Our 2021 Workshop was held at The University of Queensland

THURSDAY
Session 1 – Maths during COVID
Leanne Rylands
Mathematics Education Support Hub, Centre for Research in Mathematics and Data
Science, Western Sydney University
Online assessment: Cheating and collusion in mathematics and beyond
The move to online assessment opened up a whole new world of misconduct to many of us. We don’t know
who is doing tests and quizzes, students can sit with friends and do together tests which should be individual
work or communicate via other means during tests, students have invited tutors to sit with them in tests and
misconduct cases ran for months. In some subjects where staff moved to unsupervised assessments, average
grades were significantly higher. This was the experience of some in my school in 2020, but problems
appeared beyond mathematics, statistics and computing. The presentation will include experiences of
academics at Western Sydney University including a few who ran oral exams, some responses from
management and why many staff are not happy.

Stuart Johnson
University of Adelaide
Deterrence and detection of cheating with randomised exam questions
One of the key strategies employed in first year mathematics at the University of Adelaide to both deter and
detect cheating is through the use of randomised questions.
I will present some examples and demonstrate some of the practical techniques of question design that we
have found useful in our efforts to reduce opportunities for collusion, and to successfully prosecute cases of
contract cheating.

Discussion
• What do we do if exams stay online? How do we change assessment so that we examine what we need
to and not be driven by avoiding cheating?
• How do we write good questions that test understanding in an online environment? How do we
scaffold those changes during the subject so that students know what to expect?
• Does our assessment paradigm need to change? Could we envisage a world where maths subjects
didn’t have a high stakes end of semester exam?
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Session 2 – Maths learning support during COVID
Lyn Armstrong(a), Leanne Rylands(a,b), Jim Pettigrew(a), Don Shearman(a), Adelle Colbourn(a), Gizem Intepe(a),
Susan McGlynn(a)
aMathematics Education Support Hub, Western Sydney University
bCentre for Research in Mathematics and Data Science, Western Sydney University
Moving a mathematics and statistics refresher program online
Teaching at many universities across Australia moved to fully online delivery due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Mathematics Education Support Hub at Western Sydney University traditionally delivered a three-week
face-to-face mathematics and statistics refresher program for commencing students, covering Algebra,
Trigonometry, Calculus and Statistics. At the beginning of 2021, this program was delivered fully online.
This presentation outlines the process taken to convert the refresher program to a fully online offering. The
desire to include activities that mirrored the benefits of face-to-face presentations was uppermost in our
thinking, as was maintaining tailored opportunities for students about to undertake different courses. At the
same time, we wanted to take advantage of the online environment to enhance the program. The methodology
used included a video and text presentation for each concept plus Numbas-based ‘Practise your skills’
exercises for engagement. Analysis of data collected and a discussion of how to evaluate many new data
opportunities will be examined.
Don Shearman(a), Claire Mullen(b), Jim Pettigrew(a), Anthony Cronin(b), Leanne Rylands(a,c)
aMathematics Education Support Hub, Western Sydney University
bSchool of Mathematics and Statistics, University College Dublin
cCentre for Research in Mathematics and Data Science, Western Sydney University
Mathematics and Statistics Support – Proceeding Past Pandemic Panic
The COVID-19 pandemic forced mathematics and statistics support (MSS) centres to undergo drastic changes
in a very short period. Most notable amongst these was a change from the comfort of a face-to-face, in-person
centre to online support, which created a multitude of issues.
To better understand the effects of these changes, we interviewed tutors and students from two institutions at
opposite sides of the world – Western Sydney University in Sydney, Australia and University College Dublin
in Dublin, Ireland. Interviewees comprised seven students and four tutors in Australia, and six students and
six tutors in Ireland. The transcripts of these interviews were analysed using thematic analysis resulting in five
major themes: usage of online MSS; mathematics is different; pedagogical changes; social interactions; and
the future of online MSS.
In this presentation we discuss these themes and how they might shape the provision of MSS in the future.

