The SCHOL Project in the University of Maryland Mathematics Department The Sophomore Software Gateway

Difficulties Deploying a CAS in Freshman Calculus Late 80s, early 90s Unsophisticated students Unsophisticated faculty Impossible logistics Inadequate infrastructure

A Successful Deployment in Sophomore ODE Fewer and more sophisticated students Course material is better suited Ability to modernize the curriculum (more numerical and graphical analysis; less formula solution searching; more interpretation, more realistic problems) More enthusiastic faculty

The Sophomore Software Gateway Expand the effort to the other sophomore courses: linear algebra and multivariable calculus Enables faculty teaching upper level courses to assume all students are literate in CAS The other two courses have same advantages as ODE course

Our Sixteen Year Experience Described in Detail At the invitation of Larry Shampine, our experience over the years with CAS at Maryland is described in a special article in the Journal of Numerical Analysis, Industrial and Applied Mathematics Click on Issues 1-2 of Volume 3http://

Goals Modernize and enhance the curriculum Improve teaching Engage and energize our students Provide a highly useful career tool

Modus Operandi Students are expected, within first week of class, to get to a novice level in the software (primers, tutorials provided) The software is integrated throughout the entire course Computer work is done outside of class; assignments are submitted and graded both online and offline

Modus Operandi (cont) Software materials are incorporated into the exams (no programming though) The emphasis is on interpretation and analysis, less so on computation

Benefits More modern, realistic and effective course curriculum Encourages same in higher level courses Computerized our faculty Motivated our students to work harder Equips students with knowledge of one or more CAS’s that they might use in work or education

Pitfalls Must have support of department administrators and leaders “Extra work” for faculty Logistics and infrastructure Software versions; choice of software

Recommendations Introduce CAS’s into your curriculum; calculus of you can do it; higher level if you cannot Use materials available rather than writing your own Don’t work individually, establish a team Lobby your sister departments so that they understand and support what you are doing