The University of Mississippi
Course Title: Business Calculus
Contact: Iwo Labuda
The University of Mississippi plans to redesign Business Calculus I and II, a two semester sequence taught in a traditional large lecture format. Students meet for either three 50-minute or two 75-minute lectures each week and complete traditional homework assignments. Fall and spring enrollments are typically 750 and 550 for Business Calculus I, and 400 and 450 for Business Calculus II. Section size averages ~130 students.
The traditional Business Calculus sequence serves as a gatekeeper since it is a prerequisite in the School of Business for all core business courses. A grade of C is required, and many students find this hurdle hard to overcome, remaining in the sequence for several semesters. Current DFW rates are unacceptable: 40% in Business Calculus I and 27% in Business Calculus II. Even students who complete the courses often do poorly on the cumulative final exam, raising concerns about their retention of content which is critical for subsequent courses. Regular office hours and extra study sessions do not provide sufficient opportunities for productive student-teacher interaction.
The courses will be redesigned using the Replacement Model. Every section, regardless of meeting days, will meet for two 50-minute classroom lectures per week. Students will also be required to spend 50 minutes in the teaching lab working with software and lab staff. All sections will have common syllabi and grading scales. They will have a common set of homework assessments, which will be randomly individualized by the software. All students will take computer-generated midterm and final exams.
The redesigned sequence will enhance the students’ educational experience and improve their learning outcomes. The new format will retain enough time for the course material to be comfortably presented in class while holding students responsible for interacting with the learning software. Students will work sufficient examples to hone and master their new skills and will receive immediate feedback from the software and graduate students who will be available in the lab to provide individual assistance. Instructors will hold their office hours in the lab to increase their accessibility.
The impact of the course redesign on student learning outcomes will be assessed by comparing student performance on midterm and final exams. Final grades will also be compared. The teaching staff will remain consistent, so variation in teaching style is not an issue.
Ole Miss will reduce the cost of the sequence by increasing the number of sections each instructor carries. An instructor’s full load is currently four classes each semester. After the redesign, instructors will be able to teach six of the redesigned sections as their full load without increasing the amount of time they spend in the classroom. These actions will reduce the cost-per-student from $45 to $32, a 29% savings. Ole Miss will then be able to offer additional sections of upper level and graduate math courses, thus strengthening the program.
Quick Links:
