Courtesy of Shannon Covert
Rachel McClurg
Managing Editor
The goal of the new math classes is to help the students succeed at a faster and more efficient rate. For the most part, this is definitely the case. According to graphs provided by Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Associate Dean Shannon Covert, the redesign has increased the students success rate by an average of 18 percent. Prior to the redesign, Butler wanted to make passing math classes more of a reality for students that would normally struggle.
“The ultimate goal of the math redesign was to increase the number of students who earn a degree,” Professor of Math Bethany Chandler said. “Students see math as a stumbling block or obstacle on their college journey, and we wanted to change that.”
Though through the professors’ eyes, the math redesign is a positive change, some students that struggle with math feel that this is not helpful.
“In my case, there was a part that I struggled with, and I failed,” a student who wishes to remain anonymous said. “Now I’m behind a semester for one five week portion, so it’s just kind of frustrating with that part.”
Overall, the students’ impressions and opinions on the math redesign have been all over the place. According to the professors, most of the students seem to enjoy this change.
“Students reactions have been mixed,” Chandler said. “From my experience, the majority have been positive. Of course, some students were new to Butler and didn’t really know there was anything different.”
Even students that are taking a five week math class for the first time this semester have a negative mindset already because of the negative aspects they have heard about it.
“I’ve heard all negatives,” freshman Mallory Girton said. “Why should an instructor be getting paid to give us materials, but then expect us to teach ourselves? I already struggle with math.”
Despite the problems that some students are having with the redesign, the professors are doing what they can to figure out what they can improve upon.
“We listen to all students’ concerns and comments and try to learn from them and truly investigate if there is something we can do better,” Chandler said.
There are some students that have taken math prior to the redesign, and they prefer how the math classes were taught prior.
“The advantages to those were if I bombed a test, I had time to get my grade back up,” an anonymous student said. “I wasn’t hosed. I had time to work hard. I might not have pulled out an ‘A’ with the whole class, but I had time to build my grade back up.”
As far as being able to tell whether or not the student will do well or enjoy the new redesign, there is not a way of knowing exactly. For the students taking the new math classes as a whole, they are succeeding at greater rate than before and in a shorter amount of time.
