Case Studies
Odessa College
Textbooks in Use with MyMathLab
Elementary and Intermediate Algebra: Concepts and Applications, 3e, Marvin L. Bittinger, David J. Ellenbogen, Barbara L. Johnson
Key Take-Away
MyMathLab students at OC receive immediate feedback and are able to rework problems as many times as they wish—proven strategies for reinforcing the learning process and increasing student success.
Course Implementation
Course Design
Class meets twice a week for 80 minutes each and includes lecture and examples. There is a required one-hour-perweek lab component, during which students may work on homework assignments and get the help of a tutor.
Assessments
Students take four chapter tests and one comprehensive final. There are two versions of every test and no quizzes.
MyMathLab Implementation
Homework is completed outside of class on MyMathLab. Paper tests are composed via MyMathLab and distributed during class. Students are encouraged to use the study plan, particularly when they miss a class or need extra help.
Use of MyMathLab contributes 100 percent to a student’s final course grade.
Results and Data
Tables 1 and 2 indicate a direct and positively significant relationship between the number of students who pass the course and their use of MyMathLab. The same is true for the number of students who received an A.
A comparison of grades by semester shows a marked increase in the percentage of students passing the course, as well as a significant decrease in the percentage of those failing the course. The nine-semester time span enables a longer-term assessment of the fully MyMathLab-enabled program and the conclusion that all the successes realized after immediate implementation have sustained over time.
Similarly inspiring, the average percentage of students earning an A since adoption of MyMathLab in spring 2006 has more than tripled, jumping from an average of 9 percent to 28 percent.
| Grade |
Without MyMathLab
|
With MyMathLab
|
|||||||
| Fall 2004 | Spring 2005 | Fall 2005 | Spring 2006 | Fall 2006 | Spring 2007 | Fall 2008 | Spring 2009 | Fall 2009 | |
| A | 4% | 11% | 13% | 39% | 44% | 42% | 23% | 27% | 20% |
| B | 20% | 31% | 35% | 39% | 35% | 22% | 41% | 33% | 30% |
| C | 32% | 31% | 23% | 14% | 13% | 12% | 9% | 20% | 30% |
| D | 12% | 17% | 10% | 4% | 0% | 12% | 9% | 7% | 10% |
| F | 32% | 10% | 19% | 4% | 9% | 12% | 18% | 13% | 10% |
Table 1. Comparison of Success Rates by Semester, Fall 2004–Fall 2009
| Grade | Without MyMathLab | With MyMathLab |
| A | 9% | 28% |
| B | 29% | 34% |
| C | 28% | 18% |
| D | 13% | 8% |
| F | 20% | 12% |
Table 2. Comparison of Average Success Rates
The Student Experience
Student surveys indicate students’ appreciation for MyMathLab’s interactive features and immediate feedback.
- “MyMathLab offers help right when I need it. I don’t have to wait for an instructor or results.”
- “The Help Me Solve This button helped the most.”
- “I like that [MyMathLab] gives me extra problems if I need more practice. And when I get a problem wrong, I can try it again.”
- “I liked all the support I had. All the tools on the site were a great help. I especially liked the videos.”
- “I liked the videos and that how to solve the problems was explained step-by-step.”
- “I have always had trouble with math, but I think older age and the way this course was taught really helped me. I wouldn’t change anything. The course works well just the way it is.”
- “I liked that I could rework the same problems over again regardless if I got them wrong or right.”
- “If I had another math class I needed to take, I’d like it to be in MyMath Lab. It really helped me.”
Conclusions
Odessa College has been using MyMathLab in its online Intermediate Algebra courses for six years, and in its on-ground Intermediate Algebra courses for three years. Over that time, the program has sustained a high level of student success. “After six years, I still have students saying that they couldn’t have passed the class without MyMathLab,” says Theresa Evans, mathematics instructor.
After the initial implementation of MyMathLab in Odessa’s developmental math sequence, students who advanced to College Algebra math complained that MyMathLab wasn’t being used in College Algebra. Today, those College Algebra classes that employ the program are consistently filled. “Students appreciate the immediate feedback,” says Evans. “They know immediately when they’ve correctly completed a homework problem. If they’ve done it incorrectly, they have all the support they need to learn how to do it correctly before they’ve repeated the wrong process over and over again.”
Faculty at Odessa are always looking for ways to further support their students. Since most developmental math students need help learning how to study, faculty have created and incorporated into MyMathLab weekly Study Plan discussion boards specifically related to study skills. There are a total of 15 topics, including how to take a test, learning styles, test anxiety, and how to take notes.
Future plans include exploring the use of MyMathTest to identify and support students who place at a developmental level, but simply need a brushup. The proposed three- to six-week courses would be a faster, less expensive way for students to learn the material, retest, and advance in their college careers.
Odessa College
| Product Used: | MyMathLab |
| Course Name: | Intermediate Algebra |
| Credit Hours: | 3 |
"I wouldn’t use anything but MyMathLab. Period."
