What is mathematics education like where you live?
If I never discovered Brilliant, I would've never amassed the sizable amount of mathematical knowledge I know have. However, very little of the material and techniques for problem solving I've seen on Brilliant are covered in American high schools / secondary schools, even at advanced levels (with the exception of calculus). American mathematics education seems to be focused more on calculation than on proof and logic. What is mathematics education like where you live? I'm curious!
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Ryan Tamburrino
6 years, 6 months ago
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I guess the word "shitty" would work well for my case. The math education here in India (as far as I'm concerned) isn't exactly math education. Our education solely focuses on how much stuff can one memorize and then put it in a formal manner. I see retards every now and then who have their target set for cracking JEE, or to get into IIT and there are only a select few individuals who are actually passionate about learning a subject as sophisticated as Math in depth. I can say much more on this, but the words I may use to further describe the education system here are not much civilized, so I'd refrain myself from speaking any further on this topic.
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Regardless, I still feel as if Indian students are typically much more receptive to mathematics than American students. Does this not lead to a more advanced curriculum? I've spoken with Indian students before, and they've told me that they learn concepts like Vieta's formulas as early as 7th/8th grade. I wasn't formally introduced to Vieta's formulas until 11th grade, and even then, we ignored the general representation and only discussed the sum/product of the roots of a quadratic. This was an advanced class too!
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Well, even we never learnt the general representation of Vieta's formulas in school. I have to thank Wikipedia for helping me with that. Most of the advanced problem solving techniques and formulas that I've learnt so far, the credit for it goes to Brilliant and Wikipedia (and my internet connection :D )
Absolutely ! Furthermore, the coaching institutes are destroying the mathematical capablity of Indian students.
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Well I guess you are wrong here! I accept maths at school is nothing much but at coaching, I do get a lot of work to think upon.
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You say so 'cause you are in kota , where only coaching matters , studying for JEE , I guess. Well, sure , you are , don't you think it is not appropiate for anyone in India to take extra classes for what we say "competitive exams" which are just held to test your mental ability not your money you spent in coachings. Think about those , unlike you and me , who can't afford the coaching , but possess brilliant abilities , they don't deserve good future , right ? Well , the coaching you feel as heaven , gives you certain tricks and tactics to solve problems without using your mind and so that you could pass and top in the competitive exams without actually knowing anything . They just destroy the healthy competition and help or I shall say actually give the merit awards meant for actually meritorious students , to those who can afford money. I think I am not too rude.
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Agreed that coaching does influence the competition but you have also got substantial reservations for the economically weaker sections of society.
Never mind but JEE never asks questions based on tricks or tactics. There is always something new in it. I guess you haven't ever visited Kota. It does provide an environment to compete, to develop. To let you know, in IITB, one who got placements in Google was from Kota. And luckily I have got same faculties. Now do you think Google would get someone who just knows "Tricks and tactics"? As far as the ones who cannot afford are concerned, coachings provide scholarships worth lakhs! For a not too smart like me, fees is about 20000, and I have earned about 4 times! So I don't think it must be a matter!
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Oh , I see , probably , don't know much about kota , 'cause in bhopal , the atmosphere is like this.
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Oh!When you get to stay in West Bengal, you will even forget that there is a subject called 'maths'!!.
Well, I wouldn't know much about that since I never went to any coaching institute but as much as I heard from my friends, I came to the conclusion that the only thing that happens at those coaching institutes is handing down a bunch of formulas and problem solving techniques with some problems to work on for the week to the students. Still, since I haven't ever had any personal experience of that, so I may be wrong to think such.
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I agree.
I totally Agree with you my friend!! And the word "Shitty" as you used has been used in the correct place. Also, I can understand what uncivilized words u talked about coz the same words are repeated inside my mind while thinking of indian"so called" Education.
Almost none of the methods that I learn on Brilliant are taught in school. So, I just learn the methods myself with the help of Brilliant.
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Same. I think my favorite thing I've learned on Brilliant is modular arithmetic.
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Glad to hear that! Please help add examples to the Modular Arithmetic Wikis, so that others can learn from you :)
Same as me.
Same here!
When I first saw brilliant I could hardly solve any problem posted here because the questions we learnt in school were too simple and I hadn't even been introduced to problems like these.So I started learning.Concepts which I learnt months ago are only now being introduced in our syllabus.And I am in 7th and we haven't even started how to solve a quadratic,much less Vieta's formulas.Thanks to Brilliant,I know more than most of my friends about maths.
