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Impacts of co-curricular math and statistics modules on performance and self-efficacy in undergraduate geoscience courses

Session: Quantitative and Data Analysis Skills in Geoscience Education: Supporting Student, Course, and Program Outcomes, Part II

Presenting Author:

Rory McFadden

Authors:

McFadden, Rory R¹, Coe, Michael², Pratt-Sitaula, Beth³, Baer, Eric⁴

(1) SERC, Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota, USA, (2) Cedar Lake Research Group, Portland, OR, USA, (3) EarthScope Consortium, Centennial, CO, USA, (4) Highline College, Des Moines, WA, USA,

Abstract:

The Math Your Earth Science Majors Need (TMYN-Majors) co-curricular modules provide structured practice in applying quantitative methods to geoscience topics and address the wide range of quantitative skill levels among undergraduate geoscience students. Instructors implemented the modules in 31 undergraduate geoscience courses spanning a range of subdisciplines, reaching 500 students. To assess their impact, students completed pre- and post-tests assessing both math proficiency and self-efficacy for specific geoscience-related math applications at the start and end of the term.

Analysis shows significant gains in both math proficiency and math self-efficacy in geoscience contexts. On average, student math scores rose from 57% on the pre-test to 78% on the post-test. When students were divided into four groups based on baseline proficiency, all groups of students, regardless of their initial proficiency, improved their math scores from pre-test to post-test. To gauge changes in math self-efficacy, we used the Geoscience Math Self-Efficacy Scale to measure predicted performance (similar to confidence) on specific tasks related to 18 quantitative skills (e.g., vectors, linear regression). Consistent with improved math proficiency, students' self-efficacy increased from a mean of 5.8 to 6.6 from pre-test to post-test. The scale has strong internal reliability across the 18 items and good validity as a predictor of actual performance on math proficiency, underscoring its utility for assessment of undergraduate geoscience students.

Students with prior calculus and statistics coursework demonstrated higher initial pre-test scores in both performance and self-efficacy, but gains were observed across all groups. This parallel improvement in both math proficiency and self-efficacy highlights the modules' effectiveness and reinforces the role of task-specific self-efficacy as a predictor of academic performance.