LAGUARDIA COMMUNITY COLLEGE

CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK

DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS, ENGINEERING AND COMPUTER SCIENCE

MAT 117 – ALGEBRA AND TRIGONOMETRY

7 Lecture Hours (at least 1 hour held in a computer lab), 3 Credits

Prerequisite: MAT095 or placement (If you do not have the prerequisite, you may be removed
from the course without notice.)

REQUIRED COURSE MATERIALS:

 All written and video course materials, as well as required homework assignments, are
accessed online at https://www.myopenmath.com. There is no cost for access. You
should register for an account and enroll in the course as soon as possible. Your
instructor will provide you with the information necessary to enroll.
 Calculator: A scientific calculator is necessary for this course. You will not be allowed to
use graphing calculators, calculators which solve equations or simplify radicals, or
calculators requiring the use of devices such as phones, tablets, or computers. The
following inexpensive calculators are approved for use in MAT117:
o Casio fx-260 Solar II
o Staples Black Scientific Calculator
o TI-30X-A.
If you are unsure of whether your calculator is acceptable for MAT117, please contact
your instructor.
 Syllabus: Remember to keep this syllabus; you may need it when you transfer.

CATALOG DESCRIPTION:
This course gives a thorough treatment of college algebra and trigonometry topics: linear,
quadratic, rational, exponential and logarithmic expressions/functions as well as basic right-
triangle trigonometry and graphical properties of sine and cosine functions. Supporting topics
from elementary algebra such as linear modeling, factoring, solving linear systems and
quadratic equations, and operations with radical expressions are included. Instructional
methods include lecture, group work and computer activities.

PURPOSES AND GOALS:

MAT117 is designed to allow students who are placed at the basic skills level and require
college algebra to exit developmental mathematics and earn college credit within one
semester. There will be strong emphasis on the conceptual aspects of algebra that underlie
algebraic procedures. Because research shows that pedagogy is as important as curriculum for
student success, instructors will employ a variety of instructional methods (e.g., lecture, guided
groupwork, and graded/nongraded formative assessments/feedback).

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INSTRUCTIONAL OBJECTIVES:
1. Enable students to improve their accuracy and fluency with the four fundamental arithmetic
operations.
2. Introduce students to the concept of function and its application in modeling (linear and
exponential cases in particular).
3. Familiarize students with the equivalence between the rate of change of a linear function
and the (constant) slope of its graph, enabling students to graph straight line equations.
4. Introduce students to quadratic functions and their graphs, and enable them to find
"zeroes" by solving quadratic equations.
5. Familiarize students with the arithmetic of rational expressions, reinforce the algebra
required to solve equations involving rational expressions, and introduce rational functions.
6. Familiarize students with the arithmetic of radical expressions and provide them with
algebraic methods for solving equations involving radicals.
7. Introduce students to exponential and (via the concept of inverse) logarithmic functions,
and their graphs; additionally, provide students with the requisite computational and
algebraic skills necessary to solve exponential and logarithmic equations.
8. Introduce students to right-triangle trigonometry, featuring the basic trigonometric ratios;
and then familiarize them with the properties of the sine and cosine functions.
9. Enable students to identify and apply appropriate mathematical methods to solve problems
in real-world contexts.

PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVES:
1. Add, subtract, multiply, and divide rational and decimal numbers with accuracy and fluency.
2. Explain and describe the functional concept/properties, and compare and contrast linear
and exponential data.
3. Describe the equivalence of rate of change and slope for a linear function, and apply it in
graphing straight lines.
4. Graph quadratic functions and solve quadratic equations.
5. Carry out arithmetic operations with rational expressions and solve equations involving
them.
6. Carry out arithmetic operations with radical expressions and solve equations involving
them.
7. Sketch graphs of exponential and logarithmic functions, and solve exponential and
logarithmic equations.
8. Solve right-triangle trigonometry problems and sketch the graphs of the sine and cosine
functions.
9. Apply mathematical techniques appropriately to solve real-world problems.

STUDENT LEARNING OBJECTIVES: This course fulfills the Pathways common core with the
following student learning objectives:
1. Interpret and draw appropriate inferences from quantitative representations, such as
formulas, graphs, or tables.
2. Use algebraic, numerical, graphical, or statistical methods to draw accurate conclusions and
solve mathematical problems.

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3. Represent quantitative problems expressed in natural language in a suitable mathematical
format.
4. Effectively communicate quantitative analysis or solutions to mathematical problems in
written or oral form.
5. Evaluate solutions to problems for reasonableness using a variety of means, including
informed estimation.
6. Apply mathematical methods to problems in other fields of study.

