Patricia Dean
Senior Lecturer in Mathematics
Mary Washington College
1301 College Ave.
Fredericksburg, VA 22401
Panel
Co-author: Debra HydornSuzanne Sumner
Associate Prof. of MathematicsAssociate Prof. of Mathematics
Mary Washington College Mary Washington College
1301 College Ave.1301 College Ave.
Fredericksburg, VA 22401Fredericksburg, VA 22401
Marie SheckelsJeffrey Edmunds
Prof. of Mathematics and EducationAsst. Professor of Mathematics
Mary Washington CollegeMary Washington College
1301 College Ave.1301 College Ave.
Fredericksburg, VA 22401Fredericksburg, VA 22401
Across-the-Curriculum Mathematics Courses at Mary Washington College
Short Abstract:
Students seeking a liberal arts education benefit from an inclusive and integrated approach to learning. The panel will discuss mathematics courses that are taught with emphasis on one or more of the following areas: Writing Intensive, Speaking Intensive,
Race/Gender Intensive, Environmental Awareness, and Global Awareness.
Long Abstract:
In addition to completing the Mary Washington College General Education
requirements each student must meet the College's Across-the-Curriculum requirements in the following five areas: Environmental Awareness, Global Awareness, Race/Gender Intensive, Speaking Intensive, and Writing Intensive. The mathematics department has modified both lower level and upper level undergraduate courses to satisfy the requirements for one or more of these designations.
Environmental Awareness courses are designed to promote an understanding of the fragility of the biosphere and the degree to which human activity has affected it. Students identify environmental issues, gain an appreciation of nature and examine methods that might be used to insure a balanced biosphere. Global Awareness courses foster understanding based on the knowledge and awareness of people, places, cultures and societies other than the student's own. Race and Gender Intensive courses emphasize the social construction of race and/or gender and examine how these categories relate to the formation of culture and institutional power in different societies and disciplines. Speaking Intensive courses use speaking activities appropriate to the subject matter and the goals of the course as a means to increase learning in the course and to develop oral communication competence. Writing Intensive courses teach writing appropriate to the subject matter. Their goal is to help students improve their writing over time and help them understand course material better.
The faculty panelists will discuss the construction of across-the-curriculum mathematics courses, elaborating on the design of assignments, methods of assessment, advantages and disadvantages of teaching these courses, and student and faculty reactions to these courses.