Opportunities
for In-situ study of WeBWorK as a Tool for Student Learning and Faculty
Development
MAA President David Bressoud, in a
recent Launchings column on the MAA website, pointed out that
Even though WeBWorK and other comparable online homework systems have been
around for about ten years, there has been relatively little careful study of
student attitudes and the effectiveness of using such systems. In the remainder
of this article, I will summarize the findings that I have found in the literature.
Virtually all of this literature relates specifically to WeBWorK. Because it
was one of the first such systems, because it is very widely used, and because
it is freely available, it is the system that has attracted the attention of
most of the researchers in this area (Bressoud, 2009).
The full text of his column, as well as the references cited and additional
comments on the findings of the studies, is available on the MAA website at http://www.maa.org/columns/launchings/launchings_04_09.html.
We believe that the kinds of research efforts needed to develop the potential
of on-line homework systems, as well as their limitations can only be
accomplished by partnerships between faculty who use such systems, and
researchers who study that use in partnerships that are extend over multiple
semesters. Ideally, this means that such collaborations can be established
where both partners are on the same campus. (Such partnerships might involve
multiple instructional personnel teaching many sections of a particular course,
and engage graduate students as active participants.)
Basic questions include identification of the factors that define successful
implementation i.e., faculty members’ use, campus server support, etc. (as well
as potential barriers to successful implementation). But there is of course
much to learn about how faculty/instructor use effects student learning:
· How do faculty members and
instructors use WeBWorK?
· How has use of WeBWorK changed faculty
members’ and instructors’ teaching
practices?
In addition to how faculty adapt to the use of on-line homework, a more
substantive question regarding faculty behavior concerns identification of
effective strategies for the use of the data generated by such systems to
self-assess one’s teaching, and to respond to the data in a way that improves
the overall classroom dynamic.
Sub-questions for the over-arching question, Does WeBWorK promote student learning
in mathematics, include:
A. How does WeBWorK promote the learning
of mathematics with different types of learners such as, students from
different types of institutions, different types of students (majors vs.
non-majors), student demographics (ethnicity, gender) or learning style.
B. What modifications in the use of WeBWorK are
important to meet the needs of students in different courses (e.g. college
algebra vs. calculus) or at different levels of mathematical maturity?
C. How do students use WeBWorK?
D. How has use of WeBWorK impacted retention of
students, if at all?
We invite members of the RUME community to join us to discuss ideas for study,
potential partnerships, and opportunities for funding research on effective
strategies for using on-line homework systems.