Many people believe that algebra is necessary because it makes students to try and think logically. But algebra is not necessary due to the fact that algebra is preventing those who exceed in other subjects to fail school, not only that but most jobs don’t even use algebra.
Often times many do not realize that every person is different in understanding the required materials that are needed to pass school. Some excel in history and art but are completely dumbfounded in math, or someone could succeed in math and English but cannot connect with history and science. Making algebra necessary to learn when, according to Andrew Hacker’s article “Is Algebra Necessary?”, 57 percent of The City University of New York ’s students could not pass their mandatory algebra classes. Not only that but, “a national sample of transcripts found mathematics had twice as many F’s and D’s compared as other subjects”(Hacker). This example has shown that there are multiple students failing algebra, they are also spending loads of money to fail a class that will most likely not even help them with their fu...
Algebra is one of the major parts in exams like GRE and ACT so that all college students and high school students need to learn. In order to get a good grade, students are willing to spend hours and hours studying hard on things like matrices and equations. When they are wondering why they have to learn things so difficult and if this knowledge would be useful in the future time. Andrew Hacker, the author of "Is Algebra Necessary?", thinks not. In his editorial, he argues that students, especially those who are not majoring in math, should not be forced to learn high-level math. His arguments are very effective because he successfully uses logos, pathos and ethos in his editorial. The usage of the rhetorical triangle made his editorial logical,
The Algebra II course was a college-prep lecture; they were at a higher level than a general class. With the title of the course, I expected to see well-behaved, attentive learners, who were interested in mathematics. When the apprentices did become disruptive or talkative, I expected that the teacher would discipline the students by sending them out into the hall or to the office, as occurred in my high school classes. I also expected to see a teacher that challenged the students’ knowledge of the subject, and pupils who gladly accepted that challenge. Finally, I anticipated the class lessons to go as follows: collect homework, class notes which are copied by the students, time set aside for the children to practice this work via worksheets and example problems, and then the assignment of homework for the next day. These expectations influenced the ways that I observed and reacted to Ms. Stone’s mathematics
Math is everywhere when most people first think of math or the word “Algebra,” they don’t get too excited. Many people say “Math sucks” or , “When are we ever going to use it in our lives.” The fact is math will be used in our lives quite frequently. For example, if we go watch a softball game all it is, is one giant math problem. Softball math can be used in many
The most disappointing aspect of mathematics education in the United States is the overwhelming apathy toward the subject. It is not that America hates math, but rather that America does not even care enough to form a strong opinion. Taking this apat...
I was never one to be inclined towards math or science. I always felt that English and writing were more my speed, and in turn I enjoyed them more. From Susan Jacoby’s point of view as shown in her essay “When Bright Girls Decide That Math is a Waste of Time,” this would not have been a good enough reason for me to stop taking those subjects in my later years of high school. However, I disagree. I think learning, especially as you get older and closer to college-age, should be about the subjects that allow you to thrive and discover yourself, not about those that you struggle with and cause you stress.
The curriculum implies that teachers will teach students the skills they need for the future. Valley View’s High School math department announces, “Students will learn how to use mathematics to analyze and respond to real-world issues and challenges, as they will be expected to do college and the workplace.” Also, the new integrates math class allows students to distinguish the relationship between algebra and geometry. Although students are not being instructed a mathematical issue in depth, they are rapidly going through all the different topics in an integrated math class. Nowadays, students are too worried to pass the course to acquire a problem-solving mind. Paul Lockhart proclaims the entire problem of high school students saying, “I do not see how it's doing society any good to have its members walking around with vague memories of algebraic formulas and geometric diagrams and dear memories of hating them.” A mathematics class should not be intended to make a student weep from complicated equations, but it should encourage them to seek the numbers surrounding
Being a scholar is a challenge that I take on everyday. The most challenging classes I took this year will have to be AP English Language and Algebra II Honors. AP English Language is my first AP class I have taken and it was really challenging. The most challenging part about being in AP English Language was the level of expectation on your work. English has always been my hardest subject and taking this course was a big step. My essay grades were very low so I had to work extra hard in all my other work to keep my grade up. Also, I was really scared about the AP exam but Ms.Pruden really prepared us for it, I went in and used everything she taught me to try and pass the exam. Algebra II Honors will have to be the most challenging class this
Let me take you back to being a sophomore in high school: fifteen-about-to-turn-sixteen-year-olds, beginning thoughts of college just blooming in their minds, and they are taking more challenging classes than ever before. Every year, classes are changed in schools in order to fulfill new requirements and the difficulty is increased in order to challenge the new students. These new classes and the amount of choices students now have between the different classes available now put new pressures on students that the older generations may not understand. Not only do students have the choice of electives, but now they have the choice of different mathematics, sciences, and English courses on a range of sometimes four different levels. With all these choices, students may have a hard time deciding which is the proper course and level to take. Unfortunately, there is one more pressure in the mix of this decision: the pressure to take advanced placement (AP) courses. More students are taking AP classes every year but the number of students who “bomb the AP exams is growing even more rapidly” (Simon). This leads into the idea that students are not getting more intelligent than the previous classes, but simply that there is too much pressure on them to take these AP courses. Students in high school are being pressured too much to take advanced placement courses whether or not they are academically qualified for them.
