Unlocking the Gate to Calculus Success: Pre-Calculus for Engineers - An Assertive Approach to Readying Underprepared Students

Abstract

In general, underrepresented engineering students who enter the college underprepared in mathematics lack the basic skills necessary to succeed in calculus. Numerous factors contribute to these issues, including high school mathematics instruction deficiencies such as the absence of qualified teacher resources, poor instruction, and low student interest in higher-level math. The Engineering GoldShirt Program at the College of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Colorado Boulder is piloting a well-supported new pre-calculus for engineers course in the college with the aim to adequately prepare these students for success in calculus, so as to not lose them at the gateway of the engineering education pathway.