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Full-Text Articles in Education
Alignment Between Learning Objectives And Assessments In A Quantitative Literacy Course, Younggon Bae, Samuel L. Tunstall, Kathryn S. Knowles, Rebecca L. Matz
Alignment Between Learning Objectives And Assessments In A Quantitative Literacy Course, Younggon Bae, Samuel L. Tunstall, Kathryn S. Knowles, Rebecca L. Matz
Numeracy
In this analysis, we examine how course assessment items were aligned with learning objectives in a quantitative literacy course at Michigan State University. The alignment analysis consisted of mapping assessment items to a list of operationalized learning objectives from the course. Our analysis shows how often the learning objectives are represented in assessment items, how often they are paired with other learning objectives, and how influential they are in contributing to a student’s course grade. In addition, through comparisons across four assessment types (e.g., exams and homework), we show how each learning objective was assessed differently within each assessment type. …
Quantitative Literacy For The Future Flourishing Of Our Students: A Guiding Aim For Mathematics Education, Samuel L. Tunstall
Quantitative Literacy For The Future Flourishing Of Our Students: A Guiding Aim For Mathematics Education, Samuel L. Tunstall
Numeracy
In this essay, I examine the extent to which mathematics education and education for quantitative literacy support students’ present and future flourishing, a concept that entails realizing objective goods in a life lived from the inside. This perspective requires disentangling philosophical assumptions about the aims of mathematics education, which—in the context of flourishing—I take to be a hybrid of those that have informed curricular discussions over the past two centuries. In the process, I problematize ("make strange") many of the common reasons given for students learning mathematics, including: learning it for one’s career, for one’s logical reasoning skills, or …
Quantitative Literacy At Michigan State University, 3: Designing General Education Mathematics Courses, Samuel L. Tunstall, Vincent Melfi, Jeffrey Craig, Richard Edwards, Andrew Krause, Bronlyn Wassink, Victor Piercey
Quantitative Literacy At Michigan State University, 3: Designing General Education Mathematics Courses, Samuel L. Tunstall, Vincent Melfi, Jeffrey Craig, Richard Edwards, Andrew Krause, Bronlyn Wassink, Victor Piercey
Numeracy
In this paper, we describe the process at Michigan State University whereby we have created two courses, Math 101 and 102, designed to foster numeracy and alleviate mathematics anxiety. The courses--which are not sequential--provide a means of satisfying the University's general education requirement without taking college algebra or calculus, among other options. They are context-driven and broken into modules such as "The World and Its People" and "Health and Risk." They have been highly successful thus far, with students providing positive feedback on their interest in the material and the utility they see of it in their daily lives. We …
Quantitative Literacy Interventions At University Of Cape Town: Effects Of Separation From Academic Disciplines, Vera Frith
Numeracy
The aim of the Numeracy Centre at the University of Cape Town is to develop students’ quantitative literacy (QL) in a manner consistent with their programmes of study and intended roles in the community. Our theoretical perspective on the nature of QL is in line with that of the New Literacies Studies and sees academic QL as practices in different academic disciplinary contexts. This means that for us the ideal curriculum structure for developing QL would fully integrate it into the teaching of the disciplines. This is in practice not achievable in most cases, especially since many students do not …
Calculus, Biology And Medicine: A Case Study In Quantitative Literacy For Science Students, Kim Rheinlander, Dorothy Wallace
Calculus, Biology And Medicine: A Case Study In Quantitative Literacy For Science Students, Kim Rheinlander, Dorothy Wallace
Numeracy
This paper describes a course designed to enhance the numeracy of biology and pre-medical students. The course introduces students with the background of one semester of calculus to systems of nonlinear ordinary differential equations as they appear in the mathematical biology literature. Evaluation of the course showed increased enjoyment and confidence in doing mathematics, and an increased appreciation of the utility of mathematics to science. Students who complete this course are better able to read the research literature in mathematical biology and carry out research problems of their own.
Reorganizing School Mathematics For Quantitative Literacy, Rick Gillman
Reorganizing School Mathematics For Quantitative Literacy, Rick Gillman
Numeracy
This paper offers an alternative curriculum for high school mathematics. It proposes replacing the Algebra-Geometry-Algebra rush to calculus model with one which focuses on improving student problem-solving skills and general quantitative literacy skills while reinforcing basic manipulative skills. Most of these goals are gained by expanding the current single-year algebra-one course into two years. The model proposes moving “learning to write proofs” from the traditional geometry course into a separate discrete mathematics course. It requires statistics for every student, and requires a senior-level modeling course for every college-going student. In addition, the proposed model creates opportunities for students to move …
Quantitative Reasoning In The Contemporary World, 1: The Course And Its Challenges:, Shannon W. Dingman, Bernard L. Madison
Quantitative Reasoning In The Contemporary World, 1: The Course And Its Challenges:, Shannon W. Dingman, Bernard L. Madison
Numeracy
The authors describe successes and challenges in developing a QL-friendly course at the University of Arkansas. This work is part of a three-year NSF project Quantitative Reasoning in the Contemporary World (QRCW) that supported the expansion of the course. The course, MATH 2183, began experimentally in Fall 2004 as a section of finite mathematics known informally as “News Math” for 26 students from arts and humanities disciplines. Over the past six years, the course has evolved and now MATH 2183 is approved to satisfy the College of Arts and Sciences mathematics requirement for the Bachelor of Arts degree. In 2009-2010, …
Parts Of The Whole: Is Everything Equally Important?, Dorothy Wallace
Parts Of The Whole: Is Everything Equally Important?, Dorothy Wallace
Numeracy
Two strategies are proposed for sorting out priorities and goals in education. At the college level the column argues that goals, and therefore requirements, should be set based on the desired knowledge base of the entire population rather than the individual. At the scale of a single K-12 classroom the column argues that priority be given to content requiring most instructor intervention, describing how the structure of class time and school activities would change as a result. Implementation of these strategies would lead to more efficient use of teacher’s time and effort, better allocation of systemic resources, and clarity of …
Quantitative Literacy Across The Curriculum: A Case Study, Benjamin Steele, Semra Kiliç-Bahi
Quantitative Literacy Across The Curriculum: A Case Study, Benjamin Steele, Semra Kiliç-Bahi
Numeracy
We describe a quantitative literacy (QL) program at Colby-Sawyer College, a small, residential, liberal arts college in New Hampshire. This program has grown rapidly from a traditional math curriculum to a college-wide understanding of quantitative literacy and voluntary participation by many faculty members in all departments. More than 80% of the faculty agreed that it would be useful for students to be able to use quantitative skills in their courses, but only 24 % thought students were capable of doing very well in mathematics. Twenty-three faculty members attended a summer workshop, funded by NSF, DUE # 0633133, in which they …