Abstract:
Engineering as a profession, requires a clear understanding of mathematics. It is therefore
vital that engineering students acquire both abstract and an empirical understanding of
Mathematics. This paper examines and analysis the level of mathematical knowledge of
first year engineering students in UMaT. The data on scores of students in the courses
„Linear Algebra and Trigonometry‟ and „Calculus‟ were analyzed from six departments:
Electrical and Electronics Engineering Department, Mechanical Engineering Department,
Geomatics Engineering Department, Geological Engineering Department, Mining
Engineering Department and Mineral Engineering Department. The findings from the
study revealed that majority of the students performed well. Approximately 7% (i.e. 6.93)
of the students failed the course Linear Algebra and Trigonometry while 11.26% failed
Calculus. Amongst the departments, students in the Mining Engineering Department
performed best in the course Linear Algebra and Trigonometry while, for the course
Calculus, the students of the Mechanical Engineering Department performed best over
the periods of study. The students under UMaT performed well by the help of the marks
adjusting model. Furthermore, the grades obtained by the students depicts that the
students in the academic years 2000-2004 performed better than the students in the
academic years 2005-2008
