Algebra requirement

Originally posted by moxyone
latin, in case you didn't know, is the root language of English, as well as the romance languages.

Latin is not a root of english. English is a germanic language, with lots of insertions from the French, and that has latin as it's root. Latin is of course what any educated person around while english was forming learned tho, and its influences are profound, but as a 'genealogical statement' I'd have to say its not really a 'root'.

leespitfire
I just do not see the logic nor the pattern!!!

How else can one do logical operations without the basis that maths and algebra provide? Its more than another language or another history its a universal one. I assume you have absolutely no plans whatsoever of attending college, so you can forget about what the other poster said about it being important there. They were right, its absolutely vital, but if you honestly don't think its useful, then forget about college entirely, I mean its simply not workable. And its contrary to the purpose of university education anyway. Even tho college has become something like job training, the degrees are still carried over from when people went to university for a 'universal' education about the world that they're in and how it works. Thats why even tho one is talking say a sociology degree, you'd still almost universally have to take calculus or statistics or some sort of advanced mathematics course, not to mention a whole slew of courses not 'directly' related to sociology proper.

Most jobs do NOT need Algebra, nor Geometry, Trig, etc
If I wanted a job that required that then I would be going for a BS not a BA yes?

Holy crap man you need algebra. Yes it sucks. Too bad. Yikes, I'm sorry man I'm not trying to rant here or something, but jesus man you need algebra in life. Obviously you don't die if you don't have it, but one needs to understand mathematics if one is trying to understand the world to the degree one will in getting a bachelor degree, irregardless of it being a BS or a BA

But if one is going for a Liberal Arts degree why do they need such advanced mathematics?

Algebra is basic mathematics. Calculus is slightly more advanced.

Why are you going to college?

Most jobs do NOT need Algebra

I'll agree with that, most jobs don't need algebra, certainly not any more than one can learn on the spot. But, most jobs don't need anything that anyone learns anywhere. If you are going into business, and certainly industry, then you receive huge amounts of on the job training. I know someone who never took a bio course in their life, works sales for a pharmecutical company, and now spends hours studying biochemistry and anatomy. The company didn't care that there wasn't any biology on their degree.
I mean if its just job training that you are after then none of it matters right? Just take the standard courses and worry about the grades, not what you learn no?

Originally posted by Leespitfire
Most jobs do NOT need Algebra, nor Geometry, Trig, etc
If I wanted a job that required that then I would be going for a BS not a BA yes?

Anything in the Sciences, yes, one would want that background.

But if one is going for a Liberal Arts degree why do they need such advanced mathematics?

A taste of Algebra, just as a taste of Fine Arts for a Science Major should suffice, for a Liberal Arts Degree.

Sheesh, imagine the Mathematics majors having to take advanced Music Theory??

Please, algebra is not an advanced mathematics. Differential geometry, tensor analysis, and vector calculus are advanced mathematics. You are getting just a taste of algebra.

I find it hard that you are doing any advance mathematics. In order to do advanced mathematics you will need to go through linear algebra, basic calculus (about 3 courses) and trig. All you are talking about is a highschool equivalent algebra course.

Imagine this, a science major will have to put up with far more liberal arts than a liberal arts major will have to put up with math/science. I have too take 2 english courses, 2 sociology courses, 2 history courses, 1 art, and another humanities of my choice jsut to earn a BS. All a liberal arts major has to do is 1 math and 2 science. Ha! STOP YOUR WHINING!!!

leespitfire...

No one gives a hoot how difficult a time you had getting your sheepskin. No one... when it is over...they only care that you got it.

I hated math too..all kinds of math. I particulary hated algebra and geometry.

At one time I hated this thing called a quadratic equation or what I sometimes call the square root of the sum of squares. I quickly forgot it when I got out of High School.
Guess what , Dummy, there I was taking electronics courses for the US Air Force and what came up in the formulas for resonance , Impedance and other values...the quadratic equation. The olde formulas for right triangles slapped me right in the face and called me a dummy...which I correctly was for thumbing my nose at this years before.
Then like a dummy again..I got out of the US Air Force and went into mechanical skills...shipbuilding. While engaging in a field called optical alignment with very expensive alignment scopes ...the data I was taking needed to be crunched into a usable form....there slapping me in the face again like a dummy was that olde right triangle formula..the quadratic equation. Good God...I'll never get a break.!!!!
Well..I got tired of smacking my head against the wall. I force fed myself...I learned it over again...I can do it today. Mind you I am still a dummy. ...I still dont like it ..but I respect it alot more than in my days of total dummyness. Got the point Leespitfire????
No one here is asking or requiring you to like it...you have to stop whining as Off the Street states...and get used to it. Deal with it...some of us olde timers call this growing up.
Not telling you this to offend Leespitfire..I still dont like math at all..but I respect it...alot more... a whole lot more.
Think algebra is tough...I taught myself morse code..for my amateur radio exams...along with refreshers in algebra...too. I can tell you I am on alot better terms with morse code than math..but I made it through to obtain my extra class license.
You do what you gotta do to get by ...no one asks us to like it . You can even make friends with Algebra and other things like this..strange as that may sound right now.
Good luck olde man..dont let it get you down or make you quit. Tighten up you seat belt and get to work. Oooraahhh!!!!