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That's exciting! You should introduce your friends to Brilliant so that they can all grow in understanding!
Well I am in grade 10 here in Karachi. @Abdur Rehman Zahid we have gotten much ahead. However the pace of mathematical is not quite what it should be. We will start calculus next year. P.s. Are you in a private school?
I was educated in public school in Texas until I graduated and went to a private college on the east coast. As long as I can remember, I used to always conflate mathematics with the idea of reducing expressions into some normal form (2+3→5,x2−x−1=0−>x∗=ϕ,Dx[x2+x+cos(x)]=2x+1−sin(x)). I took IB Math HL my senior year of high school and I got exposed to some basic algebra, combinatorics, differential equations, and most importantly, a glimpse of the larger world of mathematics as a theoretical harness. Never in high school could I imagine that there had been people who came up with and even solved the types of problems posed in many of the brilliant problems and notes we see nowadays.
I thought I was a genius when I could do hyperbolic functions, complex numbers, determinants and some differential calculus when I was in the 12th grade. But that was before I started using the internet. I'm not saying I realised that I was not smart, but I realised I should probably close my big mouth as people elsewhere were far ahead of me. I believe there is a lot of talent in my country, but the school curriculum is nothing to write home about. Brilliant.org happens to be one of the best math sites I have come across. Of the new thing I learnt here was telescoping sums, which I found very interesting. I can only say Well Done brilliant
Based on the responses I've seen, along with my personal observations, what it appears all to come down to is the fact that majority students will either go all-math/science or refrain from those entirely. And those who do go into the two or one fields usually end up with lack of social skills and autonomy, turning them into lab-rats who wonder why their intelligence does not get them enough in life.
There's only one remedy... and that is, most seriously, to teach social sciences first, and then teach conceptual (not merely operational) mathematics later on. This way we have the form of dual-intelligence and well-roundedness that everybody wants. As an example, one person did not know how to solve equations in the eighth grade, but is now finishing Multivariable Calculus and moving on to Differential Equations in the twelfth. Along with those the student participates in political debates in Harvard Model Congress, and pursues leaderships of various sports/social activities.
Now THAT's education.
I am from Pakistan. gotta tell you that most high schools- which follow the government syllabus- are not teaching what is to be referred to as proper math. you will have to memories whole pages long proofs whether you understand them or not because the exams will only test your memory, not your mathematical skills. if calculations do come in an exam they will be exactly from the book from which we are taught. most people just memorize the book
I would say that in India with a population over one billion, one cannot possible stay away without doing maths, given that they have to appear for tough competitive exams to ensure themselves jobs. I feel that we know very basic level of maths however when i went to Thailand for an educational training program teachers there were telling that we must be good in mathematics because we were Indians. I don't know why everyone says so. I feel that students in China,Malyasia,Indonesia are more competent in doing maths.
Most of the typical math schools teach me to freaking memorise goddamn formula and goddamn no freaking applications at all. Some kids who keep (stu)dying at math or other subjects just because parents said so. Lots of stuffs to say but not enough time though. =_="9
The author is absolutely right about the mathematic education in our country. When I was at school I've always used this service https://pro-papers.com/maths-homework-help but now I'm trying to find answers for all of my question here, at brilliant.org. Cause it's really useful and helpful site. I wish there was better education at school.
Hmm...In Nigeria here...Mathematics is based on thinking,solving,proofs and application.
In our country, I can say that our teachers teach us what we have to learn in math at our own level, unless you are a contestant to any math competition, they will teach you everything you need to know. Our lessons are not that advanced but in our school, which is a science high school, we are learning calculus. I am blessed to have skils on math so I don't mind how much is being taught to us, I just don't know how other Filipinos feel about math because they have not seen the beauty of it.
it is not the fault of students who are not exposed to real maths and are made to think rote learning a few type of questions that can be asked in exams and learning the table of 37 is maths.before i discovered brilliant even i had a similar mentality!!in india school maths means getting full marks in test in which all questions are from textbook only with the values changed or direct formula application.the iit jee scenario is a little better but even that is marred by ''short cut tricks'' to questions.but due to immense competition the students have to give in to coaching classes to survive in the race!!
Opinions differ, where I live, Math is thought very well.