Transcript GPC Presentation 1/22/10 Session 2

Mathematics Across the Curriculum
A strategy for Quantitative Literacy: Session 2
Åsa Bradley & Beverly Vredevelt
Spokane Falls Community College
[email protected]
[email protected]
www.mac3.amatyc.org
Whose Responsibility?
“Quantitative literacy is more about habits of mind
than specific mathematical content. Therefore, the
responsibility for developing quantitative literacy,
like writing across the curriculum, is shared by the
entire college faculty. However, mathematics
faculty should lead the quantitative literacy
movement by helping to establish a set of
outcomes expected of students in each program.”
- AMATYC Beyond Crossroads
What Can MAC3 Look Like?
Successful Models:
• Smaller Scale:
• Shared/Linked assignments
• Learning modules
• Mini lectures/Guest lectures
• Thematic Projects
• Larger Scale:
• Learning Communities (Linked or fully co-taught)
• Campus wide initiative
• Integrated courses
• Service Learning Component
Learning Communities: A Case Study
Fusion: The Unlikely Union of Physics and English Comp
(A coordinated class: two instructors in the classroom at the same time)
• Original Idea
• Lori teach English (English 101 and 201)
• Åsa teach Physics (Physics 100)
• Students write about Physics
• After a MAC3 Conference
• One central theme or concept.
• What are the BIG IDEAS we want the students to take with them?
• What skills should they retain after our class?
Assessing Fusion
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Combined Grade for Both Disciplines
Major Essays (Research, Outline, Revise)
Shorter In-Class Writing Prompts
Learning Log
Field Trips & Guest Speakers Activities
In-Class Group Physics Activities (Problem Solving,
ILD’s)
• Physics Homework
• Weekly Physics Lab with Write-up
• Final Group Research Project (Research, Present,
Write Report)
Dividing Class Time
• Planned a quarter long tentative schedule for each
discipline, but met weekly to plan following week.
• Kept it loose, often switched days depending on
where students were.
• Usually had full English days and full Physics days.
MAC3 Survey Constructs (Pre & Post)
The students read 21 statements and rated them on a scale of 5
(strongly agree) to 1 (strongly disagree). Distributed to ten classes
during the fall quarter/semester of 2006.
Five constructs were extracted:
• Confidence in doing mathematics (I am good at math, I enjoy math.)
• Interest in mathematics (I want to learn more math.)
• Awareness of the role of mathematics in society (Many things I use were
designed using math)
• Concept of Math (Estimating is part of math)
• Interdisciplinary Learning (Doing math in another subject makes the subject
easier to learn)
Change in Students’ Math Attitudes
(Based on 30 matched pre-post surveys from SFCC students)
Post Survey Self Evaluation of Math Skills
Students were asked to evaluate their gains in the
following areas on a scale from 1 (not at all) to 5 (a great
deal):
• Understanding the relationship among concepts
• Ability to think through a problem
• Ability to solve problems
• Ability to communicate mathematical ideas
• Confidence in your ability to do mathematics
• Feeling comfortable with complex ideas
• Enthusiasm for mathematics
Post Survey Self Evaluation of Math Skills
Highest gains (between “somewhat” and “a lot”) were in
analytical categories:
•Understanding relationships among concepts
•Thinking through and solving problems
•Feeling comfortable with complex ideas
All categories showed gain, but some where slightly below
the “some what” mark:
•Ability to communicate mathematical ideas
•Confidence in ability to do math
•Enthusiasm for mathematics
Specific Learning Gains
• As a result of your work in this class, how well do
you think you now understand the following:
• How to interpret a graph?
• How to use mathematical information in expository
writing?
• How to evaluate the credibility of science writing?
• What kind of data to gather in order to answer a
question?
(The option “learned elsewhere” was included and students who marked this were excluded from the analysis.)
Specific Learning Gains
(Based on 30 matched post surveys from SFCC students)
Student Comments
• Please tell us the most important thing you
learned in this class
• 23 offered comments
• 9 (nearly 40%) mentioned physics 
Student Comments
• On Physics
• Physics can be fun!
• I learned about atoms.
• It’s hard to store energy.
• You can’t store energy.
• I learned a lot about energy.
Student Comments
• On math/science and English
• How to perform better research on scientific
subjects and how to put that information into an
understandable flow
• How to write essays using the math parts of
science.
