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So true. In 5th grade, the “new math” came in, and after that I was lost. It is kind of on my bucket list to get a glimmer of understanding of math. I don’t even know what calculus means, or what it does. I kind of got geometry, because I’m a visual learner. I could get the right answer, but I couldn’t get the math process of getting there.
Once at the university level, if the student does not put in the time, than the "tricks and principles" "of solving x equation will not become secondary. I'm not saying everyone is a math genius, but plenty of students that pass by the skin of their teeth or fail just don't put in the necessary time or effort needed to excel. I mean with the online supplements that textbooks have, and all the countless online resources such as Youtube, you're bound to find a method that clicks in helping you to understand whatever mathematical idea you might be studying.
Secondly, I do agree that textbook quality is often lacking. For example, I might know how to solve some sort of algebraic equation, but be totally clueless in understanding how the book breaks down certain examples based on their narrative.
I've also discovered that grades aren't necessarily indictive of a students knowledge of the material. I've seen some C students have a better foundation, than many A students. Perhaps their professor may be more difficult in the way they present the test material versus another professor. Most people have stories where they knew the material well but only earned a B or C on the exam. While some of the A students seem to forget everything a week later.
Last edited by santafe400; 10-25-2020 at 07:23 PM..
I've also discovered that grades aren't necessarily indictive of a students knowledge of the material. I've seen some C students have a better foundation, than many A students. Perhaps their professor may be more difficult in the way they present the test material versus another professor. Most people have stories where they knew the material well but only earned a B or C on the exam. While some of the A students seem to forget everything a week later.
That's a problem that nobody wants to address. There is so much emphasis on grades, even though there are some teachers / professors who give everybody A's, and some who give literally nobody A's. Unfortunately, all anybody sees it the grade.
When I was in middle school, there were 2 teachers who taught 6th grade social studies: Ms. B and Mr. F. Ms. B was mean, strict, gave almost nobody an A, and was a mediocre teacher. Mr. F did almost literally no teaching at all, but gave everybody an A. Honors classes started in 7th grade. So, basically the only people who could get into honors social studies were the people who had Mr. F, even though they literally learned nothing the previous year! Since 6th grade Social Studies covered areas such as the Middle East and Europe, and 7th grade social studies covered US History, having learned nothing at all in 6th grade social studies didn't really affect their abilities in 7th grade honors social studies. But, if these two teachers had taught math, there would have been a real problem, since, as I said earlier, math tends to be more cumulative from one year to another.
I am one of those people who could not understand math. I only passed ninth-grade algebra because a friend would go over it with me and enough would stick with me for a limited period of time that I was able to turn in some homework and getting a passing grade on a test, but then it all would just leave my brain.
As an adult, while working as a secretary for an employer that offered tuition reimbursement, I tried to go back to night school and get a degree. Interestingly, I was going after Accounting, and I took Accounting 1, II, and III and got all As, as I did in literature (English came easily to me) but because I could not pass the basic Algebra entrance exam, I had to take a remedial math class. I failed that class.
Just as in ninth grade, I would leave the class feeling as though I understood it, but when it came time to do the homework, it was as though I was reading Egyptian hieroglyphics. It amazes me that people refer to Algebra as logical, because to me it was the most illogical subject ever.
Since basic math was required to get a degree and it was clear that I was never going to be able to pass, I ended up dropping out of night school. I did all right without the degree since I worked for an employer that moved people up into management based on experience and not just degrees, and I am now retired, but once in a while I have toyed with the idea of trying again to conquer the mystery of Algebra. It still bothers me that I was never able to grasp it.
I never want to just assume that anyone can learn algebra if they start from square 1 and take the time to master each preceding lesson. I just think as individuals that our brains are wired differently. While I could get A's on almost all my math/algebra exams, I'd be sure to fail a basic nursing school exam as my brain is wired to recognize facts and patterns versus hypothetical real life situations with any number of possible "what if" outcomes. I'm also pretty bad when it comes to memorization.
