[I've edited Phil's comments on a topic for the Developmental Math
Committees Network]
> There is an assumption in all the new standards that group work should be
> done in math courses.
>
> Many developmental courses are offered in self-paced, lab settings. Almost
> always students work in isolation, on course materials.
>
> It is evident, and accepted, that a teacher cannot teach a room full
> of students when each is at a different place in the course. Thus, the
> materials must do the teaching, with of course help from
> an instructor when needed.
>
> Here's the question. Given that students in such an environment are at
> different places in the course, and in fact may be in different courses,
> how does one implement group work objectives?
I have one answer to the question, but it might be hard to implement in
practice. I think that a tracking device on the self-paced work needs to
be used. If the work is done on interactive multimedia CD-ROM, it's
probably pretty easy to include that in the programming. If the work is
done from textbooks, you'd need the students to report their progress
manually. Once you have the information on "who is where" in the course,
you can create pairs or bigger groups according to which topics they have
covered and where they are having problems. On computer, this is
probably pretty easy - you could have the network software tell you what
the "compatible" groups are; without the computer it might be a bit too
nightmarish to consider.
You could have group work as optional, and simply notify students of who
else is at about the same place in the course, or you could require
periodic group interaction; you could give the partners different parts
of the problem that they must share before they can solve the problem.
This format would give the students the experience of working alone AND
having occasional group work that springs off of their individual work
but requires good collaborative skills, which is, I suppose, close
(closer?) to what they'll need in "real life."
Gideon L. Weinstein
gweinste@indiana.edu
http://ezinfo.ucs.indiana.edu/~gweinste
Indiana University Bloomington, Doctoral Student
University USA, Multimedia Mathematics Course Designer
(812) 339-3549 phone, -5164 fax
2377 S. Worthington Lane
Bloomington, IN 47401
P.S. I won't be in Long Beach this year, but I'm looking forward to
being at the meeting next year, when I hope to have a real faculty job
[I'm applying right now] so I can either get funding from the department
or afford to go on my own money. See you next time!