or the course itself should be directed to Professor Love, if at all possible.
  2. All student work is subject to the University’s policies and procedures.
  3. Registration is required. I do not permit anyone to audit the course who has not previously taken it, without exception. If you’ve taken the course before and want to sit in again, you will need to volunteer or be hired as a teaching assistant.
  4. Grading. Students in this class are not in competition with each other for grades. I have no set percentage of students who will receive any particular grade.
  5. Attendance is expected, but it is also expected that sometimes life will intervene. All students are expected to view all Zoom class sessions, preferably as they happen live, but if necessary, using the video recordings made available on Canvas to view each class before the next one is given.
    • If you need to miss two or more classes in a row, inform Professor Love via email beforehand, or as soon as possible thereafter. I will assume you have a good reason - details are not necessary.
    • You are responsible for all missed work, regardless of the reason for your absence.
  6. Submissions In this class, it is far better to turn in timely, but only partially complete work than nothing at all.
  7. Feedback on assignments - deadline. On every assignment, Lab, Quiz, project-related task, whatever, we will be delighted to respond to questions up to 12 hours before the assignment is due. After that time, you may wind up on your own. The reason for this is that Professor Love and the teaching assistants will regularly post responses to frequently asked questions about assignments, and we need sufficient time to accomplish this task.
  8. On Getting Help Quickly and Effectively: In general, we don’t have a way to diagnose your problem with R, RStudio or Markdown if you don’t show us what you’re typing that causes an error, or a lack of results. If you wrote a Markdown file, we need to see it, along with a specific question (or series of them) about specific error messages or strange results you are getting. We need to replicate the problem in order to know how to fix your problem, and it also helps if we know what error message you’re seeing, or what strange result you are getting.
  9. Distractions. Silence your phone during class. The temptation to look at your phone or Facebook or email during class is nearly irresistible. Resist anyway, if only to avoid distracting your instructor and your fellow students.
  10. Research Usage. Any and all results of in-class and out-of-class assignments and activities are data sources for research and may be used in published research. All such use will always be anonymous.
  11. Audio-Recording. It is our intention to provide video recordings of each class after they are complete. You should assume that anything you say or place in the Chat session during a Zoom class session will be recorded.
  12. Typos. Professor Love makes occasional typographic and grammatical errors, which irritate him enormously. Please post in the relevant section of Piazza if you find any in this syllabus or any other course materials. If you are the first to let us know, and we make the change, you will receive some credit in your class participation grade.

Again, all Case Western Reserve University policies apply to this class. To the extent that those policies are unclear, I would regard an appropriate code of conduct as mirroring this one from the R Consortium.

11.1 Some Questions and Answers

11.1.1 Can I audit 431 or 432?

No. Enrolled students and teaching assistants are the only people permitted to attend the course.

11.1.2 Is it possible to take the course pass/fail?

No, it is not. However, no student in the past five years has received a final course grade other than A, B or Incomplete.

11.1.3 How will I know how I’m doing in the class?

We aim for substantial and timely feedback from the teaching assistants and myself on all elements of the course.

11.1.4 If I take 431, do I have to also take 432 in the Spring?

It is the natural thing to do. The 431 course is part 1 of a two-semester sequence. Frankly, 432 contains some of the most interesting material and is generally regarded by students who take both as the more entertaining course. Every year, some students take only 431, though. The decision is up to you. The 432 course assumes you have completed 431.

11.1.5 Do I have to be in Cleveland to take this course?

Not this Fall, no. The course will take place remotely this Fall, using the Zoom platform.

11.1.6 Will all class materials be available to me online?

Yes. All sessions will be video-recorded and made available to you after class. All slides and many other materials will also be provided after each class.

11.1.7 How do I get connected to Zoom through CWRU?

By now, you’re probably familiar with Zoom. We ask that you review the CWRU Knowledge Base for Zoom prior to our first class and be sure that you’re ready to join our first class through your CWRU Zoom account.

Dr. Love will provide the Zoom link for Class 1 to all enrolled students in advance of the first class.

11.1.8 What if I lose my internet connection during class?

That’s part of the reason why each session will be recorded. If Dr. Love loses his, we’ll pause until things get straightened out.