Mathematics - A Laboratory Science
Gary Simundza
Applied Mathematics and Sciences
Faculty who use laboratories in various buildings across the Wentworth
campus have seen unusual visitors during the past year - mathematics classes! Freshman
students in some sections of the courses College Mathematics I and II are studying
mathematics under a new approach that makes use of applied laboratory investigations.
As part of the "Mathematics for Technology" project, funded by the National
Science Foundation, several Wentworth mathematics faculty have collaborated with
faculty from other departments to create a series of activities that introduce and
explore math topics through engineering and design problems.
College Math I and II provide an introduction to the mathematics concepts used in
all the technical fields at Wentworth. By learning math in the context of applied
problems, students can discover connections to the subjects they will be studying
later in their college careers. Through the wide variety of applications, all students
become aware not only of how they will use mathematics in their own fields, but of
how it is used in other technical areas as well. In fact, one goal of the project
is to increase student understanding of other disciplines in preparation for a work
environment where the traditional boundaries between disciplines are increasingly
blurred. Another is to motivate students to want to learn mathematics through appreciation
of its potential usefulness to them.
In recent years, there has been a gradual realization among college mathematics faculty
in this country that traditional content and methods may not be well-suited to the
needs of students and society as we approach the 21st century. The modern workplace
often requires individuals to work in cooperative teams to solve problems that may
cross several disciplines, to use sophisticated technology, and to communicate results
effectively. All the major national mathematics organizations have endorsed a refocusing
of mathematics education on the exploration of nonroutine and open-ended applied
problems by students working in collaboration with each other. The use of appropriate
technology and communications skills is an important part of such explorations, which
allow students to analyze each problem from a variety of perspectives, in what has
come to be known as a "Rule of 4" approach: complementary graphical, analytical,
numerical, and verbal representations are utilized in problem solving.
Wentworth’s project team has to date created over thirty laboratory investigations
that reflect this philosophy. Student critiques of these labs during the 1996-97
academic year, as well as feedback from a national panel of reviewers, have helped
project faculty revise and refine the labs. Workshops in their use have been held
at Wentworth, and have been attended by faculty from colleges across the country.
Mathematics faculty from Wentworth have also been giving presentations and workshops
at national conferences of organizations including the American Mathematical Society,
Mathematics Association of America, American Mathematical Association of Two-Year
Colleges, International Conference on Technology in College Mathematics, and American
Society for Engineering Education. Numerous requests have been received from faculty
at colleges across the United States, Canada, and as far away as Australia who wish
to use the Wentworth-generated materials in their own courses. And the "Mathematics
for Technology" project has been selected as an exemplary case study in the
creation of quality applied activities for college mathematics.
The faculty who were involved in the initial creation of project materials are: Kurt
Benedict (Architecture), Ken Bourque (Electronics), Eleanor Canter (Mathematics),
Bob Cournoyer (Mathematics), Dick Goller (Mathematics), Fred Gould (Civil/Construction),
Jerry Hopcroft (Environmental), Dwight Horan (Mathematics), Marty Kemen (Mathematics),
Suzanne Kennedy (Design and Facilities), Tom Lesko (Architecture), Kathy O’Neill
(Manufacturing), Anita Penta (Mathematics), Peter Rourke (Manufacturing), Gary Simundza
(Mathematics), Charlene Solomon (Mathematics), and Jim Winter (Mechanical). Project
development work has continued with creation of prototype interactive multimedia
labs that integrate mathematics explorations and interviews with engineering and
design practitioners, as well as videos of large-scale industrial experiments. This
work has been largely done by Marty Kemen (Mathematics), Jon Ripley (Humanities/Social
Sciences), and Mark Schuh (Computer Science).
The Mathematics for Technology project is supported by a grant from the Advanced
Technological Education program of the National Science Foundation
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