Abstract:

The introduction of digitalization and new technologies into the learning process has changed teaching approaches and has led to a wide use of online tests and quizzes as a form of both evaluating a student’s knowledge and providing tutoring across many subjects, including higher mathematics. The form and effectiveness of using online tests differs from subject to subject. Due to the specificity of higher mathematics topics, online tests and quizzes in higher mathematics should be used very carefully with applied restrictions and modifications. The experience of mathematics professors at Riga Technical University (RTU) shows that the use of online tests in higher mathematics should be well-balanced. The question of mathematics online tests for engineering students was raised and briefly discussed in the authors’ previously published article “On a balance between classical mathematical study and contemporary tendencies in higher education for engineering students”.

The current research provides a detailed study on a very actual and disputable question about the effectiveness, specificity, advantages and disadvantages of using online tests and quizzes in teaching higher mathematics at university for engineering specialties. This research is based on the surveys made by the authors and offered to the RTU mathematics professors of the Department of Engineering Mathematics, and to the 2nd year engineering students who had gained experience in taking online mathematics tests during the 1st and 2nd semesters of the main course of higher mathematics at RTU. The study is also complemented by reviews of recent publications in this area.

Keywords:

Higher education, online tests in higher mathematics, engineering specialities.