Thanks,
Orangetom

Originally posted by Leespitfire
Algebra was not a requirement to graduate when I went to high school, thus I have no experience with it.

Quit complaining and start playing catch up ball. You need algebra to figure out your gas milage and a jillion other everyday tasks. You can't consider yourself educated if you cannot do basic algebra. Now, you're learning the truth and you're angry because you didn't learn that lesson sooner. You're not the only person to go back to school and who has to make hay while the sun shines.

[edit on 2005/12/10 by GradyPhilpott]

The general idea here is that you need to be well rounded. Sure, you can have a BA instead of a BS, but you still need to be well rounded in other areas. That is one of the major reasons for attending a college. You dont just learn what you MUST know, but other things that might come in handy. Not to mention, im sure you already use algebra for a lot of things. Just about any problem you've ever encountered that includes a variable includes algebra.

By the way, an introductory course in algebra is NOT advanced mathematics.

Continuing reanimating this old topic

I guess this article and the links in it covers the idea of why tons of useless stuff is being forced onto people.

www.education-reform.net...

Quote from the above article:
Nevertheless, according to recent reports, the average American child watches between 18 and an astounding 55 hours of television per week "for fun". Some kids watch TV after school and all weekend long! How much time does that leave a child to develop his own individuality? Not much! Then again, the development of individuality does not appear anywhere in the stated purpose of compulsory education, does it?

Seems to me like this article is saying that after school and tv, there is little time left to be imaginitive.

uhh...so they think we should have less school time so they will have time to be individuals? Why are kids spending as much time watching TV as sleeping in the first place?(article says 56 hours a week for sleeping)

Sorry if that wasnt the point of the article, trying to read and respond quickly before my router gives out on me.

---Pineapple

y=mx+b

rise over run

Quadratic formula
-b+- square root b^2 - 4(a)(c) all over
2(a)

Pathagoras
a^2 +b^2=c^2

Imaginary #s


Translating word problems to math language


your set

I had the same kind of attitude toward math when I was in high school. I sat through algebra I and II, Geometry, and Pre-Calc, nearly failing the latter two classes, with the expectation that I would never need to use that in the real world. I figured I'd just get a A+ certification for computer repair and make decent money working as a repair technician without using a single digit of math.

Well, by the time my senior year came along I realized I had no money for college, no job opportunities in computer repair, and no other plan. As a method of not feeling like I was going nowhere in life, I decided joining the U.S. Navy sounded like a good plan. I tested well on the entrance exam, due to math not being as heavily weighed on it as other areas, so they throw some hypothetical dollor signs at me to get me to cast in my lot with something called the "Nuclear Field". Turns out there are applications for many of the math concepts they teach in high school, but because of my attitude in high school I had to start from pretty much the ground up (we're talking fractions and exponents here, really basic stuff) and in the process suffer some pretty significant failures early on and cause myself a whole lot of stress.

Now I realize that most of this doesn't apply to you at all, my point is to just keep in mind that plans have a way of falling through and the things you think you may end up doing or not doing have a nice way of tricking you sometimes.

While there may be useless things taughty at your school, algebra isn't one of them. If nothing else, you need some basic algebra to understand basic accounting and taxes. You need to understand these things, because otherwise you will be ripped off.

All sorts of advertisers prey upon people who don't comprehend. You should be able to understand tax rates, interest rates, and basic probabilities. Without these things, you be easily cheated by lotteries, casinos, loan sharks, and employers. You need to be able to calculate whether you are being ripped off.

The fact is that you can't fully comprehend the modern world without mathematics. Leaders plan based upon statistics and quantitative calculations. Businesses negotiate deals based on payment formulas. Marketers and credit cards exploit people with financing arrangements which appear good only to people with a poor understanding of mathematics. Gamblers exploit people who can't act based upon mathematical principles.