CASE-BASED TEACHER ASSISTANT SOFTWARE FOR PRE-COLLEGE MATHEMATICAL INSTRUCTION USING A SUBJECT-INTEGRATED APPROACH

CURRENT EDUCATION METHODS FAIL BECAUSE THEY DON'T TEACH CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS NOR MAINTAIN STUDENT INTEREST. STUDENTS QUICKLY BECOME BORED WHEN A SUBJECT-PARTICULARLY MATHEMATICS-IS INTRODUCED AS A STANDALONE COLLECTION OF CONCEPTS. YET IT IS ONLY IN RARE INSTANCES THAT TEACHERS HAVE THE TIME OR THE ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT NECESSARY TO DEVELOP AN INTEGRATED CURRICULUM-AN EDUCATIONAL METHOD WHICH ADDRESSES BOTH PROBLEMS. TEACHERS CAN BE TRAINED TO INTEGRATE MATHEMATICAL CONCEPTS INTO THE CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL CONTEXTS IN WHICH THEY DEVELOPED AND TO INCORPORATE MATERIALS UNIQUE TO HIM OR HER AND TO A SPECIFIC SITE. A TEACHER ASSISTANT SOFTWARE DESIGN THAT USES CONCEPTS AND THEIR CONTEXTS (CASES) FOR CASE-BASED REASONING (CBR) IS NEEDED. A TEACHING TOOL THAT WILL SHOW TEACHERS HOW TO LINK MATHEMATICAL, SCIENTIFIC, AND HUMANITIES CONCEPTS IN A DYNAMIC CBR STRUCTURE IS BEING DESIGNED. A PROTOTYPE IS BEING DEVELOPED THAT WILL ILLUSTRATE THE TOOL'S EFFECTIVENESS AND ACCESSIBILITY ON THE INTERNET. CBR CAN TRAIN TEACHERS TO USE A POWERFUL, INNOVATIVE PEDAGOGICAL METHODOLOGY. ONCE THE TOOL HAS BEEN DEVELOPED, IT CAN BE REDIRECTED TO ANY GRADE LEVEL OR TRAINING MATERIAL.