Rodd, Melissa;
(2009)
Listening to Mathematics undergraduates: what are they telling us?
In: Mason, John and Houssart, Jenny, (eds.)
Listening Figures: listening to learners of mathematics at secondary school and above.
Trentham Books: Stoke-On-Trent, UK.
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Abstract
The learners referred to in this chapter were undergraduate mathematics students (18-22 year olds) during 2000-2003. We observed, spoke to and listened to them as part of the Students’ Experiences of Undergraduate Mathematics (SEUM) project. This was a longitudinal study1 of undergraduate mathematics students from two comparable English universities with good reputations for teaching and research. Data in the form of questionnaires, examination results, observations and over 100 interviews were collected and analysed by the research team. The main aim of the project was to understand better the reasons why students experience undergraduate mathematics programmes in different ways. At the start of the SEUM project, some of our research questions concerning students’ experience were worded in terms of seeking difference in attitude. For example, we were interested in how some students “maintain or develop more positive attitudes than others to the subject”. By the time the data collection was completed we were questioning the attitude construct as a useful tool. This was because expressions of attitude, like “I enjoy maths”, could be read in different ways. For example, taken at face value, it can be read as an automatic response, or beneath the surface, as a defensive self-protective response (Ruffell et al. 1998, who share our disquiet about studying attitudes to mathematics). They make the point that the construct attitude is more to do with the context, the questioner and the mood of the respondent than any ontologically prior disposition that can be extracted. Our interpretations, and our approaches to interpretation of what our undergraduates told us is the theme of this chapter.
| Type: | Book chapter |
|---|---|
| Title: | Listening to Mathematics undergraduates: what are they telling us? |
| ISBN: | 978-1-85856-449-4 |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Publisher version: | https://oro.open.ac.uk/22549/ |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author-accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| UCL classification: | UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10004293 |
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