Preparing Adults for College Level Mathematics

1
Preparing Adults for College Level Mathematics

• Pam Meader
• Portland Adult Education, Portland, Me
• Member of National College Transitions Network
• President, Adult Numeracy Network

2
College Placement Testing
3
College Placement Testing
4
College Placement Testing Accuplacer
5
Accuplacer Arithmetic

• Test is an adaptive test
• Students weak in fractions fall into the fraction
  abyss
• Students must score in high 60s
• Decimal/percent/fraction conversions

• Knowledge of 4 operations for whole
  numbers/fraction/decimal
• Divide whole numbers by decimals and fractions
• p of q type problems

6
Accuplacer Arithmetic

• The test is UNTIMED
• However, NO CALCULATORS are allowed on the test
• For students weak in computational skills, this
  is the gatekeeper

7
College Placement Testing Accuplacer
8
Accuplacer Elementary Algebra

• Students need to score in 70s for college level
  placement
• Perform operations with signed numbers
• Multiply binomials
• Evaluate algebraic expressions

• Students need to be knowledgeable of exponent
  rules
• Factoring quadratics
• Solving systems of equations
• Add radicals and algebraic fractions

9
(No Transcript)
10
College Placement Testing COMPASS

• COMputer-Adaptive Placement Assessment and
  Support System
• Adaptive test like Accuplacer
• Multiple choice format
• Basic skills and operations

• Test covers Algebra, Elementary Algebra,
  Intermediate Algebra, College Algebra and
  Trigonometry
• application problems
• analysis for students to demonstrate an
  understanding of concepts

11
College Placement Testing COMPASS

• Unlike Accuplacer, students are permitted to use
  a calculator

12
(No Transcript)
13
(No Transcript)
14
What are the implications?Remedial Course
Enrollments in Maines Public Universities

• Over 700 students are enrolled in remedial or
  developmental writing courses each fall
• Over 1500 are enrolled in remedial or
  developmental math courses each fall

15
What are the implications?

• Allow practice of basic skills within the context
  of your class discussions
• Some students might need extra practice in
  computer lab
• Make the teaching of algebra interactive,
  applied, and hands-on
• Introduce technology (scientific calculators,
  graphing calculators, spreadsheets, etc.)

16
(No Transcript)
17
(No Transcript)
18
(No Transcript)
19
What are the implications?
20
(No Transcript)
21
Journal from a female student on the first night
of class When I came to class, I felt. Scared -
sick - lost - started off in the wrong
room couldnt think unsafe shaking inside When I
left class, I felt. Like throwing up and
did took me all day to settle down couldnt do
this class, not smart too many people
22
Journal from a male student first night of
class Coming to class I felt. I was a little
nervous entering class and preparing for class
imply because I have never been really good at
math. I can get the basic but the more complex
stuff just doesnt click with me. I was
comfortable working with others but was concerned
that I would be behind. Leaving class I felt. So
much better. I realized that I am not the only
one who has math difficulties. In college
algebra everyone seems to know exactly what is
going on and the teacher flies through the
material. I found it impossible. I think the
slower pace in this class will benefit me a lot.
Working in groups seems to help me as well and it
looks like we will be doing a lot of group work
23
How do we address math anxiety?

• How a person feels about a learning situation
  determines the amount of attention devoted to it
  Daniel Golemans Emotional Intelligence
• Students must feel physically safe and
  emotionally secure before they can focus on the
  curriculum. David Sousa, How the Brain Learns

24
How do we address math anxiety?

• The Math Autobiography and Goal Setting

25
Is there a time when you liked math? Hated it?
Why do you feel the way you do?

• I never really liked but I never hated either. I
  just never really understood it so I stayed away
  from it. (male student)
• Ive never liked it. Ive always hated it
  because I could never grasp it. (female student)
• When I do my math homework, I like it, but when I
  didnt get the problem, I hated math (ELL female)
• Yes, in positive not, I like math now. I think
  its fun once you get past the fear. Its
  interesting subject because I like the teacher
  that helps a lot. (female student)

26
How do we address math anxiety?

• Find the learning styles of your students

27
Addressing learning styles
28
How do we address math anxiety?Math Journals

• The me in metacognition

29
Math Journals

• Researchers found that using dialogue journals
  was an effective venue for active and meaningful
  learning where the students can express their
  concerns, ask questions, seek solutions to
  problems they encounter, clarify their findings
  and give opinions about what they were learning.

30
(No Transcript)
31
Math Journals

• I think the most successful part of this
  course, for me, are the journals. Numbers and
  formulas tend to float about rather haphazardly
  in my mind. The act of binding mathematical
  concepts and numerical processes with words
  brings me to a far greater level of understanding
  and clarity. Once I have written about something
  it becomes very easy to visualize and helps me to
  see connections between various areas of
  mathematics. Writing makes it whole for me, so to
  speak.

32
Math Journals

• If asked to describe my previous mathematical
  education, I would say I know how to do
  mathematical operations. If asked to describe my
  education in this course, I would say I
  understand how and why these mathematical
  operations are done. The difference being, I
  believe, that I achieved my previous results by
  reacting to given information, while I am
  achieving in my current results by thinking.
  This means a lot to me, to be able to enjoy a
  subject I once felt Id always be bored by and
  doomed to stumble through.
• A nineteen year old female student

33
How do we address math anxiety? Math labs

• This is the first time that I have ever really
  understood math. Visual and hands on learning
  made a big difference.
• Fun and got class together. We were comfortable
  discussing areas we didnt understand. It made
  class fun.
• By performing the labs we were able to
  conceptualize the real world application that
  algebra has in our everyday life.

34
(No Transcript)