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1. From Resistance to Readiness – Building Capacity to Pilot and Scale Co-requisite Calculus for First-Year Engineering Gateway Courses

   https://doi.org/10.18260/1-2--46866  

   Olsen, Darlene; Supan, Karen; Johnson, Liz (June 2024, Gardening outdoor living)

   Norwich University, the oldest Senior Military College in the nation and the first private U.S. institution to teach engineering, has a residential program for approximately 2,100 primarily undergraduate students in both the Corps of Cadets and civilian lifestyles. Norwich secured a National Science Foundation S-STEM award in the beginning of 2020 to develop a program to attract and retain highly talented, low-income students in STEM. One of the aims of the project was to support students who enter college with less experience in mathematics as these students were significantly less likely to graduate with a STEM degree. In the fall of 2020, as a result of the S-STEM award, the mathematics department offered a pilot corequisite calculus course to STEM majors requiring calculus their first semester but placed into precalculus by the mathematics departmental placement test. The corequisite calculus course includes content from precalculus into a one semester calculus course that meets daily for 6 contact hours rather than a standard 4 credit hour calculus course. The Norwich University Civil, Electrical and Computer, and Mechanical Engineering programs are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, placing restrictions on the 8-semester engineering degree pathway. The added credits to the first semester corequisite calculus course fit the constraints of the first semester engineering course load and this course has enabled engineering students that place into precalculus to complete an on-time degree plan without taking summer courses. The corequisite course has been approved by the university curriculum committee and is a regular offering at the institution. The initial offering of the corequisite course occurred during the COVID pandemic necessitating the use of additional instructional technology. There was also an increase in low stakes assessments to encourage students to engage in the material. The added credits also increased the regularity of student interacting with calculus. Since the implementation of this pilot course, there have been several similar changes in other courses required by engineering majors. The pilot corequisite course has become institutionalized and even is now scaling, with the engineering department requesting the course to be offered each semester to benefit students who are out of sync with the intended curriculum pathway. This project examines how the corequisite calculus course may have influenced changes in the general education courses and engineering first year sequence. Outcome harvesting as well as process tracing are used to determine the strength of evidence linking the corequisite course to institutional change. Qualitative and quantitative data will be examined as well to understand how the S-STEM award contributed to breakdown of the resistance to curriculum change and the readiness to implement and scale corequisite courses in other areas. It is important to understand the mechanisms used for building capacity at the institution to transform STEM education in higher education 

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2. The supportive role of active learning in a calculus course on low precalculus proficiency students

   https://doi.org/10.1080/0020739X.2023.2255189  

   Watson, Charity N; Duran, Pablo; Castillo, Adam; Fuller, Edgar; Potvin, Geoff; Kramer, Laird (September 2023, International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology)

   College calculus plays an important role in STEM students’ degree and career aspirations. One of the key factors considered in assessing a student’s ability to be successful in calculus is their proficiency in topics from prior mathematics courses such as algebra and precalculus. This study set out to examine the impact of students’ precalculus proficiency on their achievement in introductory calculus based on their classroom environment. Results from the implementation of the Modeling Practices in Calculus (MPC) model, an innovative, active learning approach, are presented. Using a randomized-controlled trial research design, students were randomly assigned to MPC and traditional, lecture-based calculus sections. The Precalculus Concept Assessment inventory was administered to gauge students’ precalculus proficiency. We found that students exposed to the MPC model were more likely to be successful in their calculus course, even if they began with low precalculus proficiency. Also, students enrolled in the MPC sections saw significant growth in their precalculus proficiency from the beginning to the end of the semester. Additionally, we observed this model providing support for students in key demographics (low proficiency, female, underclassmen) in terms of the development of their proficiency that they may not receive in traditional classrooms. 

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3. Statewide Coalition: Supporting Underrepresented Populations in Precalculus through Organizational Redesign Toward Engineering Diversity (SC:SUPPORTED) Results from Year One

   Gallagher, E.; Brown, C.J.; Brown, D.A.; Frady, K.; Marcanikova, M.; Atamturktur, S.; Ihekweazu, S.; Matthews, M.; Rabb, R.; Roberts, R.; et al (June 2018, ASEE annual conference & exposition proceedings)

