Math 641: Modern Algebra I, Fall 2025 (CRN 14113)

Instructor:

Derek Garton (email and office: gartondw[at]pdx.edu and Fariborz Maseeh Hall (FMH) 468M).

Lecture place and time:

Fariborz Maseeh Hall (FMH) 419, MW, 3:30pm–4:45pm.

Student drop-in hours:

Mondays 12:30pm–1:30pm, Wednesdays 12:30pm–1:30pm, or by appointment.

Texts:

Robert B. Ash, A Book of Abstract Algebra, 2010.

Frederick Goodman, Algebra: Abstract and Concrete, edition 2.6, 2015.

Course objectives and student learning outcomes:

At the end of this course, you should be able to recognize, construct examples of, compare, and manipulate modules.

I hope this course will be joyful and interesting to everybody. It will be challenging and we will support each other. Please be prepared to take an active, critical, patient, and generous role in your own learning and that of your classmates.

Course schedule:

The course schedule records material we cover in class, homework assignments, and important dates.

Grading policy:

Homework: 100%

Homework:

Engaging with the homework is essential, and it will likely require a substantial amount of time and effort. Working on the exercises with classmates is an excellent way to enhance your learning, but write your solutions up yourself. Please try not to look on the internet for answers: struggling with the problems on your own (with the help of the text, your classmates, and the instructor) is part of the learning process.

Discussion group:

Portland State has kindly provided a discussion group for this course. Feel free to use them to talk about math.

These discussion groups serve the role of an email list for the class. Therefore, you must be a member.

PSU care team:

The PSU care team is Portland State University's resource for students experience distress—both academic and nonacademic.

Disability resources:

The required statement on access and inclusion for students with disabilities is the bottom menu option of the linked page.

Title IX reporting obligations:

Here is the required statement on Title IX reporting obligations.

The Center for Student Health & Counseling (SHAC):

Here is the required statement about the SHAC.