ID+Project+1

Design Report 1 flat =**Project title**=

=Mastering Math Mayhem =

=**Project Description**=

Purpose
The purpose of this project is to create a math help site for incoming online Algebra students who are in need of basic math remediation. The project is being completed virtually.

The project seeks to design a resource for online math students to better prepare them for MAT 116, Algebra 1a.

Rationale
MAT 116 is the first math course students need to complete in their Associate programs at the University of Phoenix. There is no math entrance exam or skills test. Regardless of level or ability, all students are required to start in this course. At one point the university offered MAT 115, a non-credit remedial course, to help students prepare for MAT 116. The university has discontinued this course leaving MAT 116 as the beginner course.

The university caters to a large adult population of students representing all ages with varying abilities and skills. Students who do not possess prerequisite math skills tend to struggle in MAT 116 and either drop out of it or end the course with a poor grade. Students can get easily frustrated with the content during the first week in the course. This project serves as a first step in providing the students a resource to remediate basic math skills.

=Learner Analysis= The primary target learner is a student about to take or enrolled Algebra 1a online. The audience will consist of a wide range of ages, computer skills, and math abilities. The goal is to design a user-friendly medium to accommodate all participants.

Primary Audience
Algebra 1a students

Secondary Audience
Math students Math instructors Curriculum designers

General Learner Characteristics
Online university students with past online course experience (6 months and up) Adults of all ages (18-75) Basic to advanced computer skills

Entry Characteristics
Learners will be classified as: Level 1. None to very little basic math skills Level 2. Very little to moderate basic math skills Level 3. Moderate to advanced basic math skills Classification will be determined by student self-analysis and/or instructor observation.

Potential Audience Concerns
Students may choose not to participate because no credit is given. Students may not have the extra time to spend reviewing prerequisite skills. They may also be overwhelmed at the start of the course and may not take advantage of the site.

=Detailed description of needs assessment= In an effort to find the “root cause of the problem” (p. 31) for students in MAT 116, two instructors for the course are serving as subject matter experts for this instructional design project. Based on past student performance and a desire to see students be successful, the instructors believe there is a need for remediation at the beginning of the MAT 116 course. To further assess this need, current MAT 116 students were surveyed to “identify gaps in performance” (p. 32).

A survey was created and sent to 98 students currently enrolled in MAT 116 courses. The survey was developed by the instructional design team based on suggestions from the subject matter experts regarding specific areas of need. This survey was voluntary which resulted in fourteen respondents. The following questions were asked on the survey ( responses are in blue ):

1. Did you feel prepared when beginning this course? 2. Select the areas where you would have liked extra instruction prior to entering this course: 3. Please list any other math topics (that were not listed in question 2 above) that you would have liked to have reviewed prior to this course. 4.Would you have been interested in a non-credit review course before starting? 5.How much time would you be willing to spend on reviewing prior to this course?
 * 21.4% answered yes
 * 78.6% answered no
 * Adding fractions – 42.9% selected this topic
 * Subtracting fractions <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 42.9% selected this topic
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Multiplying fractions <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 64.3% selected this topic
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Dividing fractions <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 71.4% selected this topic
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Adding decimals <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 21.4% selected this topic
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Subtracting decimals <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 21.4% selected this topic
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Multiplying decimals <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 28.6% selected this topic
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Dividing decimals <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 28.6% selected this topic
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">None of the above <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 42.9% selected this option
 * <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Students’ responses varied with two respondents suggesting pre-algebra and the remaining seven respondents listing algebra or algebra topics covered in the later weeks of MAT 116.
 * <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">85.7% answered yes
 * <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">14.3% answered no
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">None <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 0% selected this option
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">30 minutes <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 0% selected this option
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">1 hour <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 0% selected this option
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">2 hours <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 14.3% selected this option
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">3 hours <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 7.1% selected this option
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">1 week <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 50% selected this option
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Other <span style="color: #0070c0; font-family: 'arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">– 28.6% selected this option with responses ranging from a few hours per week to “As much time as it takes to understand what I will be doing”

=Summary of your needs assessment outcome= <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">This survey was conducted based on the input of two MAT 116 instructors to assess the needs of students currently enrolled in the course. As indicated by the instructors and student respondents, both groups of stakeholders have “felt needs” (p. 35) to improve performance in the MAT 116 course. The instructors would like to see more students be successful. According to the survey results, students are willing to dedicate two or more hours to improve their performance in this subject area with no rewards, such as grades, course credit, travel, etc. Fractions seem to be a greater concern to the respondents than decimals, specifically in the areas of multiplication and division. While students did indicate a need for decimal remediation, in the interest of time allotted for this project, fractions will be the main focus.

