There is currently a lack of diversity in the discipline of statistics. In order to provide opportunities within the discipline of statistics to diverse groups, the present study presents a detailed description and evaluation of a one-credit workshop and mentoring program for undergraduate women interested in exploring opportunities within…

Several publishing companies now offer competing brands of online homework (OHW) software. Students rarely have a voice in choosing their required course materials, even though, ultimately, they will be asked to use and pay for these systems. In this study, Calculus I students each tested three different OHW systems. The students were then asked…

Student retention is a priority in universities, as drop-out rates among university students within 12 months of starting continue to rise, according to UK figures released by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) (https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/performance-indicators/non-continuation, accessed February 2022), and with…

This article reports on a reconceptualization of the Precalculus course experience at Florida International University. We discuss the details of the redesign process--unified within a faculty learning community (FLC) model--along with a broader change in the course sequence leading up to Calculus. We provide data, including the comparison between…

Relating mathematics learned in the classroom to real situations increases student motivation and enhances learning. In this paper, we provide an example of a classroom application of calculus to physiology in two courses: "Differential Equations" and "Calculus I for Biology and Medicine." We designed and implemented a project…

Governmental and educational organizations have pointed out that students coming into the biological sciences require stronger skills in statistics and data modeling that are not usually addressed in typical engineering-based calculus courses. Our work here documents how faculty in biology and mathematics addressed this issue at a large urban…

Service-learning provides a versatile pedagogical platform that can improve the academic performance of participating students and open space for a discussion of issues of social justice within a mathematics classroom. We describe our Precalculus course with a service-learning component, in which university students regularly tutor algebra…

To address a deteriorating classroom climate at the midpoint of a two-semester course sequence, we employed a novel intervention: reading a research manuscript together with students as an invitation to legitimate peripheral participation in scholarly reflection on teaching and learning. This intervention resolved many student complaints about the…

San Diego State University recently embarked on a major initiative to revitalize the Precalculus, Calculus 1, and Calculus 2 sequences. In addition to program features such as course coordination, a new active learning component led by graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) was added to each of the Precalculus, Calculus 1, and Calculus 2 courses, and…

This study explores the impact of Peer-Assisted Reflection (PAR), a structured active learning strategy that emphasizes peer feedback and reflection, on students' perceptions of mathematical thinking, and of the roles their peers and their instructors play in their learning process. This study also examines the impact of PAR on the students'…

In this paper, we describe the evolution of calculus instruction at a mid-sized, career-oriented, comprehensive public university. Changes in practice, that began with a single faculty member implementing technology as a tool for student inquiry, have spread to other department faculty via support from an internal grant, workshops, and the use of…

Our department has experienced a significant culture transformation in its approach to teaching. This change is primarily the result of sustained focus on reforming two heavily coordinated sequences, Applied Calculus and Calculus. Initially catalyzed by pilot projects introducing a flipped-class format to these courses, the reforms led to broader…

We describe a successful collaboration between mathematics and psychological science faculty members to create a learning community for our students that linked sections of introductory mathematical reasoning and psychological science courses. The students in our learning community were in their second or third semester. The learning community is…

This study examined the impact of restricting Calculus 1 and Business Calculus classes based upon whether students had prior calculus experience. We compared the performance and experience of students in sections comprised entirely of those who had previously taken calculus, those who had not previously taken calculus, and those in traditional…

We provide context and motivation for an instructor to use real-life examples in the calculus classroom. To this end we describe two specific project ideas, one related to the devastating impact of methylmercury fungicide in a grain seed supply and the other to a catastrophic methane leak. By using calculus in contexts that have social justice…