ASU's Global Freshman Academy Taps Adaptive Software for Math Students
Arizona State University's online Global Freshman Academy (GFA) is rolling out adaptive software to help tens of thousands of students work through its College Algebra & Problem Solving course. The GFA program, delivered via massive open online course (MOOC) provider edX, will be the first to utilize McGraw-Hill Education's ALEKS adaptive learning product in a MOOC format.
"To date, more than 17,800 students from 186 countries have registered for the College Algebra & Problem Solving course using the ALEKS program, which will provide students with individualized learning and instruct them on the topics they are most ready to learn," according to a press release from McGraw-Hill Education.
ALEKS (Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces) uses artificial intelligence to personalize a student's learning experience based on his or her unique strengths and weaknesses. Students receive real-time feedback to guide them toward mastery of each topic.
Launched last year, the Global Freshman Academy offers a series of first-year courses equivalent to a full freshman year at ASU. The courses are open to anyone, regardless of background, location or transcript; students can pay $49 per course up front to be on the ID Verified Track, and then opt to pay to receive college credit once they have passed a course.
"ASU developed the Global Freshman Academy to help make higher education more accessible and affordable around the world," said Adrian Sannier, chief academic technology officer for EdPlus at ASU, in a statement. "ALEKS helps us take one of the most daunting classes — college math — and personalize it to meet students where they are and help them steadily master the concepts critical to their ultimate success."
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Rhea Kelly is editor in chief for Campus Technology, THE Journal, and Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].