Arithmetic Lab Overview and Guidelinespage 1 of 5
2006/2007
Arithmetic Lab Overview and Guidelines
(For 16-week lecture courses)
(The following information is also available in the MATD-0330 Basic Math Skills section of both the printed and online versions of the 2006/2007 Math Manual.)
Contents:
- Arithmetic Lab (MATD-0230) Overview
- How the Program Works
- Administering the Arithmetic Assessment
- Grading the Arithmetic Assessment
- Advising Students and Reporting Results
1. Arithmetic Lab (MATD-0230) Overview
There is a subpopulation of the students enrolled in our Basic Math Skills course that lack the necessary arithmetic skills to be successful in MATD-0330. These students are hindered by their inability to adequately perform operations on whole numbers, fractions, and decimals. Despite good attendance and a genuine effort on their part, students lacking these basic arithmetic skills which are so necessary in working with more difficult mathematical expressions, rarely if ever succeed. In an effort to address the needs of these students, the math department has developed the arithmetic labs (MATD-0230 Basic Math Skills Lab) as a “safety net”. These are currently available only for those students in 16-week lecture sections).
We began by offering 6 labs each semester during the Fall ‘05 and Spring ’06 semesters. In order to make these labs more available for those students who need them, the department will be offering more labs (12 or 13 in the Fall of 2006.) A list of the available lab sections for the current semester will be posted via the Online Math Manual: . The locations and times of the available Arithmetic Lab sections will be posted as well as instructor names and contact information. Current student enrollment in each section will be reported as well as an indication of whether or not a particular section is full.
Despite the greater number of sections being offered, we understand that only some of the students who need and want these labs will be able to find a section that fits into their schedule.We'll continue to look at other ways in which to serve those students who need the additional help but who cannot attend one of the labs. Although this program is primarily intended for students in 16-week lecture classes, computer-mediated students identified as needing further arithmetic remediation could possibly choose to attend the lab as space and their schedules permit.
2. How the Program Works
The MATD 0330 lecture course now begins with a review of whole numbers and fractions during the first four weeks (of a 16-week course) after which students are tested over this material. Based on this assessment, we will determine which students require further help with their arithmetic skills. These students are then advised (but not required) to attend a section of MATD-0230 Basic Math Skills Arithmetic Lab, if one fits into their schedule, where they will spend the remaining 12 weeks working on whole numbers, non-negative fractions, and decimals. Other topics (such as ratios, proportions, percents, and/or an intro to integers) may be included as appropriate and as time permits.
Consenting students that are identified as needing further arithmetic help and whose schedules permit will attend an available section of MATD-0230 for the rest of the semester instead of attending their original MATD-0330 class. The student will remain on the class roll of the original MATD-0330 class and the original instructor will submit the student’s course grade (as assigned by the Arithmetic Lab instructor) at the end of the semester. The student will continue to use the same text but will mainly concentrate on the first three chapters (P1, P2, and P3). Other supplemental materials may also be provided.
Such students cannot earn a passing grade in MATD-0330 since they will not be completing the class. Rather, students who regularly attend their lab, do the work, etc. would earn an IP in MATD-0330 (in the same way that students in any developmental math course can earn a grade of IP). Students who do not attend regularly or who do not do the required work, would earn an F or W depending on their attendance. The lab instructor will report attendance information, grade (IP or F), and other data (posttest grade) to the original MATD-0330 instructor at the end of the semester. The lab instructor should also send a copy of this information to Bob Leibman. Lab instructors must take care to report grades in a timely manner. Also, if they have students who need to be dropped for lack of attendance, they should report them to their original instructors as quickly as possible so that the official drop date deadline can be met.
The four week review of whole numbers and non-negative, non-variable fractions gives all the students an opportunity to brush up on skills that they have once mastered but may have forgotten. This gives us a better understanding of which students need more help before going on to the other topics of the course. We expect that only about 5% to 15% of our MATD-0330 students (on average, about 1 to 3 students out of a class of 18) will have a need for this additional arithmetic remediation. The majority of the students in the original MATD-0330 class (who need no further intensive remediation on basic arithmetic) would continue with their class as usual.
3. Administering the Arithmetic Assessment
The Arithmetic Assessment is a 16 question departmental test on the arithmetic of whole numbers and simple non-negative fractions which is to be administered to all students upon completion of the review of these topics during the first four weeks of class. Early in the semester (during 2nd or 3rd week) MATD-0330 instructors should provide their students with copies of the two page Informational Handout for Students (available via the Math Manual Online: Discuss this with your students and answer any questions that they may have about the Arithmetic Assessment and the Arithmetic Lab.
Copies of the actual Arithmetic Assessment test will be distributed to you about two weeks into the semester via campus mail. Instructors must administer the Arithmetic Assessment with no changes and no calculators or notes of any kind may be used. The test should be given at the end of the fourth week and/or the beginning of the fifth week. It should be administered to all your MATD-0330 students as an addendum to your Test #1. You may give it to your students at the same time that you administer your Test #1 or you may choose to give it at a different time. You can administer the Arithmetic Assessment in class or put it in the Testing Center. Instructors should schedule this assessment so that they can be collected and graded by Monday or Tuesday of week five. If you decide to use the Testing Center, it would be very reasonable to have a test window which starts on Thursday or Friday of week four and ends on the following Monday.
The grade on the Arithmetic Assessment should factor into the grade for your own first test in the course, but exactly how you do this is up to you. In any event, make sure that your students know that this will count toward their test grade and that they should take it seriously.
