Towards a Complete Reform Math Curriculum: an Updated New Life Model

After being active for about 3 years, the New Life model is maturing.  This post will describe the changes to the model that are evolving, and show the updated graphic.

The model has always focused on two developmental math courses to replace the current 3 or 4.  The first New Life course (MLCS) has been well received in the profession as shown by a number of pilots, some books in development, and sessions at the AMATYC conference this year.  However, the second New Life course suffered from a less-clear vision and purpose; in our discussions, we discovered part of this was the name we used … “Transitions” did not communicate much (it was short for “Transitions to College Mathematics”).  After some discussion, we are switching to the new name “Algebraic Literacy” for the second course; this name provides a parallel structure to the first, and suggests that the primary content is algebra (true).  Like any course name, Algebraic Literacy does not tell the entire story; however, we are confident that the new name will work better.

A second problem with that course, the part of the model connecting MLCS with college algebra and courses at that level, is that we did not make it clear that our course would be appropriate for both STEM and non-STEM students.  Our learning outcomes for this course have always included ‘STEM-boosting’ outcomes to indicate preparation for pre-calculus; we are emphasizing that more.  In addition, the visual for the model (below) now shows better connections to college mathematics.

The sequence in our model (MLCS to some college math, MLCS to Algebraic Literacy) originally did not emphasize that students could place directly in to Algebraic Literacy.  This access issue is critical … a basic premise of our work is that we need to create shorter paths; we always intended to have the direct placement option into Algebraic Literacy.  Unfortunately, this was not stated in the visual aid nor stated in most documents about the model.

The other issue we are adjusting for is the need for change in traditional college level mathematics — college algebra in particular.  The Algebraic Literacy course creates the same types of reasoning that a reformed college algebra course would seek to build upon; this is one of the strengths of the New Life model.  The new visual includes a new path specifically for reform college algebra.

Here is the updated visual:

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