Syllabus for Introductory Physics Labs
Required Text:


Lab Coordinator: Doug Coyne
Teaching Assistants:
Lab Exemption

• A student can file for a lab exemption if he/she has taken, completed and passed the lab here at UTA within the last three years, or has taken the lab as a sperate graded course at another University (copy of transcript showing lab grade is required).The current course instructor decides upon acceptance of the lab exemption.
• Lab exemptions must be on file by census date. Failure to have a lab exemption on record for the current semester and not attending labs can result in a grade of zero for your lab grade.

Student with Disabilities: Students who need an accommodation based on disability should arrange to meet with the lab coordinator to determine what arrangements are necessary to accommodate your needs.

Lab Attendance:

• You are to attend your scheduled lab time and assigned room
• Multiple absences due to chronic medical problems will be handled on an individual basis
• If you are aware that you will be absent from a lab due to a University Excused Absence, you must notify your lab instructor or the lab coordinator a week ahead of time and arrange to complete the lab in some other section during the week in which the lab is assigned. Notification after the event voids the excused absence as outlined in the rules and regulations for excused absences in the Undergraduate catalog

Tardiness: Tardiness is discouraged and will be handled in the following manner

• Within 15 minutes of the start of the lab, allowed to join your group.
• Between 15 minutes and 30 minutes, allowed to join your group but with a 10 points penalty
• Over 30 minutes late, you will not be allowed to perform the lab
• Chronic tardiness will be addressed by the lab coordinator and brought to the attention of your course instructor.

Missed Labs: We realize that circumstances, other than those discussed in lab attendance, may arise that prevents you from attending a schedule lab period.
However, even though we offer many different lab sections, with enrollment up, lab space is very limited, and finding a lab that has space and meets your schedule may not be possible.
Therefore, other than the circumstances discussed in the lab attendance section, a missed lab cannot be made up.
Note: A scheduled, routine doctors or dentist appointment does not qualify under the lab attendance policy for emergency medical treatment and will be treated as a missed lab.
Lab Report Requirements

• Obtain the pre-lab questions from this web site, these are a require part of the lab report. The questions for the assigned lab are to be completed prior to the start of the lab and turned in at the beginning of the lab period.
• You are required to bring the lab manual to each lab. Hand reproductions will not be accepted or accepted with a penalty. Photocopies of lab pages will only be accepted if you have forgotten your lab manual and it is known that you own a lab manual. The physics department will not photocopy the pages for you.
• All lab reports are to be completed in pencil. Pages completed in pen and with numerous marked out areas is subject to a penalty. All lab reports, unless otherwise notified during the lab, are due at the end of the lab period.
• The data gather for the lab is a group effort. Calculations and answers to questions are expected to be individual work. We encourage individual work on all parts of the lab for the calculations and answers; it is in this area that the majority of the questions for the lab exam will be taken.

Lab Exam

• The lab exam consists of 18 multiply choice questions and four work out problems, covering all assigned labs.
• " Sample questions and problems can be found at www.uta.edu/physics/labs
• " It will be held at the same time and location as your normally schedule lab. It is not held during Finals Week at the end of the semester. Look to the lab schedule for the correct date.
• An equation sheet will be provided and you are allowed one blank sheet of paper
• Do Not miss the lab final. A makeup exam will only be allowed under conditions of documented medical emergency, hospital stay or major accident. Petition for a makeup must be made within a week or your normally schedule lab time.

Grade Policy:
Lab report grade consists of
5% pre-lab questions
35-40% Active participation in the lab exercise

Deductions will be made for
• Not having you own calculator and relying on someone else to do the calculations
• Not having the lab manual
• Answering or making phone calls
• Tardiness
• Performing some other task not related to the lab exercise. (i.e. surfing the web, course work, needlepoint, etc,)

55-60% Content of your lab report.

• Shown Calculations
• Analysis
• Graphs
• Problems and Questions
• Data

Grade reported to course instructor
The lowest lab grade is dropped, and the lab report average taken from the remaining lab report grades.
The lab exam is not dropped.
The overall grade is Lab Report average x 80% + Lab Exam grade x 20%.