An explanative basis for the differential performance of students with low math aptitude in general chemistry

Students who score within the bottom quartile on cognitive measures of math aptitude have been identified as at-risk for low performance in chemistry courses, with less attention as to why such differential performance persists. At-risk students struggle most differentially on assessment items related to the mole concept and stoichiometry. An exploration as to the nature of the differential performance observed became of great interest as the assessment of these topics rarely progresses beyond multiplication or division, and at-risk students who achieved proficiency with the mole concept and stoichiometry had no noticeable gaps in academic chemistry performance when compared to students scoring in the top three quartiles of math aptitude. Thus, students in first-semester general chemistry were surveyed to describe their solution processes toward assessment items involving the mole concept and stoichiometry. Three hundred and forty-eight students responded to all survey prompts with 101 identified as at-risk. Findings suggest that while all students were observed to struggle in the conceptualization of the algorithms by which they execute solution processes, not-at-risk chemistry students were more likely to achieve correct answers via chemically implausible solution pathways. Rather than suggest the removal of assessment practices involving algorithmic, multiple-choice assessment on these topics, the implications include practical suggestions and opportunities for further research toward improving the equitability of measures used to assess proficiency with stoichiometry.

Chemistry topics posing incommensurate difficulty to students with low math aptitude scores

The identification of students at risk for academic failure in undergraduate chemistry courses has been heavily addressed in the literature. Arguably one of the strongest and most well-supported predictors of undergraduate success in chemistry is the mathematics portion of the SAT (SAT-M), a college-entrance, standardized test administered by the College Board. While students scoring in the bottom quartile of the SAT-M (herein referred to as at-risk) perform significantly worse on first-semester chemistry assessments, little is known of the topics on which these students differentially struggle. The purpose of this study is to provide insight as to which first-semester chemistry topics present an incommensurate challenge to at-risk students. Students were identified as either at-risk or not at-riskviaSAT-M scores. Students’ assessment responses were collected across four semesters of first-semester chemistry courses at a large, public university (N= 5636). At-risk students struggled consistently across all topics but disproportionately with mole concept and stoichiometry. Analyzing the trend in topics suggests that the struggles of at-risk students are not entirely attributable to topics that rely heavily on algorithms or algebraic math. Moreso, at-risk students found to have performed well on mole concept and stoichiometry went on to perform similarly as their not at-risk peers. The results support an instructional emphasis on these topics with reviewed literature offering promising, practical options to better serve at-risk students and broaden representation in the sciences.

Research on Teaching Economics to Undergraduates

This survey summarizes the main research findings about teaching economics to undergraduates. After briefly reviewing the history of research on undergraduate economic education, it discusses the status of the economics major—numbers and trends, goals, coursework, outcomes, and the principles courses. Some economic theory is used to explain the likely effects of pedagogical decisions of faculty and the learning choices that students make. Major results from empirical research are reviewed from the professor perspective on such topics as teaching methods, online technology, class size, and textbooks. Studies of student learning are discussed in relation to study time, grades, attendance, math aptitude, and cheating. The last section discusses changes in the composition of faculty who teach undergraduate economics and effects from changes in instructional technology and then presents findings from the research about measuring teaching effectiveness and the value of teacher training. (JEL A22, I23, J44)

Student Quantitative Literacy: Importance, Measurement, and Correlation with Economic Literacy

The importance of quantitative skills in learning economics cannot be overstated. Many previous studies have attempted to measure the degree to which such skills impact performance in economics classes. Typically these studies have relied on a proxy for measuring quantitative skills, such as the number and type of math courses a student has completed. Yet it is the proficiency in math rather than the exposure to it that is expected to impact the learning of economics and performance in economics courses. In this paper we use a pre and post course math quiz to address two major research questions. First, we examine the degree to which students who have greater math aptitude also have a better grasp of basic economics concepts prior to taking a principles of economics course. Second, we explore the degree to which this math aptitude is correlated with higher economic learning. Our results indicate that (prior to taking a principles of economics course) students do not fare well on simple quantitative questions and hence do not possess an adequate working knowledge of the “language” we often speak during our economics courses. Our analysis shows, however, that quantitative literacy is a very important determinant of economic literacy in both the pre and post course surveys. More specifically, we have shown that having skills such as being able to solve a system of equations and compute a percentage, and being able to interpret increases and decreases on a graph will lead to higher economic knowledge at the end of the semester.

Student Ratings of Instruction: Validation Research

Correlations between instructional ratings and exam performance at three universities indicated that three rating factors (student accomplishment, presentation clarity, and organization-planning) correlated highly with educational achievement. These rating factors were derived by a factor analysis of a 21-item questionnaire. Separate analyses of the relationship between instructional ratings and student characteristics indicated that the student’s grade point average and math aptitude score (SAT) did not systematically vary with his ratings. However, more senior students (number of terms in college) rated instructors more favorably than their less experienced classmates.