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Marinos Anastasakis, Carol Robinson, Stephen Lerman
Loughborough University, United Kingdom
During the last 30 years there have been numerous discussions and studies regarding the possibilities offered by the new technologies/digital resources for the teaching and learning of mathematics. Universities have started providing a wide range of resources, from virtual learning environments (VLEs), to recorded lectures and mathematics specific software such as computer algebra systems (CAS). In addition, there have been developments in providing support to students through tutorials, printed material especially designed for engineers and more recently support centres (e.g. the Mathematics Learning Support Centres, MLSC). Moreover, students themselves are now exposed to a greater variety of digital/online resources which can hypothetically be used (or not) in combination with the resources provided by their institutions for supporting their mathematics learning.
However, there is limited literature exploring the kind of resources that students actually use and combine when studying mathematics, with previous studies focusing mostly either on one resource and/or on university-led resources.
This paper presents findings from investigations into the resources used by second year engineering students at Loughborough University. Loughborough has one of the largest cohorts of engineering students (over 3000 undergraduates) in the UK and is a leader in the provision of Mathematics Support. Loughborough University has also led on significant projects producing high quality printed material (e.g. the HELM project) and so students had much choice in available resources.
We will present initial findings from a survey in which students were asked about their conceptions of mathematics; the resources they use when studying mathematics and; the goals they set for their mathematics modules. The survey was completed by over 200 students studying mathematics in the first Semester 2015-16. This is part of a larger study which aims to identify what kind of resources undergraduates use and how these resources support their learning of mathematics.