Are some online math homework systems frozen in time?

I'm teaching an online math course this semester on liberal arts math. I taught it online three years ago, and since then, a lot of innovative technologies have sprung up on the web. However, when I opened up the learning management system (LMS) associated with the textbook, I didn't find any incorporation of any of the new technologies that could streamline my teaching. Rather than rant about its limitations, I have simply chosen to add on the new technologies on my own.

The main reasons for using the LMS from the textbook publisher are the ebook and algorithmic homework. But online learning ought to be more than just text and worksheets on the web!  So here are a few of the free tools I'm using on top of the usual stuff you get with the LMS that comes with a textbook.

• vyew.com   This is a free online meeting tool where I schedule my "virtual lectures" with audio and Powerpoint slides. Students can interact via a chat column on the left of the screen. The students need not register, and the presenter registers for free. I used it during Fall 2009 and it worked quite well.  By the way, check out Maria Andersen's  tips for effective webinars .
• Google docs  Aside from the automated homework, I also have students hand in exercises that they have to write up. In the past, I had them email them to me or drop it in a "digital dropbox" within the LMS. Either way, I had to do the open-edit-save cycle for each document.  With google docs, the student creates a file on the web and simply sends me the link as a collaborator. I just click, edit and save in the same location and I'm done! No attachments to email back and forth. This is the first semester I'm implementing this. Our university's email system is through Google, and so all students already have access to Google docs. Even otherwise, they can create one for free.
• Wolfram Alpha This computational engine not only solves equations, but also has access to many data sets. I am planning to use it for students to make specific queries and write up the implications of what they find.
  

Hopefully, the publisher issued LMS's will evolve to include tools such as these. My virtual lectures especially have tended to create a lot of interaction among the students and myself. It can really help reduce a feeling of isolation in an online course.And Google docs and Wolfram Alpha are technologies our 21'st century students should become familiar with anyway.

The paradox of higher math standards in high school

Those of us who regularly deal  with entering college freshmen are all too familiar with their inadequate math preparation. But in fact, high school mathematics has been ramped up quite a bit in terms of content. What happened? An article in the American Physical Society discusses this paradox. The author of the article, Dr. Joseph Ganem,  is a professor of physics at Loyola University, Maryland. He is also a parent of children in high school. He  noticed that over the years, the math homework his children were assigned required his frequent intervention. Since this is a parent with a Ph.D. in physics, he had no trouble helping them. But what about the many other students who do not have such an educated parent or access to tutoring services?  Sounds like many students are just muddling through their jr. high and high school math without retaining much of anything.  He points to two major flaws in the high school curriculum:

1. Confusing difficulty with rigor. It appears to me that the creators of the grade school math curricula believe that “rigor” means pushing students to do ever more difficult problems at a younger age. It’s like teaching difficult concerti to novice musicians before they master the basics of their instruments. Rigor–defined by the dictionary in the context of mathematics as a “scrupulous or inflexible accuracy”–is best obtained by learning age-appropriate concepts and techniques. Attempting difficult problems without the proper foundation is actually an impediment to developing rigor.  (emphasis mine)
[....]

2. Mistaking process for understanding. Just because a student can perform a technique that solves a difficult problem doesn’t mean that he or she understands the problem. ...

Pushing students too early to do algebra is not really the answer to our perennial problem of students being noncompetitive in the global mathematical landscape. We ought to invest in better teacher prep programs in colleges and provide better incentives for pursuing a career in K-12 teaching. And the math that is taught should be focused and connected, not just a drill based collection of disconnected topics, nor the latest reform program designed by math educators from the education college.