Experiences with Active Learning at 26 Universities
By: David Bressoud @dbressoud
David Bressoud is DeWitt Wallace Professor Emeritus at Macalester College and Director of the Conference Board of the Mathematical Sciences
In my June Launchings, How to Transform a Department of Mathematics, I discussed the SEMINAL project of the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities and the recent publication by CBMS and AMS of Transformational Change Efforts: Student Engagement in Mathematics through an Institutional Network for Active Learning. This book explains the lessons learned in the first phase of the study, describing what it takes to effect department-wide improvements in instructional design and pedagogical delivery. But SEMINAL is much more than an exercise in gathering knowledge. Its purpose is to use that knowledge to help departments implement active learning, especially in precalculus and calculus classes. For this, it is useful to have stories of what it looks like on the ground as departments go through this process.
SEMINAL is currently working with 23 public universities to help them incorporate active learning in precalculus and single variable calculus classes. Three recent issues of PRIMUS, vol. 31, issues 3–5, describe what is happening at 13 of these universities as well as 13 additional universities that have been adopting active learning. Together these describe the variety of possible approaches. The articles range from discussion of the initial phases of rethinking pedagogical approaches to these courses to the establishment of a department-wide commitment to active learning across the curriculum. Some are using active learning only in recitation sections, other have incorporated it into large classes. Some are restricting it to precalculus, some to the second semester of calculus.
The institutions that are represented in this articles are also varied. Most of them are public universities—only Cornell University and Loyola University Chicago are private. But the public universities range from regional comprehensives to flagship R1’s, including Ohio State and the universities of Florida and Maryland College Park. The California State University system (CSU) is particularly well represented with five universities. Much of their work on active learning was spurred by the recent decision to eliminate all non-credit-bearing remedial courses in mathematics. Active learning is one of the responses many of them are developing to support their at-risk students.
My hope is that readers of this column will dig into the reports that seem most relevant to their own situation. I have organized brief descriptions of the approaches taken by each of these universities by listing first the university (with an (S) after the name if it is part of the SEMINAL network), then the first author (with full references at the end of this article), and then the summary of what they are doing. I also highly recommend the introductory article by the editors: Wendy Smith of the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Chris Rasmussen of the San Diego State University, and Robert Tubbs of the University of Colorado, Boulder. Beyond describing the main themes that appear in these volumes, they describe how inquiry-based mathematics education provides a framework for effective active learning and discuss the research on institutional change.
Note that MAA members have free access to PRIMUS articles: Log into your MAA account, in My Profile click on Subscriptions, choose MAA Member Access to, then click on PRIMUS.
Wendy Smith, Chris Rasmussen, and Robert Tubbs, editors
California State Universities
East Bay (S), Oliver
Working with SEMINAL, the department redesigned their precalculus through Calculus II classes with an eye toward “big ideas” and conceptual understanding; they increased course coordination through a pacing guide, group tasks, and suggestions for emphasis and coverage; and they built a community of practice.
Fullerton (S), Soto
The department has designed and begun implementation of a faculty professional development program around active learning.
Monterey Bay, Goyer
This department was challenged to support the 30% of their students who would have been placed in remedial mathematics. They accomplished this with a redesigned Precalculus that has featured Reading Apprentices, “Complex Instruction” that accounts for the wide disparities in student preparation, an in-house textbook, redesigned assessments, a 1-credit support course, and professional development for the instructors.
San Diego State University (S), Pilgrim
The Department of Mathematics has already done much to improve the precalculus through calculus sequence (see Departmental Turnaround: The Case of San Diego State University, Launchings, July 2018). This report chronicles the creation of their professional development program for graduate teaching assistants to prepare them to teach in active learning classes.
San Jose State University, Maciejewski
In response to the requirement to eliminate non-credit-bearing remedial courses in mathematics, this department focused on the development of two courses: Mathematical Reasoning and Mathematics in Art, Music, and Politics, together with the supporting courses that have enabled students to succeed.
Other Universities
Colorado School of Mines (S), Carney
The department began introducing flipped classes for Calculus II in fall 2016 and is now using them for almost all of their sections of this course. The report describes the support needed for this innovation and how it came to be widely adopted.
Cornell University, Bennoun
The Cornell department introduced active learning into Calculus I through the creation of both basic and supplemental teaching materials that emphasized group work and active learning. By the second year, they saw marked changes in how both instructors and students spent their class time.
Ferris State University, McClendon
Ferris State experimented with sections of calculus for which a Mathematica lab was added. They report on the process of incorporating these labs and the encouraging results.
George Mason University (S), Balancea
The Department of Mathematical Sciences at George Mason has developed a Community of Practice around active learning. Their report describes the process of building this community, which has now resulted in incorporating active learning into all calculus recitation sections.
Kennesaw State (S), Vandenbussche
This report describes what Kennesaw State’s Department of Mathematics calls “strand committees,” committees that coordinate efforts across multiple connected courses such as college algebra, college trigonometry, and precalculus. Combined with course coordinators, they provide a mechanism through which enthusiastic faculty can work to garner support for change.
