TY  - JOUR
ID  - usqep3181
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00207390500271677
IS  - 7
A1  - Loch, B. I.
A1  - Tonkes, E. J.
A1  - Stace, A. W.
N2  - MATLAB is a sophisticated software tool for numerical analysis and visualisation. The University of
Queensland has adopted Matlab as its official teaching package across large first year mathematics courses. In
the past, the package has met severe resistance from students who have not appreciated their computational
experience. Several main factors contribute: Firstly, the software is numerical rather than symbolic, providing
a departure from the thinking patterns presented in lectures and tutorials. Secondly, many students cannot see
a direct connection between the laboratory exercises and core course material from lectures. Thirdly, the
students find hurdles to entry as commands often return annoying error messages and don't execute, and
programs are difficult to write and debug. Overall, the details of the mathematics are lost in trying to negotiate
the software. After considerable effort in tuning, it appears that a sequence of innovations has captured
student support and added considerable value to both the computational and traditional learning process.
VL  - 36
TI  - An innovative learning model for computation in first year mathematics
AV  - public
EP  - 759
N1  - Deposited in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher.
This is a preprint of an article submitted for consideration in the International Journal of Mathematics Education in Science and Technology © 2005 [copyright Taylor & Francis]. The article is available online at: 
http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all?content=10.1080/00207390500271677
Y1  - 2005/10//
PB  - Taylor & Francis
JF  - International Journal of Mathematics Education in Science and Technology
KW  - Matlab
KW  -  first year mathematics education
KW  -  interactive workbook
KW  - higher education

SN  - 1464-5211
SP  - 751
ER  -