What's so bad about Maths?

[Kae]

I was thinking of making this thread myself, but given that I'm not particularly good at Math I decided to pass, yeah it pisses me off to how much people hate Math and keep claiming that Algebra is useless, I mean I can understand if you don't like it but it's not useless, as for my answer I would go with #3 people just seem very apathetic about Math, in general it seems that most people just hate it.
And by not being good at Math I don't mean that I don't understand it, but I'm rather slow at solving the problems and most of the times I need to have an example at my side to be able to solve it, I still find it entertaining though, for some reason I think solving mathematical problems is rather fun, it's like a videogame I guess, you have a problem and you have to solve it, see it's fun it's like a game!

 

[Sir Thomas Sean Connery]

I only have one issue with it.

Calling it "Math[b/]S[/b]" with an S!!!

It just sounds retarded when said in a serious way. Like saying "Internets" with no hint of comedy.

Yes, I know it can be said both ways, blah blah blah. It still bugs me more than "irregardless"

More on topic, I have never really had much trouble with Math. Maybe I just had good teachers or maybe I'm a good student. I can't really say.

 

[Syzygy23]

I can see the use of a lot of it, it just makes my head hurt

But where does that confusion come from? Are teachers failing to explain it properly or something? A lot of it comes naturally if you understand the basic principles in depth.

It's frustration mostly. Math just isn't very intuitive or... "user friendly" I guess you could say.

For example:

I remember in high school I was just starting Algebra 1. There was a problem on the board that I was supposed to solve (I can't remember it, but it was something like 5 + 3X = 7 - 10x) I was supposed to find out what X was.

Now, before the problem had been presented, the teacher had explained that when we see X in a problem, it could be any number. I decided X should be 14, because I like the number 14, and the teacher had said X could be any number. Pretty simple, right?

NOPE.

suddenly it turns out there is a WHOLE freaking process involving multiple steps that you HAVE to do in order to make X be the number that is the RIGHT NUMBER. Even a slight miscalculation in ANY of these steps (Which I'm just supposed to always remember off the top of my head) will give you a wrong answer, in which case you have to repeat ALL of the steps AGAIN, which is very time consuming for those of us who cannot visualize problems (e.g. those of us who have to write out the steps so we don't lose track of where we are in any given problem) very well.

Time consuming and TEDIOUS since very often you can complete all the steps and they will APPEAR to logically add up to whatever the RIGHT NUMBER is.

and then it gets worse when the problems get more complex and there are suddenly steps that must be taken for the individual steps to account for extra variables.

And apparently I was just supposed to figure out on my own that I had to do all these steps just to get X to equal, I dunno, let's say... 3.

So then I got the problem wrong, and it made me feel dumb and that math was just making up these arbitrary rules for solving problems on the spot to confuse me and give me that dumb feeling. That demoralized me and I stopped giving a fuck about math, which made no fucking sense, ever.
What can we take away from this experience?

It's the Teacher's fault.
I dunno if you guys have ever heard of a website called Khan Academy (http://www.khanacademy.org/) Check it out, it's great.

But, here I am, 7 years later, watching the algebra lessons on Khan Academy. AND NOW IT MAKES SENSE. I honestly LIKE math now. Outside of a classroom setting where there aren't people watching me solve problems and rendering black and white Success or Failure judgements I'm much more emboldened to examine WHY I get problems wrong and begin ruminating on possible solutions and actually putting real thought into how I can make the solution equal what I want it to equal, or at least equal something logical.

Math is the language the universe is built upon, there is no rational concept that cannot be conveyed through math. Hell, I'm pretty sure even irrational concepts can be explained, eventually, once we evolve our mathematical systems to accommodate for irrational phenomena cause and effects (or vice versa, especially on the quantum level, or so I'm told)

I may still be working through basic algebra, but now that I've finally managed to wash out that bad teacher taste, I finally have a hunger for more.

 

[Barciad]

Two things.
One, it is something that requires an natural innate ability to be able to do effectively.
Two, it is an incredibly dry topic.
Now certain skills like art, music and sports also require God-given ability. However, they the advantage of being fun to do, even if you are not very good.
Just for the record, I am a Maths teacher.

