No abstract

It has been recognised for some time by Science and Engineering departments that students are entering Higher Education ill-equipped in terms of their mathematical skills, despite having in many cases, attained good grades at Higher/A level (The Engineering Council 2000; Fry, Ketteridge & Marshall 1999; Score Education 2009). In an attempt, therefore, to ensure that all students progressing on to Chemistry degrees are equally prepared (in terms of ability and confidence) to attempt the more mathematical aspects of our courses, the School of Chemistry has over recent years been sequentially introducing   mathematics support into the curriculum.  As part of the School’s ongoing mathematical support provision, the aim of this project was two-fold:  1)    to assess the popularity and effectiveness of tailored maths support sessions and 2)    in relation to the teaching of mathematical concepts to science students, collate examples of existing appropriate open educational resources to provide additional support to facilitate student learning such as RSC Discover Maths for Chemistry and Math Centre (Royal Society of Chemistry; MathCentre 2016). A pilot project has been carried out during the academic year 2015-2016, where support sessions were delivered in tutorial format by the Maths Adviser. Although the sessions were open to all 3rd year students studying on chemistry degree programmes, the expectation was that they would mainly be attended by students with little formal mathematics training and those who are less confident about their abilities.  Keywords:  Chemistry, Mathematics, Student Support, Maths Support

The diverse range of backgrounds that students bring to university has many advantages, but also some challenges such as a wide range of mathematical experience and ability. A particular issue identified by staff teaching mathematics to the Science Fundamentals cohort was lack of engagement due to the material presented being too easy or too difficult, with the main concerns directed towards students who are weak at mathematics and others who lack some of the basic skills necessary for a successful undergraduate experience at Glasgow.Our experience from the Science Fundamentals course is that traditional lectures are a poor way to motivate the weaker students and the more collaborative models of teaching such as online and blended learning may be more appropriate. Following a two-year project, a suite of online resources was developed to supplement course material; students completed a ‘Mathematics Confidence Test’ to determine the level of support required and the number of mathematics lectures was cut down and replaced with tutorials aimed at the weaker students.We will discuss our experiences of running this project, reflect on feedback and discuss further plans for supporting the Science Fundamentals cohort in subsequent years.