Courses

Fall 2011

• Math 216 - Mathematical Statistics
  • This class explores the mathematical underpinnings of the central ideas of statistics, focusing on the ways we can draw inferences about populations based on samples. This course is designed to help students decide how to collect and organize data, how to draw inferences and make decisions based on your data, and to explore the mathematical underpinnings of the statistical theory.

• Math 510 - Graduate Seminar in Mathematics
  • In this seminar, we discuss various theoretical perspectives from mathematics education literature, using each as a lens through which to view and analyze classroom practice. Topics include curricular reform, sociomathematical norms, discourse patterns, revoicing, theories of learning, intellectual necessity, representation, proof, and problem solving.

• Course web pages can be accessed via Sakai.

Past and Future Semesters

• Math 111 - Calculus
  • The goal of calculus is to study the rate at which quantities change (derivatives) and the rates at which they accumulate (integrals). The class focuses equally on computation and interpretation and uses in-depth labs to explore the ways these ideas are used to solve problems in business and the sciences.

• Math 144/145 - Statistics for Business, Economics, and Management/Health, Life, and Social Sciences
  • The goal of these courses is to give students an introduction to descriptive and inferential statistics by focusing on problems that arise in business- or health-science-related contexts. Topics include descriptive statistical techniques; conditional probability; random variables and their distributions; statistical inference and hypothesis testing for means; proportions, and categorical variables; and either regression analysis or ANOVA.

• Math 152 - What is Mathematics?
  • The goal of this course is to explore the nature of mathematics by using ideas from philosophy, psychology, history, and sociology, and by working on interesting mathematical problems. We investigate questions such as: What is a number? What is a straight line? Is math always true? How do people learn math? How do metaphors help us think about math? and What is the role of mathematics in our world?

• Math 216 - Mathematical Statistics
  • This class explores the mathematical underpinnings of the central ideas of statistics, focusing on the ways we can draw inferences about populations based on samples. This course is designed to help students decide how to collect and organize data, how to draw inferences and make decisions based on your data, and to explore the mathematical underpinnings of the statistical theory.

• Math 220 - Mathematics for Childhood Education
  • This is a math content course for students who are preparing to teach elementary and middle school. We discuss topics in arithmetic, including place value and numeration systems, fractions and percents, and algorithms for whole-number and fraction  arithmetic. The goal of this course is to help students understand both how and why these algorithms work by focusing on the work of and algorithms created by children.

• Math 480 - Connections in Advanced Mathematics
  • Mathematical ideas were developed by people from across the globe and from across time. Even seemingly simple ideas, such as the concept of a number, have influenced—and been influenced by—aspects of culture, technology, philosophy, and religion. These same ideas led people to ask important mathematical questions and, in the process of answering them, make connections between various branches of mathematics. In this class, we will examine basic mathematical ideas from a historical perspective and then explore some of the fascinating connections that arose from these ideas.

• Math 502 - History of Mathematics
  • Mathematics is a human endeavor: it was created by people as they tried to describe and predict patterns in their world. This seminar explores the historical development of mathematical ideas, investigating their origin & growth as well as the debates that surrounded their development. Students research the history and development of a concept to enhance their own understanding of mathematics and develop resources for their own classes.

• Math 510 - Graduate Seminar in Mathematics
  • In this seminar, we discuss various theoretical perspectives from mathematics education literature, using each as a lens through which to view and analyze classroom practice. Topics include curricular reform, sociomathematical norms, discourse patterns, revoicing, theories of learning, intellectual necessity, representation, proof, and problem solving.

• Student Teacher Supervision (Education 498/600 - Professional Semester in Education)