• How to write a better academic paper and citing
sources.
Student Comments
• On group work
• How to interact with others.
• Working in groups is more rewarding if everyone
participates.
• Working in groups and getting help from other
students is important and helpful.
• Math and other people don’t mix well with me.
Student Comments
• Big ideas
• Everything!
• How much more I have to learn about the
universe.
• The importance of sustaining life and the
consequences of pollution.
• Math is involved in everything, so is physics.
Survey Conclusions
• Overall, students in these ten (n=181) interdisciplinary
courses left with a more positive assessment of
mathematics, their interest in it and their ability to do it.
• The constructs measuring student’s mathematical
confidence, interest, awareness of math in their lives, and
appreciation of interdisciplinary learning changed in the
desired direction.
• Integrating mathematics into other disciplines seem to lead
to improved student attitudes about mathematics and
enhance the learning of math content.
Lessons Learned
• Better integrated schedule
• More closely integrated assignments
• Students actually asked for more quizzes and tests!
• More progress reports for final project
• Keep writing group and science group the same
• On field trips, drive together in school van
• Students’ evaluations of each other bigger part of project grade
• More theme based approach closer integrated with big ideas
Syllabus, Assignments, Projects and more are available at:
http://faculty.spokanefalls.edu/AutoWebs/Default.asp?ID=2712&VLD=2712
www.spokanefalls.edu → current students → online syllabus →
Bradley, Asa - LC Resources for Instructors
(password: instructor)
Collaboration Session—Big Ideas
1. Get into groups of 2 or 3 participants.
2. What are the five main things you want your students’ to
learn or be able to do by taking your class? (most
important outcomes)
3. Write each of them on a post-it note.
4. Compare your big ideas with those of your colleagues.
5. Consolidate your big ideas with those of your colleagues
and come up with a “main” set of outcomes?
6. Think of a theme that could be used for an integrated
class or assignment that would address all or one of
these outcomes. (Example: Teaching an integrated Composition
and Physics class focused on Conservation of Energy.)
Collaboration Session—Big Ideas
Report Back!
Another Collaboration Session
Designing Theme Based & Integrative
Learning Worksheet
Another Collaboration Session
Report Back!
What To Do Next
• GPC Faculty Follow-up meeting?
• When?
• Where?
• Lots and lots of web resources…
Some Web Resources
• MAC3 Projects and Courses (A list of QL integrated outcomes and assignments from
a variety of disciplines)
• http://www.mac3.amatyc.org/projects.htm
• Dartmouth College Electronic Bookshelf (More QL integrated classroom examples)
• http://www.math.dartmouth.edu/~mqed/index.html
• Statistical Literacy (A website dedicated to develop SL as an interdisciplinary
curriculum in the liberal arts.)
• http://www.statlit.org/
• Social Science Data Analysis Network (Similar to above, but this one has examples
for the Social Sciences.)
• http://www.ssdan.net/chip/exercises.shtml
• Mathematical Association of America’s QL site
• http://www.maa.org/Ql/
• AMATYC’s QL site (Includes books, articles, and professional development
opportunities.)
• http://www.beyondcrossroads.com/QLindex.html
More Web Resources
• The National Numeracy Network ( A network of individuals, institutions, and
corporations united by the common goal of quantitative literacy for all citizens.
Includes great teaching resources.)
• http://serc.carleton.edu/nnn/
• Numeracy (Online Journal for QL)
• http://services.bepress.com/numeracy/
• SIGMAA on QL (Special Interest group of the MAA focusing on QL includes
teaching, textbooks, and job resources)
• http://pc88092.math.cwu.edu/~montgomery/sigmaaql/
• Colby-Sawyer's QL website (They have a NSF grant for increasing QL scores):
• http://www.colby-sawyer.edu/academics/experience/quantitative/index.html
• More classroom and web resources at:
• http://faculty.spokanefalls.edu/AutoWebs/Default.asp?ID=2712&VLD=2712
www.spokanefalls.edu → current students → online syllabus →
Bradley, Asa - LC Resources for Instructors (password: instructor)
Thank You!
Feel free to contact us with any questions
Åsa Bradley & Beverly Vredevelt
Spokane Falls Community College
[email protected]
[email protected]