Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
INTRODUCTION
The third component of the OSA contains questions for the Mathematics core. The first
questions ask the participants about how they fulfilled their Mathematics core requirement.
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
Page 1 of 1
Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
The following table shows the number and percentage of participants who selected each
response to the first question regarding where students took their core curriculum course. The
number of participants selecting each response adds up to more than the 1,578 total
participants because participants were instructed to select all that apply.
How did you complete your core curriculum requirement in Mathematics?
Response
n
% of Sample
I took at least one mathematics or logic core curriculum
242
15.3%
class through dual credit in high school.
I took at least one advanced placement mathematics core
219
13.9%
curriculum class in high school.
I took at least one CLEP exam for mathematics core
44
2.8%
curriculum credit.
I received transfer core curriculum mathematics credit
720
45.6%
for at least one class that I took at another institution.
I took all my core curriculum classes in mathematics or
838
53.1%
logic at Tech.
For the analysis in this report the 1,578 participants will be divided into the “TTU” group and
the “ELSE” group. The TTU group represents the 838 participants (53.1% of the sample) who
selected “I took all my core curriculum classes in mathematics or logic at Tech.” The
participants who selected one or more of the other responses were asked if the class they took
outside of Tech counted for their core curriculum credit. The ELSE group will represent the 684
participants (43.3% of the sample) who reported that a class taken outside of Tech did count for
their Mathematics core curriculum credit. These 684 participants were asked which course
counted. The following table shows the number and percentage of the sample who selected
each response.
Which one?
Response
A dual credit class.
An advanced placement class.
A CLEP exam.
A class I took at another institution.
I don't know.
Total
n
118
76
12
463
15
684
% of Sample
7.5%
4.8%
0.8%
29.3%
1.0%
43.3%
56 participants (3.5% of the sample) reported that they did not know if a course taken outside
of Tech counted for their Mathematics core curriculum credit. These 56 participants will be
excluded from any TTU vs. ELSE group analyses.
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
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Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
The system stores data for the participants which makes it possible to identify the respondents
who major in programs related to the Mathematics core. The following majors were identified
and classified as Mathematics majors: Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer
Engineering, Computer Science, Construction Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electrical
Engineering and Computer Science, Engineering Technology, Environmental Engineering,
Foundational Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering,
Petroleum Engineering, Physics, and Pre-Engineering. The following table shows that there
were a total of 264 Mathematics majors in the OSA sample. It also displays how many
participants were in each of the Mathematics majors.
Mathematics Majors
Major
n
Chemical Engineering
21
Civil Engineering
23
Computer Engineering
5
Computer Science
12
Construction Engineering
8
Electrical Engineering
23
Electrical Engr. Computer Science
77
Engineering Technology
1
Environmental Engineering
6
Foundational Engineering
41
Industrial Engineering
4
Mathematics
5
Mechanical Engineering
15
Petroleum Engineering
6
Physics
16
Pre-Engineering
1
Total
264
% of sample
1.3%
1.5%
0.3%
0.8%
0.5%
1.5%
4.9%
0.1%
0.4%
2.6%
0.3%
0.3%
1.0%
0.4%
1.0%
0.1%
16.7%
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
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Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
RESULTS
The student learning outcomes for Mathematics are:




Apply arithmetic, algebra, geometry and statistics to solve problems.
Represent and evaluate basic mathematical information numerically, graphically,
and symbolically.
Use mathematical and logical reasoning to evaluate the validity of an argument.
Interpret mathematical models such as formulas, graphs, tables and schematics, and
draw inference from them.
The Mathematics section of the OSA contains five knowledge questions. The first learning
outcome aligns with the third and fourth questions. The second learning outcome aligns with
the first and second question. The third and fourth learning outcomes align with the fifth
question. A screenshot and summary of responses for each question is shown on the following
pages.
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
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Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
Mathematics Question 1:
The chart below shows the distributions of answers to the first question for participants who
took their Mathematics course at TTU (red) and participants who took their Mathematics
course elsewhere (blue). Answer 3 is the correct choice. It can be seen that approximately half
of both groups chose the correct answer. Overall, a few more people in the ELSE group chose
the correct answer as compared to the TTU group (50.4% vs. 47.0%). This difference is not
statistically significant at the 0.05 level. This means that on average students who took their
Mathematics course elsewhere do not do better with this question than students who took
their Mathematics course at TTU. Since the first question aligns with the second learning
outcome, this suggests that on average students who took their Mathematics course at TTU
meet this learning outcome similar to students who took their course elsewhere.
decreased by about 16%.
increased by about 16%.
