Business FinanceBU381-VA: Webcourse using

Desire2Learn (D2L) 

Course Syllabus: Summer 2018 Instructor: Professor Rob Hull, Clarence W. King Endowed

Chair in FinanceOffice: HC311-ICourse Mail: The instructor will expect students to

use the Communication menu in Desire2Learn (D2L) and choose "email" to send a message to this email address: rob.hull@washburn.edu.

Login: The easiest and best way to login into Desire2Learn is to go to: https://D2L.washburn.edu.

Meeting Times

Students are required to be available to take mid-term and final exams online. Exams can be taken at any location as long as a student has a computer and a reliable online access. The university provides adequate locations on campus during the examination times. See “Dates and Times of Exams” of the “Examinations” section of this syllabus for more details.

Office Hours / Availability

The instructor is available for individual appointments either in an office setting or phone set-up. You can make appointments through course mail inside the “Communication” menu. For phone appointments, students can request my cell phone number or give me your phone

contact information.To ask questions, students can click on the

“Communication” menu within Desire2Learn (D2L), click on the email link and then enter rob.hull@washburn.edu. I respond as soon as possible.

The solutions given inside the “Content” menu for each chapter’s assigned questions and problems are in the same detail as would be presented in class. When viewing a file there is an arrow to the right of the file name; by clicking on this arrow you can better view the file. For Excel files, you click the download button to read.

Desire2Learn Student Orientation

While most (if not all) students can probably learn how to navigate an online course on their own, there is a short online training course that can be taken. All online students should automatically be informed about this training. All the topics covered in the training may not be applicable to this particular class. The most important topics are Email, Navigating, Discussions, Quizzes and Grades. From inside Desire2Learn you login and then click on the select a course list at the very top left-hand corner; from this drop-down menu, you will see the Desire2Learn Student Orientation and you click on it.

Required Materials:

(1) Financial Management: Core Concepts by Raymond Brooks, 2016, Pearson Education, 3rd edition. Please Note: You can get by on an earlier edition since all materials are supplied online. If you want to buy a newer edition that is okay but it will cost more.

(2) You need a satisfactory tool to work financial management problems such as a business calculator or Excel. Some students might feel

they can get by with a regular calculator. If you choose to use a calculator, you are responsible for learning it on your own. I recommend students work problems using Excel because it is a valuable business skill to develop.

Prerequisites Accounting 225, Economics 211, Math 141, 2.0 GPA and 54 hours.

Students are responsible for knowing prerequisites.Students not meeting prerequisite requirements are

subject to administrative withdrawal from the course.

Computer Needs

Normal computer skills are required as well as access to the internet (such as supplied on campus).

Minimum technology requirements for taking a web course are supplied by the web technicians (Web Techs) for students taking classes with online components. If you are having problems or just want to know what works the best, please contact webtech@washburn.edu or support@washburn.edu.

Introduce Yourself

Please introduce yourself by clicking on the “Communication” menu and then the “Discussion” link. The introduction topic thread should be visible near the top.

Report Errors Students are asked to report errors in webcourse materials by using the course mail (described above).

News Tools IMPORTANT: The “News” link within the “Course Home” menu should be checked each time you log in to the online course as important notifications are put there.

Warning This is an online class and technology break-downs can occur. You are responsible for keeping up

with suggested deadlines as given in “News” link and Topic Outline.

 

Catalog Course Description 

 This course covers the theory and techniques of financial management that are designed to provide the basic financial background needed by students in business, economics, or related fields.  Topics include: capital budgeting, capital structure, dividend policy, cost of capital, and working capital management.

  

Ethical Behavior 

Students can expect to be exposed to learning materials that relate to ethical behavior as well as find an integration of this topic within the textbook.

 

Seven Major Learning Objectives (or Outcomes) for Assessment

 

1.    Demonstrate an ability to organize and interpret information on business organizations to draw and support conclusions (Chapter 1, 17, 18 and throughout the course).