Deborah Jackson
La Trobe Uni
What are the implications and effects of delivering mathematics support solely online?
The challenges of teaching online during Covid restrictions has impacted both students and tutors, and the
important role of mathematics support has been heightened at this time. This presentation is a reflection, to
promote discussion, on the trials and tribulations, the agony and the ecstasy, of maintaining mathematics
support solely online at our university, how that has evolved, and how that has impacted students.
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R. Nazim Khan
The University of Western Australia
Importance of Mathematics and Statistics in Engineering
Mathematics is traditionally considered necessary for engineering courses. Over the last three decades the
mathematics requirements for entry into engineering programmes has steadily weakened in Australia. Further,
the mathematics component of engineering programmes has progressively decreased. This research aims to
investigate the following two questions. Firstly, is mathematics a barrier for students to complete an
engineering programme? And secondly, is performance in mathematics associated with performance in
engineering?
We investigated the significant factors associated with weighted average mark (WAM) and the completion
status of engineering studies at both an undergraduate level and a Masters level. Of particular interest was
student mathematical background.
Furthermore, a survey of students in enrolled in engineering at the University of Western Australia was
conducted to obtain more in depth views of student attitudes and perceptions towards how mathematics and
statistics has affected their engineering studies. Binary logistic models were fitted to the survey data.
Additionally, focus group interviews was conducted to gain insight on student perspectives of how effective
mathematics is taught in their courses. The results are discussed in relation to the importance of mathematics
and statistics for the engineering curriculum.
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Sam Kault
The University of Queensland
Competency tests in MATH1051
MATH1051 – Calculus & Linear Algebra 1 – typically has a high failure rate, especially in summer semester.
Extra resources are offered to students in this course, but these are under-utilised by those who really need
them. Over the past two summers, I've experimented with a system of "Competency Tests." Under this
arrangement, students were set clear expectations about the precise skills they need to pass the course, but
were given the chance to try again if they fell short. Detailed feedback was given after each attempt, in time
to revise for the next. This system saw increased engagement by poor-performing students, and a higher
overall pass rate. In this talk, I reflect on my experience with competency tests, and discuss their pros and
cons.

