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Minutes
November 12, 2001
Present were Linda Smith, Allan Edmonds, Walter Gantz, Steven Stowe, Gerald Wright, Lynda Delph, Cynthia Bannon, Richard Carr, Aimee Dawson, Jim Craig, Kirstine Lindemann, Sharon O'Bryan, and Catharine Hoff.
DISCUSSION
The entire meeting centered on the Mathematics Fundamental Skills (FS) Requirement. The key issues discussed were the following:
(1) M025 is an algebra course that fulfills the FS requirement; however, students do not receive College credit for this course here. They do at many other institutions. Many students (and their parents) balk at students enrolling. In order to get credit, students often enroll in higher level courses for which they are not prepared. This creates problems both for the student and for teaching.
(2) M027 is preparation for the regular sequence of calculus: it fulfills the FS requirement but does not receive College credit. This course is taken mostly by science majors who have not had sufficient preparation to enter first year calculus. Some individual cases of students with very high SATS but from high schools without strong math programs were discussed. These students skipped over M027 to the credit bearing calculus courses and performed miserably.
(3) The committee considered the question of whether M025 and M027 should receive credit toward graduation. If our goal is to take students at the level they are ready to learn and increase their learning, what is gained by denying them College credit for these courses?
(4) The fundamental skills requirement is stated as the equivalence of 3 years of high school mathematics, but currently students who place above M025 or M027 are required to "certify" their FS by taking a more advanced mathematics course. The committee considered the question of whether the FS requirement should be fulfilled by high school courses, placement test scores, SAT scores, or a course (e.g., M027, M025) without certification by further performance. The committee asked whether in addition to the FS requirement, a mathematics/quantitative skills requirement should be added. As it stands now, students who fulfill the FS requirement with M025 never have to take another mathematics course (although those who come in with a level beyond M025, but below an SAT of 650, have to certify that level with an additional course).
These issues will be discussed with representatives of the Mathematics Department at the next meeting. The next meeting is scheduled for 8:00A on Monday, December 3, 2001, in Kirkwood Hall.
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