2.    Demonstrate an ability to define problems of the financial manager (Chapters 1, 17, 18 and throughout the course).

3.    Calculate financial ratios and analyze financial statements (Chapters 2 and 14).

4.    Compute present value for various scenarios including security valuations (Chapters 3-8 and throughout the course).

5.    Make capital budgeting decisions using various mathematical techniques including net present value, internal rate of return and profitability index in a capital budgeting environment (Chapters 8-10 and 18).

6.    Compute the cost of capital and effects of leverage (Chapters 1, 8, 11, and 15-16).

7.    Calculate working capital management problems (Chapters 12-13).

 

NOTE: Information on both major and chapter learning objectives are found by first clicking on the “Contents” menu and then scrolling down to the “Learning Objectives” module.

Topic Outline (with recommended assignment dates and final dates set for both exams.)Ch. 1: Financial Management 5/29 Ch. 2: Financial Statements 6/1Ch. 3: The Time Value of Money (Part 1) 6/4

Ch. 4: The Time Value of Money (Part 2) 6/6

Ch. 5: Interest Rates 6/8 Ch. 6: Bonds and Bond Valuation 6/11

Ch. 7: Stocks and Stock Valuation 6/13

Ch. 8: Risk and Return 6/15

Ch. 9: Capital Budgeting Decision Models 6/18

Mid-Term Exam (Thursday: 6/21 at 7:30 p.m.)

Ch. 10: Cash Flow Estimation 6/25 Ch. 11: Cost of Capital 6/27Ch. 12: Forecasting & Short-Term Financial Planning 6/29

Ch. 13: Working Capital Management 7/3

Ch. 14: Financial Ratios and Firm Performance 7/6

Ch. 15: Raising Capital 7/9

Ch. 16: Capital Structure 7/11 Ch. 17: Dividends, Dividend Policy, and Stock Splits 7/13

Ch. 18: International Financial Management 7/16

Final Exam (Thursday: 7/19 at 7:30 p.m.)

 

Examinations (return to top) (return below) 

● SCORING, CHAPTERS COVERED, & GRADES:There are two exams.

(1) The mid-term exam covers Chapters 1-9. (2) The final exam emphasizes Chapters 10-18. The final tends to be comprehensive

in nature because a number of concepts and formulas introduced in earlier chapters can be found throughout the course.

More information on exams including review sheets with formulas can be found by clicking on the “Exams” module inside the “Content” menu. Once inside this module, you should familiarize yourselves with all exam-related links including two links from which you take your mid-term and final exams. Like most course materials, exams can typically be accessed through clicking on the “Course Home” menu and the “News” link.

You can expect a time limit of about 90 minutes for each exam. For details on the types of exam questions, please read the “Exam Information and Instruction” link inside the “Exams” module.

Students should have access to general exam feedback (your score and class average) after taking each exam; however, wait two days before any feedback becomes official.

Unlike the quizzes (which are available throughout the semester), the following applies to either a mid-term exam or final exam:- an exam is only available to take during the designated exam date

and time; and;- individual feedback (as found for quizzes) is unavailable for

exams for security reasons but exam feedback can be requested from the instructor by using the course mail in the “Communication” menu

Each exam counts 33⅓% of your grade; the twenty quizzes also count 33⅓% of your grade. Class participation (described later) is used to determine your grade if you are on the borderline between two grades. In summary form, the class scoring is:

Mid-Term Exam ……………. 33⅓%Final Exam ………………….. 33⅓%Quizzes ………………………. 33⅓%TOTAL ……………………… 100%

See the sections in this syllabus on “Online Quizzes and Exams” for more information. To find out how you are doing in the course, you click on the “Assessment” menu and from the drop-down box you click on “Grades.” (To get more detailed information you can click

on your name in the upper right-hand corner of the screen and select “Progress” and then click on a topic such as “Quizzes.”) If you receive 80% on your first quiz and have not completed any other graded tasks, then your performance (to date) should be reported as 80%. The class average should also be reported. Suppose you later receive an 80 on the Mid-Term Exam and your average for all quizzes taken up to the time is 86. Since the Mid-Term Exam and quizzes are each worth the same (e.g., worth 1/3 of your grade), your current overall grade would be computed as (86 + 80) / 2 = 83. Now suppose later you get a 71 on the Final Exam (and maintain your quiz average of 86) then your final average would be (86 + 80 + 71) /3 = 79. Since seventy-nine is a borderline number (See the Expected Grading Scale below), your class participation will be looked at to determine if you get a “B” or “C” grade. 

