Appendix to the Syllabus Math department student learning goals Curiosity: an encounter with mathematical meaning, beauty, and  joy. Mathematics is an art as well as a craft. Depending on how one counts, somewhere between five and all of the classical seven liberal arts have significant mathematical content. We'd like to help students encounter seriously both the beauty and the utility of an art without which neither the world around us nor the last two and a half millennia of human culture are at all intelligible. Craft: using mathematical  tools. Mathematics is a craft as well as an art. Much of our work involves exposing our students to the concrete mathematical tools they need to succeed in other disciplines and in a world shot through by mathematics. Those tools range from fancy machinery for quantum physicists to using simple algebraic or differential equations to model phenomena in biology and economics to techniques to manage randomness in data in the social sciences to the basic vocabulary needed to read newspaper stories with numbers in them. Confidence: an ability to create and use mathematics themselves. Mathematics is also the product of human beings, who work individually and collectively to discover or invent mathematical truth. We work to inculcate in our students a spirit of inquiry and to empower them to discover that they are able as individuals and working with others to make mathematical discoveries and to utilize mathematics in creative ways. Math is the work of humans, and as humans, our students have all the prerequisites they need to do and to use mathematics. Communal Inquiry: mathematical community and communication. Mathematics is a communal enterprise, and even a glance at the words shows that one can't have community without communication. We'd like our students to practice mathematical communication. This means that they need to learn to verify and to convey to others the results of their mathematical inquiries by writing precise, concise, and completely persuasive arguments in idiomatic mathematical language. In mathematics, the products of this writing are called proofs. It also means that students need to practice reading carefully and critically the mathematical works of others so as to be able to share in a community of inquiry and to learn new mathematics on their own. Continuity: lasting  mathematical experience. Mathematics does not end with what one learns in four years at college. We wish to equip our majors for further study in mathematics at the post-baccalaureate level, though we accept that with our current program, the path available to most students wishing to do graduate work will require them using as a stepping stone a Masters program at something other than a first-tier university. We would also hope that our non-majors might carry the spirit of joy, skill, confidence, and cooperative inquiry with them after they leave Earlham. Earlham College learning goals (See https://earlham.edu/registrar/curriculum-guide/learning-goals/ ) Students should be able to: Communicate effectively and work collaboratively across diverse contexts via multiple media. Effective communication involves both social and expressive skills and the ability to communicate in multiple settings and cultures. Investigate and analyze information, materials, problems and texts using a variety of techniques. Thoughtful and careful analysis requires the ability to collect, understand, interpret and evaluate multiple pieces of evidence, with systematic understanding and overt application of qualitative, quantitative, analytical and abstract reasoning. Integrate knowledge, experience, and skills across domains and contexts. Integration involves connecting and developing ideas, as well as synthesizing and transferring learning to new and complex situations. Diversify personal and cultural experiences, ways of knowing, and social relationships. The practice of diversity involves embracing opportunities to explore outside their interests and typical frame of reference. Create and innovate across a variety of disciplines. Creativity and innovation require a willingness to take risks, be open to new possibilities, and produce new knowledge and artistic and social forms. Reflect critically on their learning experiences, ethical and vocational choices, lifestyle, and beliefs in light of multiple understandings of the world. Reflection involves the ability to examine past experiences and apply their lessons to future contexts. Apply knowledge and skills to real world problems and situations as well as to improve their own mental, spiritual and physical well-being. Applying learning effectively is a key skill of a lifelong learner.