Are students fleeing mathematics courses? That's not what the facts show.
"Problems in introductory courses have resulted in noticeable attrition," a recent Herald article asserted ("As students shy from physics and math, U. looks at reasons," Sept. 28). What do the numbers really show? In the mathematics department, the enrollments in lower division courses in the Fall semesters of years 2004-2007 have been exactly: 796, 803, 827, 901. There is no "noticeable attrition" over the last few years - quite the opposite in fact. Enrollments are steadily rising.
"Perhaps worst of all - students unaware of ways to get help" the article said. Yet on the right-hand side of Brown's math department Web site there are two links under the heading "Getting Help." From here one can find the office hours of faculty and teaching assistants and information about the Math Resource Center, a graduate- and undergraduate-staffed help center open four evenings a week, every week, for students taking certain mathematics courses.
In addition to the information on the math department Web site, instructors advise students about tutoring opportunities through the Office of the Dean of the College, and confer with and counsel freshmen advisers in other departments about math placement. This past summer, Professor of Mathematics Tom Banchoff's online freshman placement survey was inaugurated. Hundreds of entering freshmen received individual e-mail responses to questions about math courses.
Helping students is not confined to placement advice or academic support. The department works to create a generally supportive and congenial environment: funding and advising active undergraduate groups (the Math Departmental Undergraduate Group and Women in Science and Engineering), offering prize examinations (at various levels), participating in faculty-student events such as luncheons, open houses, undergraduate seminars and supporting the now well-known Brown Symposium for Undergraduates in the Mathematical Sciences.
In the math department, there are several types of lower-division courses: service courses for other departments or concentrations whose content adjusts to reflect current needs, introductory exploratory courses for the non-science but mathematically interested student and preparatory courses for those students who will be taking upper division mathematics courses (either for a math concentration or for other disciplines with serious mathematical requirements).
"None of the professors want to teach these courses," one student said.
Indeed, do our professors enjoy teaching these lower division courses? As one might imagine, that depends a great deal on the dynamic of the class. At every college and university across the nation, students in various disciplines (which may have a minimal intersection with mathematics) are required to take calculus classes. Pre-med students are often required to take a college calculus. Economics concentrations have a requirement of MATH 0090: "Introductory Calculus, Part I" or the equivalent. Many science concentrations expect up to three semesters of calculus and a semester of linear algebra.
Students who are forced to take classes in subjects that are challenging but do not interest them are unhappy students. The typical student in MATH 0090, MATH 0100, MATH 0170 or MATH 0190 is taking this course to satisfy a requirement. Moreover, the subject material is hard: The homework and test preparation will be demanding. The combination of challenging material and student disinterest is a recipe for frustration, even hostility. In addition, the last few years have brought us the new challenge of educating many "advanced placement" calculus students whose preparation for college mathematics consists primarily of having been coached for the AP tests. Unfortunately, the test-taking strategies learned in high school do not generally provide the right preparation for college-level mathematics courses.
The other specific suggestion for improvement (also highlighted in the Undergraduate Science Education Committee report) concerned the availability of Undergraduate Teaching and Research Awards. While additional research funds and awards are certainly important, these primarily benefit the math/science interested students who have already learned the basics of multivariable calculus and linear algebra. A number of undergraduate mathematics concentrators have pursued summer projects under the direction of faculty members, or have been helped to find and participate in specialized research groups at other colleges and universities.
On the other hand, to help the beginning student, we offer eight different calculus classes, as well as freshmen seminars, introductory number theory, and basic and honors linear algebra. In addition to the undergraduate adviser, we also have a placement adviser (and diagnostic exams and a departmental open house) to help students figure out which courses are right for them.
Can the mathematics department improve its teaching and course offerings? Of course, and our faculty devote time and attention to teaching and curricular issues every year. Do we experience attrition in lower division courses at the beginning of each fall semester? Yes, and that is to be expected. Some students will find that a science or mathematics class is simply quite different from what they experienced in high school. Others will choose to pursue other fields, or explore subjects they could not in high school.
We look forward to the implementation of recommendations from the undergraduate science committee to improve mathematics and science education at Brown. In the meantime, the mathematics department welcomes feedback and suggestions from students on curricular issues. Please contact the chair at jpipher@math.brown.edu.
Thomas Banchoff (Professor, Placement Adviser), Jeffrey Brock (Profesor, USEC Member), Jeffrey Hoffstein (Professor and Undergraduate Adviser), Steven Miller (Tamarkin Assistant Professor), Jill Pipher (Professor and Chair)
