Course Structure#
The Course Structure#
A course week consists of the following elements: A Long Day with lectures and exercise sessions with teaching assistants, as well as a Short Day with lectures and exericse sessions with teaching assistants, concluding with the Weekly Test lasting half an hour. It’s important that you participate in all of these activities, from which your learning outcome will be assessed at the written exam. You should also expect a fair amount of homework.
Schedule for the two days of teaching each week:
Long Day: Wednesdays 10:00-17:00 include: Lecture 10:00-12:00. Self-study 12:30-13:00. Exercise session with teaching assistants present 13:00-16:00. Self-study 16:00-17:00.
Short Day: Fridays 13:00-17:00 include: Lecture 13:00-14:00. Exercise session with teaching assistants present 14:00-16:30. Weekly Test from 16:30-17:00.
Teaching Approach#
Before and After Classes#
You will always have the opportunity to familiarize yourself well in advance with the topics that will be covered during a week of teaching. Be sure to read the textbook syllabus before the lectures, as this will enhance your learning experience. It’s normal to not fully understand all aspects of the text before the lecture, but experience shows that preparing in this way has a significant positive impact. Similarly, it’s highly beneficial to spend time reviewing the textbook and exercises after the lecture to gain a deeper understanding of the material. Note that the course is worth 10 ECTS credits, which corresponds to approximately 16 hours of work per week.
Lectures#
The lectures will give you an overview of the material, provide deeper insight, show you how to work through examples and more. Keep in mind that what is covered in the lectures does not necessarily define the entire course syllabus. Exam questions may cover parts of the material that were not explicitly discussed during the lectures.
Weekly Programs#
A program is defined for each week which can be found via links from the semester overview on the course website. These programs play a crucial role in the communication from the instructors to you. They list key concepts related to the week’s syllabus, define the syllabus of the week with references to the textbook, present assignments, provides an overview of activities, and suggests discussion topics for self-study and exercise sessions.
Long Days and Short Days#
In the weekly programs you will find all activities for the Long Day and Short Day, including the exercises for the exercise session of the day.
Long Days: On a Long Day, your study area is available from 12:00. After the lecture (and after lunch), use the self-study time 12:30-13:00 to familiarize yourself with the day’s challenges so that you’re prepared for the exercise session where teaching assistants will be present. During these sessions, you and your study group will work on the exercises that go in depth with the material for the day. From 16:00-17:00 you’ll have time to complete any remaining tasks from the agenda or start working on homework assignments.
Short Days: The Short Day follows the same structure as the Long Day but then ends with the Weekly Test. During this test, you’ll be assessed on fundamental skills relating to the week’s topics. A few teaching assistants will be present in the area to provide both academic and technical assistance. Note that for four weeks during the semester, the Short Day activites will be replaced by Theme Exercises. In these weeks, there will be no lecture and no Weekly Test; instead, you’ll work on a Theme Exercise for the entirety of the Short Day timeslot.
Materials#
The teaching materials in the course consist of: The week programs and other material on the course website, including Lecture Notes (the textbook), exercises, SymPy demos and more.