Loyola University Chicago (S), Lange
The Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Loyola has drawn on SEMINAL expertise to adopt a unified strategy for implementing active learning in precalculus and calculus and has formalized cooperative practices, building on already existing informal cooperative practices within the department.
Michigan State University, Krause
This department focused their work on Calculus II, a course taught to approximately 2000 students per year in large lectures of 150–250 students with recitation sections. They developed active learning labs for the recitation sections.
Middle Tennessee State University, Bleiler-Baster
The Department of Mathematical Sciences at MTSU has developed a program of peer observation to increase dialogue around and reflection on teaching. The program is a formative peer-review process involving all faculty and providing a non-threatening platform for discussion and feedback.
Morgan State University (S), Ellington
This department in an HBCU focused on Culturally Responsive Teaching (CRT) in Precalculus, redesigning the course so that it integrates student interests and living experiences into the curriculum, incorporating peer support and peer to peer interactions, and developing the faculty to become reflective practitioners who can effectively incorporate CRT and active learning in the course.
Ohio State University (S), Miller
Miller and colleagues report on a decade of gradual changes and increased professional development that has led to a culture of continuous reevaluation and improvement within the restrictions of large lectures with recitation sections. They describe how they have been able to bringing active learning into large lectures sections of calculus.
United States Naval Academy, Ksir
Over the past decade, this department has instituted several project-based and inquiry-based initiatives. This is an account of what went into their development and how they are being maintained today.
University of Alaska, Fairbanks, Faudree
UAF is both the state’s flagship university and an open access university. This report describes how they succeeded in implementing coordination of Calculus I and the benefits that resulted.
University of Cincinnati, Bazett
This department had struggled with broad variations in how calculus was taught across multiple campuses. This report describes how they increased coordination and the benefits that accrued. New practices include teaching lunches, a departmental faculty learning community, annual faculty mixers, and the encouragement of attendance at education conferences.
University of Florida (S), Chamberlain
In response to a university decision to hire a large number of new faculty, the department ran an experiment with Calculus I in fall 2018, a course that enrolled 1800 students. They placed half of the students in two large traditional lecture classes and split the remaining 900 students into 15 relatively small sections taught using a flipped format that drew on materials that had been developed for an online course. There was little difference in performance on common assessments, but the flipped classes did show better results for student confidence, attitudes, and beliefs.
University of Maryland, College Park, Gruber
The department redesigned their precalculus offerings to incorporate active learning. Their goals included increasing use of active learning resources, adapting to variations of practice, working to sustain changes, and fostering departmental support for active learning.
University of Minnesota (S), Diamond
This report documents how this department has incorporated problem-solving into its precalculus classes.
University of North Dakota, Dunnigan
UND’s Department of Mathematics has executed a successful intervention in Applied Calculus, combining a decrease in class size with a re-evaluation of course objectives, identification of better teaching strategies, frequent in-class group assignments, and regular feedback from the departments that require this course.
University of Northern Colorado, Hancock
This report describes the development of a co-requisite course for Calculus I, meeting one hour per week. It draws on and supplements what was already a strong departmental commitment to active learning.
University of Oklahoma (S), Moore-Russo
The Department of Mathematics at the University of Oklahoma was able to revamp their precalculus through calculus sequence through the creation of a First-Year Mathematics Program with dedicated funding that created new renewable term faculty positions, incorporated active learning, extended TA training, and used data to inform and drive decision-making.
University of Texas Rio Grande (S), Villalobos
The department is spread over multiple campuses, so consistency of instruction was an issue. The department strengthened the role of course coordinators, giving them some release time and charging them with recommending changes for course improvements, building communities of practice, optimizing the curriculum, coordinating assessments, and building a repository for new instructors.
Western Michigan University, Mingus
This department reports on a four-year effort to improve student success rates in Calculus I. It concludes with the key take-aways that include understanding context, picking a diverse team, and assessing past failures and successes. The key for moving forward is coordination, and the report describes its critical components.
