Abstract
In 2010 the Irish second level mathematics curriculum underwent a period of significant change when a new mathematics curriculum was introduced. Some preliminary research has been carried out into the impact, if any, that this mathematics curriculum is having on students mathematics performance which have suggested that students’ procedural skills are declining year on year however their problem solving skills may have improved (Treacy and Faulkner 2015). Additional research in this area also highlighted that students willingness to engage in problem solving activities may have improved (Prendergast et al 2017). However preliminary analysis on the impact of the reformed mathematics curriculum, if any, on students’ performance in higher education noted that further research was needed in this area to definitively establish what is happening. This research therefore aims to explicitly determine whether the procedural and problem solving skills of beginning undergraduates are changing over time as a result of the reformed mathematics curriculum introduced in second level education. A paper based diagnostic test designed and developed is used in an attempt to determine this. This paper will detail the piloting of this diagnostic test with a group of higher education students in the Irish context.
Highlights
The last decade has seen significant changes to mathematics education at second level in Ireland with the introduction of a new mathematics curriculum entitled ‘Project Maths’ (PM) being rolled out on a phased basis since 2010 (Prendergast et al, 2017)
In addition longitudinal research published which detailed that Irish second level students’ performance in basic mathematical skills on entry to third level education was in steady decline since 1998 contributed to the need for change in second level mathematics (Faulkner et al, 2010; Gill et al, 2010; Faulkner et al, 2014)
Students mean performance in each section of the diagnostic test were examined and results found that the entire group performed statistically significantly better in the section A (x= 57.2), the procedural section, when compared to section B, the problem solving section, of the test (x= 32.3) (p
Summary
The last decade has seen significant changes to mathematics education at second level in Ireland with the introduction of a new mathematics curriculum entitled ‘Project Maths’ (PM) being rolled out on a phased basis since 2010 (Prendergast et al, 2017). This change to mathematics education in Ireland was brought about with the intention of engaging students with problem solving activities which would elicit real understanding of mathematical content and promote engagement with the mathematical content being addressed in the classroom. The tool that was used to measure problem solving skills over time within this research was not extensive enough to make a stronger claim that that
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