Thread: I want nothing more than to take calculus

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    I want nothing more than to take calculus

    I think calculus is the coolest thing ever. My math teacher gave me a calculus book for the summer and I've been reading it quite a bit, but he says I cannot take calculus next year because I do not have enough knowledge to be able to do it.

    Personally, i think that is a load of horse $$$$. But I wanted to know what you guys (people that have or are actually taking calculus, not losers who think they know what calculus takes when they don't know what a radian is) think it really takes for pre requisites to calculus.

    My math teacher said having a solid understanding of trig identities is key, which is believable, but he didn't say what else I would have to get into, and honestly I'm good at trig and math in general. PooP


    EDIT: yes, I'm a geek, well established

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    Toaster Zach L.'s Avatar
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    Hmm.. Definitely a strong trig background. A good understanding of vector concepts, and of course operations (inner and outer products) is definitely good. Also the ability to break down a problem into qunatifiable pieces is essential. The more abstractly you can think about mathematical concepts, the more you'll get from calculus as well.
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    omg, i honestly have all of that. I'm going to punch my teacher in the face.

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    Crazy Fool Perspective's Avatar
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    if you can understand the concept of a limit your done. calculus is easy and is the greatest thing... untill you take an advanced linear algebra class, then that becomes the greatest thing.... then maybe some class i take next year will become the greatest thing..... then maybe ill stop babling on Silver's thread.

    my advice: even if you dont get to take the class. keep reading and learning on your own. it will just make calculus that much easier when you do get to take it.

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    If you have a decent background in math then I'm sure you can handle it. Why you say? Because I just took Calculus I at a large University in NC (UNCC) and that was my first class since I graduated with my Bachelors in '99. Oh, I received an A in the class although the only maths I had in college were College Algebra and some Statistics classes. I was a little overwhelmed the first week but recovered quite nicely and surprised even myself. Calculus I (in college anyway) is more Algebra than anything, it's just a bunch of it.
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    What's the last thing you learned in math class?

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    Senior Member joshdick's Avatar
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    I just finished up AP Calculus this past week. In pre-calc, the most important things to learn are trigonometry, working with functions and their inverses and logarithmic and exponential functions. At least for me, I didn't need to know limits because we were taught that in Calculus class.

    I would just talk to the teacher. If you really think you are ready for a calc course, ask the teacher for a test on what you need to know to prove it to him. If you don't do so hot on that, ask the teacher exactly what you need to know for your school's calc course. I know at my school we were taught some things in Pre-Calc that we never used in Calc like complex roots. I definitely think your teacher is your best bet. And if the teacher you already talked to is being stupid for some reason, maybe you could talk to another math teacher.
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    Registered User rahaydenuk's Avatar
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    Re: I want nothing more than to take calculus

    Originally posted by Silvercord
    I think calculus is the coolest thing ever. My math teacher gave me a calculus book for the summer and I've been reading it quite a bit, but he says I cannot take calculus next year because I do not have enough knowledge to be able to do it.

    Personally, i think that is a load of horse $$$$. But I wanted to know what you guys (people that have or are actually taking calculus, not losers who think they know what calculus takes when they don't know what a radian is) think it really takes for pre requisites to calculus.

    My math teacher said having a solid understanding of trig identities is key, which is believable, but he didn't say what else I would have to get into, and honestly I'm good at trig and math in general. PooP


    EDIT: yes, I'm a geek, well established
    If you truly have the enthusiasm for this area of mathematics as portrayed in your post, I think your teacher has an obligation to mathematics to fulfill your request. It's not every day that teachers find a student who is really enthusiastic about calculus (or any area of mathematics), and surely it is his duty to embrace this enthusiasm?

    As long as you have enthusiasm and a good grip of the basic pre-calculus areas such as trigonometry and algebra etc. you should be fine.

    You should maybe try discussing what you're learning independently with him (i.e. ask questions etc.) so he can clearly see your enthusiasm and maybe it will change his mind.

    Regards and good luck,
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    Re: Re: I want nothing more than to take calculus

    Originally posted by rahaydenuk
    If you truly have the enthusiasm for this area of mathematics as portrayed in your post, I think your teacher has an obligation to mathematics to fulfill your request. It's not every day that teachers find a student who is really enthusiastic about calculus (or any area of mathematics), and surely it is his duty to embrace this enthusiasm?

    As long as you have enthusiasm and a good grip of the basic pre-calculus areas such as trigonometry and algebra etc. you should be fine.

    You should maybe try discussing what you're learning independently with him (i.e. ask questions etc.) so he can clearly see your enthusiasm and maybe it will change his mind.

    Regards and good luck,
    agreed. A strong trig and algebra background will help a lot. I found physics to be helpful with some topics.

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    the only recomendation that i would give is having the advanced functions and relations course.....that'll all u really need because that covers the necessery trig and algebra stuff.
    oh i'm sorry! i didn;t realize my fist was rushing to meet ur face!

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  11. #11
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    Why don't you take a math placement course?
    Mr. C: Author and Instructor

  12. #12
    Pursuing knowledge confuted's Avatar
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    Yeah, I agree that the hardest part about calculus is knowing the trig identities... I'm not talking about the easy ones, you need to know all of them, including the things with sec, cos, and cot, if you don't. Then, as long as you have a very strong base in algebra, or are prepared to learn it quickly when you start playing with limits, derivatives and integrals, you'll be fine. If you've dealt with functions with discontinuities (or holes) like f(x)= (x^2-2x-8)/(x-4) at X=4, you'll be fine...especially if you understand how to remove the discontinuity and find the limit. (If you don't, I'll let you look it up or figure it out for yourself, but the answer is f(x)=x+2, ergo f(4)=6 ) Anyway, calc isn't as hard as people think it is. There are some difficult concepts, but they won't be introduced until you're (at least somewhat) ready for them.
    Away.

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    Senior Member joshdick's Avatar
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    I just thought of another thing I needed to know for Calculus--conics. I learned about them a little bit in Geometry and a lot in Pre-Calc. You ought to know conics before taking Calculus.
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    Originally posted by Zach L.
    Hmm.. Definitely a strong trig background. A good understanding of vector concepts, and of course operations (inner and outer products) is definitely good. Also the ability to break down a problem into qunatifiable pieces is essential. The more abstractly you can think about mathematical concepts, the more you'll get from calculus as well.
    Trig sure, but vector operations? That doesn't come up until Calculus III usually. I'm pretty sure he's just talking about Cal I in which case you just need a strong trig background and like alg. II or something.

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    As long as your relatively smart, you can learn everything you need along the way. I never took pre-calc and i had taken trig about a year before I took Calc couldnt remember very much from it, and still did very well in Calc.

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