4.5%
4.1%
14.4%
13.2%
ELSE
50.4%
34.0%
almost tripled.
0.0%
TTU
47.0%
almost doubled.
32.3%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
100.0%
Percent of Sample
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
Page 5 of 5
Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
Mathematics Question 2:
The chart below shows the distributions of answers to the second question for participants who
took their Mathematics course at TTU (red) and participants who took their Mathematics
course elsewhere (blue). Answer 1 is the correct choice. It can be seen that a majority of
participants in both groups chose the correct answer, with a few in each group that chose other
answers. Overall, a few more people in the ELSE group chose the correct answer as compared
to the TTU group (71.5% vs. 66.5%). This difference is not statistically significant at the 0.05
level. This means that on average students who took their Mathematics course elsewhere do
not do better with this question than students who took their Mathematics course at TTU.
Since the second question aligns with the second learning outcome, this suggests that on
average students who took their Mathematics course at TTU meet this learning outcome similar
to students who took their course elsewhere.
66.5%
7/12
71.5%
3.1%
0.581
2.3%
TTU
16.6%
0.583
ELSE
15.5%
13.8%
29/50
10.7%
0.0%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
100.0%
Percent of Sample
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
Page 6 of 6
Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
Mathematics Question 3:
The chart below shows the distributions of answers to the third question for participants who
took their Mathematics course at TTU (red) and participants who took their Mathematics
course elsewhere (blue). Answer 1 is the correct choice. It can be seen that approximately half
of both groups chose the correct answer. Overall, a few more people in the ELSE group chose
the correct answer as compared to the TTU group (48.7% vs. 44.4%). This difference is not
statistically significant at the 0.05 level. This means that on average students who took their
Mathematics course elsewhere do not do better with this question than students who took
their Mathematics course at TTU. Since the third question aligns with the first learning
outcome, this suggests that on average students who took their Mathematics course at TTU
meet this learning outcome similar to students who took their course elsewhere.
44.4%
The local development planners' method.
48.7%
39.6%
The county electoral board's method.
Both methods predict the same final
population at the end of the 10-year cycle.
There is not enough information provided to
answer the question.
0.0%
39.0%
TTU
12.6%
ELSE
8.6%
3.3%
3.7%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
100.0%
Percent of Sample
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
Page 7 of 7
Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
Mathematics Question 4:
The chart below shows the distributions of answers to the fourth question for participants who
took their Mathematics course at TTU (red) and participants who took their Mathematics
course elsewhere (blue). Answer 1 is the correct choice. It can be seen that a large majority of
both groups chose the correct answer. Overall, more in the ELSE group chose the correct
answer as compared to the TTU group (82.3% vs. 77.0%). This difference is not statistically
significant at the 0.05 level. This means that on average students who took their Mathematics
course elsewhere do not do better with this question than students who took their
Mathematics course at TTU. Since the fourth question aligns with the first learning outcome,
this suggests that on average students who took their Mathematics course at TTU meet this
learning outcome similar to students who took their course elsewhere.
77.0%
The contract from studio A, because the total
contract is less expensive.
82.3%
16.0%
The contract from studio B, because the total
contract is less expensive.
12.0%
There is not enough information provided to
answer the question.
TTU
5.3%
Either contract, since the total contract is the
same for either studio.
ELSE
3.5%
1.8%
0.0%
2.2%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
100.0%
Percent of Sample
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
Page 8 of 8
Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
Mathematics Question 5:
The chart below shows the distributions of answers to the fifth question for participants who
took their Mathematics course at TTU (red) and participants who took their Mathematics
course elsewhere (blue). Answer 4 is the correct choice. It can be seen that less than half of
both groups chose the correct answer. Overall, more people in the ELSE group chose the
correct answer as compared to the TTU group (43.9% vs. 42.7%). This difference is not
statistically significant at the 0.05 level. This means that on average students who took their
Mathematics course elsewhere do not do better with this question than the students who took
their Mathematics course at TTU. Since the fifth question aligns with the third and fourth
learning outcomes, this suggests that on average students who took their Mathematics course
at TTU meet these learning outcomes similar to students who took their course elsewhere.
18.4%
17.1%
Females are less likely than males to buy the
magazine.
32.8%
33.6%
Males are less likely than female to buy the
magazine.
Males are more likely to buy the magazine.
ELSE
42.7%
43.9%
Females and males are equally likely to buy
the magazine.
