Integrating Algebra in a Pre-Calculus Subject: A Concrete Approach

Abstract

Engineering students find difficulties in learning the basics of pre-calculus due to prior weakness in Algebra resulting from the excessive use of calculators in solving algebraic problems. In this paper, we will attempt to make a correlation between teaching algebraic techniques as part of a pre-calculus course and the students’ learning and understanding of the different pre-calculus core concepts. The effectiveness of the proposed teaching methodology was tested on a random sample of 100 students in the faculty of Engineering at the American University of Sharjah in the UAE. The students in the hybrid pre-calculus mathematics course with 22 extra hours of algebraic lectures (experimental group) were compared to students that were traditionally lectured (control group). Both groups were assessed. The experimental group exhibited deeper learning of pre-calculus concepts and showed better overall performance compared with the control group who struggled to finish the questions that required core algebraic concepts.