MAA 5/19: Opening Gateways through WeBWorK: Expanding the power of online homework to build engagement and support student learning

M

Venue: Mathematics Association of America (MAA)
Metro New York Section, 2019 Annual Meeting
New York City College of Technology, May 4, 2019

Presenters:  Andrew Parker, Marianna Bonanome, Ariane Masuda, Jonas Reitz

Abstract:  WeBWorK provides a powerful platform for online homework, freely available and open source.  At City Tech, more than a decade of experience with WeBWorK has provided many opportunities to experiment with existing features, explore new functionality, and develop new tools that extend the reach and scope of the WeBWorK system.  

In addition to developing high-quality problems and problem sets aligned with the curriculum, our work makes frequent use of customized feedback and error-recognition, providing guidance without giving away too much about the expected result.  Cutting edge features such as scaffolded problems provide ongoing support to students as they progress through multi-step solutions, and Just-In-Time problem sets adapt to student behavior, providing practice at the point of greatest need. Integration of GeoGebra, another open source mathematics platform, into WeBWorK problems provides a rich visual dimension to mathematical problem-solving.  Finally, the development of our WeBWorK leaderboards project brings the motivating principles of game-based learning to the WeBWorK platform, with exciting preliminary results.

Join us in this session as we share a multitude of examples as well as lessons learned and best practices for WeBWorK development.

By Jonas Reitz

Handy links: