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Posted: 9/27/2013 9:52:23 AM EDT
I suck at math. a little humiliating back ground:

I'm 38.
I dropped out of high school, i think technically a junior.  
Highest math class i remember was algebra
17 years military.

I'm looking at going to college, due to necessity, this spring.
What can I do to improve my math skills before then? I need to start slow, at the "stupid high school drop out" level.
Link Posted: 9/27/2013 10:26:19 AM EDT
[#1]
Check into night school for adults.  Probably cheaper than a community college.  

You're not the only one who has low math skills.  
Link Posted: 9/27/2013 3:59:14 PM EDT
[#2]
practice arithmetic, add, subtract, multiply, divide with integers AND fractions.

Do it by hand.
Link Posted: 9/28/2013 6:20:29 PM EDT
[#3]
I agree with the duck. Add, subtract, multiply, divide. Integers and fractions.

Do it by hand. At this point in learning math, calculators will only hurt you.

Khanacademy is a FANTASTIC resource for supplemental learning materials. Keep asking yourself, "why" when you learn something new. "Why is multiplying by the reciprocal the same as dividing?"

Of course, arf has resident math nerds if you need additional assistance on any specific topic.
Link Posted: 10/1/2013 3:08:55 AM EDT
[#4]
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304213904579095303368899132.html


2. Drill, baby, drill.

Rote learning, long discredited, is now recognized as one reason that children whose families come from India (where memorization is still prized) are creaming their peers in the National Spelling Bee Championship. This cultural difference also helps to explain why students in China (and Chinese families in the U.S.) are better at math. Meanwhile, American students struggle with complex math problems because, as research makes abundantly clear, they lack fluency in basic addition and subtraction—and few of them were made to memorize their times tables.

William Klemm of Texas A&M University argues that the U.S. needs to reverse the bias against memorization. Even the U.S. Department of Education raised alarm bells, chastising American schools in a 2008 report that bemoaned the lack of math fluency (a notion it mentioned no fewer than 17 times). It concluded that schools need to embrace the dreaded "drill and practice."
View Quote
Link Posted: 10/1/2013 3:13:39 AM EDT
[#5]
Why not take a remedial math course at the local community college now?

I believe they will give you a quick math test to see where you're at and then recommend which remedial math class to take.  

Go to the college and speak with an adviser.  Be honest.
Link Posted: 10/3/2013 3:57:23 PM EDT
[#6]
good news is they probably actually taught math when you were in school.  maybe consider purchasing some books and trying to teach yourself.  I've gotten used text books for $5-$10.  When I was younger I did not have the patience to teach myself stuff with a text book.  Now that I am older I read text books for fun.
Link Posted: 10/22/2013 1:36:51 PM EDT
[#7]
I'm kinda in the same boat too. I met with an advisor yesterday and she's pushing me to retake my compass test that I took 4 years ago. My pre algebra score was 48, reading 97, and writing 60. I told her I can try but my math will probably not improve since it's been even longer since I have used it but I'm going to try anyways.

I was thinking of checking out youtube tonight for help with the algebra and see if I just can't wrap my brain into a pretzel.
Link Posted: 11/4/2013 1:39:22 AM EDT
[#8]
Try to start with Khan Academy.
https://www.khanacademy.org/

You find it very useful
Link Posted: 12/1/2013 11:10:52 AM EDT
[#9]
Get a pre calculus book that has high amazon reviews. Then just follow along each subject and use youtube to show examples. Then do all the problems in that section and repeat.

The key to your misunderstanding in mathematics is just the rules so any time you get stuck try to find the specific rule thats needed in your particular case.


-im a applied math major =)
Link Posted: 12/6/2013 6:44:33 AM EDT
[#10]
when you get stuck just drop me a line.

two engineering degrees, bsce & mse
taught at university for 6 years after graduate school
teaching / research assistant for 4 years while working my way through school.

I didn't like math in high school, but my college major required lots of it.

can you beating it into your skull..had to take calculus 1 to 3, differential equations, 3 times each before I got a "C".
its burnt into my grey matter..and no way to get it out explosives!..haha

Ben
Link Posted: 12/6/2013 6:41:06 PM EDT
[#11]
Check out Khan Academy, it is free and set up by a MIT Math / Econ guy.

Khan Academy

Set up an account and work through the lessons, there are problem sets and lectures. From simple arithmetic to ordinary differential equations.

Link Posted: 12/9/2013 5:34:51 PM EDT
[#12]
Here's what I did, after being away from school for a very long time:



I went to the local community college library, and looked through the math textbooks.  I picked the lowest level book that I couldn't do all the problems in off the top of my head.  It was Introductory Algebra (this also contained a review of the definitions of real numbers, irrational numbers, etc., which I needed).



I checked out the book (you can probably get a "community" card from the library even before you enroll).  I worked all of the odd-numbered problems in the book (I had to check the book out several times).  Then, I did the same thing with the Intermediate Algebra textbook.



Then I registered for College Algebra.  I made an A, then I took Pre-Calc, and made an A in that as well.  I'm taking Calc I next semester.
Link Posted: 12/9/2013 5:39:27 PM EDT
[#13]

Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:


Get a pre calculus book that has high amazon reviews. Then just follow along each subject and use youtube to show examples. Then do all the problems in that section and repeat.



The key to your misunderstanding in mathematics is just the rules so any time you get stuck try to find the specific rule thats needed in your particular case.





-im a applied math major =)
View Quote
IMO he's probably going to have a very hard time with pre-calc; there's no way I could have started there and done well.  I benefited a great deal from reviewing and getting a lot of repetition in algebra.



 
Link Posted: 12/9/2013 5:44:55 PM EDT
[#14]
I started college and worked up to Calc III before changing majors, Bio-chem, Calc based physics, Organic chem,
I have forgot more than I remember and makes me feel but I just don't use it.
I would test in a 11-12 grade math level if given a test now.
Link Posted: 12/9/2013 5:47:19 PM EDT
[#15]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
Check out Khan Academy, it is free and set up by a MIT Math / Econ guy.

Khan Academy

Set up an account and work through the lessons, there are problem sets and lectures. From simple arithmetic to ordinary differential equations.

View Quote


+1

Some say Kahn's style of teaching is the future of education.

Plus KKKAAAHHHHNNN!!!
Link Posted: 12/9/2013 6:09:45 PM EDT
[#16]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304213904579095303368899132.html


2. Drill, baby, drill.

Rote learning, long discredited, is now recognized as one reason that children whose families come from India (where memorization is still prized) are creaming their peers in the National Spelling Bee Championship. This cultural difference also helps to explain why students in China (and Chinese families in the U.S.) are better at math. Meanwhile, American students struggle with complex math problems because, as research makes abundantly clear, they lack fluency in basic addition and subtraction—and few of them were made to memorize their times tables.

William Klemm of Texas A&M University argues that the U.S. needs to reverse the bias against memorization. Even the U.S. Department of Education raised alarm bells, chastising American schools in a 2008 report that bemoaned the lack of math fluency (a notion it mentioned no fewer than 17 times). It concluded that schools need to embrace the dreaded "drill and practice."



Math is like a language, and with numbers and operations being the alphabet and grammar.

When you learn to speak and write you must use wrote learning to get the alphabet and basic grammar, this is the same with math. The same drilling of simple problems over and over.

American kids are trying to read Shakespeare without knowing the alphabet.
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