Math in grade school, hs and college.

I teach HS math and statistics. Math was my worst subject in HS and I kind of backed into math teaching, but found that I loved it once I got involved. Because I'm not a "natural" at math, I'm pretty tolerant and patient with slower learners and those to whom math doesn't come easy. I think that the subject came so easy for many math teachers that they can't understand how it can be difficult for others, and they don't put themselves in others' shoes.

If they want to count on their fingers, toes, tiles on the ceiling, or whatever, I don't give a rip. As long as they can demonstrate to me that they can come up with a reasonable solution to the problems.

Then you are worth your weight in platinum and are a boon to mankind.

Truly.

Math is not so bad if you spend the time on it and learn the language of math. Most people get frustrated because they forget the rules of math along the way and end up making too many "rooky" mistakes to ever tackle a complex math problem. Without math, we would still be in the middle ages. English and liberal arts etc. etc. are fine subjects, but they won't ever develop a mind to solve complex engineering feats such as sending someone to the moon, building a massive structure or designing a microprocessor with 30 million transistors. Now that I think about it, what the hell is a liberal arts degree good for?

Perhaps I had poor basics.

God Bless whomever created calculators.

I have taught math at a high school in Los Angeles for 15 years: basic math, Alg1, Alg 2, geom., trig., and pre-calc. I have a few ideas on why people don't do well in math, or "like it'" ,at least in HS. First, they didn't learn the material previous to the course that they are currently taking - I truely believe that many or most americans can't work with numeric fractions - so how are they to work with algebraic fractions or rational expressions? Just like with American dist running, most kids don't practice enough - either on the really basic stuff, or with the more advanced. Third, once someone starts to do poorly, they buy into the rhetoric that they "aren't good at math!" Ok, whatever. Nut up, go for some more and or longer and or faster runs and spent more time with your book instead of the idiot box, the GD CD player or the obesity maker - the computer!

Fractional/decimal equivalents were 'taught' by this one woman in my final year of jhs. Another classic B*TCH:

One day I did not know the meaning of a word she used in a out-of-class conversation (remarkable that I was even TALKING to a teacher at all back then) and she nearly kept ME after school as punishment for not knowing the definition!!!

Go figure. It got to the point where I never asked questions in class out of sheer hatred. Man, my palms are almost sweaty thinking about it.

Fractions are still a foreign language to me, I cannot work with them even today, I have no clue. On %'s I am a bit better. I can balance a checkbook, thankfully, but the 3 out of the past 5 years I have gotten little letters from the IRS about my tax returns. GEEEEEEEZUUUUUUUUS.

It's a wonder we didn't have Columbine's back then. No offense intended. I'm reminded of a line from a Paul Simon tune:

"when I think back on all the crap I learned in high school

it's a wonder I can think at all"

I liked math until it got really, really hard. Changed from chem to biology major to avoid an additional two semesters of calculus. Never could fully grasp those squiggles.

The thing about math is that you have to be willing to be wrong to learn, and WAY too many people are afraid of making mistakes to learn math. Higher level math takes time to learn, and typically it involves making a lot of mistakes along the way, even for those of us who are "good" at math. Learning math requires two things that our culture has unfortunately snuffed out - hard work (learning math takes time) and learning from mistakes.

My brother was a math major in college, went to grad school for a year before he was hired by a major technology firm. Regrets not finishing grad school now cuz his salary at General Dynamics has topped out at about $150,000, but to move up in his division he would have to go out and learn on his own the higher level skills he would have learned in grad school.

Math is good, and like running requires discipline and training to become good at it. You run 100 miles a week to become a good runner, if you did 100 math problems a week you would improve just as much in that field.

hella of a good post. i came to a self-relization that i wasn't "good" at math because i didnt like it.....and i didnt like it because it didnt come as easily as other subjects. hard work and discipline from dist running can carry over.

GREAT post. btw, what does your brother do, if you don't mind?

I know what it is like to be in a math class and have NO CLUE what is going on. It was terrible, but I worked through it eventually. I think it was my first algebra class.

Math is very akin to logical thinking and all forms of problem solving. As a physics major, it's what I use to describe the universe; engineers use it too. Without it we would all still be living in caves.

