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Evidence Is Mounting That Calculus Should Be Changed. Will Instructors Heed It?

ED Surge

Calculus is a critical on-ramp to careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Good news: There's mounting evidence that changing calculus instruction works for the groups usually pushed out of STEM. That the traditional lecture method of teaching calculus isn’t as effective as active models.

Calculus 304
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UCLA Life Sciences Revamped How It Teaches Math. Is It an Example Others Should Follow?

ED Surge

About 10 years ago, Alan Garfinkel, a professor in the life sciences department at the University of California, Los Angeles, got a call. It was from his dean, who said that the department had inspected their freshman calculus course, “Calculus for Life Sciences.”

Calculus 320
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The Role of Mathematics in Education

Ask a Tech Teacher

Or perhaps, amidst a particularly challenging calculus problem, you’ve questioned how this abstract world of numbers and symbols could possibly influence your future career? College and Mathematics: Challenges The Complexity Cliff Remember the first time you looked at a calculus problem in college? Well, you’re not alone.

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Top 5: A Quiet Revolution in Math and Affordable Teacher Housing Among Most-Read Topics of Sept 2023

ED Surge

Our coverage of new approaches to math education drew the most interest from readers, with two different features exploring how to rethink calculus making our Top 5. EdSurge takes you inside Harvard’s Science Center, where this summer, professors imagined new ways to push calculus past its limits. Researchers are betting on it.

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In College Math, Faculty Is Key. But Will This Insight Actually Help Students?

ED Surge

A number of instructors in the math department at San Diego Mesa College, where she's a professor, had started exploring how to weave standards-based grading — an approach that evaluates students on how effectively they have mastered content — into the way they teach calculus. So far, Spoon reports that the changes are invigorating.

Math 268
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Top 5: Rebooting the Oral Exam Tops Most-Read List for October 2023

ED Surge

Topping our monthly Top 5 list was a look at how professors are rebooting oral exams to respond to concerns that students can now use ChatGPT and other AI tools to cheat on essays. Readers Respond: Does Fixing the Leaky STEM Pipeline Require Calculus To Adapt? Will the ideas catch on?

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Why Some Students Feel Like They Can’t Excel In Math

ED Surge

But in college, where she’s a business major, calculus is proving insurmountable. Under Pressure There are a number of theories about how math anxiety relates to performance, according to Colleen Ganley, an associate professor of developmental psychology at Florida State University. It’s given her severe anxiety. It feels pointless.

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