As we develop resources for continuing professional development, they will appear on this page.
You’ll also find some linked articles that may provide some valuable information for instructors to consider.
Have a suggestion for an article to include? Please e-mail us at [email protected].
Student Experiences
Michael George’s article on ethics and motivation (web link) in developmental math courses focuses on students at the community college level, but offers useful insight to instructors of CSTM 1020. In it, George explores some of the paradoxical ethical dimensions of certain kinds of motivational strategies.
J. Michael Hall and Michael K Ponton’s study (web link) comparing the self-efficacy of students in developmental math courses with the self-efficacy of students in advanced calculus courses found that developmental math students were much more likely to lack not only skill in math but self-belief in their own ability to succeed in a college math course. The researchers recommend instructional strategies that help students to develop not only math skill, but a self-awareness of their own progress.
Nicole Matos’ essay, ‘Don’t Take Our Failures Personally’ (web link), describes the thoughts and feelings of students in a developmental writing class. Students provide suggestions that they wished teachers employed to help them learn and keep up with the work.
Sheila Tobias, who is a professor of Political Science, interviewed several math students about the root causes of their math anxiety (Microsoft Word Doc). She discovers some root causes that lead students to develop self-defeating attitudes that can negatively impact their learning, and she suggests a few concrete techniques to get students to think about why solving a problem causes them difficulty. She also makes a case for why “outsiders” to a particular academic discipline can help “insiders” to understand what might be confusing or difficult to a novice student.
Differentiation
To meet the needs of various students instructors are encouraged to differentiate their instruction. This web link contains a brief introduction to differentiation with an overview of what aspects of a lesson or a course can be differentiated. In this article (web link), Kobelin (2009) offers various suggestions that instructors can use to differentiate instruction in mathematics. Instructors can differentiate the level of problem difficulty by providing students with appropriately challenging problems. They can also ask students to generate more than one solution to a problem or to find a more simpler or more complex solution. The support that students are provided with can also be differentiated. Some students may not require any support while others can get support from their peers and the instructor can assist those that are struggling. We encourage you to differentiate instruction by starting small and continue to make progress in differentiating your lessons.