Trigonometric Functions - M126
Teaching Assistant Central

Prime Info

Before we discus what a Teaching Assistant (TA) does and who your Teaching Assistant is, some prime info:

We will have a poll the first week to regularly schedule a TA session. (Please click here to vote for times that are best for you.) However, your TA will also be available to contact in other ways and will have office hours.

Teacher Assistant (Alan Fahrner) Availability (All Times Eastern):

TA Session
- Thursday at 8PM
Office Hours (schedule -> here <- by 24 hours before)
- Monday & Tuesday from 8PM to 10PM
- Saturday from 4PM to 6PM
Other (please note I work my primary job from approximately 10:30AM to 7PM Monday through Friday)
- Call or text 302-492-MATH (302-492-6284) – If you call, please leave a message if I am unable to answer
- E-mail afahrner@iu.edu
- Hit me up on Canvas

Please also reach out to me if you think we should adjust the regular TA session times or if you would like a 1:1 outside office hours.

You can join our Zoom sessions by using this link:

https://iu.zoom.us/my/math.promo

ALL SESSION RECORDINGS ARE AVAILABLE -> ***HERE*** <- along with some other helpful videos.

What Is a Teaching Assistant?

Although you might think that a Teaching Assistant (TA) is to...well...assist your Teacher, in reality your Teacher and Teaching assistant exist to assist you.

On the Teaching Assistant side, that means "being there" for you, both to help you understand the material, but also to encourage you to stay ahead of your coursework. (Yeah, he may be a bit of a pest at times.)

And...your TA speaking directly here...staying ahead of your coursework is a (the?) key factor to not only getting a good grade...but...more importantly...to truly understanding what you are doing. Additionally, it will save you a lot of time and frustration.

This course moves very quickly, so depending on being able to "catch up," at a minimum, means you'll have a lot of unneeded stress.

Regardless, in summary, a Teaching Assistant is your assistant.

Who Is My Teaching Assistant?

My name is Alan Fahrner (the guy on the right, in case you were confused :-)), and I am your Teaching Assistant this semester.

That means I will do all your homework and take all your quizzes and exams for you.

(Remember what they say about "If it is too good to be true, then..."?)

What it really means is I'll be doing what is mentioned in "What Is a Teaching Assistant?" above.

Short of doing your coursework for you (you won't learn anything if I do that), I'll do my best to help you navigate this class successfully. If you are going on to Calculus I, you definitely need what this course offers. However, even if you are off the hook for university math as soon as this is over, you'll want to do more than just pass by the skin of your teeth. (I'm dating myself with that idiom, aren't I?)

In case you are interested in who I am otherwise...

I live on the high plains east of Denver with my wife, youngest son, four dogs, three cats, and two geckos
I have two daughters and another son who have long moved out of the house (and are on the East Coast)
I have the two most awesome grandkids ever on the face of this earth! Sadly, they live on the East Coast too :-(
My main job is in IT for a large healthcare provider; it entails quite a bit more than just this, but I do a lot of analytics and reporting
I spend way too much on techno gadgets
My favorite way to exercise is bicycling
I spend a lot of time trying to stay in shape (and get into better shape), but it is an uphill battle against time :-)

Pretend newspaper page

Liten is the dog and Opal is the kitten (although Opal is a lot larger and a lot darker now). When you attend I may regale you with stories of their exploits and that of our other animals.

Apologies ahead of time for the lame memes, dad jokes, and puns. #notreally

Finally, you'll learn more than you ever wanted to know about me as we interact, but the main thing is I love math and I love helping others love math. Or at least not dread it like Gandalf did the mines of Moria. :-)