0.0%
TTU
6.1%
5.4%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%
100.0%
Percent of Sample
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
Page 9 of 9
Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
Mathematics Average:
The table below compares the differences between TTU and ELSE when the results are
averaged (e.g., if a student got 4 out of the 5 questions correct, his score will be 4/5 = .80). The
mean is higher for students who took their core requirement for Mathematics elsewhere. This
difference is statistically significant at the 0.05 level. This means that on average students who
took their Mathematics course elsewhere do better with the Mathematics section of the OSA
than students who took their Mathematics course at TTU.
n
Mathematics
Overall
838
Core at TTU
Mean
SD
55.5%
29.1%
Core Elsewhere
n
Mean
SD
684
59.4%
28.6%
t-stat
p-value
-2.58
0.0050
The chart below shows the distributions of scores for participants who took their class for the
Mathematics core requirement at TTU (red) and participants who took their class for the
Mathematics core requirement elsewhere (blue). The distributions are similar, but it looks like
a few more participants in the ELSE group answered 4 or 5 out of 5 correct and that a few more
in the TTU group answered 1 or 2 out of 5 correct.
Mathematics Questions: TTU vs. ELSE
30.0%
24.9%
Percent of Sample
25.0%
21.8%21.5%
20.0%
5.0%
20.2%
16.5%
14.4%
15.9%
13.5%
15.0%
10.0%
21.7%
19.4%
TTU
6.0%
ELSE
4.2%
0.0%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Percent Correct
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
Page 10 of 10
Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
The table below shows a comparison of the average scores for the participants selecting each
course option within the ELSE group.
A dual credit class.
An advancement placement class.
A CLEP exam.
A class I took at another institution.
I don't know.
Total
n
118
76
12
463
15
684
Mean
60.3%
78.7%
61.7%
55.9%
62.7%
59.4%
SD
27.9%
22.5%
24.8%
28.6%
32.0%
28.6%
Based on the mean, students who took their Mathematics course through advanced placement
are the highest scoring group and students who took their course at another institution are the
lowest scoring group.
The following table shows a summary of the correlations between the percentage of
Mathematics questions answered correctly and the following variables of interest: gender, age,
SAT score, ACT score, transfer credit hours, total credit hours, cumulative GPA, Humanities
major, Mathematics major, Natural Sciences major, and Social and Behavioral Sciences major.
Gender
Age
SAT score
ACT score
Transfer hours
Total credit hours
Cumulative GPA
Humanities major
Mathematics major
Natural Sciences major
Social/Behavioral major
Correlation
-0.28
-0.05
0.47
0.46
-0.04
0.08
0.14
0.04
0.27
0.10
-0.17
p-value
<.0001
0.0674
<.0001
<.0001
0.1100
0.0011
<.0001
0.1497
<.0001
<.0001
<.0001
n
1,575
1,578
897
743
1,578
1,578
1,576
1,578
1,578
1,578
1,578
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
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Online Senior Assessment 2013: Mathematics
The following tables summarize the regression model using these same variables of interest
with Mathematics scores on the OSA as the outcome variable. Note that the variables SAT
score and ACT score were combined into one variable, SAT/ACT score, to include more students
in the one model. This variable was created by using a conversion table from the ACT website
to convert ACT scores to the SAT score range (see http://www.act.org/solutions/college-careerreadiness/compare-act-sat/).
Regression model predicting Mathematics score
n
F-value
p-value
R2
1,183
52.30
< .0001
0.3085
Variable
B
SE
β
Intercept
-0.4706
0.0963
Gender
-0.1166
0.0154
-0.20***
Age
0.0038
0.0028
0.04
SAT/ACT score
0.0007
0.0001
0.40***
Transfer credit hours
0.0003
0.0003
0.03
Total credit hours
0.0003
0.0004
0.02
Cumulative GPA
0.0454
0.0132
0.09***
Humanities major
0.0320
0.0345
0.02
Mathematics major
0.1021
0.0225
0.13***
Natural Sciences major
0.0585
0.0243
0.06*
Social and Behavioral Sciences major
-0.0163
0.0179
-0.02
Note: * p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01; *** p < 0.001; gender: 0 = male, 1 = female
The model overall is significant at the 0.05 level (R2 = 0.3085). For this model gender, SAT/ACT
score, cumulative GPA, Mathematics major, and Natural Sciences major were significant
predictors at the 0.05 level for Mathematics scores on the OSA. The model suggests that when
controlling for the other variables in the model male students, students with higher SAT/ACT
scores, students with higher GPA’s, students with a Mathematics related major, and students
with a Natural Sciences related major, on average, score higher on the Mathematics section of
the OSA.
Office of Planning and Assessment, Devin DuPree and Gail Alleyne Bayne, June 2013
Page 12 of 12