Workshop for Interdisciplinary and Inquiry Based Teaching of Calculus – April 5, 2014 1...

Workshop for Interdisciplinary and Inquiry Based Teaching of Calculus – April 5, 2014

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Project-Based Teaching of Calculus – From the Advisor’s Side

Scott W. CampbellChemical & Biomedical Engineering

University of South Florida


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• Students are given the option of doing a project, usually in lieu of a final examination.

• The student works with two advisors: a subject area advisor (usually the person who provides the problem) and a mathematics advisor (usually their calculus instructor).

• The student solves the problem and writes a report in a specified format.

• The subject area advisor provides an evaluation of the report to the mathematics instructor, who incorporates the feedback into a grade for the project.

How it works:


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The Subject Area Advisor evaluation form


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• The failure rates in ordinary calculus sections at USF are high.

• Many students will leave an engineering major before they even take a single engineering course.

• Some of these students would make good engineers or scientists but are unmotivated because they do not see the relevance of the course material to their discipline of interest.

• Giving students the option of doing an applied project allows them to see the relevance of their coursework to something they are interested in.

Why we do it:


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• Some math instructors will make suggestions about who the student should approach to be a subject area advisor.

• Many math instructors will send interested students to other members of the STEP team, who will either match them to a project or to a subject area advisor. These coordinators are:

• Gordon Fox (Life Sciences Calculus)• Scott Campbell (Engineering Calculus)

How students obtain projects:


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Transportation of Machinery through a Confined Space by Diana Atwood

Project ideas can come from an internship, co-op or other work

experience


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𝑄=2𝜋𝛼∫0

h

𝑅 𝑍1/2

𝐻1 /2 √1+ 𝑅2

4𝑍𝐻(h−𝑧 ) 𝑑𝑧

Project ideas can come from an undergraduate research experience

MODELING FLOW RATE TO ESTIMATE HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY IN A PARABOLIC

CERAMIC WATER FILTER by Ileana Wald


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Job Site Optimization by Kenneth Ryan Cabana

Students come in with their own ideas but need help formulating the problem


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GOING BALLISTIC By Amanda Wade

Sometimes you have to dig a little to find out what students are interested in

xx vv

M

D

dt

dv

yy vv

M

Dg

dt

dv 𝑣=√ (𝑣 𝑥

2+𝑣 𝑦2 )


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Sometimes you can’t get anything from a student other than what

general area or discipline they are interested in

1. Know the interests of other faculty in the college and ask one of them to direct the student.

2. Modify an existing problem out of our problem database and give that to the student.


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• Students generally are pretty knowledgeable about the mathematical operations of calculus.

• Students often do NOT understand how these mathematical operations are relevant to real world problems.

• Most students put far more time and energy into their project than they would studying for a final exam.

• The vast majority of students appreciate the opportunity to work on an applied project where they can see the relevance of their course material.

• The vast majority of the students appreciate the opportunity to work with an advisor within their discipline of interest.

Observations:


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Feel free to write down your questions – you will have a

chance to ask these later at the session in the afternoon.

Thank-you

Workshop for Interdisciplinary and Inquiry Based Teaching of Calculus – April 5, 2014 1...

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