 

● DATES & TIMES FOR EXAMS: (return to top)Each student is required to be available to take two online exams:

Mid-Term Exam is on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. on June 21 and Final Exam is at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 19. These times have been set in the hope of minimizing conflicts with other classes and work schedules.Unless special permission is granted, all students are required to

take the exam at the same time for security reasons.If there is a technology breakdown such that the whole class cannot

resume the exam in a reasonable amount of time, then the exam will automatically be programmed for the next day at the same time unless announced otherwise. Students with conflicts with the make-up time should immediately contact the instructor and give their times of availability to take the exam.

If a technology problem occurs for an individual while taking an exam, you should not panic. Stay call and immediately inform me through course mail and also notify webtech@washburn.edu. Be ready to resume the exam if the problem can be quickly resolved.

Students are expected to make arrangements with employees, doctors, family, travel agents, and so forth so that conflicts are avoided for scheduled exam times.

 

● SPECIAL EXAM TIME:If you have an unavoidable conflict and want to request permission for

special time for a scheduled exam, you must notify me through course mail (in the “Communication” menu) as soon as possible. The instructor cannot be responsible for trying to successfully make last day arrangements. All special requests must be documented and students can be responsible for costs involved if an outside proctor has to be hired to monitor the make-up exam.

For related information see the “Make-Up Policy” section below. 

● TESTING METHODS:Exams use the following testing methods to assess if a student has

mastered the course learning outcomes.First, there is an objective part made up of true or false, multiple

choice questions, and matching questions.Second, there is a mathematical part composed of problem solving.

Due to the nature of an online exam these problems are often multiple choice questions.

Third, there is an analytic part that consists of analyzing important financial management issues. Once again, due to the nature of online exam these can be in the form of multiple choice questions.

Examples of the above questions and problems are found for each chapter (located in the “Content” menu) and can be experienced before the exam by doing the assigned questions/problems for each chapter and by taking the online chapter quizzes and practice exams. By using the “News” link within the “Course Home” menu, you can typically be reminded of (and linked to) important materials like quizzes.

Even though work cannot be shown on online exams that have problems, students should still practice the following procedure when working a problem:(i) Write down the formula,

(ii) Insert the proper values for variables in formulas, and(iii) Use a business calculator (or traditional calculator if that works

for you), or a spreadsheet application like Excel to get your answer.NOTE. You can find Excel examples and a complete list of formulas in the “Items of Interest” module (inside the “Content” menu).

Ample examples on how to work problems are given in the online solutions found for each chapter’s materials within the “Content” menu, which organizes the chapter materials for the first half of the course (materials covered on mid-term exam) and the second half of the course (materials covered on final exam).

 

● EXAM INSTRUCTIONS:Posted inside the web course are exam instructions.Hit the "Content" menu and then the “Exams” module and you will

find the following.First, there are three links with exam information, exam

instructions, and a preparatory “What You See …” link before you take your first quiz. I suggest clicking on these links and reading them early in the course.

Second, for each of the two exams, there are practice exams. There is also review links ("Mid-Term Exam Review” and “Final Exam Review”) with review questions and key formulas.

The review questions can help jumpstart you in studying for each exam; however, a thorough review must be done throughout the course by completing all assigned quizzes and chapter questions/problems.

The formulas supplied by clicking on the "Mid-Term Exam Review” and “Final Exam Review” will be like those needed for your exams.Study these formulas and make sure you know how to use

them.You do not have to memorize these formulas because you are

allowed to have formulas when you take your exams.

