academic-catalog2010.. - LAU Publications - Lebanese American ...

Department of Computer Science and Mathematics
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (B.S.) IN
MATHEMATICS EDUCATION
Mission
The Mission of the Mathematics Education
Program is to prepare qualified and effective
Mathematics educators to teach at all school
levels, and to prepare students to pursue
graduate studies in the field. The Program
offers its graduates a strong foundation in the
liberal arts and provides them with the ability to
integrate educational theories in the teaching of
mathematics.
Educational Objectives
The Program provides students with a sound
foundation in mathematics, complemented with
the education theories and methodologies that
answer to the needs and recommendations of
the local, public, and private, schools in content
and philosophy.
Graduates of the Mathematics Education
Program at LAU will:
1. Acquire knowledge in the different areas of
both pure and applied mathematics.
2. Be able to apply mathematical methods to
science-related fields,as well as to real life
situations.
3. Gain an expertise in solving mathematical
problems and in using Information Technology,
primarily specialized mathematical software
for teaching and research purposes.
4. Be able to develop mathematics curricula
for schools and to plan academic units,
lesson plans, and activities for teaching
math at all school levels.
5. Be able to select, and implement
appropriate strategies for teaching specific
mathematical topics.
6. Be able to plan strategies and to prepare the
tools for assessing students’ achievement
in mathematics.
7. Be able to pursue professional development
opportunities and/or higher-level studies
in Math Education as lifelong learners.
8. Have contacts with school students, teachers,
and other professionals, through field
experiences that include practice teaching.
Learning Outcomes
Graduates of the Mathematics Education program
have the necessary skills and attitudes to enable
them to meet the challenges of their profession
with creativity, self-reliance, critical thinking and
responsibility.
Graduates of the program will:
1. Have a mathematical strength that
is grounded in the ability to reason
mathematically, both formally and
informally, and to solve challenging
problems by building and/or using
appropriate mathematical structures.
2. Have the skills to communicate effectively
and persuasively in their mathematical
thinking in both written and oral forms.
3. Have an appreciation for mathematical
rigor and inquiry.
4. Be able to encourage and guide the
development of mathematical communication
in their own (future) classrooms.
5. Recognize through their own experiences of
learning mathematics how they and others
have built and utilized the rich connections
among mathematical ideas. They will
emphasize in their own classrooms, with
peer students, the importance of building
a useful connected understanding.
6. Use various ways of representing
mathematical ideas including verbal,
graphical, numerical and symbolic to support
and deepen mathematical understandings.
7. Adopt technology as an essential tool
for thoughtfully teaching, learning and
understanding important mathematics.
8. Construct mathematical models to solve
practical and real life problems.
9. Develop the ability to think logically and
critically, and to analyze information in a
mathematical setting.
10.Develop the ability to teach students how
to reformulate and solve problems in an
abstract framework.
11.Design positive and effective learning
environments in their classrooms.
The Mathematics Education degree requires
a total number of 93 credits: 34 credits of
Liberal Arts Curriculum requirements, 24 credits
in Mathematics, 21 credits in Education, 6
in Computer Science, and 14 credits of free
electives. Furthermore, students can opt to do a
Teaching Diploma, which consists of 21 credits to
be taken over and above the Bachelor’s Degree
requirements.
Lebanese American University | page 116