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The University of Idaho Mathematics Redesign. Which Courses Did We Redesign?. Intermediate Algebra ~1000 students annually College Algebra ~1400 students annually Approximately 1400 total students during the fall and 1000 students during the spring. Why Redesign?.
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The University of Idaho Mathematics Redesign
Which Courses Did We Redesign? • Intermediate Algebra ~1000 students annually • College Algebra ~1400 students annually Approximately 1400 total students during the fall and 1000 students during the spring.
Why Redesign? Institutional Reasons • Increase student performance and retention. • Address student attitudinal issues. • Save classroom space. • Lower costs.
Why Redesign? Student-Centered Reasons • Poor success rates. • Math 108 (Intermediate Algebra) is considered a “bottleneck” course. • Traditional lecture format made for an inappropriate learning environment. • Over time, incoming Freshman were coming to UI less and less well prepared.
The Polya Mathematics CenterBrink/Phinney Hall 90-seat computer lab
How Do Students Learn In The Polya Mathematics Learning Center?
Each Student Attends A Mandatory Class One Hour Per Week Called The Focus Group
Students can attend Live Lectures in the Polya Center. There are 9 Live Lectures each week. Lectures get repeated throughout the week.
Students Choose Their Homework Option • Option 1: Hand in problems from the text book. • Option 2: Hand in MyMathLab problems on-line. Most students choose the MyMathLab option. This semester, 95% of students chose the MyMathLab option.
Fall 2004 MyMathLab Results • Of the students who finished the course, (took the final exam), 93% were “MyMathLab Students” • 78% of the MML students passed the course while 62% of the “book students” passed the course. • The MML students scored, on average, 13.5 points higher on the final exam.
A Quick Tour Of The Polya Center TOUR MOVIE
How Do The Students Know What To Do Each Week? • We created weekly task lists! • The task list is a step-by-step weekly list of tasks to accomplish each week. • Sample TASK LIST
We Want Test Taking To Be a Learning Experience “Taking the tests in the Polya Center is great! Not only do I get a better grade, but the teaching is reinforced.” Former Math 108 Student
Each test has 2 parts Polya Testing • Multiple choice (80%) • Taken on the computer • Provides instant feedback • Allows for 3 chances • Must be taken in Polya • There are deadlines! • Written Response (20%) • Taken during focus group on a specific date Test Grade=.80*(Best MC) + Written
Book Examples Sidebar Problems Book Problems On-Line Lectures Page 178, Example 1 Page 178,Problem 2 Page 185,Problems 13-18 OLL 4.2.3 Book Examples Sidebar Problems Book Problems On-Line Lectures Page 192, Example 2 Page 193,Problem 3 Page 198,Problems 27-36 OLL 4.3.6 Book Examples Sidebar Problems Book Problems On-Line Lectures Page 217 Example 5Page 218, Example 8 Page 218, Problem 6Page 219, Problem 7 Page 223,Problems 35-46 OLL 4.5.9 Review the test objectives Section 4.2: Find the slope of a line, given two points on the line. \ Section 4.3: Write the equation of a line, given two points on the line. Section 4.5: Use f(x) notation (evaluate a function).
How Do We Survive With Over 1,400 Students Each With a 150 min/wk Time Commitment And Only 185 Chairs? • ROLLING DEADLINES!! (The one drawback is we lose a week’s worth of material)
How do we survive with over 1,400 students each with a 150 min/wk time commitment and only 185 chairs? • ROLLING DEADLINES!! (The one drawback is we lose a week’s worth of material) • Facility is wireless. New laptop cart (added 15 new computers) • Database automatically reduces time commitment for successful students. • “Virtual Polya” allows students to work from home and get credit for time spent.
Outcomes • Teachers are able to teach more courses. • Although hours in the classroom has decreased for teachers, the number of student contact hours has increased! • 40-50 students finish the course early each semester. • Classroom space has decreased by 2/3. • Cost per student has decreased.
Outcomes STUDENTS WHO “TRY” A student who tries is a student who: • Attends their Focus Group each week • Fulfills their lab time requirement each week • Turns in all of their homework • Takes each test 3 times Over 95% of these students pass the course!
Other ideas made possible by our redesign • Outreach to rural area schools, dual enrollment. • The re-collection of students (C.A.M.P)
Thank you for allowing me to talk to you! Any Questions? kirkt@uidaho.edu www.sci.uidaho.edu/polya