There is a “Chapter Formulas” link inside the “Items of Interest” module that gives students formulas from each chapter and may prove valuable for students who want a summary of all formulas in the text.This “Chapter Formulas” link leads to a file in a PDF format

because html files cannot always process formulas given by software like MathType that are used to generate equations that are more readable.

Other links inside “Items of Interest” include “Excel Examples to Help Work Some Common Problems” link and “Solutions to Textbook Questions/Problems”. The “Excel Examples to Help Work Some Common Problems” link can be very valuable for students who want to work many problems quickly and accurately. The “Solutions to Textbook Questions/Problems” link should not be used unless you have worked all the assigned questions and problems; this link can become out of date if the publisher does not send the instructor updates when the textbook changes.

 

Online Quizzes and Exams (return) 

Besides the Mid-Term and Final Exam, there are 20 online quizzes: a Syllabus quiz (taken first), 18 chapter quizzes, and a Learning Objectives Quiz (taken last). Scores are tabulated automatically and all scores are averaged inside the web course. To take a chapter quiz, hit the quiz link accessed by clicking on the “Content” menu and then navigating to the desired chapter for which you want to take the quiz (you can also go to the “Assessments” menu to find it). Once you take a quiz, you can review it as often as you like. Except for the “Learning Objectives Quiz,” the highest score of the two quiz attempts is taken. For the “Learning Objectives Quiz,” your two attempts are averaged. The Learning Objectives Quiz is different from all other quizzes (that have 10 questions and 15 minutes) because the Learning Objectives Quiz has 14 questions/problems and you have 30 minutes to take it.

If you want to view and study over the quiz instructions before you take your first quiz, then go to the “Content” menu, then the “Exams” link, and then the “What You See when You Click on to Take an Assessment (Quizzes & Exams)” link.The Syllabus Quiz can be found in Ch.1’s material and should be

taken before Ch. 1’s quiz.You are required to finish the first nine chapter quizzes before the

Mid-Term Exam and the next nine chapter quizzes before the Final Exam.

As explained in the “Exam Information and Instructions” link (found inside the “Content” menu and then the “Exams” module), quiz questions are multiple choice and true/false questions and all you have to do is click on the correct answer. For matching questions, you have to click by each term or concept to match it with the appropriate description or definition.

 

Unlike quizzes, exams are only available to take during the designated exam date and time. There is also no immediate feedback on exams; however, feedback can be requested on an individual basis as noted above in the “Examinations” section. General feedback on how the class performed is typically given within a couple days after the exam.

  

Please report errors (like an error in a quiz problem) using the “Communication” menu and the “Email” link by emailing the instructor at rob.hull@washburn.edu.

 

Scores and feedback on correct answers can be viewed immediately after taking a quiz.Some types of feedback on quizzes are limited due to constraints of

technology. For example, exponents are designated by “^”. Symbols are also at times modified, for example, the standard deviation symbol for sigma is expressed as “s”.

Somewhat better feedback can typically by found for the assigned chapter problems (inside the “Content” menu) where superscripts and more appropriate symbols can be used.

 

The 18 online chapter quizzes and the Syllabus Quiz are short with only ten questions per quiz and a time limit of 15 minutes per quiz.

No answers can be accepted after the time limit runs out because your quiz will be automatically saved at that point. Sometimes you will finish in five minutes and other times it is possible that you may not quite finish; it all depends on the degree of difficulty of the questions for a particular quiz. Do not attempt a quiz until you have properly studied a chapter because it can affect your quiz grade. As described previously, the Learning Objectives Quiz has 14 questions and you have 30 minutes to take it. This quiz covers includes some questions/problems similar to that found in the homework for all 18 chapters. You may have trouble finishing this quiz on time if you have not reviewed these questions/problems so you know what formulas might be needed.PLEASE NOTE: Quiz questions differ in their degree of difficulty

so you may score better on an earlier quiz because you randomly received easier questions. It is possible each of your two attempts will randomly generate more difficult questions than a classmate. However, for all of the total quizzes, things should even out.

