common incentive for a visit to the tutor center is to get help with the homework.  A good tutor will not just show the student how to do a problem, but will guide the student to figure out how to do the problem.

Homework is not a passive time for the student to sit back and have the study guide or a tutor show the student how to do the homework.  Homework needs to be an active time where the student learns problem solving and communication skills.

Recall that every endeavor has three major components: content, presentation, and caring.  All three are equally important.  This applies to homework.  When you turn in your homework paper, turn it in with a pride of ownership.

Here are some basic tips for developing excellence in presentation for homework papers in a mathematics course.

  1. Write neatly.  If your handwriting is a scribble, then print.
  1. When making a graph by hand, use a ruler to make the axes for the Cartesian coordinate plane.  On each axis, put an arrow to indicate the positive direction and label the axes.  The default labels are x for the horizontal axis and y for the vertical axis.
  2. Use color to graph functions.  This is especially useful when graphing several functions on the same coordinate plane.
  3. Separate your problems.  Leave at least one space between problems.
  4. Clearly indicate your answer.  Don't leave your answer in the

middle of your calculations somewhere for the reader to find.  A homework paper is not a Here's Waldo venture.

  1. If the assigned problem is an applied problem, then give your answer in a grammatically correct, complete English sentence.  The sentence should contain the appropriate number, units of measure, and the context in which this applies.
  2. Write on only one side of the page.  This facilitates the reading of your paper.  You'd rather have the reader spend her time reading your work rather than shuffling paper.
  3. Use pencil.  Pencil erases.  Do not write a mathematics paper in pen unless specifically directed to do so.

When you get your homework paper back, do look at the paper.  Even if the paper is scored 100%, scan the paper for any remarks a reader may have made.  On some papers the reader will make enlightening remarks, but will not make any deduction.

Keep your homework papers in a binder and keep a record of your scores.  Some professors use the grade book in a web based program such as Blackboard to record scores.  A student can access his own scores.  If this option is available to you, check your scores once a week for accuracy.  In extensive record keeping, errors will be made.  You can help to insure that an error will not be made in assigning your grade because of a grade book error.