EVALUATION: The purpose of a grading system is to give students, and those who will read
their transcripts, an accurate record of their performance in this course. The role of the
Mathematics, Engineering and Computer Science Department is to provide a fair, valid, and
reliable structure for assessing student achievement.

CATEGORY PERCENTAGE
Online Homework 15%
Quizzes 10%
Projects 10%
Instructor’s Tests (3 @ 11⅔% each) 35%
Departmental Final Exam 30%

Explanation of Grading Categories:

 Online Homework: Students will complete one or more online homework assignments
for each course topic.
 Quizzes: Several short assessments will be administered throughout the semester.
 Projects: Your instructor will assign inquiry-learning projects throughout the semester.
At least one of these projects should support development of LaGuardia’s Inquiry and
Problem Solving competency.
 Instructor’s Tests: Your instructor will develop and administer three tests during the
course of the semester.
 Departmental Final Exam: This two-hour paper exam will be given during final
examination week during regularly scheduled class hours. It will be cumulative and
cover all topics. The departmental Final Exam will take place in person on the
LaGuardia campus regardless of course modality.

Passing Grade Policy: In order to pass this course, you must have an average total score of at
least 60% and no more than 12 hours of unexcused absences.

If you do not meet the above criteria, you will be assigned an F or WU grade for the course. If,
however, your average on practices (homework) designated as basic skills (BSK Homework) is at
least 70%, you will be given the opportunity to exit the basic skills portion of this course and
enroll in MAT115 next semester. Students who choose to take advantage of this opportunity
will take the “MAT115 Eligibility Exam” on MyOpenMath. A grade of 60 or higher on the exam
will be required to be placed directly into MAT115. If you then pass MAT115 with a grade of C

Fall 2024
or higher, the F from MAT117 will not be part of your GPA (pursuant to LaGuardia’s F Grade
Policy, which may be found in the Academic Requirements and Policies section of the LaGuardia
Community College Catalog).

COURSE POLICIES:

Accessibility: Federal law and CUNY policy prohibit discrimination on the basis of a disability.
Under the guidelines of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the College will provide reasonable
accommodations to students with documented disabilities. Therefore, if you are in need of or
have any questions regarding accommodations or services, please contact Jhony Nelson,
Director of the Office of Accessibility, at 718-482-5260 or [email protected] (or visit M-
102). Any information provided to the office is confidential and will not be released without
your permission.

Mental Health and Wellness: Many students find balancing their academic, personal and
professional lives quite challenging, and in some instances, overwhelming. If you or a peer
experience this, mental health and wellness services are here to help.
Email [email protected] or use the English or Spanish in-take form, and you will
be contacted by a Counselor (you can also call 718-482-5471 or visit C-249). Peer-to-peer
support is also available via the Women’s Center (MB-08, 718-482-5188
or [email protected]), or our Multicultural Exchange Programs.

Academic Integrity: This class will be conducted in compliance with LaGuardia Community
College’s academic integrity policy (see college catalogue for details).

In certain instances, at the discretion of the instructor, a student may be asked to demonstrate
his/her ability of conceptually understanding the work he/she submitted. In such instances,
depending on the course modality, the instructor may ask any student for a written, in-person,
or oral (live video session) clarification or explanation of solutions to any assignment, including
homework, quizzes, tests, final exam, etc. Solutions submitted by students for any assignment
in this course, including homework, quizzes, tests, final exam, etc., must be based on the
covered material. Solutions that are based on material that was not or will not be covered in
this course or will be covered but has not been covered yet, will not be accepted, and will
receive no credit.

Sanctions or penalties for violations of academic integrity are imposed by the faculty member
teaching the course upon discovery of a violation. All cases of academic dishonesty are filed
with the College Adjudicator, who maintains a record of academic integrity violations. The
occurrence of a second or third offense of academic dishonesty may involve the imposition of a
disciplinary sanction in addition to the academic sanction imposed by the instructor. Sanctions
for violations of academic integrity include, but are not limited to, the following:
failure of an exam, a grade of F on an essay or research paper, failure of a course project, failure
of the course, suspension from the College or dismissal from the College.

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IN Grade: The Incomplete grade may be awarded to students who have not completed all of
the required course work but for whom there is a reasonable expectation of satisfactory
completion. A student who is otherwise in good standing in a course – defined as complying
with the college attendance policy and maintaining a passing average – but who has not
completed at most two major assignments or examinations by the end of the course may
request an IN grade. To be eligible a student must provide, before the instructor submits final
grade for the course, a documented reason, satisfactory to the instructor, for not having
completed the assignments on time. (See catalog for more details).