You can review a quiz as often as you like. If you have trouble viewing a quiz you have taken then contact webtech@washburn.edu.

 

If a student does not take a quiz at least once, a zero score is eventually recorded and that is one less quiz attempt that you can review when studying for an exam.

 

You should sign off and save your quiz or exam before your allotted time is up.You may be given no warnings when your time is up so you are

responsible for knowing how much time you have left before you are automatically kicked off. Thus, you should save each answer individually in case you get kicked off. (You may also be kicked off due to internet or technical problems and thus you should save answers individually in case you have to resume a quiz; if kicked off due to internet problems you should be able to resume your quiz by logging in with no lost time.) Typically, you have a one minute extension if you have not saved your answer and

submitted your quiz or exam at the end of the designated time limit.

The best way to ensure you can finish on time is to be prepared before you take the quizzes; this includes having all mathematical formulas ready beforehand.

 

If something beyond your control (like a technical breakdown) prevents you from finishing on time and resuming your quiz, report all the details to the Web Techs at webtech@washburn.edu. Also, notify me through course mail about the problem and I can try to program another attempt or adjust your score for the problem. Please keep in mind that I typically cannot fix technical problems so it often does little good to tell me without telling the Web Techs.

   

REMINDER: You are responsible for taking the quizzes by the suggested date given in the “News” link within the “Course Home” menu. I suggest even trying to keep ahead of schedule.

  

Class Participation (return) 

Student participation performance is used if a student is on the borderline between grades. The types of class participation can vary depending on whether the course is taught as a full-blown online course or a hybrid/web-assisted course as a full-blow online course. For example, for a hybrid course, class attendance can be more readily recognized. Otherwise, a student’s participation is consists of (i) the number of “good posts” and “good replies” accompanying a discussion thread and (ii) the completion of other optional assignments such as the case study (given inside the web course) and report on guest speakers. Students can initiate their own discussion within the “Lounge Area for Discussion Threads” link but the topic has to be related to the course materials.Do not worry if other students do not reply to your posts as you are

only responsible for making your own posts.Students must complete all of their posts and replies by the last

official class day (but are encouraged to not wait until the last week to start making posts).

 

Examples of Class Participation include:One way of participating is by clicking on the “Learning

Objectives” module and doing some of the suggested assignments found there that also involve posting a comment using the “Communication” menu (from this menu you can click on “Discussion” and find discussions already listed and for which you can post a comment).

Another way of participating is by reading an article in The Wall Street Journal or looking at a finance website to find an article related to a key concept such as capital budgeting. The student follows up on this by using the “Lounge Area for Discussion Threads” link to post a comment about this article.

Doing the suggested case study (and starting a thread to discuss aspects of this case study) is another example of Class Participation.

Go to the Case Study module to get the link to the Case Study. It is difficult and for that reason I have posted solutions for those who get stuck. The solutions are only suggested answers. For those who do the Case Study I am more interested in your effort. NOTE: If you do a case study, place your work in the dropbox found in the “Assignments link” within the “Assessment” menu.

At times, links to online WSJ articles (often with accompanying videos) might be found inside course tools. You can make posts on these articles and videos within the Lounge Area.

If there is no link then you can start a thread or respond to one someone else has started. To do this hit the “Communication” menu, then “Discussion link,” scroll down to the Lounge Area and then click on “Lounge Area for Discussion Threads, and then hit “Start a New Thread.” You can also respond to an existing thread in a similar manner. If any problems contact webtech@washburn.edu or take the brief Desire2Learn Student Orientation as described previously.If students read an article and do not make a post then there is no way for the instructor to award Class Participation credit.

Read other students’ posts and respond with your own reply. 

Expected Grading Scale (return) 

"A": 90 to 100 percent; "B": 80 to 89 percent; "C": 70 to 79 percent; "D": 60 to 69 percent; "F": below 60 percent.

