From the moment that I entered the Chemistry room at Windsor High School, I knew I was in trouble. That trouble came from realizing that almost every single Chemistry problem involved math, specifically math that required three to four equations along with written explanations about what the results meant. No matter how hard I tried on my homework and exams, I just could not understand how a problem could tell me that I needed the Ideal Gas Law as well as Faraday’s Law to know how many moles sodium chloride contained in one gram. My mind had trouble going along with the logic behind the math in Chemistry. The math in this class was not difficult; it was just confusing to know what steps must be taken to get the correct solution. In addition,
will ever come easy , since when do you get 100% on a math test without
I have always been inspired by the workings of chemistry and mathematics. My studies of these subjects have developed my understanding and have made me pursue my interest in these two topics. I want to take up chemistry as it involves a large amount of mathematics which I value and understand to be challenging, yet very enjoyable, as there is always an alternative route to obtain the answer. Additionally, I am drawn to the course because it is a mixture of all these exacting subjects, forming a degree that is very demanding and stimulating. Chemists are constantly thinking of new ways to produce viable drugs containing different isomers to improve the pharmaceutical sector using mathematical equations. Chemistry is about innovation, applying information to new areas and how to do things better than they were before, the degree appeals to and fascinates me.
Going through elementary school math was just another subject for me. It was actually simple to me. There were easy problems like two plus two equals four and five times five equals twenty-five. In high school, math turns into algebra I, algebra II, geometry, trigonometry, and other advance math classes. Algebra II was my toughest subject, and most of the students were failing the class. Despite my conspiracy theory that algebra was created by Satan, I figured out a way to make it simpler. Later on in the semester, I showed my teacher ways to make the class easier and simpler.
I also learned that mathematics was more than merely an intellectual activity: it was a necessary tool for getting a grip on all sorts of problems in science and engineering. Without mathematics there is no progress. However, mathematics could also show its nasty face during periods in which problems that seemed so simple at first sight refused to be solved for a long time. Every math student will recognize these periods of frustration and helplessness.
Many seem to think of mathematics as being nothing more than a series of numbers and formulas that they must learn, in order to pass a particular requirement for their college degree. They rarely, if ever, stop to think about the importance of mathematics and how it actually affects them and the people around them. It is ...
One of the major reasons I dropped out was the fact that my Math t...
I have always been a math-science oriented person, and until my sophomore year of high school, my primary interest was in biological sciences. However, as a student in the Pre-International Baccalaureate Program, I was required to enroll in the physics I class. Walking into the physics lab, I saw an energetic, eccentric woman in a room covered with posters of the periodic table and Alberta Einstein alongside those of Elvis Presley. I would never view physics in the same light again.
In my words, Sociological imagination is a way for a person to look at their life as a result of their interaction with society. It can explain why a life is lived with way it is lived and all events, decisions, successes, and failures that have occurred. In my life I have encountered many situations, problems, opportunities and events. I can use my sociological imagination to examine these and figure out why I am the way I am and also why I have chosen to do certain things
This deep dive into self-knowledge occurred when I received my first progress report for second semester Ninth Grade Algebra. To say that I was put into a space of shock and awe is an understatement; I was outraged. I was completing all my assignments and turning in homework, but my poor test grades were obliterating my grade.
This class made me realize that there is more to math then just numbers and calculations. One interesting concept
Textbook problems are carefully drafted so that they are solvable with adequate effort. One day I inadvertently modified a problem to enliven things a little. It was minute modification of magnetic flux along length. For a problem of 10 minutes, It took me six hours to solve only to find that apparent and timid modification had made it impossibly difficult to solve much to the anger of my teacher who scolded me next day to complete only one problem from the assignment. But later she was very glad to see my solution and effort and gave me a full score on the assignment for just one solution. She said physics is not only about the textbook as modifying a simple quantity makes it as intricate as a real world problem. Little episode changed my perspective. Now I always play with problems in physics by remoulding to make them as intricate as possible because world around me is choreographed by the laws of physics and this transcends me to the real world physics. This helped me to develop an idiosyncratic habit, always strive to bring worst in your problem. My friends used to say that, I was being unessentially scholastic to find harmony among apparent chaos, I create when doing physics. I can sympathize with there plight. Though I was initially impressed with the futility of hopes and strivings most teenagers chase restlessly but insofar I realized as a feeling and most paramountly as a thinking being we have an urge to understand whether it is a creative or a receptive imagination. My Physics teacher always told me it is very important to lay foundation and with physics you can't go wrong. During the farewell group photo she looked for me as I was standing in the third row and asked me to sit in front with her. I was embarrassed by the admiration but esteemed by recognition as she said “You are my best student and your hardwork will bring you the exceptional name”. This pumped me with utter passion
My enthusiasm and the strongly committed teachers I have encountered in my life have attributed to my success in math and science. Prior to going onto ninth grade, my Math classes dating back from middle school were never mentally straining. Math appealed to me because in eighth grade, my math teacher, Dr. Christopher, would encourage her class by recognizing our achievements with small rewards such as candies and ice cream passes during lunch. Her actions sparked my interest in math. I have a natural regard for math and science. By breaking down math problems step by step, I can better understand them. ...
Since the fourth grade I have been interested in the dynamics of math. I would learn how to budget my lunch money on a weekly basis so that I would have change left over to put into my piggy bank. Then when I entered middle school and started to earn an allowance I would save my money and help my sisters whom are several years older than me budget their money. Having to help my older sisters budget their money led me to wonder why everybody wasn’t so good at budgeting and I realized that they had disliked math. My mother on the other hand was good with math because she worked as an auditor and when she let me go to her office with her I was allowed to help her and her colleagues input their calculated numbers into excel and I would double check their work to see if I could find any mistakes. This was a fun task at the time. Then as time went on math became difficult and I learned of the variables present in math. I welcomed the challenge and at first I didn’t do so great but as I went on I was able to learn that it wasn’t as difficult as it looked.
As a secondary subject, society often views mathematics a critical subject for students to learn in order to be successful. Often times, mathematics serves as a gatekeeper for higher learning and certain specific careers. Since the times of Plato, “mathematics was virtually the first thing everyone has to learn…common to all arts, science, and forms of thought” (Stinson, 2004). Plato argued that all students should learn arithmetic; the advanced mathematics was reserved for those that would serve as the “philosopher guardians” of the city (Stinson, 2004). By the 1900s in the United States, mathematics found itself as a cornerstone of curriculum for students. National reports throughout the 20th Century solidified the importance of mathematics in the success of our nation and its students (Stinson, 2004). As a mathematics teacher, my role to educate all students in mathematics is an important one. My personal philosophy of mathematics education – including the optimal learning environment and best practices teaching strategies – motivates my teaching strategies in my personal classroom.
Concepts that I felt like I did good on were balancing equations, nuclear reactions, electronegativity, and nuclear chemistry. Balancing equations was one concept I already knew how to do because my science 9 teacher taught this so it was not that difficult for me. But when you showed us the algebraic method I was so lost and confused because I never seen that before and it looked very complicated and hard. But my goal is to understand it because it is supposed to be easier and faster than the other way we were taught. I will do this by watching videos on khan academy about the algebraic method because they explain things well and they give you practice questions with helps a lot. Nuclear reactions made sense to me because it was not too complicated and the way it works is not that difficult to understand. The two nuclear reactions are nuclear fission and fusion the difference between them is that fusion is fussing atoms together to form a larger element and during this process it releases energy, also nuclear fusion is seen in