=Goal statement as a result of your assessment= <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">The goal of this instructional design unit will be to create a remedial self-paced course for students registered in MAT116. The following topics will be covered in the remediation: <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">The topics were chosen in this order to provide an introduction to the fraction concepts covered in the self-paced course, followed by more complex topics in order from least difficult to most difficult.
 * 1) <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Introduction to Fractions
 * 2) <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Factors and Simplest Form
 * 3) <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Multiplying Fractions
 * 4) <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Dividing Fractions
 * 5) <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Adding and Subtracting Fractions with Like Denominators
 * 6) <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Adding and Subtracting Fractions with Unlike Denominators
 * 7) <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 13px;">Complex Fractions

=List of entry competencies= **Skills** - Students should be able to navigate the site with ease. They should have a basic understanding of clicking on icons, scrolling, and using menus. **Motivation** - Students should to be motivated to study beyond the course content and required assignments. **Attitude** - Students should possess a positive attitude towards math and the offered resources. **Knowledge** - Students should be able to recognize fractions and that operations can be performed using them. Students should also recognize their competence when computing fractions.

=Learner interview= <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Two respondents from the survey agreed to a short interview. They were both asked the following questions:
 * 1) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">What types of math experience have you had in the past?
 * 2) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">How long has it been since your last math class?
 * 3) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">How would you recommend addressing students’ needs before entering MAT 116?
 * 4) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Would you have liked to receive an email a few days before MAT 116 started with the pre-course information?
 * 5) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">What type of instruction or content would you like to see in a pre-course for MAT 116?
 * 6) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">What types of resources do you think would help, such as videos, audio, hands-on problems or others?
 * 7) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">How long would you like access to this pre-course?

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Each respondent indicated that it had been 15 years or more since they had completed a math problem. Both respondents had not taken a math course above the prealgebra level during their high school career. In response to recommending how students’ needs are addressed before MAT 116, the first respondent suggested that the MAT 116 course start with basic mathematics and continue through algebra. The second respondent suggested a placement test to identify the student’s level of comprehension. Both respondents stated that they would have appreciated an email a few days before MAT 116 began with the remediation course information. In response to the remaining questions, each respondent indicated a difficulty with reading mathematics with statements such as “I have a problem of comprehending what I read, if I see how it is done step by step then maybe I can get it” and “I don't learn well by the book because I don't understand what I have read.” In place of textual resources, the respondents suggested videos, audio and hands-on problems for disseminating the remedial information. As predicted for adult learners, both respondents stressed that hands-on problems were more “understandable.” Continual access to the remediation course seemed ideal based on both respondents’ responses.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Based on these responses, the instructional design team should consider starting the remediation course at a very basic level. Video and hands-on problems should be offered for practice of the new concepts presented throughout. This remediation course should become available to students prior to MAT 116 and remain accessible throughout the duration of their college math experience.

=Description of learners= Learners will be enrolled in an Associate-level Algebra 1a course and participation is on a voluntary basis. Participants are familiar with online education, learning management systems, and using online resources since math enrollment is towards the end of their programs of study. The course is primarily taken towards the end of the program of study, so students have success working online. Motivation stems from the students' desire to learn the necessary prerequisite skills for their Algebra course and pass the class. They have acquired a certain level of self-direction and are capable of working at their own pace and on their own schedule.

Students who feel they are not math competent often posses a poor attitude at the start of the course and may alert the instructor about their actual or perceived lack of knowledge. The majority of the students have not taken an online math course and are familiar with traditional instruction. They often question how they are expected to learn math online. There is a range of learning preferences including auditory, visual, and kinesthetic. Given the nature of the subject, most students report that they like to see the math presented or have it explained to them.

There is a wide range of learners in terms of age, race, and background knowledge. Their ages can range from 18-75 and there is a mixture of different races. Most students are adults returning to school later in life and therefore have not had a math course in decades. On the other hand, the classes do have new high school graduates who have taken a recent math course so the background knowledge of the students varies greatly. Moreover, older students were not required to take Algebra in school and are being exposed to it for the first time. Because they are adult online learners, they have outside obligations such as work and family. They have to balance their time to include these outside priorities as well as their schoolwork.

=Performance context and implications for instruction= The performance will all take place online and will be self-paced and be performed by adult students taking a for-credit Algebra class. There will be no credit for this course, but it will be a recommended resource for those students who do not feel confident with mathematical concepts such as fractions. These students will have the opportunity to increase their familiarity with the concepts and practice their skills, thereby increasing their likeliness to succeed in the Algebra course. Students will be able to use and review the material at will during the for-credit Algebra class.

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