Taking a course that uses an inquiry-based curriculum can be challenging for students who are accustomed to a traditional, lecture-based approach to mathematics instruction. At the end of the course, students who are not fully cognizant of the results of their many hours of hard work may conclude that the teaching approach was ineffective. This article seeks to help instructors who believe in the effectiveness of inquiry-based learning but have trouble getting students on board by giving them specific strategies to help build student confidence and enthusiasm.

1. 1.

   Unit 1, Lesson 1, Task 1 in the Inquiry Oriented Abstract Algebra (IOAA) curriculum [3].

2. 2.

   Unit 1, Lesson 5, Task 4 in the IOAA curriculum [3].

3. 3.

   Quotes from student course evaluations used with permission from the Houghton College Institutional Review Board.

4. 4.

   I like to use this one when they’re stuck, since they don’t think of being stuck asdoing mathematics.

Authors and Affiliations

1. Houghton College, Houghton, NY, USA

   Jill E. Jordan

Corresponding author

Correspondence toJill E. Jordan.

Editors and Affiliations

1. Science Writing Advanced Academic Program, John Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA

   Susan D'Agostino

2. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA, USA

   Sarah Bryant

3. Department of Mathematics, University of San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA

   Amy Buchmann

4. Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Belmont University, Nashville, TN, USA

   Michelle Craddock Guinn

5. Division of Sciences and Mathematics, University of the District of Columbia, Washington, DC, USA

   Leona Harris

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© 2019 The Author(s) and the Association for Women in Mathematics

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