Conversely, there are nursing students that ace all their nursing exams, but struggle to pass a basic dosage calculation test that mostly involves middle school level math.
I was always really interested in math and did really well in arithmetic, and other concepts up to 8th grade. However, looking back, we weren't doing near enough math in 5th & 6th grade. It was maybe 1 tiny lesson a day. My child gets an hour and a half and they cover way more concepts.
I switched school districts for 9th grade, and math aside from 1 year of geometry was abysmal. I learned pretty much nothing. I never took algebra 1, and was put into algebra 2 and pre-calc. We had foreign teachers who mainly talked about politics, their social issues, and personal lives. I tried really hard, but the foundational concepts were missing. Somehow I passed college algebra after 2 tries with a C, but when I went to take my GRE I had forgotten most mathematical terms and specifics of concepts, as it wasn't used ever again. Thankfully I was applying to a program with a low quant. cutoff, and I did well in verbal and writing.
My husband has an IQ in the 140s, was the second lowest ranked in his large high school, and got a >90% on his SAT math and reading. He passed college algebra with a test out exam after a month of looking through the course work.
Obviously he's smarter than I am, but I think I could've done a lot better with better teachers and not missing algebra 1. Studies have shown the greater # of practice problems with kids, the greater the fluency.
I’m a special kind of stupid. I dropped out of high school and returned to school in my late 40s to become a nurse. I had a very hard time with algebra. I had to take the high school and intermediate math before I could take college algebra. Three algebra courses became six algebra courses because I kept failing.
The college algebra professor had wonderful advice for me: “Memorize the steps, don’t try to understand the process.” My thought processes just don’t run that way. So when I saw this kind of problem, I do this. I finally passed, 70.4%. Nursing school was easier than than college algebra, just a little bit. Introduction to statistics I earned a B in one pass. Go figure, no pun intended!
By the by: I saw my college algebra professor in the grocery store last year. I hugged and thanked her. I have the title BSN, RN after my name. She was so patient with me!
Nursing school thought processes were the opposite of my professor’s advice: we cannot fix the “what” until we understand the “why.” Why does the patient have cancer? Why is the patient addicted? Why is the patient’s arm broken? You probably get the idea. Math is a linear puzzle. People are everything but linear.
My advice is to memorize the steps. Don’t worry about trying to understand the the steps or what the GRE numbers say. Go forward. You’ve got this!
A lot of the subjects early on you can get by with memorization and regurgitation. Math is something of a sport... you have to practice and practice beyond just reading/understanding the text and process.
I have terrible memory retention. There's a reason I made it through college purely on relying heavily on classes that are heavy project oriented and math.
I am one of those people who could not understand math. I only passed ninth-grade algebra because a friend would go over it with me and enough would stick with me for a limited period of time that I was able to turn in some homework and getting a passing grade on a test, but then it all would just leave my brain.
As an adult, while working as a secretary for an employer that offered tuition reimbursement, I tried to go back to night school and get a degree. Interestingly, I was going after Accounting, and I took Accounting 1, II, and III and got all As, as I did in literature (English came easily to me) but because I could not pass the basic Algebra entrance exam, I had to take a remedial math class. I failed that class.
Just as in ninth grade, I would leave the class feeling as though I understood it, but when it came time to do the homework, it was as though I was reading Egyptian hieroglyphics. It amazes me that people refer to Algebra as logical, because to me it was the most illogical subject ever.
Since basic math was required to get a degree and it was clear that I was never going to be able to pass, I ended up dropping out of night school. I did all right without the degree since I worked for an employer that moved people up into management based on experience and not just degrees, and I am now retired, but once in a while I have toyed with the idea of trying again to conquer the mystery of Algebra. It still bothers me that I was never able to grasp it.
While beginning my old age review of mathematics through Calc III, I discovered the concept of "pre-Algebra" math as a good place to begin. With a firm grasp of these concepts, Algebra should be easier to conquer. This is just one site to check out. Google search will find others.
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