Prior decisions and experiences about mathematics of students in bridging courses
Sue Gordon and Jackie Nicholas
Mathematics Learning Centre
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Levels of mathematics in NSW: senior secondary
› HSC Mathematics Extension 2 — Advanced
› HSC Mathematics Extension 1 — Advanced
› HSC Mathematics — Intermediate
› HSC General Mathematics — Elementary
General Mathematics was not designed to prepare students for tertiary study: Dr Mary Coupland, Director: Mathematics Study Support Centre, School of Mathematical Sciences, UTS
HSC = Higher School Certificate — year 12 leaving qualification
The issue
ATAR — Australian Tertiary Admission Rank
› In NSW*
Percentage of students studying Intermediate or Advanced mathematics for their HSC:
35% in 2012
46% in 2001
61% in 1992
out of the year 12 students eligible for an ATAR
*Information supplied by the NSW Vice-Chancellors’ Committee – Technical Committee on Scaling
Our study
› In 2012, 380 students enrolled for our maths bridging courses and were invited to take part in an anonymous online survey.
› 109 students responded to the anonymous survey
› 51 students are the focus of our paper- Left school in 2009, 2010 or 2011
- Did not study maths at an appropriate level for the HSC
- Completed the online survey
Limitations
Sample is small
Students chose whether or not to participate
Almost all students from University of Sydney
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Research questions
› For the students who completed some unit of maths for their HSC, what were the influences on their decisions about the level studied?
› For the students who did not study maths for the HSC, what were the factors that impacted on their decision not to study maths?
In IJMEST
› Whose advice was influential and when was it sought?
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Background information
› Demographic information — n = 51
63% (32) enrolled in the 2 unit maths bridging course
63% (32) female
94% (48) were enrolled or were enrolling in a degree at university
› 38 students completed a unit of maths for the HSC
26 students completed the level of maths they began
12 students dropped to a lower level of maths
› 13 students did not do maths for the HSC
8 students started studying maths in Year 11 but dropped it
5 students did not study maths at all
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Students who completed the maths they begann = 26
› 54% (14 out of 26) completed Elementary maths for their HSC
› Question: What influenced your decision to study the level of mathematics that you did for the HSC or equivalent? Please tick all the relevant influences. (26 responses)
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Qualitative responses to open-ended question
› Casey studied Intermediate maths which for him:“ … was a choice that brought the personal requirements I set myself for mathematics as it was challenging but doable. I had large amounts of doubt establishing the same balance with Extension 1 [Advanced] ….”
› Kate completed Intermediate maths but some of the important influences on her for not studying Advanced maths were that:“maths was a pretty time consuming subject … [with] a lot of homework … I also thought I’d do better in other subjects if I put in as much effort”.
› John studied Elementary maths as he did not see himself:“getting a high mark in 2 unit mathematics [Intermediate]. … Furthermore, I had been told from math teachers that generally speaking those who do general mathematics [Elementary] tend to get a higher ATAR than those who do 2 Unit mathematics, and the scaling for General Mathematics is decent. My main priority was to get into the degree I wanted, and to deal with the assumed knowledge later.”
“maths was a pretty time consuming subject … [with] a lot of homework …
I also thought I’d do better in other subjects if I put in as much effort”.
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Students who dropped from a higher level of maths n = 12
› 50% (6 out of 12) were enrolled in the Extension 1 bridging course
› Question: What influenced your decision to drop the higher level of maths when you did? (12 responses)
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Qualitative responses to open ended question
› Harry, an Elementary maths student said:“HSC Mathematics [Intermediate] was the only subject I was struggling in and it was taking a lot of my time. … I wanted to spend equal time on my other subjects to maximise my ATAR.”
› Kadin, an Intermediate maths student reported:“I dropped the higher level maths [Advanced] solely in order to maximise my ATAR. I found the amount of time that I was required to put into the course was not reflective of my marks and … I also felt it was important to diversify my subjects as I was unsure of my results and future opportunities after school.”
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Students who did not study maths for the HSCn = 13
› 8 students (out of 13) started studying maths for the HSC
6 out of 8 started studying Intermediate maths
› Question:
What influenced your decision to drop mathematics when you did? What influenced your decision not to study mathematics? (13
responses)
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Qualitative responses to open-ended question
› For the students who dropped maths, the qualitative responses mirrored those of the students who dropped to a lower level of maths.
› Drew, an Intermediate maths student (who dropped it), summed it up:“The amount of time I spent studying maths, for only modest results in my tests, was limiting the amount of time I spent on other subjects which I performed well in. As such, I thought it advisable to drop maths and devote more time to the subjects which were likely to improve my ATAR.”
› For the 5 students who did not study maths at all, Sharon exemplifies the path take:“I chose only subjects that interested me – despite being quite good at maths I did not enjoy the subject at all. At the time I had no idea what I wanted to do at university but I was leaning towards a language-based degree and I assumed I wouldn’t need maths. I did know that, if needed, I could take a bridging course.”
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Conclusions
› Students’ accounts portray an array of complex issues that influence their decisions.
› Students find the higher levels of mathematics hard and time consuming relative to their other subjects.
› Students focus on short-term goals — act strategically to maximise chances of getting into their degree of choice by dropping (or not attempting) those higher levels.
John’s priority “to get into the degree I wanted, and to deal with the assumed knowledge later” rings true for many students.
› Maths teachers may, with the best of intentions, be giving advice that encourages students to focus on short-term goals rather than long-term goals.
› University entry procedures may not reward the effort of studying higher levels of maths.
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