Mathematics education has undergone many changes over the last several years. Some of these changes include the key concepts all students must master and how they are taught. According to Jacob Vigdor, the concerns about students’ math achievements have always been apparent. A few reasons that are negatively impacting the productivity of students’ math achievements are historical events that influenced mathematics, how math is being taught, and differentiation of curriculum.
All throughout the days I spent in school sitting in math class learning Algebra, Geometry, and the various other math courses I pondered whether or not I would ever even use these math skills in my life. The sad truth is that you will mostly likely use most of the math skills that you learned throughout high school in everyday life. There are honestly so many different ways you will use math in life like buying a car, your weekly trip to the grocery store, and even at home. It is honestly hurting you to not pay attention because you will in fact use math in your everyday life.
One job the requires algebra is an Animator. Animators have to draw all kinds of pictures and cartoons and it requires them to use linear algebra for every movement a character or object may make. Algebra also helps create special effects to make the images shine and sparkle. The requirements you must have to do this type of job is that of course you have to have talent, some type of degree in animation, and be pretty decent in math. Animators make around $47,000 a year.
Mathematics has become a very large part of society today. From the moment children learn the basic principles of math to the day those children become working members of society, everyone has used mathematics at one point in their life. The crucial time for learning mathematics is during the childhood years when the concepts and principles of mathematics can be processed more easily. However, this time in life is also when the point in a person’s life where information has to be broken down to the very basics, as children don’t have an advanced capacity to understand as adults do. Mathematics, an essential subject, must be taught in such a way that children can understand and remember.
Current statistics and trends in American curriculum need examination. Since 1983, over twenty million American seniors graduated unable to do fundamental math. Also, over ten million did not learn to read at essential levels (1). Students graduate without rudimentary information about history, literature, art, and the philosophical foundations of their nation and civilization (Bennet 2).
As a secondary subject, society often views mathematics a critical subject for students to learn in order to be successful. Often times, mathematics serves as a gatekeeper for higher learning and certain specific careers. Since the times of Plato, “mathematics was virtually the first thing everyone has to learn…common to all arts, science, and forms of thought” (Stinson, 2004). Plato argued that all students should learn arithmetic; the advanced mathematics was reserved for those that would serve as the “philosopher guardians” of the city (Stinson, 2004). By the 1900s in the United States, mathematics found itself as a cornerstone of curriculum for students. National reports throughout the 20th Century solidified the importance of mathematics in the success of our nation and its students (Stinson, 2004). As a mathematics teacher, my role to educate all students in mathematics is an important one. My personal philosophy of mathematics education – including the optimal learning environment and best practices teaching strategies – motivates my teaching strategies in my personal classroom.
When I graduated from high school, forty years ago, I had no idea that mathematics would play such a large role in my future. Like most people learning mathematics, I continue to learn until it became too hard, which made me lose interest. Failure or near failure is one way to put a stop to learning a subject, and leave a lasting impression not worth repeating. Mathematics courses, being compulsory, are designed to cover topics. One by one, the topics need not be important or of immediate use, but altogether or cumulatively, the topics provide or point to a skill, a mastery of mathematics.