Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ Evidence Is Mounting That Calculus Should Be Changed. Will Instructors Heed It?

Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community

The 'direct instruction' crowd isn't going to like this. "The traditional lecture method of teaching calculus isn't as effective as active models. Those who learned from active methods did significantly better across race, gender and major, according to the study." I can believe it. Calculus was my biggest challenge in university. As a loner, I didn't join study groups, and of course the tutors in tutorial sessions were swamped, and so missed out on the active and personal learning that would have helped me succeed. Making active learning the primary mode of instruction would have helped me a lot. The study, published in Science, started with more than 1,000 students, and "followed the Consolidated Standards for Reporting Trials (CONSORT) guidelines."

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
stephen@downes.ca

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Last Updated: Nov 23, 2024 5:13 p.m.

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