Slashdot Mirror
Wolfram Alpha Rekindles Campus Math Tool Debate
An anonymous reader sends in a story about how Wolfram Alpha is becoming the latest tool students are using to help with their schoolwork, and why some professors are worried it will interfere with the learning process. Quoting:
"The goal of WolframAlpha is to bring high-level mathematics to the masses, by letting users type in problems in plain English and delivering instant results. As a result, some professors say the service poses tough questions for their classroom policies. 'I think this is going to reignite a math war,' said Maria H. Andersen, a mathematics instructor at Muskegon Community College, referring to past debates over the role of graphing calculators in math education. 'Given that there are still pockets of instructors and departments in the US where graphing calculators are still not allowed, some instructors will likely react with resistance (i.e. we still don't change anything) or possibly even with the charge that using WA is cheating.'"
Just do what my school does and make assignments worth 10 - 15% and expect some noise. For a lot of professors, assignments are really only meant to keep the student up to date on the material. The students that rely on WolframAlpha will only end up screwing themselves over.
It's the Protestant Work Ethic that if it is easy (or easier to do) then it is somehow bad. Like all learning tools, this may be used for cheating, just like a butcher knife can be used to murder somebody. If I could have had feedback that was quick and easy when I was in school then I probably would have excelled at Mathematics instead of dropping it as soon as possible. Tools like this are great for people who can't afford tutors and who don't have family members who are educated enough to help them with their homework.
Math, I have heard it said, is the great (social/economic) equalizer, but experience has demonstrated that only people who are lucky enough to have exceptional teachers or middle class families will have the environment to excel. A well written software program cannot ignore you, no matter how poorly you are dressed or who your friends and enemies are.
Teachers who worry about cheating obviously don't have the skills to assess their students abilities.
It depends a lot on the nature of the class, so there's no one-size-fits-all answer for when tools like graphing calculators or WA should be allowed. In first year calculus, when you're learning how to integrate, a program that can do symbolic integration isn't an appropriate tool. On the other hand, for a first class in ODEs, the integration is the least essential part of the process and so the right tools make it easier to focus on whats really important. Yes, I know WA can solve diff eq's too, but that's just an example. Just requiring that work be shown isn't always sufficient, since it's an important skill in mathematics to understand how to get a solution, even when you can't immediately see what the solution is. So I don't think it's unreasonable for graphing calculators or things like Wolfram Alpha to be disallowed for certain classes. That being said, labelling it academic misconduct is pretty unreasonable. I look at it in the same as recommended homework problems: it's just a suggestion, but come exam time it's your funeral. Back to the first year calculus example, I remember the syllabus explicitly saying that all problem sets were to be completed independently and without computer aids. No one really did that, and the TAs didn't even try to enforce it. In university, formal evaluation carries most of the weight in grading. The people who just copied off of other people or the internet had a smooth ride until the first test.
Surely there must be ways to write a test for their students where they are not Internet enabled?
Let them mess up their learning process all they want if that's what they wish. :p It's a bit of a cliche, but it's really true -- "they're only fooling themselves".
Beware: In C++, your friends can see your privates!
For the people not in engineering/math/science, I don't see why they need to be deprived a calculator or similar for a calculus class. Either write problems that require the student to understand the material, or consider whether they even need calculus. I enjoyed learning it, but only a math professor has to know how to perform integration by parts by hand. If an introductory calculus course is all that is needed, concepts are more important than being able to perform the operations by hand. Business majors and the like just have to be able to see d$/dx, not freak out, and understand how to maximize $.
My webcomic
I'm a math prof. at a reasonably large school.
I teach plenty of calculus.
When I grade, I don't care about the answer. I look at the way the student solves the problem. If the setup is correct, the computations are reasonable, and the flow of the solution demonstrates that the student knows what she's doing, then I give it full credit even if the answer is wrong. I couldn't care less about careless errors (poor pun intended). I'm measuring the student's problem solving abilities, not her ability to do lots of tedious computations in a short amount of time (that's what computers are for). Likewise, if a student magically produces the correct answer without showing any work (or if the work is clearly B.S.) then I give them no credit. The answer is irrelevant, it's the process that matters.
I am completely unconcerned about Wolfram Alpha.
I also have a CS background, and I recognize that most CS related jobs don't require calculus. However, the whole point of taking calculus is to practice logical reasoning. A good calculus course will force you to solve lots of long complex problems, clearly express your reasoning, and maybe even do a bunch of delta-epsilon proofs. Unfortunately, many calculus courses end up being reduced to mundane computations of derivatives and integrals... those courses ARE a waste of time.
p.s. If you're a student who actually wants to learn a subject, then go to that "rate my professor" site and look for professors who are "clear" and "hard". Take those professors. You won't learn much from an easy professor, and three years after you graduate that easy "A" will be meaningless.