4. Grading the Arithmetic Assessment
Instructors are expected to grade the Arithmetic Assessment tests promptly so that they can quickly determine which students need to be in labs and work with those students to find a lab that they can attend. An answer key for the Arithmetic Assessment will be included with the test document. The following guidelines should be followed in grading the Assessment for the purpose of department-wide consistency. (How this grade is incorporated into your first exam grade is up to you, although it should be factored into that grade.)
The Arithmetic Assessment consists of 16 problems and each problem is worth one point. Points should be assigned according to the following:
1 point:Answer is correct and no work shown contradicts that the student has a proper understanding of the problem. In the event of a correct answer with no work shown, the student may get full credit if it is reasonable to assume that the student could have mentally arrived at the correct answer. In questionable situations, you should discuss the problem with the student outside of class.
0.5 points:Answer is incorrect, but generally because of a minor computational or miscopying error. The work shown indicates that the student has a general understanding of the proper method of computing the answer.
0 points:Answer is incorrect and either no work is shown or the work shown indicates that the student has critical errors in procedure or understanding.
The grade for the Arithmetic Assessment will be reported to the Math Department as a number between 0 and 16. Obviously, there will be some situations in which it may be unclear as to what grade to assign a particular problem. In such cases, instructors should use their best judgment. It should be emphasized that these guidelines are only to be used for reporting to the department the results of the Arithmetic Assessment. The grade that is assigned for the full Test #1 is up to the discretion of the instructor. For test security reasons, please collect and retain all the graded Arithmetic Assessment tests after allowing your students to review them briefly in class.
5. Advising Students and Reporting Results
After you have graded the Arithmetic Assessment tests, record each student’s score in the appropriate space on the MATD-0330 Master Reporting Form (blank copies are available via the Math Manual Online: This form should be sent to Bob Leibman (NRG), , at the end of the semester. We are hoping to be able to send you (via email) a separate EXCEL version of this form for each of your lecture sections of MATD-0330. This version would include a list of your students’ names and student numbers.
NOTE: Those of you who can use the Excel version should do so since it means the data can just be pasted into the larger Excel sheet for the semester without manual retyping. (Bob L.)
Make your recommendation to the student based upon the following scores on the Arithmetic Assessment:
12.0 or more out of 16: Student stays in original MATD 0330 class
8.0 to 11.5 out of 16:Student should consider moving to an available Arithmetic Lab
less than 8.0 out of 16: Recommend that student moves to an available Arithmetic Lab
Instructors should contact low-scoring students (< 12.0) immediately to discuss their options. Remember, the student has the final decision of whether or not they will switch to an Arithmetic Lab section. Information about the available Arithmetic Lab sections for the current semester (including times, locations, and instructor contacts) will be posted via the Math Manual Online: In some cases, a student may wish to switch but there may be no available lab sections that will fit the student’s schedule. Any student who already has two prior grades of IP in MATD 0330 would not be eligible for a grade of IP whether or not they decide to attend an Arithmetic Lab section. However, such students still might be better off in a lab – particularly if they have not tried that option before. Discuss the options with the student to help him/her arrive at the best possible decision. Any discussions about whether or not individual students should switch to an Arithmetic Lab section should be done on the phone, via email, or privately outside of class.
For any student that does choose to attend an Arithmetic Lab section, immediately send an email to the instructor of that lab section in order to verify that space is still available in that particular lab section and for he/she to hold a space for your student. You should include the student’s name, ACC ID, and Arithmetic Assessment score, and their attendance record as well. (If the student changes his/her mind, please let that lab instructor know immediately so that they can free up the space.) Upon receiving verification of space availability, contact the student and send him/her to the lab section. Students should continue to attend your class until you have placed them and notified them where to go. Most students who score low should have been contacted by the middle of the 5th week (if not earlier), and should be attending a lab section (if they are agreeable) by the end of that week or, at the latest, by the beginning of the 6th week.
On all this correspondence, please cc Don Lavigne at so that the department has a record of what is happening.
Once you receive confirmation that the student may attend a certain lab section, send a completed Arithmetic Lab Informal Transfer Form (available via the Math Manual Online: along with the student’s graded Arithmetic Assessment test to the Arithmetic Lab instructor via campus mail. Retain a copy of each for your records. If none of your students wish to enroll in an Arithmetic Lab section, please contact Don Lavigne at to let him know this. Please try to send this information to Don by Wednesday of week five if at all possible.
At the end of the semester, you should send a copy (electronic version preferred) of the completed MATD-0330 Master Reporting Form for each of your 16-week lecture sections of MATD-0330 to Bob Leibman () at NRG.
MATD-0330 Master Reporting Form:
16-week lecture classes: The data being collected from instructors in 16-week classes includes: (a)MATD-0330 Placement Test scores (if taken) (b) First Day Survey scores (if taken) – also actual graded First Day Surveys should be sent to Bob Leibman by campus mail (c)Arithmetic Assessment test scores (as a number from 0-16, not %), (d)Arithmetic Assessment Post-test scores (as a number from 0-16, not %), (e) Final exam score (f) Final course grade (letter grade). Please include all data collected on every student who was in your class, even if they later disappeared. When possible, indicate W’s as well as other letter grades. If someone disappeared and you do not know whether or not they got a W, just indicate that they disappeared – and approximately when.
5.5-week, 8-week, 11-week, and 12-week lecture classes, all computer mediated classes, and distance learning classes: Data on these classes would happily be collected as well. In addition to (e) and (f), many instructors might be giving either (a) or (b) on the first or second day of class, and some might also use (c) and/or (d).