Can the Web Help Students Succeed?

Neat Networks

UTEPMay 5, 1998

Philosophy

S.O.S. MATHematics is the website of the Department of Mathematical Sciences

at The University of Texas at El Paso, where you can work with materials to help you:

do your homework prepare for a test get ready for class

Philosophy

The material presented here reviews the most important results, techniques and formulas in college and pre-college mathematics.

The learning units are presented in worksheet format and require your active participation! This is

not meant to be a substitute for your classroom instruction or for reading your textbook.

Scope -planned• Pre-College

– Arithmetic/Algebra– Geometry– Trigonometry

• College– Calculus– Matrix Algebra– Differential Equations

Scope • Pre-College

– Arithmetic/Algebra– Trigonometry

• College– Calculus– Differential Equations– Matrix Algebra– Complex Variables

Scope-Added by

“Popular Demand”

• Cyber-Exam• Tables and Formulas

Design• Minimal Requirements

– Internet Browser • Netscape Navigator 2

– No frames– No plug-ins– Accessible with slow computers– Accessible with 28.8 modem

• No excessive graphics, sounds, movies etc.

Design

• Absolute Links versus Relative Links:– Do not use absolute links unless you link

to outside resources!

• CSS Stylesheets– Gives you more control on the layout of

the web page as viewed by the user!

How to Put Math on the Web?

• Mathematics Formulas can still not be displayed by the Common Internet Browsers!

How to Put Math on the Web?

• Viable Alternatives in 1996:– Microsoft Word’s Equation Editor

• Pro: Easy conversion• Con: Buggy, text-formula alignment pretty

bad

– LaTeX2HTML• Pro: LaTeX based, Looks good, can do any

math formula• Con: Complicated process, slow conversion,

inconvenient for the content producer

How to Put Math on the Web?

• More Alternatives in 1998:– TeX Explorer (IBM)

• Pro: fast display, looks good, LaTeX based• Con: needs plug-in, still under

development, content developer dependent on company strategies

How to Put Math on the Web?

• Math Markup Language (MathML) has been accepted by W3C as the web standard.– Standard Plug-ins and Translators

should become available.

Tools We Use….

LATeX2HTMLTranslator

by Nikos Drakos

Production of an SOS Mathematics Page

Production of an SOS Mathematics Page

Production of an SOS Mathematics Page

Production of an SOS Mathematics Page

Production of an SOS Mathematics Page

Funding

Funding

• Release Time for Faculty• Equipment

• WWW Server, PCs, Software

• Funds for Student Assistants

S.O.S. Mathematics - Today

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HTML Hits

Users

S.O.S. Mathematics - Today:

2400 HTML-Pages written

Algebra

CyberExam

Calculus

Differential Equations

Matrix Algebra

Complex Analysis

Trigonometry

S.O.S. Mathematics - Today:

77,000 HTML Hits (Feb 98)Algebra

CyberExam

Calculus

DifferentialEquations

Matrix Algebra

Complex Analysis

Trigonometry

S.O.S. Mathematics - Today:Mirrors

•Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand •Access only for LU students

•Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Spain•Maria Sklodowska-Curie University, Lublin, Poland

•In Preparation

The People BehindS.O.S. Mathematics