Developmental education has the mission of enabling underprepared students to acquire the capabilities necessary for college success. A growing number of research studies document its failure, however; specifically, approximately two thirds of community college students referred to a remedial mathematics sequence do not complete it. In response to…

This study reports findings regarding the application of a survey of achievement goal orientations to a sample of mathematics 777 students enrolled in remedial and college mathematics courses at a community college. The survey was based on the Patterns of Adaptive Learning Scales [PALS] and it included questions from the Views About Mathematics…

The current study examines three regression models: OLS (ordinary least square) linear regression, Poisson regression, and negative binomial regression for analyzing count data. Simulation results show that the OLS regression model performed better than the others, since it did not produce more false statistically significant relationships than…

The author of this paper suggests several neoteric, unconventional, idiosyncratic, or unique approaches to beginning Set Theory that he found seems to work well in building students' introductory understanding of the Foundations of Mathematics. This paper offers some ideas on how the author uses certain "unconventional" definitions and…

This study examined the educational beliefs about teaching and learning of Chinese international and American-born graduate students in the disciplines of pure and applied sciences and mathematics at Auburn University by comparing their similarities and differences. The study reported (a) participants' demographic characteristics, (b) the dominant…

A course in the Calculus sequence is arguably the most difficult course in which inquiry-based learning (IBL) can be achieved with any degree of success within the curriculum in part due to: (1) the plethora of majors taking Calculus to which the sequence relates to their majors in what is considered an "applied" manner; and (2) the…

The purpose of this study was to explore the ways instructors' subject matter beliefs regarding mathematics shape their courses in a community college environment. Data were collected and analysed from instructors' philosophical definitions of mathematics and observations of teaching episodes using a constructivist grounded theory research design.…

The purpose of this study was to construct and evaluate an instrument for determining student preparedness in College Algebra. A 73-item instrument covering prerequisite arithmetic and high school Algebra knowledge for College Algebra was constructed. The instrument was pilot-tested on a freshman population of 595 students. Results of reliability…

Described are some major developments in the history of ideas in which mathematics has played a central role. The discussion is organized around four key features of mathematics: certainty, applicability, more than one geometry, and opposition. (MNS)

Understanding the effects of additive and multiplicative constants on basic statistical procedures provides the important groundwork necessary for a thoughtful and logical understanding of more complex methods. This paper explores the effects of additive and multiplicative constants on the mean, standard deviation, skewness, kurtosis, and…

The first year college experience is anxiety producing, and for college students who represent traditionally underserved populations, particularly ethnic and linguistic minorities, the anxiety can be even more pronounced. Add to the mix a requirement for students to complete at least one course in mathematics during the first semester and the…

Today's college ACCUPLACER System's Computerized Placement Test (CPT) plays a major role for determining whether post-secondary students are ready for placement into Arithmetic, Elementary Algebra, Intermediate Algebra, or College Mathematics courses. It is widely used in most college systems in the U.S. This paper discusses some of the issues to…

A project is described that provides explicit instruction on the skills necessary for solving word problems. An informal inventory of such skills is being developed, intended for diagnostic use. It contains six sections, each keyed to the problem-solving skills of understanding the problem, representing the unknown, writing the equation, and…

Arguing that college mathematics education must be made more effective, especially for technology, engineering, mathematical sciences, and physical sciences students, this paper presents nine general principles to enhance math instruction for all students. Introductory material argues that changes in perception, attitudes, and role models are…

Many kinds of individual differences among learners have been studied by psychologists and educators in an attempt to improve the educational process. Some emphasis has been placed on the notion of cognitive style in an effort to understand more of the cognitive processes which underlie academic performance. The purpose of the present study was to…