McGraw-Hill and ALEKS Corporation Expand Improved Math Courses Proven to Drive
Student Success
NEW YORK, Nov. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- With the Obama administration's commitment to
ensuring the highest college graduation rates in the world by 2020, the need
for cutting-edge learning tools that enhance student achievement has never
been greater. McGraw-Hill Higher Education, a premier provider of teaching and
learning solutions for the post-secondary and higher education markets, and
ALEKS Corporation, a leader in the creation of Web-based artificially
intelligent educational software, are addressing that need with an expanded
array of enhanced course products for Basic Math, Pre-Algebra, Beginning
Algebra, and Intermediate Algebra. These course products contain many new
topics which allow for better curriculum and textbook coverage to help
students achieve dramatic learning outcomes, while saving instructor time.
ALEKS acts much like a skilled human tutor, delivering precise assessments of
students' math knowledge, guiding them in the selection of appropriate new
study material, and recording their progress toward mastery of course goals.
College and university case studies have shown that ALEKS has increased pass
rates by more than 20 percent versus traditional online homework systems, and
by more than 30 percent compared to using a text alone. "This is the fifth
year we have used ALEKS for all remedial mathematics courses. I have been very
pleased with its ability to determine the gaps in student learning and provide
students with an efficient way to fill in their missing knowledge," notes
Julie McQueen, instructor of mathematics at Abilene Christian University in
Texas. "Seventy-four percent of all students who used ALEKS in their course
passed during the first semester, and almost half of these students finished
the course early. The pass rates are much better than what we experienced in
a traditional course," she adds.
"Student retention will increase even more in developmental math courses that
utilize ALEKS. At the same time, course management will be simplified for
instructors," said Kurt Strand, president of McGraw-Hill Higher Education's
Science Engineering and Math group. "It is critical to McGraw-Hill Higher
Education that we continually enhance the learning solutions that customize
instruction to each student's needs and abilities. These tailor-made solutions
empower students to achieve academic success."
"User feedback and learning results are critical to our success, so we assess
every aspect of the ALEKS experience, understand how instructors and students
use the program, and make improvements based on what we learn," said Wil
Lampros, president of ALEKS Corporation. "As a result, we have added
approximately 150 new topics to our developmental math course products in
order to provide better curriculum and textbook coverage."
The expanded Basic Math, Pre-Algebra, Beginning Algebra, and Intermediate
Algebra course products are available for immediate use through McGraw-Hill
Higher Education.
About McGraw-Hill Higher Education
McGraw-Hill Higher Education is a premier provider of teaching and learning
solutions for the post-secondary and higher education markets - preparing
students worldwide to meet the increasing challenges of the 21st century
knowledge economy. It is a division of McGraw-Hill Education, a leading global
provider of instructional, assessment and reference solutions that empower
professionals and students of all ages. McGraw-Hill Education has offices in
33 countries and publishes in more than 65 languages. Additional information
is available at http://www.mhhe.com/.
About ALEKS Corporation
ALEKS Corporation is a leader in the creation of Web-based artificially
intelligent educational software. ALEKS assessment and learning technologies
were originally developed by a team of cognitive scientists, mathematicians,
and software engineers at the University of California, Irvine, with major
funding from the National Science Foundation. ALEKS is founded on
groundbreaking research in mathematical cognitive science known as Knowledge
Space Theory. Through adaptive questioning, ALEKS accurately assesses a
student's knowledge state, and then delivers targeted instruction on the
topics a student is most ready to learn.
ALEKS has been used by millions of students in more than 50 academic subjects
ranging from Basic Math to Precalculus at thousands of institutions throughout
the world. For additional information, visit http://www.aleks.com.
SOURCE McGraw-Hill Higher Education
Tom Stanton of McGraw-Hill Education, +1-212-904-3214,
tom_stanton@mcgraw-hill.com; or Emily Wennerberg of ALEKS Corporation,
+1-714-245-7191 x153, emilyw@aleks.com
