Math 104.01, Spring 1999
Linear Algebra

Student Characteristics

Students in this section were asked to fill out an information form on which they provided (in addition to residential, postal, e-mail, and telephone coordinates) answers to questions about

• their projected majors/minors
• calculators they own and use
• whether they took calculus in a laboratory course
• their previous experience with various technologies
• their reasons for taking this particular course
• their goals for this course

The tables and paragraphs below summarize some of the answers. In general, total numbers of responses do not add up to the number of students (23) because all of the questions admit more than one answer -- or no answer.

Every student at Duke who starts calculus at the level of Calculus I is in the laboratory program. Less than one-third of the students in this section took calculus with a laboratory -- which means most of the others placed into Calculus II or III (or beyond) on entrance.

All but four of the students have used Windows computers, and a majority have used UNIX and/or Macintosh as well. On the other hand, over three-fourths have no computer algebra experience.

Reasons for taking this course and students' goals are reported together, because it was not always possible to tell which was which. At least 20 of the 23 students are satisfying a major or minor requirement, and most indicated that this was the primary reason for taking the course. Other student goals and reasons for course selection include

• understanding concepts,
• learning specific mathematical content and techniques,
• learning about applications,
• learning the language of science,
• learning to use a computer or specific software (e.g., Maple),
• laying a foundation for courses in other areas,
• enjoyment of mathematics,
• improving writing skills,
• improving study skills,
• improving on performance in a previous mathematics course,
• keeping up with the work, and
• achieving at a high level.

Last modified: January 21, 1999