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Full-Text Articles in Science and Mathematics Education

Investigating An Approach To Integrating Computational Thinking Into An Undergraduate Calculus Course, Erin Clements Jun 2020

Investigating An Approach To Integrating Computational Thinking Into An Undergraduate Calculus Course, Erin Clements

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Computational thinking can be conceptualized as patterns of thinking which align with certain fundamental computer science processes. While this algorithmic way of thinking has always been integral to computer science, it has recently gained momentum as a valuable approach to problem solving in a wide variety of contexts. Education researchers highlight the potential of computational thinking to transform, enrich, and revitalize teaching and learning experiences, by providing a systematic framework for analysis and enabling powerful computational tools to be incorporated to further enhance problem-solving activities. Research suggests that in order to maximize the affordances of computational thinking, it should be …


Using Pre-Calculus And Calculus Student Work To Examine Student Problem Solving Abilities In Online And Face-To-Face Mathematics Courses, Sarah Catherine Ferguson Apr 2017

Using Pre-Calculus And Calculus Student Work To Examine Student Problem Solving Abilities In Online And Face-To-Face Mathematics Courses, Sarah Catherine Ferguson

Teaching & Learning Theses & Dissertations

This study compares the outcomes of student learning between two pairs of courses. Each pair of courses consists of an online section and a face-to-face section. One pair of courses focuses on pre-calculus content while the second pair focuses on calculus content. Both pairs of courses are taught by the same instructor using the same course appropriate materials. Participants for this study include 9 online and 14 face-to-face pre-calculus students and 14 online and 23 face-to-face calculus students from an urban community college in the southeastern portion of the U.S. Written responses from the subjects to a collection of problems …


Parts Of The Whole: Teaching Quantitative Reasoning In An Exponential Decay Model, Dorothy Wallace Jul 2016

Parts Of The Whole: Teaching Quantitative Reasoning In An Exponential Decay Model, Dorothy Wallace

Numeracy

The simple calculus example of exponential decay can be an excellent vehicle for teaching quantitative reasoning in calculus or differential equations. Insect maturation provides a rich context for thinking about the meaning of the rate constant for exponential decay, which is derived in the context of a system at equilibrium but is generally measured using a single cohort of individuals.


Flipped Calculus: A Study Of Student Performance And Perceptions, Lori Beth Ziegelmeier, Chad M. Topaz Oct 2015

Flipped Calculus: A Study Of Student Performance And Perceptions, Lori Beth Ziegelmeier, Chad M. Topaz

Lori Beth Ziegelmeier

No abstract provided.


Flipped Calculus: A Study Of Student Performance And Perceptions, Lori Beth Ziegelmeier, Chad M. Topaz Oct 2015

Flipped Calculus: A Study Of Student Performance And Perceptions, Lori Beth Ziegelmeier, Chad M. Topaz

Chad M. Topaz

No abstract provided.


Mastery Learning In Calculus I Affects Student Learning, Grade Improvement, And Professor Exhaustion, Judith Puncochar, Don H. Faust Apr 2014

Mastery Learning In Calculus I Affects Student Learning, Grade Improvement, And Professor Exhaustion, Judith Puncochar, Don H. Faust

Conference Presentations

Three Calculus I courses were taught under conditions of either traditional teaching, 2/3 mastery, or full mastery to test four hypotheses. Under conditions of mastery learning on exams, students should attain appropriate higher-level mathematical concepts, achieve more learning of higher-level mathematical concepts, learn higher-level mathematical concepts more quickly, and evaluate mastery learning favorably. Support for all hypotheses occurred only in the 2/3 mastery condition. A shift toward higher grades was attributed to grade improvement, not grade inflation, as determined by six mathematicians with blind review of final exam items. Final exams in mastery learning courses were significantly more …


Instructor Use Of Tablet Pcs In A College Pre-Calculus Course: Implementation & Assessment, Julianna Connelly Stockton, Peter Gregory Oct 2012

Instructor Use Of Tablet Pcs In A College Pre-Calculus Course: Implementation & Assessment, Julianna Connelly Stockton, Peter Gregory

Mathematics Faculty Publications

A group of six math instructors used tablet PCs to teach their individual sections of a high enrollment gateway Pre-Calculus course in a diverse urban four-year college. Student performance in the experimental sections were compared to those in 31 other sections in terms of student retention, pass rates, and score on the department-wide standardized final exam. Student performance was higher in Tablet PC sections across all three measures, although in some cases the improvement was not substantial enough to improve students’ overall course grades. Surveys of students and faculty in classes using a Tablet PC reflected overall positive impressions of …


Improving Education Of Mathematics Majors, Goran Lesaja Mar 2012

Improving Education Of Mathematics Majors, Goran Lesaja

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019)

In this talk we will explore and discuss different ways of improving instruction of upper level mathematics classes. Several case studies will be presented, including in Calculus and Operations Research courses. We will also discuss the importance of extracurricular activities in education of mathematics majors. In particular, we will describe activities related to undergraduate mathematics competitions.


Mathematics Placement Test: Helping Students Succeed, Norma Rueda, Carole Sokolowski Oct 2004

Mathematics Placement Test: Helping Students Succeed, Norma Rueda, Carole Sokolowski

Mathematics Faculty Publications

A study was conducted at Merrimack College in Massachusetts to compare the grades of students who took the recommended course as determined by their mathematics placement exam score and those who did not follow this recommendation. The goal was to decide whether the mathematics placement exam used at Merrimack College was effective in placing students in the appropriate mathematics class. During five years, first-year students who took a mathematics course in the fall semester were categorized into four groups: those who took the recommended course, those who took an easier course than recommended, those who took a course more difficult …