Hello, dear friend, you can consult us at any time if you have any questions, add WeChat: THEend8_
MATH 034 – Spring_Web 2022 – Page 1
MATH 034
Mathematics of Money
Course Format:
This semester, section 002 originally delivered as face-to-face at University Park, will be taught
in the remote asynchronous format due to COVID-19 restrictions. This means that the class is
going to be paced with course materials being released on Canvas every Mondays, Wednesdays,
and Fridays, and you will have weekly deadlines to submit your assignments. You will be
responsible for reading course material, watching the video lessons, taking part in course
assignments, and turning in course deliverables according to the due dates listed in Canvas.
This is not a World-Campus class.
Catalog Description:
MATH 034 (GQ) The Mathematics of Money (3 semester hours). This course is intended to be
one of several offered by the mathematics department with the goal of helping students from non-
technical majors partially satisfy their general education quantification. It is designed to provide a
sound introduction to the uses of college level mathematics in personal finance applications.
Topics include: simple interest, simple discount, compound interest, annuities, investments,
retirement plans, taxes, credit cards, and mortgages.
Prerequisite:
One unit of algebra or MATH 004.
Course Materials:
• Calculator (required)
NOTE: E-mail is definitely the
best way to reach me.
Please use Canvas system to
send me an email.
MATH 034 – Spring_Web 2022 – Page 2
Calculators will be used extensively in this course. Any calculator is allowed, as long as it does
not have built-in finance functionality. If you are unsure if your calculator is allowed, ask me.
• Textbook (Optional)
Business Math: The Mathematics of Money, THIRD EDITION by T.J. Biehler. The textbook
may be purchased at the bookstore or at any bookstore of your preference. Some students find it
helpful to have a book that further explains the material while other students prefer to rely solely
on the slides presented in the lectures. The book contains extra homework problems that will not
be collected but are recommended for extra practice.
Learning Objectives:
The course objectives for MATH 034 are:
• Analyze real world financial problems using linear equations, exponential and logarithmic
equations, and arithmetic and geometric sequences and sums.
• Demonstrate mastery of personal finance concepts, including simple interest, simple discount,
compound interest, annuities, taxes, investments, retirement planning, credit cards, and
mortgages.
• Recognize personal finance concepts within their broader social context.
• Apply problem-solving skills and logical reasoning to personal finance, and make strategic
decisions based upon this work.
Upon successful completion of MATH 034, a student should be able to:
1. Recognize the time value of money.
2. Calculate the principal, interest, rate, and term of a simple interest loan.
3. Classify patterns as arithmetic or geometric sequences.
4. Compute terms and sums of arithmetic and geometric sequences.
5. Model real world financial situations, including simple interest loans and investments, with
arithmetic sequences and linear functions.
6. Calculate the maturity value, proceeds, discount, rate, and term of a simple discount loan.
7. Compare simple interest loans and simple discount loans.
8. Model real world financial situations, including single deposits earning compound interest,
with geometric sequences and exponential functions.
9. Calculate the future value, present value, interest, rate, and time for a single deposit earning
compound interest.
10. Compare loans and investments with different nominal rates and compounding frequencies in
order to choose the best rate.
11. Recognize real world financial situations that can be described as annuities and identify the
type of annuity.
MATH 034 – Spring_Web 2022 – Page 3
12. Model real world financial situations, including annuities, with geometric sequences and
exponential functions.
13. Calculate an annuity's future/present value, payment, and total interest.
14. Construct amortization tables for loans.
15. Calculate sales tax, the price before tax, and the total price including tax.
16. Calculate federal income taxes, federal income tax withholding, and FICA taxes.
17. Measure the performance of investments in stocks by calculating dividend rates and yields,
compound annual growth rates, and total rates of return.
18. Calculate the interest payments and current yield of a bond.
19. Project a reasonable rate of return for a diversified investment portfolio.
20. Compute the value of an investment in a mutual fund after fees.
21. Measure the performance of mutual funds by calculating rates of return.
22. Calculate pension benefits, employee contributions and employer matching, and vested
balances for different retirement plans.
23. Predict future values that incorporate inflation using geometric sequences exponential
functions.
24. Develop projections for retirement plans that take into account the impact of inflation.
25. Model depreciation using both exponential decay and linear equations.
26. Estimate economic impact using geometric sums.
27. Compute credit card interest using the Average Daily Balance Method.
28. Compare credit card offers based on their annual fees and interest rates.
29. Calculate the equity, maximum loan amount, total monthly payment, upfront expenses, and
points for a mortgage loan.
30. Determine whether a borrower qualifies for a mortgage loan.
31. Calculate the monthly payment for a car lease.
32. Analyze financial situations to find break-even points using cost-revenue analysis.
Homework:
Online homework assignments (on Canvas) will be given regularly throughout the semester.
