Infusing Quantitative Reasoning Throughout the Curriculum

"The ability to apply quantitative methods to real-world problems requires a facility and an insight and intuition that can be developed only through repeated practice. Thus quantitative material needs to permeate the curriculum, not only in the sciences but also in the social sciences and, in appropriate cases, in the humanities, so that students have opportunities to practice their skills and see how useful they can be in understanding a wide range of problems."
-Derek Bok, Our Underachieving Colleges

We cannot respond to Bok's call for a quantitative reasoning (QR) curriculum that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries unless we first equip faculty to understand and respond to the challenge. This page links to resources--on the QuIRK website and elsewhere--for faculty seeking to enhance QR in their courses, classes, and assignments.

10 Foundational Quantitative Reasoning Questions

(hosted by QuIRK)

Composed by Neil Lutsky, these 10 questions emphasize the fact that, as Steen writes, QR is about the sophisticated application of elementary mathematics.

Guide to Creating QR Writing Assignments

(hosted by QuIRK)

In depth discussion of why and how to design QR writing assignments, including teaching tips and example assignments (Compiled by John Bean, Seattle University)

Example QR Writing Assignments

(hosted by the National Numeracy Network)

A QuIRK-supported collection of example QR-rich writing assignments used at Carleton and other institutions

Example QR-Rich Courses

(hosted by QuIRK)

Examples of QR-rich courses developed at Carleton

Guide to Using Spreadsheets to Teach QR Across the Curriculum

(hosted by Spreadsheets across the Curriculum)

Why and how to help students use spreadsheets to answer QR questions, including examples in biology, economics, education, geography, history, sociology, and more (Compiled by Len Vacher, University of South Florida).

Interested in learning more?

If you would like to learn more about QuIRK's efforts to develop writing-based QR curricular materials or if you would like to visit Carleton for first-hand experience with our professional development or assessment workshops, contact Greg Marfleet (gmarflee@carleton.edu)or Nathan Grawe (ngrawe@carleton.edu).