Improving Students' Learning In Precalculus With E Learning Activities And Through Analyses Of Students' Learning Styles And Motivational Characteristics
- Conference
- Location
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Austin, Texas
- Publication Date
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June 14, 2009
- Start Date
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June 14, 2009
- End Date
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June 17, 2009
- ISSN
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2153-5965
- Conference Session
- Tagged Division
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Mathematics
- Page Count
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17
- Page Numbers
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14.711.1 - 14.711.17
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--5591
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/5591
- Download Count
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1573
Paper Authors
Seung Youn Chyung Boise State University
Yonnie Chyung is Associate Professor in the Department of Instructional and Performance Technology at Boise State University. She received her Doctor of Education degree in Instructional Technology from Texas Tech University, and her Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction, with a specialization in Computer-based Education, from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL. Her research interests have been focused on the development of self-regulated learning strategies for adult learners, and online teaching and learning. She is currently conducting research on retention issues in online distance education.
Janet Callahan
Boise State University
orcid.org/0000-0001-6665-1584
Janet M. Callahan is Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the College of Engineering at Boise State University and Professor of Materials Science and Engineering Department. She received her Ph.D. in Materials Science, her M.S. in Metallurgy and her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Connecticut. Her educational research interests include freshmen engineering programs, math success, K-12 STEM curriculum, and recruitment and retention in engineering and STEM fields.
Doug Bullock Boise State University
Doug Bullock is Chair of Mathematics at Boise State University. His research interests include math education, quantum topology, quantum algebra and representation theory, with particular emphasis on applications to knot theory and the topology of 3-manifolds.
Kendra Bridges Boise State University
Kendra Bridges is Special Lecturer for the Department of Mathematics at Boise State University.
Joanna Guild Boise State University
Joanna Guild is an Instructor for the Department of Mathematical and Physical Sciences at The College of Idaho. She obtained her M.S. in Mathematics from Boise State University and a B.A. in Mathematics from Kenyon College.
Cheryl Schrader Boise State University
Cheryl B. Schrader is Dean of the College of Engineering and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Boise State University. Dean Schrader has an extensive record of publications and sponsored research in the systems, control and engineering education fields. Recent recognition related to this work includes the 2005 Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Engineering and Mathematics Mentoring from the White House and the 2008 IEEE Education Society Hewlett-Packard/Harriett B. Rigas Award. Dean Schrader received her B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Valparaiso University, and her M.S. in Electrical Engineering and Ph.D. in Systems and Control, both from University of Notre Dame.
Abstract
NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract
Improving Students' Learning in Precalculus with E-Learning Activities and through Analyses of Student Learning Styles and Motivational Characteristics
Abstract
During the spring semester of 2008, a quasi-experimental study with 138 students who were enrolled in 4 sections of an undergraduate Precalculus class was conducted. The study investigated (1) the effectiveness of using a systematically sequenced and managed, self-paced e- learning program, ALEKS, on academic performance of students with different learning styles, and (2) the relationship among the students’ dominant learning styles, motivational characteristics, and overall performance in the Precalculus class. Students in the experimental group, consisting of 2 of the 4 sections of the course, were assigned to complete ALEKS as homework assignments throughout the semester. Students in the control group, consisting of the other 2 sections of the course, completed a series of traditional paper-and-pencil homework assignments instead. Students’ dominant learning styles were measured by Gregorc Style Delineator™. Their motivational orientations and learning strategies were measured with the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire. A pre-test and a post-test, measuring students’ entry- and exit-knowledge levels in Precalculus, were administered in both experimental and control groups at the beginning and at the end of the semester. This study revealed that sequential-type students who used ALEKS outperformed sequential-type students who completed handout homework assignments and random-type students who used ALEKS or handout homework assignments by one letter grade, although this difference was not statistically significant. Several instructional implications related to students’ learning styles, motivational characteristics, and academic performance are discussed. Especially, students with a dominant abstract-random style may need more tailored learning support to be more successful in a Precalculus class.
Theoretical Frameworks
Effective Delivery Media and Methods: E-Learning vs. Traditional
Computer technology has been a paradigm-shifting agent in education since the first computer generation of mainframes during the 1960s and 1970s, and throughout the second generation of desktop computers and the third generation of the Internet and the World Wide Web during the 1980s and 1990s.1 E-learning is especially ideal for individualized instruction. In contrast to one- to-many classroom learning, web technologies can help adjust the pace, sequence, and method of instruction to better fit each individual student’s learning behavior and needs. Presently, e- learning is deeply integrated into school curricula to facilitate learning,2 and a fair amount of literature discusses that traditional science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education can be greatly benefited by incorporating e-learning strategies.3, 4, 5, 6, 7
One such e-learning program available in STEM education is ALEKS (Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces).8 This web-based program provides a systematically sequenced and managed, self-paced environment, designed to help students improve Math skills. In
Chyung, S. Y., & Callahan, J., & Bullock, D., & Bridges, K., & Guild, J., & Schrader, C. (2009, June), Improving Students' Learning In Precalculus With E Learning Activities And Through Analyses Of Students' Learning Styles And Motivational Characteristics Paper presented at 2009 Annual Conference & Exposition, Austin, Texas. 10.18260/1-2--5591
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