Brad Bailey
North Georgia College & State University

Karen Briggs
North Georgia College & State University

Thomas Cooper North Georgia College & State University

The Moore Method in PreCalculus

A year-long quasi-experimental study on the effects of the Moore method versus traditional teaching methods in PreCalculus, a freshman level course in mathematics, is being conducted at North Georgia College & State University. This effort includes the use of control and treatment classes asking the students in three sections to complete an Attitudes, Beliefs and Self-Efficacy survey twice a semester and an item-by-item analysis of the students’ responses to the questions on a common final exam. In the spring of 2010, Bailey and Cooper taught using traditional lecture based methods (the control group), while Briggs taught a section of PreCalculus using the Moore method.

The second semester of experimentation will take place during the fall of 2010; at which time, Briggs will teach the control group while Cooper and Bailey teach the treatment sections. Though only one of the two semesters this study will span has been completed , statistical analysis of the data gathered thus far has already produced intriguing results. The study itself will be described and statistically significant findings determined thus far will be outlined.