The lesson described combines mathematics, science, and literature, and is easily adaptable for use with classes in basic mathematics, geometry, analytic geometry, or calculus. (MP)

A decade after mathematicians began a crusade to make calculus more relevant to undergraduate students ("Reform Calculus"), a backlash threatens to derail the effort and divide the profession. Critics charge the movement has watered down mathematics courses, teaching only superficial use of skills. The debate is fierce and the stakes…

Investigates gender-related effects on the Western Australian Calculus Tertiary Entrance Examinations for the period 1995-2000, three years before and three years after graphics calculators were introduced. Considers students' total examination scores, scores on questions grouped by curriculum components, and students' use of graphics calculators…

Compared was the content of what is taught and what is tested in a high school calculus course. Results showed differences in content coverage across teachers and differences in the overlap between content taught and content tested. Methodological issues in the investigation of teacher grading practices are discussed. (CW)

Presented is an alternate way to derive R from Taylor's Theorem without involving the (n + 1)st derivative of f. Included is the procedure for estimating the bounds of R. (KR)

Presented are activities that help students understand the idea of a vector field. Included are definitions, flow lines, tangential and normal components along curves, flux and work, field conservation, and differential equations. (KR)

Discusses differences between computer-enhanced learning (CEL) and computer-aided learning (CAL), and describes a microcomputer-based graph-plotting program called Capgraph that was developed for use in a college calculus course. Results of a course evaluation are presented; student attitudes are described; and future considerations are discussed.…

Supersolids furnish an ideal introduction to the calculus topic of infinite series, and are useful for combining that topic with integration. Five examples of supersolids are presented, four requiring only a few basic properties of infinite series and one requiring a number of integration principles as well as infinite series. (MNS)

Presents a college calculus program based on the discovery method and the educational psychology literature used to develop it. Lists departmental, educational, and calculus reform goals, and describes characteristics of the program, including relaxed atmosphere, use of visualization, and supplemental teaching techniques. (13 references) (MKR)

Describes an experimental test conducted with high school students to determine the effect of posting explicit goal structures on problem-solving performance in an intelligent tutoring system for calculus. Related rates word problems are discussed, and student performance in terms of speed and accuracy is analyzed. (Contains 29 references.) (LRW)

Describes World Wide Web sites and hypertextbooks for interactive learning related to the following academic subjects: calculus, chemistry, medicine, astronomy, engineering, and literature. Provides examples of large Internet sites that act as clearinghouses for information on hypertextbooks. (AEF)

Discusses the use of the Calculus & Mathematica materials, presents an objective assessment of student performance based on a uniform final exam, presents a summary of student perceptions drawn from responses to survey questions, and gives an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the courseware. (19 references) (Author/MKR)

Demonstrates that the functions known as the witch of Agnesi and the normal distribution are not identical by comparing the areas under the curves and the slopes of the lines tangent to the curves of the two functions. Suggests follow-up activities to the investigation. (MDH)

A study compared the performance of two groups of university students. One group (n=40) was taught calculus using a computer algebra system whereas the other (n=41) used paper-and-pencil computations. The computer group scored significantly higher than their counterparts on both a conceptual knowledge test and a calculus computational exam. (JJK)

A study documented 10 college students' understanding of the limit concept and the factors affecting changes in that understanding. Encouragement by the researchers for the students to change their common informal models of limit to more formal conceptions were met with extreme resistance. (Author/JJK)