Homework will be worth a total of 20% of your final grade. At the end of the semester, each
student's lowest two homework grades will be dropped. It is the student's responsibility to
MATH 034 – Spring_Web 2022 – Page 4
regularly check Canvas for the homework due dates. There is no extension on homework
deadlines. Any missing assignment will receive grade zero at the end of the semester. There are
no make-up points for homework assignments.
Exit Ticket:
Exit tickets are a great way to document student learning, check for understanding, or emphasize
the main points of a lesson. Every video lesson will come with an exit ticket to be completed
in Canvas before the next video lecture. The exit tickets standard deadlines will be at 11:59
pm EST every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. There are no extensions for these
deadlines.
Each exit ticket will comprise one or two problems similar to the ones from the video lesson. The
goal of the exit ticket is for you to test your knowledge of the learned material. Exit ticket will be
worth a total of 5% of your final grade. To receive your exit ticket point, you have to answer
“ALL questions” available at the Exit ticket. You will get the exit ticket point even if your
answers are incorrect.
Midterm Exams:
Two midterm exams will be administered online (on Canvas). The midterms will be worth a
total of 40% of your final grade (20% for Midterm 1 and 20% for Midterm 2). Aside from
length and level of difficulty, the format for the midterms will be the same as the homework
assignments.
Midterm 1 February 17th – February 18th
Midterm 2 March 29th – March 30th
Final Exam:
The final exam will be administered online (on Canvas). The final exam will be worth a total of
35% of your final grade. The date of your final exam is below. Please, ignore the date in
LionPath.
Final Exam May 2nd – May 3rd
Students who cannot take the scheduled midterms or the final examination due to a valid and
documented reason, such as illness, may be allowed to take a make-up examination. Personal
business such as travel, employment, weddings, graduations, technical problems with your
computer, or attendance at public events (e.g., concerts, sporting events, Greek Rush events, etc.)
MATH 034 – Spring_Web 2022 – Page 5
is not a valid excuse. Forgetting the dates of the examination is not a valid excuse. If the student
does not have a valid reason for taking the make-up midterms or final examination, a 30%
penalty will be imposed on the respective assignment. All such make-up examinations must be
arranged through me within 24 hours of the regularly scheduled midterms or final examination.
Students who have taken the original midterms or final examination are not permitted to take the
make-up examination.
Grades:
Each of several activities and products will contribute to your final course grade, as summarized
in the chart:
Course Activity Weighted Contribution to Course Grade
Homework 20%
Exit Ticket 5%
Midterm 1 20%
Midterm 2 20%
Final Exam 35%
Your weighted average for the five components will be converted into a course grade using the
following minimums as boundaries for the letter grades:
A A- B+ B B- C+ C D F
95% 90% 85% 80% 75% 70% 65% 60% < 60%
Your grade will be based exclusively on the homework, exit ticket, midterm examinations, and
final examination. There is no extra-credit work. The final grades will not be rounded up.
Canvas Display of Final Grades:
Be mindful that students with ungraded work or missed assignments will have their final grade
displayed in Canvas during the semester without any unsubmitted assignments factored in, which
gives students an inaccurate view of their grades. Students can uncheck the "calculate based only
on graded assignments" box on their grades page to see what their real grade will be. At the end
of the semester, all missed assignments will be converted to zero making the final grade displayed
in Canvas accurate.
Technical Requirements:
Standard computer technical specifications are assumed for this course. Please test your computer
Access to Canvas:
Students are expected to login to Canvas daily to check for course updates, announcements,
emails, etc. Students are required to use Canvas for all course email communication with the
professor, and students are expected to be checking their email and notifications at least daily.
Changes:
Please note that additions or changes to the syllabus as well as topics and the assigned
videos/homework may occur as we move through the course, so always reference the Canvas
Calendar and Module tabs for the most recent assignments, due dates, prep work, and events.
When the professor makes a change to the calendar, they will notify students (via announcement
and in class) and make the appropriate changes in Canvas.
Student Work Outside the Classroom:
Students are expected to devote at least two hours to out-of-class work for each video lecture
available in Canvas. Out-of-class work may include such activities as doing homework
assignments other than examinations, solving extra problem sets, posting to an online discussion
board, participating at office hours, and other work that assists in comprehension of course
content such as outlining and studying for examinations.
Late Drop:
Students may add/drop a course following the Spring 2022 calendar available
Regular Add - Deadline is Sunday, January 16 at 11:59
p.m. (ET). A student may late drop a course but accrues late drop credits equal to the number of
credits in the dropped course. A baccalaureate student is limited to 16 late drop credits. The late
drop deadline for Spring 2022 is Friday, April 8 at 11:59 p.m. (ET).