Any change in the expected grading scale will not be determined until all exams are graded and total points tallied for all students. The GPA for this class over the last ten years has averaged about 2.9 (about B-) varying from 2.0 to 3.4. Thus, a “B” grade can be considered slightly above average. The Class Participation component (where applicable to determine borderline cases) will not be computed until the course is over.

 

Homework / Exam Preparation 

There is no assigned homework that is required to be turned in (as solutions are supplied and student can go over their own assigned questions/problems on their own); however, students are free to send me materials to look over.Assigned questions and problems can be found by clicking on the

“Content” menu and then the desired chapter assignment materials link.

All homework solutions to assigned questions and problems are posted and (as noted previously) students can check their answers with the posted solutions. Click on the “Content” menu and then the desired chapter solution materials link.

Students who find errors on solutions to assigned questions and problems can report these and help their class participation grade.

Before taking exams, students are expected to do the following:Prior to the Mid-Term Exam, students are to have read Chapters

1−9 and studied the questions/ problems/solutions/formulas for these chapters that are found by clicking on the “Content” menu and then the “First Half of Course: Materials for MID-TERM EXAM” module and its links. Students are also to have completed the Syllabus Quiz (found in Ch. 1 materials) and Online Quizzes for Chs. 1−9 by clicking on the quiz link within the chapter materials link.

Prior to the Final Exam, students are to have read Chapters 10−18 and studied the questions/ problems/solutions/formulas for these chapters that are found by clicking on the “Content” menu and then the “Second Half of Course: Materials for FINAL EXAM” module and its links. Students are also to have completed Online Quizzes for Chs. 10−18 and the Learning Objectives Quiz (found with Ch. 18 materials) by clicking on the quiz link within the chapter materials link.

Prior to exams, students should review the formula sheets found in the “Content” menu by clicking on the "Exam" module and then the “Mid-Term Exam Review” link and the “Final Exam Review” link.

Prior to exams, it is also recommended that students thoroughly study the seven major learning objectives found in the “Content” menu by clicking on the “Learning Objectives” module and its links.

Because exams are much longer than quizzes students should take the practice exams offered to get an idea of what taking a longer exam will be like.

 

Attendance / Availability Policy 

Attendance (or “availability”) is required to take both online exams. Availability times required to take online exams were given previously in the “Examinations” section.

 

Make-up Policy (return) 

Make-up exams can be arranged for special cases of unavoidable conflicts that students must document. As noted above, students are responsible for working with employers (or other instructors if they have another class conflict) so they can take their exams at the scheduled times.

Except for extreme emergency cases, the arrangement should be made at least one week prior to the scheduled exam time by contacting me through course mail using the “Communication” menu and the “Email” link.

 

Disclaimer 

You should not wait until the last day to finish an assignment as technical difficulties can occur for classes with online components. So finish your work as early as possible.

The syllabus is subject to changes whenever circumstances warrant such changes and thus if you choose to print out the syllabus keep in mind it can change. It is a wise practice to periodically read the syllabus as it is hard to absorb all details with one reading.

The instructor cannot be responsible for materials supplied by the publisher and put in the web course for student use. Such materials include the solutions and formulas found inside the “Items of Interest Link” within the “Content” menu. Also, the PowerPoint notes for each chapter are supplied by the publishers and could have errors for which the instructor will try to correct if the student reports it.

 

Prerequisites 

Official Washburn University Policy:“It is the responsibility of the student to meet all prerequisite requirements for courses in which the student is enrolled. A student failing to meet prerequisite requirements is subject to administrative withdrawal from the course at any time.”

 

Master Syllabus Files Supplied by University to Supplement Syllabus

 

For the University additions to course syllabus, see the “Master Syllabus File” located in the “WELCOME TO BU381-VA (ONLINE BUSINESS FINANCE)” link, which is inside the “Content” menu. Topics covered include:

Mission of the University, Definition of a Credit Hour, Academic Misconduct Policy, Disability Services, Office of Advising, Withdrawal Policy, Attendance/Administrative Withdrawal, Official E-Mail Address, and Success Week.