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> If Berkeley's system prevents everyone from taking calculus before 12th grade High school in the US ends at 12th grade -- how do they teach physics without c
by gumby 4y ago
> If Berkeley's system prevents everyone from taking calculus before 12th grade
High school in the US ends at 12th grade -- how do they teach physics without calculus?
- lolinder 4y agoThere are three different AP Physics tests—1, 2, and C—and only AP Physics C requires calculus. The others presumably give you the formulas and expect you to memorize them and use algebra rather than being able to derive them.
- m-ee 4y agoYou memorize the equations for position and velocity without learning how you can derive one from the other. In my school we took no calc physics sophomore year then senior had the option to take AP physics which finally introduced calc. My high school offered more than most, I was able to take multi variable calculus which served me well in college.
- tzs 4y agoI don't know what they actually do, but the calculus needed in first year physics is simple enough (both in what things from calculus you need and in what functions you have to do those things on) that's it is reasonable to teach it on the fly as part of physics class. It goes pretty fast when you aren't bothering with rigorous proofs.
- CydeWeys 4y agoI took physics in 9th grade along with everyone else in my program, and it didn't include calculus.
- icelancer 4y agoPhysics in many high school programs is taught without it and just uses algebra-based methods.