Scholarships for Math Majors

The Scholarships for Transfers to Engage and Excel in Mathematics (STEEM) is an innovative program for community college transfer students sponsored by The Center for Science and Engineering Partnerships (CSEP) at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB).  The program will provide substantial intellectual, social networking, and financial support for community college mathematics majors transferring to University of California, Santa Barbara.  Official recruitment for Fall 2010 will begin in mid-March.  For further information starting in mid-March 2010, visit the UCSB Mathematics Department  http://math.ucsb.edu.

CCSSI for Math

The Common Core State Standards for Mathematics is a initiative designed to develop K-12 standards for all high school students and for students intending to pursue math-intensive disciplines.  These standards are intended to be adopted by individual states as the core of each state’s standards.  The Gates Foundation and others are funding groups to develop tests for assessing student attainment of these standards.  More information can be found at:

http://www.corestandards.org/Files/MathIntroduction.pdf

********** If more space is available, then . . .

A basis of the standards is the concept of mathematical proficiency that has five components, or strands:

• conceptual understanding—comprehension of mathematical concepts, operations, and relations
  

• procedural fluency—skill in carrying out procedures flexibly, accurately, efficiently, and appropriately
  

• strategic competence—ability to formulate, represent, and solve mathematical problems
  

•  adaptive reasoning—capacity for logical thought, reflection, explanation, and justification
  

• productive disposition—habitual inclination to see mathematics as sensible, useful, and worthwhile, coupled with a belief in diligence and one’s own efficacy.

In perhaps five years, we should be seeing students who have been through courses that have some of mathematical proficiency.  Perhaps our community college intermediate algebra requirement should aim at such proficiency as well.