KENT STATE
UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT
OF MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES
SENIOR
COLLOQUIUM
One of the graduation requirements in the College of Arts and Sciences is participation in Mandatory Outcomes Assessment conducted by the major program. This requirement can be found in the Arts and Sciences section of the Undergraduate Catalog, under General Graduation Requirements, and is listed on the Major Requirement Sheets for the Mathematics B.A., Mathematics B.S., and Applied Mathematics B.S. degrees.
This assessment is part of the Academic Assessment and Continuous Improvement efforts of the Department of Mathematical Sciences. The purpose of the assessment is evaluation of the Department's major programs and it is not used in the evaluation of individual students or instructors.
One component of the Outcomes Assessment in the Department of Mathematical Sciences is participation in a Senior Colloquium, which is conducted near the end of each spring semester. In the Senior Colloquium, graduating seniors with majors in Mathematics or Applied Mathematics give 15 minute presentations on mathematical topics that interest them. They then submit write-ups of their presentations to the Undergraduate Studies Committee as part of the Graduation Portfolio. The presentations and write-ups are evaluated by faculty in the Department of Mathematical Sciences for program assessment purposes only.
INFORMATION
FOR SPRING, SUMMER, OR FALL 2010 GRADUATING SENIORS
The 2010 Senior Colloquium will be scheduled during the last week of classes
of the spring semester. Each student with a major in mathematical sciences who
plans to graduate spring, summer, or fall 2010 is asked to give a short (15
minute) presentation on a topic of his or her choice, subject to criteria
described below, and to submit a careful write-up of the presentation.
Topic
and Presentation Criteria
For your Senior Colloquium presentation, you may choose a topic from any area of Pure or Applied Mathematics, but we recommend that Mathematics majors choose a topic in Pure Mathematics and Applied Mathematics majors choose a topic in Applied Mathematics.
A topic in Pure Mathematics should be from an upper division Mathematics course. The presentation should include at least one definition and one theorem, along with a proof of the theorem.
A topic in Applied Mathematics should either be from an upper division Applied Mathematics course or an application of upper division Mathematics to a related area. The presentation should include a precise statement of the problem or model and your assumptions, a discussion of the methods used to solve the problem, and an interpretation of the results relative to the model and assumptions.
You are also asked to submit a careful write-up of your presentation. The written version of the presentation will be due FRIDAY, APRIL 30, 2010. In most cases, this will be the final sample of your written work. As such, it should represent your best work and conform to high standards of grammar, spelling, punctuation, and neatness. It should be in a final polished form and not in draft form.
The oral presentation will be evaluated by the faculty members present and
the written presentation will be evaluated sometime later by an assessment
committee. In the interests of improving your talk and write-up, you
might wish to check out the evaluation rubrics (talk, write-up)
from a recent year.
Please keep in mind that the evaluations are to be used only in the assessment of our programs, and will not affect you in any way.
Topic
Choice and Scheduling
In order to schedule the sessions for the Senior Colloquium, we will need to know at which times you will be available during the weeks of April 26. Please download the scheduling form and return the completed form to Dr. Davidson no later than 5:00 PM, FRIDAY, APRIL 9, 2010. Please be as flexible as possible in listing the times available.
Your presentation topic should be chosen in consultation with a Mathematics faculty member. We suggest that you discuss your proposed topic with your advisor or the professor from whose course the topic is taken.
If your presentation will require any special equipment (laptop, computer projector, etc.) please list these requirements on the form as well.
Once we have received all of the forms, we will schedule the presentations and you will be informed of the time and date of your presentation.
Further
Information
Please keep in mind that we consider this assessment to be an assessment of the Department's programs, and not an assessment of you. It is in no way to be considered a "final exam." The survey is an opportunity for you to let us know what we are doing well and what aspects of our programs need to be improved. The colloquium is an opportunity for you to tell us something about what you have learned and found interesting, as well as to celebrate the completion of your degree.
If you have any questions about the Outcomes Assessment or if you want to discuss possible Colloquium topics you have in mind, please feel free to contact Dr. Davidson in his office (314 MSB), by phone at (330) 672-9040, or by e-mail at davidson@math.kent.edu.