Fundamental Mathematical Skill Development in Engineering Education

Anecdotally, many students are disadvantaged by gaps in their High School and early college Algebra, Trigonometry and Geometry. The authors piloted a project developing a platform in Canvas with modules presenting select topics, using both material at the High School level in the public domain, and new tutorial videos to cover the assumed background knowledge at the college level. Post- and pre-tests were administered to control groups and treatment groups to determine the efficacy of the offerings. Statistical analysis showed that the implementation of the platform as part of the course did not improve student performance in the targeted topics. However, a number of interesting results emerged from the study regarding surprising areas of weakness and general student responses to teaching methods.