Reasons behind college algebra change at Southeast

On Oct. 9, Southeast Missouri State University hosted the Southeast Missouri Regional Math Pathways Symposium attended by area mathematics teachers, high school counselors and Southeast faculty and staff. The symposium was an opportunity for area educators to engage in dialogue to discuss the Math Pathways initiative in Missouri and was one of five offered this fall across the state.

The Math Pathways initiative took hold in 2010 when institutions were challenged to increase the percentage of Missourians 25 to 64 years old holding a quality postsecondary degree to 60 percent by 2025 and to increase college graduates in STEM fields.

Mathematics is often an obstacle toward this goal for many college students, and much discussion has centered around the effectiveness of college algebra. To this end, efforts are now being made under the Math Pathways initiative to identify alternative entry-level mathematics courses to align mathematical concepts appropriate for specific programs of study.

Let me help clarify the current climate around mathematics at the university level. For several years, there has been a statewide taskforce working on minimal student-learning outcomes for multiple mathematics courses. Institutions are welcome to add more outcomes; however, all of these must be included in the appropriate courses. For more information about these student-learning outcomes, you can visit dhe.mo.gov/AAU-Initiatives-MathPathways.php. Some of these courses would be alternatives for students who do not necessarily need as much algebra as college algebra has provided in the past. Some of the courses would return college algebra to its former glory days of a comprehensive, rigorous study of algebra necessary for individuals who want to take a calculus course. Please know a rigorous study of algebra always will be part of the university curriculum.

Here at Southeast, we have offered three alternative courses for several years. They are statistical reasoning, survey of mathematics and math for the elementary teacher. Some students have opted to take these alternative courses as part of their program of study. Some programs have suggested to their students to take these alternative courses because the content is more applicable to their programs of study. These alternative courses may not contain as much algebra as the college algebra curriculum offers; however, they will be equally rigorous in different areas of mathematics.

For those majors whose program of study requires an in-depth, rigorous look at algebra as a pre-requisite to be successful in a calculus course, Southeast is offering precalculus. This course will contain the topics from college algebra along with additional topics. The coverage of these topics will be more in-depth and more comprehensive than currently seen in college algebra to help students prepare for calculus.

Our hope is that Monday's symposium offered area educators an opportunity to come together to gather ideas and processes to be shared and duplicated as the state strives to increase college graduates prepared to meet 21st century workplace demands.

Dr. Tamela Randolph is the chair and professor for the Department of Mathematics at Southeast Missouri State University.