4 ms·

personally, busy work just never sticks for me, i don't remember almost any of the math i did in HS and uni that was just "do these problems over and over till

by katbyte 13y ago

personally, busy work just never sticks for me, i don't remember almost any of the math i did in HS and uni that was just "do these problems over and over till you remember it" because it just wasn't all that interesting, and this goes for any subject. However some concepts, limits, derivatives and integrals i remember perfectly well (5+ years later) because my math teacher explained how the all fit together, what they represented wrt the real world and how they can be useful and that actually got me interested. Yea you need to know the basics, but i daresay busy work isn't the best way to teach them.

Pxtl 13y ago
It's the difference between skills and knowledge. Limits/derivatives/integrals are interesting knowledge so you can discuss them verbally, even if you don't have extensive practice in using them. The basic, core stuff is the opposite. Fractions, bedmas, etc. you don't care enough to talk about, but if I handed a problem that used those concepts you could do it in your head, because they're skills that have been developed down to an instinctive level. Common factoring is dull. There's nothing to say about common factoring. But if I show you an equation where you can apply it, you'll spot it instinctively because you've had common factoring ground into your reptilian brain.
- minikomi 13y ago
  Dull work can be made fun with a little effort. One of my high school teachers had us form lines, we refactor on the fly, said the factors of a quadratic out loud, and then were able to shoot the opponent (like a duel).. After a few shootouts everyone got very quick at refactoring. That little fun boost made the grind feel meaningful.
- j2kun 13y ago
  There is quite a lot to say about 'common factoring.' For example, nobody knows whether there is an efficient algorithm to factor integers (where efficient depends on the number of digits in the integer). However, there is an efficient algorithm to factor polynomials, and you can write all irreducible polynomials of a certain degree as factors of one mother polynomial. Moreover, being able to factor integers efficiently would allow you to break a lot of encryption schemes.

by katbyte 13y ago

Pxtl 13y ago

It's the difference between skills and knowledge. Limits/derivatives/integrals are interesting knowledge so you can discuss them verbally, even if you don't have extensive practice in using them. The basic, core stuff is the opposite. Fractions, bedmas, etc. you don't care enough to talk about, but if I handed a problem that used those concepts you could do it in your head, because they're skills that have been developed down to an instinctive level. Common factoring is dull. There's nothing to say about common factoring. But if I show you an equation where you can apply it, you'll spot it instinctively because you've had common factoring ground into your reptilian brain.

minikomi 13y ago
Dull work can be made fun with a little effort. One of my high school teachers had us form lines, we refactor on the fly, said the factors of a quadratic out loud, and then were able to shoot the opponent (like a duel).. After a few shootouts everyone got very quick at refactoring. That little fun boost made the grind feel meaningful.
j2kun 13y ago
There is quite a lot to say about 'common factoring.' For example, nobody knows whether there is an efficient algorithm to factor integers (where efficient depends on the number of digits in the integer). However, there is an efficient algorithm to factor polynomials, and you can write all irreducible polynomials of a certain degree as factors of one mother polynomial. Moreover, being able to factor integers efficiently would allow you to break a lot of encryption schemes.