How To Do Well In Mathematics

How To Do Well In Mathematics

Taking Notes

Listen in Class. Do not just write down what you see on the board. No teacher is going to write down every word they say and sometimes the important ideas won t get written down.

Write Down Explanatory Remarks. Make sure you write down any explanatory remarks the teacher makes. These often won t get written down by the teacher, but can tell you how to work a particular kind of problem or why the teacher used one formula/method over another for a given problem.

Note Important Formulas/Concepts. If a teacher emphasizes a particular formula or concept then make note of it. This probably means the teacher feels that it s important and important formulas and concepts are much more likely to show up on an exam.

Ask Your Teacher. If you are unclear on something, ask questions.

Note Topics You Don t Understand. If you are having trouble understanding something being presented note that in the margin and at least write down the key words. Leave yourself a couple of lines so you can fill in the missing details later once you ve gotten help to understand the concept.

Review/Edit Your Notes. As soon you can after class go back over your notes. Look for any errors and/or omissions. Fill in any information you didn t have time to write down in class.

Review Regularly. At regular intervals sit down and review your notes so that you can learn and retain the information. Remember, that this information will probably be required down the road so it s best to learn it as soon as possible.

Homework

Understand the Purpose of Homework. Teachers do not give you homework to make your life miserable (well some might, but most don t!). Homeworks are given to help you to learn the material in the class and to develop good reasoning and problems solving skills. Mathematics is just not a subject that most people will instantly understand every single topic after hearing the teachers lecture. Most people need to work on some problems in order to really start to understand the topic. That is the point of the homework. It gives you a set of problems that will help you to understand the topics. Remember that it almost always seems easier to watch a teacher doing problems on the board than it actually is. You won t know if you truly understand the material and can do the problem if you don t attempt the homework.

Have The Actual Homework. This may seem like a silly tip, but make sure that you accurately write down the homework and due date. This is one of the more common mistakes that students make with homework.

Do the Homework Promptly. You should always do the homework as soon after the class as possible while the class is still fresh in your mind. Do not wait until the last minute to do the whole homework when comments made by the teacher are no longer fresh in your mind. Often these little asides that a teacher makes won t seem important at the time, but when it comes time to doing the homework the reason for making the comment will become clear.

Be Organised. When you start working on homework make sure that you ve got all the materials that you ll need to do the homework such as notes and textbook.

Review. Go back over the lecture for each section and review any examples that the teacher worked to make sure that you understand the ideas from that section. Make note of any common errors that your teacher may have mentioned. Do the same with the text book. Read the section and note examples worked and common errors mentioned in the text book.

One of the biggest roadblocks in doing homework that I ve seen in many students is that they completely ignore the notes and/or text. They look at a problem and if they can t see how to do it they give up and go to the next problem. Often there will be a similar problem in the notes and/or text that can help you to get started.

Read/Follow the Directions. Make sure that you read and follow all the directions for both the homework set and the individual problems.

Be Neat. Make sure that you write neatly. This will help the teacher as he/she is grading the homework and you when you are going over the homework in preparation for an exam.

Show All Working. Make sure that you show all of your work. Do not just give the answer. Many teachers will not accept homework that consists only of answers and no work. Also, do not skip large chunks of the work. Teachers aren t mind readers and so they won t know how you got from Step 1 to Step 3 unless you also show Step 2. This is also important if you made a mistake in Step 2. If the teacher can t determine how you got from Step 1 to Step 3 you re liable to lose far more points than you would have lost for the error in Step 2 had you shown it. Showing your work will also help you when you are reviewing for the exam.

Check Your Work. Always go back over your work and make sure that you ve not made any simple arithmetic/sign errors.

Problem Solving

Read the Question. Read the question to get an idea of what you re being asked to do. This one of the biggest sources of point loss that I ve seen in grading. Too many students just skim the question and assume they know what s going on and what they are being asked to do.

Read the Question Again. Now that you know what you re being asked to do, read the question again. This time around make note of what you are given and what you need to find. Also make sure that you understand just what you re being asked to do.

Clearly Note What You Are Asked to Find. Clearly write down somewhere what you re being asked to find.

Clearly Note What You Know. Clearly write down somewhere all the information you ve been given.

Draw a Diagram. If appropriate draw a diagram and label what you know and what you need to find. Often diagrams will suggest the solution technique, so it s a good idea to get into the habit of drawing them.

Devise a Plan. Try to figure out what you re going to need to work the problem. Identify formulas that may help you. See if there are any intermediate steps/answers that will be needed in order to arrive at the final answer.

Try a Similar Problem. If you can t figure out how to do the question find a similar one that is simpler. Work this out and then go back and compare what you did in the simpler question to the one you re asked to do

Check your Answer. Go through the question again. Go through each line again. Does it all make sense? Does the answer look reasonable?