Mathematics Instruction using Decision Science and Engineering Tools

该项目由三所大学的教育工作者、工程师和数学家共同合作，将创建、实施和评估为期一年的新课程和教科书，用于教授四年级的非微积分、高中数学课程和配套的评估工具。该课程将利用决策工具，包括但远远超出线性规划，以提高学生的数学能力(特别是解决多步问题)，改善学生对数学的态度，并促进各州采用课程(最初是NC和MI)。课程的第一学期将集中在确定性决策模型上，第二学期将集中在概率决策模型上。将为教师编写相应的材料和专业发展经验，包括为期一学期的大学课程，并进行实地测试，以建立和维持一个支助社区。制定新课程的核心假设是，学生很可能通过解决与他们相关和感兴趣的问题来学习数学，而不是在遥远的未来。该团队将选择有利于吸引女性和代表性不足的群体进入数学和相关领域的问题情景/背景，例如经营T恤业务，选择碰撞保险免赔额，以及选择大学或二手车。为了帮助实施课程的教师，将创建一个基于网络的教师支持基础设施，同时还将创建一个“快速响应流动帮助小组”，根据需要提供现场帮助。一名外部评估员将使用治疗前和治疗后的工具，在两个州总共50个实验教室和50个对照教室(总共约3000名学生)中分析新课程对学生结果的影响。这些教室将被选择，分层，并根据社会经济和代表性不足的群体分析学生结果的数据。将使用七种传播战略，包括在第三年之前确保与关键课程出版社签订合同，以及在第五年之前出版教科书并将其提交国家相关决策机构通过。

A collaboration among educators, engineers, and mathematicians in three universities, the proposed project will create, implement, and evaluate a new, one-year curriculum and textbook for teaching a non-calculus, fourth year, high school mathematics course and accompanied assessment instruments. The curriculum will draw on decision-making tools that include but go well beyond linear programming, to enhance student mathematical competence (particularly solving multi-step problems), improve students' attitudes toward mathematics, and promote states' adoption of the curriculum (initially NC and MI). The first semester of the curriculum will focus on deterministic decision models and the second semester on probabilistic decision models. Corresponding materials and professional development experiences for teachers, including a one-semester university course, will be produced and field-tested, so that a support community is created and sustained. The core assumption for producing the new curriculum is that students are likely to be motivated and successful in learning mathematics via solving problems of relevance and interest to them here and now - not in some remote future. The team will select problem situations/contexts that are conducive to attracting females and underrepresented groups into mathematics and related fields, such as running a T-shirt business, choosing a deductible on collision insurance, and selecting a college or a used car. To assist teachers who implement the curriculum, a web-based teacher support infrastructure will be created, alongside a 'Rapid Response Traveling Help Team' that will provide onsite assistance as needed. Using pre- and post-treatment instruments, an external evaluator will analyze the impact of the new curriculum on student outcomes in a total of 50 experimental and 50 control classrooms in both states (about 3,000 students in all). These classrooms will be selected, stratified, and data of student outcomes analyzed based on socio-economic and underrepresented groups. Seven dissemination strategies will be utilized, including securing a contract with Key Curriculum Press by Year 3, and publishing the textbook and submitting it for adoption to the state-relevant decision-making bodies by Year 5.