It's classified, but he's working on a project for the Australian Army that uses GPS and fancy computer stuff so that commanders can track all of the troops, analyze how much ammo is left, etc. If you saw Aliens, and how the military people were wired to fight Aliens, he's doing the same thing for the Australian Army. COOL SHIT! Each troop has a helmet with a visor that duels as a data screen.

One disturbing aspect of our society is that it's not just "okay", but it can be downright "cool" to admit that you're lousy in math. I don't hear people chuckling about their inability to read. If people were as embarassed by their inability to do math as they were about an inability to read, things would be different.

I was excellent in math when I was younger, and got over 700 on the SAT before those were recalculated and dumbed down, but when I got to trigonometry I had to start to ask "why would I ever need to know this? When would I ever use it?" And of course, I never have. As for calculus, well, without exaggeration, I had nightmares about my calculus class until I was about 37.

So, what did you major in?

I have a degree in Mathematics and Computer Science. I taught algebra & business math in vocational schools and Calculus at 4 year universities for a total of 6 years. I was very successful as a teacher and enjoyed it much but, the pay was not satisfactory so I moved on to other things.

I have managed agriculture, construction, delivery, and computer software/hardware companies. My mathematical background has been indispensible in the execution of my various jobs. Yes, even in agriculture.

In my experience most people use algebra everyday and are unaware that they do so. The process of counting coins you receive in change is algebra. Figuring out how much paint to buy to paint a room uses algebra. Calculating commissions & taxes uses algebra. Carpenters that build houses use algebra and trigonometrey. I could go on...

I absolutely dominated in math during all of my schooling. The kids wouldn't know the answer the teacher was asking, and gradually they'd turn and look at me. I'm definitely a natural at mathematics.

Since I can remember I've always played games with numbers ON MY OWN TIME. What was most disturbing about math class was that the teachers ALWAYS demanded that I show my work, it didn't matter that I had the right answer, they wanted to know how I got it. That always frustrated me, "I know the answer, why do you care how my brain operates?" I'd ask. Basically, they would answer that it's "because we have to grade you." What stupid responses from people we allow to teach our children. However, I fully realize they are in an impossible situation with a such a broad range of talent or lack thereof.

The other thing that REALLY killed my spirit for school was that I got screwed in math class because I had to wait until every kid in class understood how to solve for a problem. So, it'd take me 5 minutes to catch a new concept, but the next 40 minutes my mind was idle, waiting for each and every other kid to grasp what was going on. An incredible waste of talent, and this happens every day in every class room in every school in the United States. No child left behind? Bullshit. No child let ahead. And once we are older our brains don't have that same elasticity, so my ability to learn was largely wasted in both public and private school. Once somebody has the basic concepts of mathematics to function in our society they should absolutely NOT be forced into a math class; they don't retain anything anyhow and the kids who actually love math are held back severely. It's really a pathetic way to indoctrinate our kids. Mine will be home schooled, no doubt about that.

Legalizit wrote:

No child left behind? Bullshit. No child let ahead.

Amen!!! Grading our schools on the percentage of the least gifted students to meet a standard is like grading a school's track team by the number of its students who break 7 minutes for the mile.

Nothing in this NCLB legislation has any provisions for any kind of standard for its best students.

Legalizit and Usher.....

while you both say correct points....remember, it's always known that the best students will make it or do ok regardless, anwywhere. it's the slow students that need the attention and, good or bad, are what our system is based on

Reality wrote:

Legalizit and Usher.....

while you both say correct points....remember, it's always known that the best students will make it or do ok regardless, anwywhere. it's the slow students that need the attention and, good or bad, are what our system is based on

So as distance running coaches, the top runners will make it anyway, and we should spend most of our efforts on the 8-minute milers. The 4:30 milers will improve to 4-minutes on their own because of their talent in spite of coaching.

I am in no way saying to ignore the slower students. Far from it. But to punish a school by labelling it as a "failing school" because of test scores by students who may have a slew of legitimate reasons why they don't test well is totally asinine.

Spend a little time on the front lines of education if you want to know what "reality" is really like.