I had a person question me over the difference quotient. He couldn’t load 4x-3 into my programs. I had not programmed that “straight line” into my programs I had only programmed something with x^2 (curve). He gave me a you tube video feed that 4x-1 was a valid function. I guess it is after watching the feed. So I programmed it for him and now you. I’m a guy who thinks practical about things. I programmed my calculator because I was smart and allowed to use the calculator for tests.
Steve says
You really REALLY need to create a program like this for Algebra or atleast precalc
Tommy says
Thanks Steve! Keep checking in for updates..I’m working on a lot of Calculus 1 problems that people are having trouble with maybe I can sneak some precalc in there also. If you would like anything specific just let me know, maybe I can help you out.
Victor says
Professors/ Doctors find the text book that will cover the information they reuirqe for the course, since they do not write the text they have to pick one that best illustrates the information they want you to learn during the semester.I have lit books that we covered certain authors and did not use a lot of the book. The only book I have used everything is when the instructor wrote the book.
Rafansyah says
Hello. I am a student in EDM 310 at the University of South Alabama. I have about two years left until I cpmelote my Secondary Ed. Science program. As a current student I can say that very few of my professors motivate me to want to learn outside of the classroom let alone outside of the semester. I have to push myself to learn so that I am well prepared to teach my future students. I will admit it is hard without teacher motivation. Although teachers can do all they can to encourage their students to learn it is ultimately up to the student to take their education seriously. I can admit that most of what I learned in high school I left it in high school. It was not until I started college that I realized how important it is to actually learn the material and not memorize it for a short period of time. It all comes together eventually. My EDM 310 class is a media class that involves no paper. Everything we do deals with us using a computer and technology to build our concept of networking and learning how we should teach our future students. The class is hands on and forces us to use the web and actually figure out how to use the web for our benefit. I love this class because I am not just reading, memorizing, bubbling on a test, then forgetting it later. It sticks with me because I am actually completing my work while learning how to use a program. I believe if teachers are able to find examples to the real world and to things their students like to keep up with the students may just find it interesting enough to look into it outside of the classroom. It is all about attention. I like what John said about Call of Duty and how one could ask what it takes to write the video, this is something I think the student would say Hmm to and actually consider looking into. While playing the game they would soon think about that question and grow curious enough to try to learn about it. Doing that would force the student to think critically and to research on their own. I really appreciate your blogs. It gives me the real perspective of a teacher with passion and I hope I will be a great teacher like you some day. I try to look at the teacher point of view without falling under the student point of view because I am still a student. Thank you. I can see both points of because of you taking out time to write your thoughts.
Jakir says
I will point out that Strauss, Bradley, & Smith is the other Calc textbook at Rutgers, and this text also has seeravl listings of rules that are no more than special cases of rules they’ve already learned.In particular, p 140 features the Extended Derivative Formulas each of which is a combination of one of the power, trigonometric, exponential, or logarithmic rules plus the chain rule.This semester alone, at least three or four students have asked me whether they should use these rules rather than the chain rule.These are certainly useful examples, but I think I agree that presenting them as additional rules for derivatives is not helpful it is, I would reckon, somewhat harmful.