Spending a minimum of three hours per week in the math lab is a common activity among students taking entry-level math courses. But some students have found the program to be more confusing than beneficial to their success. “I hate when you get an answer wrong and the program does not explain why,” said Sara Hunt, German freshman, said. “If you were to turn in your homework to a professor, he would say your problem is right, but this is where you went wrong. The computer does not do that.” Another reason students said they dislike the program is because of the complicated process of inputting answers onto the computer and lack of visual examples from professors. “When you enter square roots and fractions online, it tends to get confusing,” said Lex Muery, undecided freshman. “I would prefer more examples of problems from my professor than going to the math lab.” The University converted to the computer-based program in fall 2004. The Department of Mathematics uses a program called the Roadmap to Redesign. This main feature of the program requires active participation from students rather than the traditional lecture format. “The whole idea is that people do more math,” said Phoebe Rouse, precalculus mathematics coordinator. “They don’t spend as much time sitting in class listening to stuff they already know.” Students taking entry-level math courses spend one hour per week in the classroom with their instructor then are required to spend a minimum of three hours per week in the math lab located in Pleasant Hall using the MyMathLab software specified for the course textbook. The program also features additional tools such as an online version of the textbook and example guides for student homework and quizzes. Rouse said these features are a strength for the program because students can focus on areas where they have trouble in order to master the material. Rouse said that in fall 2006, 1,724 students enrolled in Math 1021, and 6 percent dropped the course, which is the lowest it has ever been. The final exam median was 78 percent. “The way we were teaching the math classes was not effective in the past,” Rouse said. “We are now using our resources better, and apparently it is working.”
—–Contact Phillip Trascher at [email protected]