Women in Calculus: The Effects of a Supportive Setting

The purpose of this study was to investigate a multi-faceted women's calculus course designed to retain women in advanced mathematics courses. With this research, we wanted to find out, first, in what ways students were influenced by participation in the course and, second, in what ways these influences affected their mathematics learning or willingness to take additional mathematics courses. Findings from this study demonstrate that students formed a supportive group of individuals who valued being in an all women's mathematics class and took on roles that facilitated their success. In regard to learning mathematics, the students developed confidence, became comfortable in asking questions about mathematics, valued mathematics for understanding, and continued to take mathematics in order to open up career possibilities. This article describes the findings through excerpts from student and instructor interviews, student artifacts, participant observation data, and descriptive statistics.