RUME 26
2024
Omaha, Nebraska
Using Online Resources to Study Mathematics: Students’ Perspectives on Effectiveness and Ethics
Page: 1494
Students in undergraduate mathematics classes are using online resources to support their learning with increasing frequency (Author, 2019, 2020). The use of such online resources has not proven to be straightforward for students. Undergraduate students have well-documented difficulties locating, evaluating, and making use of information sources regardless of the topic area in question (Scott & O’Sullivan, 2005; Walraven, Brand-Gruwel, & Boshiuzen, 2008). These difficulties may vary depending on a student’s familiarity or comfort with the field (Brand-Gruwel, Wopereis, & Vermetten, 2005). Thus, it is important to develop subject-specific models of student information-seeking. This is particularly important for the field of mathematics due to the role that lower-division math classes have often played as a gatekeeper for entry into STEM majors (Martin, Gholson, & Leonard, 2010). This poster will present findings from a nationwide mixed method research project that has collected surveys from over 300 students across the country and follow-up semi-structured interviews with over 60 students intended to assess how students currently make use of online resources to support their learning in lower-division mathematics classes. We will report on how students describe the efficient and ethical use of online resources to study mathematics.