MATH 132
Honors Applications of Mathematics
- Catalog Entry
MATH 132. Honors Applications of Mathematics
Three Lecture Hours (3).
Prerequisite: Honors Academy membership or permission of instructor.
An introduction to the application of mathematical ideas for Honors students. Topics vary. This course can be taken more than once with different topics. General Education Credit – Mathematical Sciences.
- Detailed Description of Course
Topics covered will be determined by the instructor and approved by the Mathematics department chairperson. All Area 6 General Education goals will be addressed.
- Detailed Description of Conduct of Course
Lectures will be given and homework will be assigned. Other teaching methods, such as group work, may be employed as appropriate. At least two tests and a final examination will be given, but the course may include quizzes, on-line homework, papers, programs, or other graded material as well.
- Student Goals and Objectives of the Course
Students should gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for mathematics and its applications, and some skill in addressing the particular types of quantitative issues included in the course.
Broad General Education Goals: Students will be able to
- think critically and creatively about ideas, issues, problems, and texts both within and across academic disciplines.
- Study of any applied mathematical topic at the level expected of Honors students should improve students’ ability to address critically many types of quantitative problems.
- Employ a variety of research methods and styles of inquiry.
- The topics treated in Math 132 will likely be new to most students in the course; thus, study of them should broaden students’ repertoire of inquiry styles.
- Work with others in a shared process of inquiry and problem-solving.
- Classroom discussions of course material constitute a shared process of inquiry and problem-solving. Many instructors also assign group projects which require students to work together to form queries and solve problems.
Area 6 Goals: Students will be able to
- Understand and express relationships among numeric, symbolic, and graphical information.
- Students will solve many applied quantitative problems throughout the course using various types of information, and the relationships among these will be apparent.
- Demonstrate problem-solving techniques involving pattern recognition, models, and the construction of logical mathematical arguments.
- Like every mathematics course, Math 132 will contain a variety of problems designed to deepen students’ understanding and improve their ability to discern patterns, use models, and construct logical arguments about quantitative data. One technique used to improve pattern recognition, for example, is to have students study an idea in one context and then ask them to transfer the knowledge or apply the skills they have gained to a slightly different context.
- Recognize the applications of mathematics in their major fields and in their lives and careers.
- Math 132 concentrates on applications. Applications likely to be treated—cryptology is an example—are those which are interesting to many people, can be profitably approached using only elementary mathematics, and reward careful study with deepened understanding and appreciation of the power and beauty of mathematics.
- Assessment Measures
Students will be assessed on their knowledge of the topics included in the course using traditional instruments, including at least two tests a final examination. The course may also include quizzes, homework (possibly online), papers, programs, or other graded material.
General Education Assessment Measures
Intended Outcome 1
Students will be able to understand and express relationships among numeric, symbolic, and graphical information.
Assessment Method
Three questions specifically addressing this outcome will be included on the final
examination. A student who answers all three questions correctly will be considered
proficient; one who answers two questions correctly will be considered satisfactory;
and one who answers fewer than two correctly will be considered unsatisfactory.
Assessment Report
Please see below.
Intended Outcome 2
Students will be able to demonstrate problem-solving techniques involving pattern recognition, models, and the construction of logical mathematical arguments.
Assessment Method
Three questions specifically addressing this outcome will be included on the final
examination. A student who answers all three questions correctly will be considered
proficient; one who answers two questions correctly will be considered satisfactory;
and one who answers fewer than two correctly will be considered unsatisfactory.
Assessment Report
Please see below.
Intended Outcome 3
Students will be able to recognize the applications of mathematics in their major fields and in their lives and careers.
Assessment Method
Three questions specifically addressing this outcome will be included on the final
examination. A student who answers all three questions correctly will be considered
proficient; one who answers two questions correctly will be considered satisfactory;
and one who answers fewer than two correctly will be considered unsatisfactory.
Assessment Reports
A General Education Outcomes Assessment Report will be produced showing, for each intended outcome, the percentage of students considered proficient, satisfactory, and unsatisfactory.
A General Education Assessment Data Report will be produced showing, for each intended outcome, the questions addressing that outcome and the number of students achieving each possible score.
Both reports will be sent to the Office of Academic Assessment.
- Other Course Information
BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION
The Mathematics department has offered an Honors section of Math 103 (Finite Math) each semester for the last few years. These classes, which have concentrated on cryptology, have been very successful. However, Math 103 will no longer be offered starting in Fall 2005, and the Core Math courses that will replace it are highly structured courses that do not allow the variation needed to present the kind of material that has proved so successful with Honors students in the past. Honors students are usually better prepared to study college mathematics than the average, and can profit from a course that is more challenging but still focused on improving quantitative skill and understanding at the General Education level. Math 132 is designed for students who have acquired some mastery of elementary technique and are ready to apply what they know to interesting problems at a slightly higher level of difficulty than can be expected in non-Honors courses.
The Honors Director and the Associate Vice President for Academic Programs have both expressed their full support for this course.
Students for whom the course is offered: Honors Academy members
Anticipated enrollment: 25 students per semester.
Frequency of course offerings: every semester.
Level and Prerequisites: Freshman; the only prerequisite is membership in the Honors Academy.
RATIONALE FOR RESOURCES REQUIRED
Faculty resources: This course will be taught by Mathematics department faculty. No extra FTE will be needed.
Effect on existing curricula: None expected.
Facilities, Equipment, and Supplies: Some classes will require multimedia classrooms.
Library Resources: No additional resource requirements are anticipated.
Computer Resources: Some classes will require multimedia classrooms .
Other Anticipated Resources: None.
All courses must be reviewed departmentally at three-year intervals. All General Education Courses must be reviewed by the General Education Curriculum Advisory Committee at five-year intervals.
- Review and Approval Date
|