Interactive Math for Introductory Algebra

Interactive Math for Introductory Algebra, 1/e

K. Elayn Martin-Gay

Published January, 1999 by Prentice Hall Engineering/Science/Mathematics

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Beginning Algebra-Mathematics

Summary

For Basic Math, Introductory Algebra, and Intermediate Algebra courses. Interactive Math is a new learning system for students that covers the full series of courses in developmental mathematics in an interactive, multimedia environment. A program complete with instruction, practice, applications, assessment, and a flexible course management system, Interactive Math enables instructors to focus their class time on teaching and working individually with students. This program supports a variety of learning styles—auditory, visual, and exploratory—with multimedia learning resources and a suite of interactive math tools. Students can choose their own path of learning while instructors can design a course according to their content choices and desired teaching. For instructors, the classroom management system allows for syllabus customization and student performance tracking.

Features

= Interactive Learning Environment and Instructional Model
Support for multiple learning styles—Interactive Math uses animation, video, audio, graphics, and math tools to support multiple learning styles. The instructional model includes:
Comprehensive Assessment—The testing component of Interactive Math provides a secure environment for on-screen testing and automatic grading of true/false and multiple-choice problems, as well as generated reports of student performance. It also generates problems algorithmically, and allows instructors to create customized tests, edit and add their own questions, and add open-ended questions that are available, but not assessed in the management system. Printed tests may be generated for traditional assessment purposes.
Multimedia Chapter Openers—10 Chapter Openers appear for each course. In each opener, a real-life thought-provoking situation is presented relating to the math within each chapter.

Helps students visualize a concept and motivates further exploration of the content within each chapter.

Objectives—Course objectives are comprehensive and linked numerically to objectives in the print supplement “Review Reference and Practice.”

= Key Elements of each Lesson/Objective
Introduction—A brief teaching statement—and visual representation.

Directs students' attention toward mastering a particular objective.

Read—Narrative text.

Addresses the needs of students who feel more comfortable reading about the concepts and skills before exploring or working problems.

Watch—Example problems are worked out clearly and completely by the author in a brief on-screen video.

Addresses the learning styles of visual learners who process material by watching and listening.

Explore—With each objective, a student is given the option to explore before practicing or applying their skills. Students use tools to explore concepts.

Offers students the most interactive learning experience because they can master the skills and learn the concept through discovery.

Practice Problems and Exercises—With both Practice Problems and Exercises, students are able to work through an example step-by-step and view the complete worked-out solutions. The Practice problems are not tracked or graded. When students move on to Exercises, proficiency and progress are scored and saved within the classroom management system.

Enables students to warm-up their problem-solving skills by working problems similar to those demonstrated in the Read, Watch, and Explore sections.

Key Concept Activities—These applications-based activities provide a cumulative approach to chapter concepts.

Activities allow students to engage in active learning and guided discovery as they use their algebraic thinking skills to solve a series of tasks in a real-life context. Students then report their results on-screen and submit to instructor.

Real World Activities—Often open-ended, these questions use actual and up-to-date sourced data and provide activities for those students who have Web access as well as non-Web-based activities.

Enables students to apply what they have learned in short activities within a real-life context.

Open Environment—Open work space.

Allows students and instructors access to all of the math tools for demonstrations by instructors and students.

Math Tools—A set of fully functional math tools woven into all aspects of instruction.

Enables students—at any time—to link to the tools for algebra, geometry, data analysis, manipulatives, and graphing to better visualize and further explore math concepts.
= Course Management

Customizable syllabus—Interactive Mathematics is developed with a standard syllabus. Instructors are able to customize this syllabus by choosing which concepts students will learn and the order in which they are delivered. Tests or quizzes can be placed on the syllabus at the instructor's discretion, and instructors can view and print reports of a student's performance on exercises, quizzes and tests.

= Flexible Delivery Options
Via the Internet, LAN, or CD-ROM.

Allows students to work at home or at other locations away from the college math lab.