In 1994 students on average received a 2.6 in a fall semester MTH 103 course and earned a 1.7 on average if they enrolled in MTH 114 during the spring semester.
Since MSU introduced the Math Learning Center in 1994, that grade gap has become smaller. On average, students who received a 2.9 in a MTH 103 course in fall 2013 received a 2.6 in a MTH 114 course in spring 2014.
“I wish I could sit here and act like math isn’t hard, but the truth is, it just is. And that is why we are doing everything we can to make it easier for students,” said Chair of the Department of Mathematics Keith Promislow.
One way in which the department is trying to help students is by providing one-on-one tutoring through the MLC. There are six Math Learning Center locations on campus, with one in each residential neighborhood.
Associate Chair of the Math Department Jeanne Wald gathered student test score data collected from 1994 until the spring semester of 2013 to test the effect of the MLC on students’ scores.
The data shows that students enrolled in a MTH 103 course who received a 1.5 or lower on their first exam increased their scores on the second exam on average 21 percent after visiting an MLC.
Promislow said given test scores, it’s clear that the lecture setting of most mathematics courses is not an effective learning environment for many students.
“Clearly for some students, I would say the impact of the Math Learning Center shows that being in this more exciting setting where it’s more interactive clearly has a dramatic, night and day impact on the performance for some students,” Promislow said.
Promislow said the math department is continually trying to determine how to improve student engagement in lectures, but to foster learning outside of class the MLC provides personalized help from tutors like electrical engineering senior Trevor Dirheimer.
Dirheimer said his primary goal is making sure the students understand the basics of math and algebra.
“I try to go at whatever pace they want me to. The main goal is trying to help them understand how that math can also be applied to other parts of their education, like other math classes,” Dirheimer said. “We have a lot of different personalities, so we have that ability to reach, hopefully, all of the different kind of learning types.”
Music education freshman Anna Bolton said it is very difficult for her to be engaged with math because she views herself as a creative thinker. Bolton goes to the MLC every Thursday for help.
“People are nice here for the most part, and they’re really helpful and very encouraging too,” Bolton said. “Once I applied myself and continued coming here, I definitely saw improvement.”
Executive Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Mathematics Pavel Sikorskii said improving students’ math scores is not only the faculty’s responsibility. Students also play an important role, he said.
“We’re building bridges with other programs and services too, but students also must show up,” Sikorskii said.
