Tori Ellison, College of Charleston


Supplemental Instruction Scheduling Problem

Abstract:Given a number of T available times in which to hold exactly three supplemental instruction sessions for an undergraduate class, the optimal times are chosen such that the number of students in the class who cannot attend a single session is minimized. The students were given a schedule in which to mark the times that they would be available to attend. They also ranked on a scale of 1-5 their overall interest in attending the sessions. A two-phase linear program was designed in which the first phase minimized the number of students who could not attend a single session. The second phase chose the optimal times to hold the three sessions such that the first goal was satisfied and the number of sessions that could be attended by students who were most interested in coming was maximized. Other linear programs were explored as well in attempts to attain optimal availability of students who expressed interest in attending.

Mentor: Amy Langville (College of Charleston)