THE IMPACT OF AN EXPERIEMENTAL COURSE: MATH FOR BIOLOGY

Catherine M. Miller

University of Northern Iowa

millerc@math.uni.edu

Tamara B. Veenstra

University of Northern Iowa

veenstra@math.uni.edu

Members of the biology faculty at UNI believe the mathematical skills of their majors have declined. They report that many students were not succeeding in entry-level science courses due to their mathematics skills. These students need a review of elementary and college algebra. Placing this review in the context of biological science applications appealed to both biology and mathematics faculties. The course, Mathematics for Biology, was designed and implemented using these premises. We studied the impact of the course on the students enrolled.

Thirty-four students enrolled in two sections of the course offered in the spring semester of 2000. Pre- and post- attitude surveys and content tests were administered to all of the students attending the course. Twenty-nine students took both surveys and tests. Using the remaining data, we found that the students did not have a significant change in attitude toward mathematics, but that their content knowledge dramatically improved. We were disappointed in the lack of improvement in attitude toward mathematics, especially since a number of students reported positive changes to Dr. Veenstra. Using qualitative data collected for six case studies, we found several students reported a different view of mathematics at the end of the course. This appeared to indicate they did think more positively about mathematics, as it related to science, but not about mathematics in general.

The impact this course had on the students may become evident as they continue in their biology majors. It may be that it is not possible to improve both the content knowledge and mathematical attitudes of biology majors with a one-semester mathematics course.