 

[Muspelheim]

Mathemathics are probably exceptionally interesting if you've got the slightest clue of how it works. Hell, it's an important part of our species' development. And I'm sure some even find it -fun- to do math. Which is splendid, because we need those people.

My main irritance with math is that I feel as if I'm considered a second-class citizen for not understanding it. As if it's a huge handicap in my life, et cetera.

I just don't like math. Or rather, I don't like doing math. Math is great, but it doesn't have to be this monumental part of everyone's life. I'd personally leave it to people who like it and have a clue of what they're doing.

 

[generals3]

Actually i never had a problem with "math" i had a problem with a couple of themes. It's the same with "science". I love chemistry, like physics but cba with biology.

 

[Grey Walker]

Canadian here.

I did just as well in Math as just about any other topic until University and Calculus hit. High school calculus was fine, and I had a great teacher.

University became a different story. Each week we had a different formula to memorize, which consisted of copying the basic theory and copying the process in class, then being assigned several problems on the formula for next week.

I failed the course twice, hitting in the mid to high 40s both times.

The problem was not the basic formulas themselves, but when they started getting combined in unfamiliar ways, particularly whenever trigonometry and calculus were combined. If the formula was unknown, trying to recall a 3-hour long note on the procedure was difficult at best, and trying to build something up in what I thought was logical resulted in the incorrect answer.

Now this could have been solved with taking more time with the homework, or going to the professors and working through difficult problems.

The sciences, it felt like the process could be visualized and understood more (speaking as chemistry and biology, I had a difficult time with more advanced physics in high school, and never had it in university), where as math had you working with more abstract concepts, and things worked this way because your professor said so, and that you needed to solve it with a calculator almost all the time, which hid much of the process.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say it is calculators that cause much of the gap. the focus is on knowing what buttons to press and in what order, where as other areas there isn't this technological shortcut that hides the process (at least not that I encountered). I never reached that "click" moment where everything falls into place and it all makes sense. More time invested in math would likely have provided this, but since that moment had occurred with the other subjects first, it felt like math was the outlier.

In addition, there wouldn't be any specialized math courses beyond that first calculus class, much of which I was reminded that we'd never use any of the formulas in future courses anyway. This made it feel like I was wasting my time, and nothing kills interest faster than that.

 

[Vhite]

I used to be good at math but then I got to highschool where our teacher never taught us anything but now I'm slowly teaching it myself and while I liked it before, I'm starting to love it.

 

[Monkeyman O'Brien]

Accountant here. For me its all the goddamn equations I have to memorise. And trying to remember in this area what is z meant to represent. What about rf, r*, n, m, I/Y, P/Y, C/Y you get the idea. It just gets to be too much.

Oh and people hate the BODMAS/PEDMAS bullshit. Its like that much used question "Whats 1+1+1+1+1x1+1+1=" everyone is used to #x0=0 but people pull out this BODMAS bullshit and claim that no, its "meant" to be done seperately. I love arguing that by stating that no, you do the equation you are given. If they wanted you to do it (1x0)+1+1+1+1+1 etc then they would have put it like that. As they did not you are wrong to make the assumption they want you to use the BODMAS system.

 

[[Kira Must Die]]

I like math. Math was my best subject and I always had fun doing it, even when I was a kid. Hell, through the first three years of high school I had two math classes a year, until senior year, where I had Logic and Reasoning, which was also a lot of fun.

 

[ChildishLegacy]

Thing is you can't do this. I'm a hands-on learner. I can read about it till the end of time, but if I don't get my hands on something I can't learn it. You can't put your hands on 3.1416/4 * 4.00^2 * 3.98 * 6 = ~300. The way you have to learn it, due to the impracticality of working with numbers in that manner with actual objects, means people like me find math irritatingly hard.

Actually, in a lot of countries in Asia, children are taught from an early age to do sums quickly on abacuses, which is a very hands on approach and is a big visual aid. Almost every kid there can do large sums near instantly that most of us would have to think through for 5-10 seconds, as once they stop using an abacus, they can visualize it in their head.

 

[Cthulu2]

Okay, I may not have read the entire wall 'o text that you have printed for the intro, but have taken the main point for the three different reasons. Before anyone finds issue with this, however, I must say that I don't feel the need to continue to read them to agree with them.

