The University of Wisconsin-Stout calculates that 9.2 percent of its incoming freshmen in 2004 required math remediation courses. This number corrects the 54.6 percent figure found in a UW System report and made public in a Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance news release dated July 31.
UW-Stout officials regularly submit records to UW System for storage in a data warehouse, from which the originally reported statistic was drawn. In the data submitted to UW System, a computer programming error incorrectly classified the need for math remediation for UW-Stout students. UW-Stout writes the program that utilizes math placement test data to determine whether a student requires math remediation. The math placement test, which is standard statewide, was changed in 2002, and the corresponding computer program for data transmission to UW System was not updated. The proper formula was used to place students into classes on the UW-Stout campus.
The percentage of UW-Stout students placed into remedial math courses each year is typically 10 percent or under, says Jeanne Foley, director of the Math Teaching and Learning Center. The 2005 statistic is 4.5 percent.
Also in 2005, three times as many UW-Stout students placed in the highest level of math courses (calculus or above) as those who placed in remedial courses, according to Foley.
Since Fall 2004, UW-Stout has placed an increased emphasis on preparing freshmen in need of remediation for college-level math courses. Studies show that success in first-year math courses is a strong predictor of retention into the second year of college.
UW-Stout annually invests approximately $55,000 in resources into its Math Teaching and Learning Center, or Math TLC, which serves 600-700 students per year. The lab is a technology-enhanced classroom dedicated to several sections of two first-year math courses, and it is staffed with trained tutors. Special software gives students immediate feedback and also 24/7 online help for each problem. Personal homework assistance is available in class daily, and instructors closely monitor students’ progress.
As a result, 95 percent of homework assignments are being completed and the average homework score is 92 percent. Since the creation of Math TLC two years ago, non-pass rates dropped 61 percent in the remedial algebra course compared to the previous four-year average. Success rates also improved in intermediate algebra, a non-remedial course taught in the center, with a 23 percent reduction in failure and withdrawal rates despite higher standards instituted in 2004.
“This new program vastly increases the chances of students passing these introductory math classes,” says Foley. “When you consider the link between passing math and staying in college, the investment we’ve made is a huge bargain.”
Students also appreciate the extra assistance in math. Marvin Ealy, a sophomore from Milwaukee, wrote and performed a rap song as a thank you to his first-year math instructors.
And, Chad Johnson, who as a freshman took the intermediate algebra class this past spring, wrote in an evaluation, “This class completely changed my views on math. Before this class I hated math and never wanted to do it. I hated math even in grade school! After this course, I love math and am considering a math minor. I’m even thinking of being a tutor in the Math TLC next year. I would never have imagined me teaching and helping others with math.”
Johnson has been hired by Foley to be a math tutor in the fall.
