A Trio of Courses to Support Mathematics Transfer Students’ Development of Professional Vision

Sarah A. Roberts; Hannali Pajela

doi:10.29333/ejmste/11728

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Sarah A. Roberts ¹ ^* , Hannali Pajela ¹

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¹ University of California, Santa Barbara, USA^* Corresponding Author

Abstract

This study explored the development of professional vision as related to transfer students becoming upper division, four-year mathematics students. We drew from qualitative focus groups with 21 participants at a four-year research university, who were enrolled in a trio of concurrent transitional mathematics courses. We examined the development of professional vision in three areas: engaging in proof and problem solving, being a member of a university mathematics community, and finding a future in mathematics. We found that students developed professional vision related to proof and problem solving, including experiences that were more abstract, more proof-based, and more problem solving-based. Development of community as part of the students’ professional vision was embedded throughout the cohort model, a noteworthy aspect of the trio of courses. Finally, students’ professional vision around finding a future in mathematics developed around future careers in mathematics, as well as students’ access to and knowledge of future career opportunities. Ultimately, diminished timelines exacerbated many of students’ struggles, as related to professional vision or otherwise.

Keywords

transfer students
professional vision
college mathematics
transitional mathematics courses

License

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Article Type: Research Article

EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed, Volume 18, Issue 3, March 2022, Article No: em2086

https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/11728

Publication date: 09 Feb 2022

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Article Downloads: 712

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Declaration of Conflict of Interest: No conflict of interest is declared by author(s).

Data sharing statement: Data supporting the findings and conclusions are available upon request from the corresponding author(s).

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How to cite this article

APA

Roberts, S. A., & Pajela, H. (2022). A Trio of Courses to Support Mathematics Transfer Students’ Development of Professional Vision. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 18(3), em2086. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/11728

Vancouver

Roberts SA, Pajela H. A Trio of Courses to Support Mathematics Transfer Students’ Development of Professional Vision. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2022;18(3):em2086. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/11728

AMA

Roberts SA, Pajela H. A Trio of Courses to Support Mathematics Transfer Students’ Development of Professional Vision. EURASIA J Math Sci Tech Ed. 2022;18(3), em2086. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/11728

Chicago

Roberts, Sarah A., and Hannali Pajela. "A Trio of Courses to Support Mathematics Transfer Students’ Development of Professional Vision". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education 2022 18 no. 3 (2022): em2086. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/11728

Harvard

Roberts, S. A., and Pajela, H. (2022). A Trio of Courses to Support Mathematics Transfer Students’ Development of Professional Vision. Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 18(3), em2086. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/11728

MLA

Roberts, Sarah A. et al. "A Trio of Courses to Support Mathematics Transfer Students’ Development of Professional Vision". Eurasia Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, vol. 18, no. 3, 2022, em2086. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/11728