   National data indicate that initial mathematics course placement in college is a strong predictor of persistence to degree in engineering, with students placed in calculus persisting at nearly twice the rate of those placed below calculus. Within the state of South Carolina, approximately 95% of engineering-intending students who initially place below calculus are from in-state. The “Statewide Coalition: Supporting Underrepresented Populations in Precalculus through Organizational Redesign Toward Engineering Diversity (SC:SUPPORTED),” a Design and Development Launch Pilot funded under the National Science Foundation INCLUDES program, is a coalition of secondary districts and post-secondary institutions throughout South Carolina, joining together to address the systemic issue of mathematical preparation for engineering-intending students. First year results include an analysis of system-wide data to identify prevalent educational pathways within the state, and the mathematical milestones along those pathways taken by engineering-intending students. Using individual data for all 21,656 first-year students in engineering-related fields enrolled in a public post-secondary institution in the state, we identified specific pathways with high rates of placement in or above calculus, pathways with balanced rates of placement in/below calculus, pathways with high rates of placement below calculus, and ‘missing’ pathways, defined as those which produce disproportionately few engineering-intending students [5]. For example, rates of placement in or above calculus among engineering majors ranged from below 17% in eight counties of origin to nearly 100% in four counties of origin. First-year results also included analysis of qualitative data from focus groups conducted at key points along each pathway category to identify factors that do not readily appear in institutional data (e.g., impact of guidance counselor recommendations in selection of last high school math course taken). Broad themes emerging from the focus groups provided additional insight into potential interventions at multiple points along educational pathways. Focus group data are contributing to the development of a survey to be administered in Year 2 to all post-secondary engineering majors statewide, with the goal of creating structural equation models of the factors leading to placement at or below the calculus level upon entry into an engineering major. These models will then allow us to design targeted interventions at points of maximal potential impact. 

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4. Measuring the Impact of an Enrichment Program for First-Term Undergraduate Engineering Students in Mathematics and Engineering Curricula

   Cruse, K. C.; & Boyet, C.; Savercool, L.; Holloway, H. (June 2023, 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition)

   First-year students frequently struggle with the transition from high school to college as they juggle academic requirements, new living accommodations, and social expectations. Transitional struggles can be amplified for engineering students due to the challenging mathematics, engineering, and science courses taking during their first term. First-year students are commonly ill-equipped to manage their time wisely and study properly. Structure and guidance can assist in fostering skills and behaviors that are vital for success. The SUCCESS Scholars (SS) Program was developed to provide foundational support for 24 low-income first-year engineering students. The program was designed to provide academic support in the form of extra Fridays sessions for engineering and peer mentorship led supplemental instruction (SI). The 24 students were grouped into exclusive sections of a precalculus course and an engineering course. Two upper-level students were selected to lead the SI sessions while providing peer mentorship and community engagement for the first-year students. The faculty teaching both courses worked together with the peer mentors to develop a plan for the SI sessions. This paper will detail the SS Program and analyze the performance of the students in their first quarter at the university. Data from common exams given in their precalculus and engineering courses will be used to examine the effectiveness of the program. 

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5. Board 33: The SEECRS Scholar Academy at Whatcom Community College: An S-STEM Scholarship Program

   Vannelli, T. A.; Davishahl, E.; Babcock, J. M.; Hanley, D.; Harri, E. (June 2018, ASEE annual conference & exposition proceedings)

   The STEM Excellence through Engagement in Collaboration, Research, and Scholarship (SEECRS) project at Whatcom Community College is a five-year program aiming to support academically talented students with demonstrated financial need in biology, chemistry, geology, computer science, engineering, and physics. This project is funded by an NSF S-STEM (Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) grant awarded in January 2017. Through an inclusive and long-range effort, the college identified a strong need for financial and comprehensive supports for STEM students. This project will offer financial, academic, and professional support to three two-year cohorts of students. The SEECRS project aims to utilize a STEM-specific guided pathways approach to strengthen recruitment, retention, and matriculation of STEM students at the community college level. Scholarship recipients will be supported through participation in the SEECRS Scholars Academy, a multi-pronged approach to student support combining elements of community building, faculty mentorship, targeted advising activities, authentic science practice, and social activities. Students are introduced to disciplines of interest through opportunities to engage in course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) in Biology, Chemistry and Engineering courses, funded summer research opportunities, and seminars presented by STEM professionals. Communities of practice will be nurtured through the introduction of cohort building and faculty mentorship. Cohort development starts with a required two-credit course for all scholars that emphasizes STEM identity development, specifically focusing on identifying and coping with the ways non-dominant individuals (racial/ethnic minorities, non-male gender, lower socioeconomic status, first-generation, 2-year community college vs. 4-year institutions) are made to feel as outsiders in STEM. Each SEECRS scholar is paired with a faculty mentor who engages in ongoing mentor training. The project evaluation will determine the efficacy of the project activities in achieving their intended outcomes. Specifically, we will collect data to answer the research question: To what extent can a guided pathways approach provide a coordinated and supported STEM experience at Whatcom Community College that: (1) increases student success, and (2) positively shifts students’ STEM self-identity? The evaluation will employ a quasi-experimental research design, specifically a pretest-posttest design with a matched comparison group. Our first cohort of 14 students was selected over two application rounds (winter and summer 2017). We awarded ten full scholarships and four half-scholarships based on financial need data. Cohort demographics of note compared to institutional percentages are: females (64% vs. 57%), Hispanic (14% vs. 17%), African American (7% vs. 2%), white (79% vs. 66%), first generation college bound (43% vs. 37%). The cohort is comprised of six students interested in engineering, six in biology, and one each in geology and environmental sciences. With increased communication between the project team, our Financial Aid office, Entry and Advising, high school outreach, and the Title III grant-funded Achieve, Inspire, Motivate (AIM) Program, as well as a longer advertising time, we anticipate significantly enhancing our applicant pool for the next cohort. The results and lessons learned from our first year of implementation will be presented. 

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