In my course of (Australian) studies these are the main things that we are taught to avoid in any classroom situation. We are taught that the interpersonal relationships of students when learning something such as maths, the teacher themselves and the general tone of the teachings are important as the work itself when teaching.

When students at a low level are introduced to maths, they are easily discouraged by the seemingly complex task placed in front of them. At this point if they are forced to learn one way they are discouraged for all future attempts, and may never attempt to pull themselves out of their slump. This can happen at any point, but at early levels they are most vulnerable.

There you are, a somewhat intoxicated wall o' text to give you a basic level understanding of "What's so bad about maths" from a Certificate III wielder. Don't worry, I'm certified (I've wanted to say that to SOMEONE, but have yet to have had a chance.)

 

[Sirron Kcuch]

Math is fun, and the language of the universe.

 

[ChildishLegacy]

Math is fun, and the language of the universe.

Well sort of, it's a man made language made to try and understand the universe.

I'd say physics is the language of the universe, and Maths is our translator.

 

[Sirron Kcuch]

Math is fun, and the language of the universe.

Well sort of, it's a man made language made to try and understand the universe.

I'd say physics is the language of the universe, and Maths is our translator.

Let me correct myself, I don't think that Maths are a language, but just pure logic and a model of thinking. Also, the most pure science ever known to man

 

[AlAaraaf74]

I don't like math at all. I'm okay with basic arithmitic, algebra, and geometry, but the more advanced my classes get, the harder it is for me. Last semester I took Triginometry and was struggling to keep my C. I got a C - in the end, but it made me sooo happy. This semester is Stats, which isn't too bad now, but it will probably get harder because my teacher does a poor job teaching.

What really upsets me about this year is that I didn't even want to take another year of math. And it isn't even required: at my school, you only need 3 years to graduate. But my counsler insisted that I take another year of math, even though he knew that I had been struggling for the past couple of years.

I agree with everyone who says that general studants are required to learn more math than they need in their every day life. I wish there was a class on how to live on a budget, because that would sure come in handy when I'm older!

But no, my school believes that I NEED to know how to solve trigonometric functions.

Btw: While trying to remember what I learned last semester, I saw this on Wikipedia under Uses of Trigonometry:
"There are an enormous number of uses of trigonometry and trigonometric functions. For instance, the technique of triangulation is used in astronomy to measure the distance to nearby stars, in geography to measure distances between landmarks, and in satellite navigation systems. "
...Wow, what waste of my time.

 

[Nickolai77]

I can see the use of a lot of it, it just makes my head hurt

But where does that confusion come from? Are teachers failing to explain it properly or something? A lot of it comes naturally if you understand the basic principles in depth.

Some people just don't get maths (myself included). Everyone's brains are just wired differently, it's no big deal and it can't be helped.

I don't buy that. I used to not get it, and did fairly poorly in whatever math class I took. Then I got into 3d modeling and animation. At some point I realized I was doing algebra and trigonometry in three dimensions every day and enjoying it. Went back to college to take calculus and aced it.

I don't think it's because people's "brains are wired differently", I think it's because we have an education system that fails to teach people the value of math. Even if you aren't an engineer or animator, you can still employ algebra, trig, and even calculus in your life.

I kind of disagree here, but firstly i'd point out that i think there is a difference between understanding arithmetic and the more complex stuff. Give me a calculator and a step-by-step guide to doing quadratics and i won't have much of a problem. It's the arithmetic part that i think get's a lot of people when it comes to liking/disliking maths, and it's to do with how we are mentally hard-wired. For instance, if i play darts i'm very slow to do the mental subtractions and i find it difficult to mentally calculate how much change i'm owed. I simply can't do the mental gymnastics as well as well as other people can.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I was always average at Mathis in school. I could solve logic questions but I never had the commitment to learn off the formulas you needed to do well in the trigonometry and geometry sections. That accounted for about a third of the course so I usually got C's.

Having said that, some people genuinely just do not get maths. One of my friends is extremely clever in everyday situations, aced languages and arts subjects but struggled to comprehend maths in school, even basic algebra. Almost like dyslexia but with maths.