W – Grades: Receiving a WD, W, WA, WN or WU grade leads to delayed progress towards

graduation, increased expenses, with implications to financial aid. Veterans and international
students may face additional consequences, such as repayment obligations or visa status issues.

If you are having trouble with the course material and/or are concerned about class attendance
and may miss the final exam, seek immediate assistance from your professor, academic advisor,
veteran affairs or international student advisor immediately. The following links provide more
info on grades.

 https://www.laguardia.edu/uploadedfiles/main_site/content/academics/programs/
ssm/docs/whats-with-ws.pdf
 https://laguardia.catalog.cuny.edu/academic-policies/grading-policies/gradecodes-
definitions

Attendance: Attendance is required and will be recorded. Your attendance, engagement and
active participation throughout class sessions are crucial factors for your overall success in the
course. A typical 7-hour course on average requires 14 hours of study per week outside the
classroom.

At the discretion of the instructor:

 Lateness and/or partial absences may be recorded.

 Attendance/class-participation may be part of the grade.
 Unexcused absences for more than 15% of total class hours may result in an F or WU
grade.
 Unexcused absence on the final exam may result in a WU or F grade as appropriate or
INC if requested by the student. Students are strongly encouraged to contact their
instructor in case of such absence.

Camera Use for Online Sections: If you are enrolled in an online section of MAT117, your
instructor may require you to turn on your camera during class periods and/or for remote
testing purposes.

Additional Policies: Additional course policies may be specified at the discretion of the
instructor.

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 DEPARTMENT CONTACT INFORMATION:
Office: E-223
Tel#: (718) 482 – 5710
Tutoring (online): Mathematics Learning Center: Schedule to be announced

COURSE OUTLINE: Textbook sections starting with W refer to sections in Beginning and
Intermediate Algebra by Tyler Wallace; sections starting with A refer to sections in Algebra and
Trigonometry 2e by Abramson et al; other sections are created by LaGuardia faculty and can be
accessed via MyOpenMath or using the links provided below.

Hour Topic Section and Starting Page Recommended Text Exercises

Absolute Values Absolute Values All
1 Integers W0.1 Page 7 Pages 10-11: All
Fractions W0.2 Page 12 Pages 16-17: All
2 Exponents and Roots Exponents & Roots All
3 Order of Operations W0.3 Page 18 Page 21: All
4 Algebraic Expressions W0.4 Page 22 Pages 25-26: All
Linear Equations in One W1.1 Page 28 Page 32: All
Variable W1.2 Page 33 Page 36: All
5-6 W1.3 Page 37 Page 42: All
W1.4 Page 43 Page 46: All
W7.6 Page 268 Page 272: 1-20
7 Lab: Course and MyOpenMath Overview
8 Literal Equations W1.5 Page 47 Page 51: All
Linear Inequalities in One W3.1 Page 118 Pages 122-123: All
9-10
Variable
11 Absolute Value Equations W1.6 Page 52 Page 56: All
12 Absolute Value Inequalities W3.3 Page 128 Page 132: All
The Cartesian Coordinate W.2.1 Page 89 Page 94: 1-2
13
System
14 Lab: Instructor’s Discretion
15 Graphing Lines W2.1 Page 92 Page 94: 3-22
16 Slope of a Line W2.2 Page 95 Pages 100-101: 1-30
Equations of Lines: Slope- W2.3 Page 102 Pages 105-106: All
Intercept and Point-Slope W2.4 Page 107 Pages 110-111: All
17-18
Forms; Horizontal and Vertical W2.5 Page 112 Pages 115-116: 1-8, 17-24, 33-40
Lines; Parallel Lines
Systems of Linear Equations: W4.2 Page130 Pages 144-145: All
19 Substitution; W4.3 Page 146 Page 150: All
Addition/Elimination
Applications of Systems of W4.6 Page 167 Pages 172-174: All
20
Equations