References
Trefor Bazett & Crystal L. Clough (2021) Course Coordination as an Avenue to Departmental Culture Change, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 467-482, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1793853
Steve Bennoun & Tara Holm (2021) Establishing Consistent Active Learning in a Calculus I Course, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 565-577, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1746453
Sarah K. Bleiler-Baxter, James B. Hart & Sister Cecilia Anne Wanner O.P. (2021) Teaching TRIOs: Using Peer Observation to Initiate Department Change, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 550-564, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1772918
Gabriela Bulancea, Patricia Granfield, Joanna Jauchen, Jack Love, Mary Nelson, Robert Sachs & Catherine Sausville (2021) A Community of Grassroots Leaders: Leveraging Faculty Networks to Create Change, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 627-642, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2021.1882016
Debra Carney, Megan Sanders, Samuel Spiegel, Rebecca Swanson & Ariana Vasquez (2021) Calculus II Course Redesign: Supporting Faculty in Pedagogical Change, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 643-657, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1746450
D. Chamberlain, A. Grady, S. Keeran, K. Knudson, I. Manly, M. Shabazz, C. Stone & A. York (2021) Transitioning to an Active Learning Environment for Calculus at the University of Florida, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 517-531, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1769235
Kate Diamond, Shelley Kandola & Mike Weimerskirch (2021) Developing Problem-Solving Skills in Active Learning Pre-Calculus Courses, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 578-593, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1772917
Gerri Dunnigan & Cheryl Halcrow (2021) If You Don't Build It, They Will Leave: Reforming an Applied Calculus Course by Eliminating Large Lectures and Incorporating Active Learning, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 413-433, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1769234
Roni Ellington, Janet Barber, Ahlam Tannouri, Syafrida Syafrida & Asamoah Nkwanta (2021) The MSU SEMINAL Project: Incorporating Principles of Culturally Responsive Teaching in a Pre-Calculus Course, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 296-315, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1805661
Jill Faudree (2021) Courage by Experiment, Rescue by Data, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 483-491, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1746454
Alysia Goyer, Alison Lynch & Jeffrey Wand (2021) A Redesign of Precalculus at California State University, Monterey Bay, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 492-503, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1746451
Sean Gruber, Raluca I. Rosca, Daniel Chazan, Elizabeth Fleming, Steve Balady, Catherine VanNetta & Kasso A. Okoudjou (2021) Active Learning in an Undergraduate Precalculus Course: Insights from a Course Redesign, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 358-370, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1772920
Emilie Hancock, Lorraine Franco, Spencer Bagley & Gulden Karakok (2021) A Holistic Approach to Supporting Student-Centered Pedagogy: Navigating Co-Requisite Calculus I, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 608-626, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1802794
Andrew J. Krause, Ryan J. Maccombs & Willie W. Y. Wong (2021) Experiencing Calculus Through Computational Labs: Our Department’s Cultural Drift Toward Modernizing Mathematics Instruction, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 434-448, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1799457
Amy E. Ksir, Justin M. Allman, Noble Hetherington III, Megan E. Selbach-Allen & Daphne Skipper (2021) Activating Calculus to Command the Seas: Reflecting on Ten Years of Active and Inquiry-Based Learning at the US Naval Academy, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 449-466, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1772922
Karin E. Lange, Megan Deiger, Matthew Bourque, Peter Tingley, Emily Peters, Laurie E. Jordan & Anthony Giaquinto (2021) The Collaborative Development of Active Learning at Loyola University Chicago as Part of the SEMINAL Network, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 281-295, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1772921
Wes Maciejewski, John Bragelman, Marion Campisi, Tim Hsu, Andrea Gottlieb, Jordan Schettler, Trisha Bergthold & Bem Cayco (2021) Change Comes from Without: Lessons Learned in a Chaotic Year, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 504-516, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1793854
David M. McClendon, Kirk Weller, Jerome Trouba, Sandra Brigance & Michael Dekker (2021) Transforming Tradition: From One Instructor to an Entire Department, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 532-549, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2019.1700577
E. Miller, J. Fowler, C. Johns, J. Johnson Jr., B. Ramsey & B. Snapp (2021) Increasing Active Learning in Large, Tightly Coordinated Calculus Courses, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 371-392, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1772923
Tabitha T. Y. Mingus & Melinda Koelling (2021) A Collaborative Approach to Coordinating Calculus 1 to Improve Student Outcomes, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 393-412, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1772919
Deborah Moore-Russo, Keri Kornelson, Milos Savic & Candace Andrews (2021) Considering the Evolution of the STEM Mathematical Pathway at the University of Oklahoma Using Organizational Development and Change Theory, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 343-357, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1793852
Jesús Oliver & Julia Olkin (2021) A Community of Practice Model for Infusing Active Learning in the Classroom, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 252-268, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1746452
Mary E. Pilgrim, Naneh Apkarian, Hayley Milbourne & Michael O’Sullivan (2021) From Rough Waters to Calm Seas: The Challenges and Successes of Building a Graduate Teaching Assistant Professional Development Program, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 594-607, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1793851
Wendy M. Smith, Chris Rasmussen & Robert Tubbs (2021) Introduction to the Special Issue: Insights and Lessons Learned from Mathematics Departments in the Process of Change, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 239-251, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2021.1886207
Roberto C. Soto & Alison S. Marzocchi (2021) Learning about Active Learning While Actively Learning: Insights from Faculty Professional Development, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 269-280, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1746449
Jennifer Vandenbussche, Lake Ritter, Kadian M. Callahan & Erik E. Westlund (2021) Using Strand Committees to Build Faculty Support for Departmental Change, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 330-342, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1772916
Cristina Villalobos, Hyung Won Kim, Timothy J. Huber, Roger Knobel, Shaghayegh Setayesh, Lekshmi Sasidharan, Anahit Galstyan & Andras Balogh (2021) Coordinating STEM Core Courses for Student Success, PRIMUS, 31:3-5, 316-329, DOI: 10.1080/10511970.2020.1793855
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