ERIC Number: EJ1108111
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: EISSN-1557-5284
EISSN: N/A
Peer-Led Guided in Calculus at University of South Florida
Bénéteau, Catherine; Fox, Gordon; Xu, Xiaoying; Lewis, Jennifer E.; Ramachandran, Kandethody; Campbell, Scott; Holcomb, John
Journal of STEM Education: Innovations and Research, v17 n2 p5-13 Apr-Jun 2016
This paper describes the development of a Peer-Led Guided Inquiry (PLGI) program for teaching calculus at the University of South Florida. This approach uses the POGIL (Process Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning) teaching strategy and the small group learning model PLTL (Peer-Led Team Learning). The developed materials used a learning cycle based on three phases of inquiry: exploration of a model, concept invention, and application. Fifty minutes weekly of lecture in Engineering and Life Sciences Calculus were replaced by the PLGI curriculum, where students worked in groups with peer leaders as instructors. The main outcomes measured were pass and withdrawal rates for sections using this approach compared to historical and concurrent sections not using PLGI. Our results showed higher pass rates in Life Sciences Calculus (18% gain in comparison to historical sections and 8.2% gain in comparison to concurrent non-PLGI sections). In Engineering Calculus, we also saw higher pass rates for PLGI sections (18.2% gain in comparison to historical rates and 4.0% gain in comparison to concurrent non-PLGI sections). Withdrawal rates also declined for both Life Sciences and Engineering Calculus. Both sexes had greater pass rates and lower withdrawal rates in both types of calculus. PLGI sections showed higher pass rates for African-American students in life sciences (16.5% gain in comparison to historical sections and 8.7% gain in comparison to concurrent non-PLGI sections). The impact of PLGI for African- American students was more dramatic in Engineering Calculus (24.9% gain in comparison to historical sections and a 17.6% gain in comparison to concurrent non-PLGI sections).
Descriptors: Calculus, Mathematics Instruction, Mathematics Education, College Mathematics, Peer Groups, Group Dynamics, Interaction, Inquiry, Teaching Methods, Cooperative Learning, STEM Education, Academic Persistence, School Holding Power, Undergraduate Students, Graduation Rate, Comparative Analysis, Regression (Statistics), Mathematical Concepts
Institute for STEM Education and Research. P.O. Box 4001, Auburn, AL 36831. Tel: 334-844-3360; Web site: http://www.jstem.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Science Foundation (NSF)
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Florida
Grant or Contract Numbers: DUE0756847