Measures of Proficiency in Quantitative Reasoning

Bowdoin recognizes that quantitative skills are increasingly important in political and economic life. To be effective, citizens should be able to interpret graphs and tables, understand quantitative relationships and draw conclusions from data. Several studies have been conducted in order to understand students' perceptions of their quantitative skills when they arrive at Bowdoin and if and how those perceptions change by the time they are seniors. The purpose of these studies is to understand the ways in which students' quantitative skills are encouraged and developed by Bowdoin's curriculum and teaching resources. A definition of quantitative literacy from the Mathematical Association of America is available here.

Relevant Surveys


1. Spring 2005 Survey of Students About Skill Confidence and Learning Support

The purposes of this survey are to learn about the experiences of students and assess the impact of numerous programs and services intended to support and enhance students' learning and development. It focuses on skill confidence and learning support related to three academic support services available to students; The Writing Project, the Quantitative Skills Program and the Baldwin Center.

Survey Instrument
Survey Report


2. Fall 2000 CIRP Freshman Survey

The Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) is a national longitudinal study of the American higher education system. Established in 1966 at the American Council on Education, the CIRP is now administered by the Higher Education Research Institute. The CIRP is the nation's largest and oldest empirical study of higher education, involving data on some 1,800 institutions and over 11 million students. It is regarded as the most comprehensive source of information on college students. The complete Fall 2004 CIRP Freshman Survey is available here. Selected questions related to quantitative skills from the Fall 2000 CIRP Freshman Survey are as follows.

Survey Instrument (questions on Fall 2000 CIRP Freshman Survey related to quantitative skills)

    Do you feel you will need any special tutoring or remedial work in any of
    the following subjects?
    Mathematics

    Rate yourself on each of the following traits as compared with the average
    person your age. We want the most accurate estimate of how you see
    yourself.
    [Highest 10%, Above Average, Average, Below Average, Lowest 10%]
    Mathematical ability

Survey Report (responses to questions above)

    Fall 2000 CIRP Freshman Survey, questions related to quantitative skills


3. Survey of First-Year Students 2000

Conducted annually, the First-Year Survey includes one or more questions about students' level of confidence in their quantitative skills.

Survey Instrument (question on Survey of First-Year Students 2000 related to quantitative skills)

    Please rate your level of confidence in the following areas as you begin your
    college career at Bowdoin.
    Being successful in science or math courses

Survey Report (response to question above)

    Survey of First-Year Students 2000, question related to quantitative skills


4. Survey of Seniors 2004

Conducted annually, the senior survey includes a section that measures graduating seniors' confidence in their quantiative skills. The questions are as follows.

Survey Instrument (questions on Survey of Seniors 2004 related to quantitative skills)

    How confident are you in your current ability to:
    10. interpret and draw conclusions from numerical data in tables,
         graphs or schematics
    11. construct tables, graphs or schematics from raw numerical data
         to support a point
    12. use mathematics in everyday situations
    13. recognize incorrect applications of statistics in the media

Survey Report (responses to questions above)

    Survey of Seniors 2004, questions related to quantitative skills


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Maintained by Margaret Allen, Bowdoin College Office of Institutional Research
Last Update: October 11, 2005
E-mail: mallen2@bowdoin.edu