FRIDAY
Dr Rosie Cameron, University of Canterbury | Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha
Improving self-efficacy through collaborative problem-solving workshops
Many students are arriving at university and entering STEM degrees with low mathematics self-efficacy and
a dislike of mathematics. However the belief that “I’m not a maths person” is often built on the assumption
that mathematics only consists of increasingly complicated arithmetic and a series of rules to be followed.
This talk will outline a teaching and learning activity introduced to MATH101 (a mathematics course with no
prerequisites that prepares students for tertiary-level mathematics). The activity introduces an interesting
mathematical problem or theorem in a collaborative, problem-solving workshop. The topics covered by these
workshops are unrelated to the course content, but the activity allows for a low-floor, high-ceiling exploration
of new mathematical ideas and applications. I will discuss the rationale for including these workshops in the
course and provide examples of the content. I will also reflect on the impact of these workshops on students.
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Peter K. Kennedy, Wol Pidriz, Christopher O’Connor
RMIT University
Transitioning PDF files to Accessible HTML files via TeX and the Tufte Format
Our team was tasked to create new maths modules to provide students, predominantly first year and VE
students studying Associate degrees, with the necessary background material they require to master the
material they are being taught. The university already had a significant investment in pdf resources on its
“Learning Lab”.
The university has realised students use their phones to view lecture notes and other learning materials. RMIT
University also has a commitment to accessibility and new resources must support screen readers for visually
impaired students.
Against this background, we decided to employ the Tufte design, which we think has pedagogical value. The
Tufte design is marked by its use of information, such as text, figures and mathematical content in the right-
side margin. We also opted for a HTML format and use of MathML to support screen readers.
Our presentation describes the transition from existing pdf files to a TeX based system that incorporates the
Tufte format and creates an accessible HTML file that meets our student’s needs.
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George Papadopoulos
The University of Sydney
In recent studies, academics at the University of Sydney presented both quantitative and qualitative evidence
supporting the claim that students undertaking undergraduate mathematics units of study achieve superior
learning outcomes and personal satisfaction by completing units at summer school rather than during term-
time. This follow-up study presents the results of a qualitative analysis of a subset of the same group of
students that attended a face-to-face interview, which corroborates with previously observed qualitative
responses collected from online surveys. We continue the previous work by interviewing 34 students that
undertook undergraduate mathematics units of study at the Sydney Summer School at the University of
Sydney within the period 2009 to 2016. An initial phenomenography-type categorisation is performed upon
the interview transcripts, producing catalogues of both positive and negative factors that influence student
learning experiences and outcomes between the two delivery modes. We present a novel methodology of6
deploying word clouds as analytical tools, rather than merely decorative pieces (as their reputation may tend
to suggest). We produce a series of category clouds, which capture the essences of the students’ experiences,
before finally discussing the degrees of ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ sentiments voiced by the students during the
interviews.
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Merrilyn Goos
University of the Sunshine Coast
How to move from “this is what I did in my classroom” to high quality, publishable research.
The OLT is gone......where can I get funding from?
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Carlos Ponce Campuzano
The University of Queensland
GeoGebra classroom to foster active participation in online mathematics tutorials
The increase of online teaching due to the Covid-19 pandemic has been raising significant challenges for the
higher education community worldwide. A particular challenge has been to foster active participation in live
tutorial sessions which is fundamental to retaining student engagement. In this context, a combination of
different digital technologies can be used to make the online experience more engaging. In this session I will
demonstrate how to create and use a virtual mathematics class in GeoGebra Classroom which is a virtual
platform where teachers/tutors can assign interactive and engaging tasks for students, view live updated
progress of students working on a specific task, facilitate rich, interactive discussions among all students,
groups of students, and individual students.
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Michael Donovan Jo-ann Larkins
Macquarie University Federation University
Indigenising Tertiary Mathematics? Love and Pedagogy
Following the recommendations of the 2012 Behrendt Review, the Universities Australia Indigenous Strategy
2017-2020 commits Universities to working towards indigenising the higher education curriculum. Little
progress has been made in tertiary mathematics to date, however. Mathematics academics often express
bewilderment as to where to even start this important work. Is this because western education has reinforced
a belief that Aboriginal people have no concept of higher mathematics?
“Rather than trying to bring out the culture in maths, we need to bring out the maths in culture” (8 ways). We
need to uncover connections between tertiary mathematics and indigenous culture. Our presentation invites
you to a national and international two-day symposium to be held September 20-21, 2021, addressing this
pressing challenge of how to Indigenise mathematical practice at universities, both in education and research.
We welcome you to a collaboration and sharing of knowledge and worldviews from both Indigenous cultures
and the cultures of mathematics and its allied disciplines.
The symposium is structured around interconnecting themes, each chaired by a partnership of Indigenous and
non-Indigenous practitioners. These themes include: Indigenous Mathematics, Re-imagining the living
present, Traditional Knowledge, Country, Language and Oral Traditions, and Love and Pedagogy. Michael7
Donovan of the Gumbaynggir people, Macquarie University and Jo-ann Larkins of Federation University are
leading the exploration of love and pedagogy.
‘Love and Pedagogy’ is a developing understanding in some curriculum areas. Paolo Freire argues to empower
disempowered populations love is a pedagogical standard that should be evident in your process. For
Australian Indigenous peoples, invasion and colonisation has restricted the Indigenous identity to a diminished
presence across Australian classrooms from school through to higher education. We examine our
understandings of why ‘Love and Pedagogy’ should be considered in maths and why the valuing of the
individual student should have a significant position in content and practice. Yunkaporta 8-Ways of Aboriginal
Learning have been used to build Indigenous considerations into this collaborative understanding between
Indigenous and non-Indigenous academics in exploring this pedagogical process.
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Louise Manitzky
The University of Queensland
Desmos activities for online tutorials
One challenge with online mathematics tutorials is the inability to observe student progress as they work
through an activity or worksheet and provide feedback or redirection as required. Desmos activities can be
used to overcome this challenge. Desmos activities are interactive and allow a range of question and answer
types including graph sketching and equation input. They include a teacher dashboard which can be used to
view student responses and provide them with direct individual feedback. In this presentation I will discuss
my experiences with building and using Desmos activities for online mathematics tutorials.
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Sara Herke
The University of Queensland
ACDS Resource Repository
In 2020, the Australian Council of Deans of Science (ACDS) kick-started a project called the ACDS Resource
Repository. This project encourages the sharing high-quality resources that support online learning. The
ACDS Resource Repository site is now available online and is open for new submissions. In this talk, I will
give a progress update on the project, from my perspective as the mathematics discipline leader, and explain the submission and evaluation processes.