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 21 Lab: Instructor’s Discretion
Relations; Functions; Difference Intro to Relations All
22-24 Quotient and Average Rate of Functions, Difference Quotient All
Change and Average Rate of Change
25 Linear Models A4.2 Page 360 Pages 369-372: 9-30, 39-58
Properties of Integer Exponents W5.1 Page 177 Page 182: All
26-27
W5.2 Page 183 Page 187: All
28 Lab: Instructor’s Test 1
Properties of Integer Exponents
29
Continued
Polynomials and Polynomial W5.4 Page 192 Pages 194-195: All
Arithmetic: Introduction; W5.5 Page 196 Page 200: All
30-31 Addition/Subtraction; W5.6 Page 201 Page 204: All
Multiplication; Division, W5.7 Page 205 Page 210: All
Quotient, & Remainder
Factoring Polynomials: Greatest W6.1 Page 212 Page 215: All
32
Common Factor
33 Quadratic Trinomials (a=1) W6.3 Page 221 Page 225: All
34 Factor by Grouping W6.2 Page 216 Page 220: 1-22
35 Lab: Instructor’s Discretion
36 Quadratic trinomials (a≠1) W6.4 Page 226 Page 228: All
Factoring Special Products; W6.5 Page 229 Page 233: All
37
Factoring Strategy W6.6 Page 234 Page 236: 1-18, 20-32, 34-42
38 Square Root Basics W8.1 Page 288 Page 291: All
Solve Quadratic Equations by W6.7 Page 237 Page 241: All
39
Factoring
Solve Quadratic Equations W9.2 Page 332 Page 336: 1,3,5,6,10
40
using Square Roots
Solve Quadratic Equations by W9.3 Page 337 Page 342: All
41
Completing the Square
42 Lab: Instructor’s Discretion
43 Quadratic Formula W9.4 Page 343 Page 347: All
Quadratic Functions and Their W9.11 Page 380 Page 384: All
44-45
Graphs
46 Quadratic Models A5.1 Page 407 Page 418: 66-68, 71-75
Add/Subtract, Multiply/Divide W8.3 Page 295 Page 297: 1-24
47
Square Root Expressions W8.4 Page 298 Page 302: 1-4,7-32
48 Rationalize Denominators W8.5 Page 303 Pages 308-309: All
49 Lab: Instructor’s Discretion
The Pythagorean Theorem Pythagorean Theorem & 2D All
50
Distance in the Plane Distance
51 Roots and Rational Exponents W8.6 Page 310 Page 313: All

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 52 Radical Equations W9.1 Page 326 Page 331: All
Domains of Radical and A3.2 Page 207 Page 220: 6-26
53
Rational Functions
Evaluate and Reduce Rational W7.1 Page 243 Pages 246-247: All (frame 7-16 in
54
Expressions terms of domain)
Multiply/Divide Rational W7.2 Page 248 Pages 251-252: All
55
Expressions
56 Lab: Instructor’s Test 2
Add/Subtract Rational W7.3 Page 253 Page 256: All
57
Expressions W7.4 Page 257 Page 261: All
58-59 Rational Equations W7.7 Page 274 Page 278: All
Exponential Functions and A6.1 Page 542 Pages 557-559: 18-22, 44-50
60 Their Graphs A6.2 Page 561 Pages 572-573: 8-10, 23 (graph the
given function only); 11-22
Same Base Exponential W10.4 Page 406 Page 409: All
61
Equations
62 Inverse Functions A3.7 Page 295 Pages 307-309: 6-16, 33-40
63 Lab: Instructor’s Discretion
Logarithmic Functions and A6.3 Page 575 Pages 582-583: 6-53
64
Their Graphs A6.4 Page 584 Pages 602-604: 6-10, 26-37
65-66 Properties of Logarithms A6.5 Page 606 Pages 616-617: 3-24, 30-32
67 Exponential Equations A6.6 Page 618 Page 628: 4-28
68 Logarithmic Equations A6.6 Page 623 Pages 628-629: 29-50
Exponential Models – A6.1 Page 551 Pages 558-561: 28-38, 42-43, 65-68
69
Compound Interest
70 Lab: Instructor’s Discretion
71-72 Angles and Their Measure A7.1 Page 682 Pages 701-703: 6-21, 26-39, 50-57
Right Triangle Trigonometry A7.2 Page 704 Pages 714-717: 10-19, 23-25,
73-75
with Applications 29-41, 46-56
Trigonometric Functions of Any A7.3 Page 717 Pages 732-735: 10-78
Angle A7.4 Page 736 Page 748: 6, 10, 14, 18, 22, 26, 30,
76
34, 55, 58; 38-42, 49-51
(sin/cos/tan only)
77 Lab: Instructor’s Test 3
Trigonometric Functions of Any
78-80
Angle Continued
Graphs of Sinusoidal Functions A8.1 Page 759 Page 776: 6-14
81-82
(no phase shift)
83-84 Final Exam Review
85-86 Final Exam

Fall 2024