SEI Director: Costanza Piccolo (current), Stephanie van Willigenburg (2009-10), Richard Froese (2008-09)
STLFs: Warren Code, Sandra Merchant (on leave), Joseph Lo, Katya Yurasovskaya, Paul Ottaway (emeritus)
Faculty: Currently involved: A. Chau, M. Doebeli, R. Froese, R. Gupta, F-S. Leung, P. Loewen, M. MacLean, A. Rechnitzer, G. Slade, M. Ward, B. Wetton. Involved in past projects: R. Anstee, L. Keshet, A. Peirce.
TA’s, Postdocs, & Lecturers: Currently involved: P. Bell, A. Herrera, V. Kapoor, R. Liang, M. Raggi, A. Zaman. Involved in the past: M. Berube, D. Karslidis, A. Lindsay, R. Schwarz, A. Raghoonundun (with Skylight support), G. de Oliveira, W. Thompson, M. Willoughby.
Starting in 2008, the UBC Mathematics Department is participating in the Carl Wieman Science Education Initiative (CWSEI) to improve undergraduate science education and has concentrated in two areas:
The first area is computing and computer labs in Math 152, Math 253 (Mech 222), Math 256 (Mech 221), Math 257, and Math 307, and more recently in Math 318. These courses have all recently introduced computing as an intrinsic part of the course. The Math CWSEI has helped in the creation of tutorials and lab materials, has assisted in integrating the computational component into the course material and developing testing methods, and has assessed the effectiveness of the computational component. To a lesser extent, the Math CWSEI was also involved in assessing the computer labs in Math 102 and 103.
The second area is support for the workshops and the basic skills test in Math 180/184, and more recently in Math 110. The Math CWSEI has helped with the implementation and the assessment of the workshop program, and assisted in the study of how well the basic skills test predicts success in these courses.
In 2010 the program has undergone a major expansion thanks to the generous donation by Prof. David Cheriton. The new projects have three main goals: improving course delivery and coordination of a large first-year Calculus course, Math 104/184; supporting the development of new applied courses, Math 305 and Math 360; tracking skill development and retention through the curriculum with a preliminary focus on mathematical proof and Math 220.The Math department SEI website has up-to-date details and status of the various projects.
