Will there be Math Mammoth Algebra 1?
I've had several people ask me if I'm planning to write algebra 1, algebra 2 and other high school math courses.
The answer is no. I'm planning to stop at pre-algebra. The main reason is, I've seen some fantastic high school math books other people have written -- people with lots of teaching experience etc. -- and I feel I could not surpass what those people have done. Especially when I don't have lots of experience teaching high school math to students.
You see, with elementary math, there exist numerous homeschool math curricula. I've seen most of them and I can tell many of them are not written by someone who has a good background in math. To write a math text, it really helps to know what concepts the students encounter later on. But beyond that, math is strange in the fact that many of the FOUNDATIONS of math are only taught at university level. For example, the axiomatic foundation of real numbers; logic and the different proof techniques; the whole idea of how mathematical theories are constructed from axioms to theorems via proofs. Those things were very fascinating to me when I encountered them in university -- math had less to do with calculations and more to do with abstract ideas and thinking processes.
So... in order to guide students towards mathematical thinking in the early years, it helps a LOT to be familiar with the common techniques of proof, which people typically study in university (or college) level math courses.
Ok, what I'm getting at is this: most high school math books are written by people who've studied a lot of math in university. So... for the high school level, there already exist good math books written by people who truly know math and can write math texts and I feel there's no need for me to write anything, and that I could not write texts better than they.
I've tried to put together somewhat of a guide for high school math for people who ask me for advice. It's not 100% comprehensive -- I just don't have time to delve into all the textbooks that exist.
Also, it is not for everyone. I realize some students will just take practical math or something like that in high school. I just am a math lover -- not of the calculations but of the thinking processes and logical constructions -- so what I wrote on that page reflects that.
The answer is no. I'm planning to stop at pre-algebra. The main reason is, I've seen some fantastic high school math books other people have written -- people with lots of teaching experience etc. -- and I feel I could not surpass what those people have done. Especially when I don't have lots of experience teaching high school math to students.
You see, with elementary math, there exist numerous homeschool math curricula. I've seen most of them and I can tell many of them are not written by someone who has a good background in math. To write a math text, it really helps to know what concepts the students encounter later on. But beyond that, math is strange in the fact that many of the FOUNDATIONS of math are only taught at university level. For example, the axiomatic foundation of real numbers; logic and the different proof techniques; the whole idea of how mathematical theories are constructed from axioms to theorems via proofs. Those things were very fascinating to me when I encountered them in university -- math had less to do with calculations and more to do with abstract ideas and thinking processes.
So... in order to guide students towards mathematical thinking in the early years, it helps a LOT to be familiar with the common techniques of proof, which people typically study in university (or college) level math courses.
Ok, what I'm getting at is this: most high school math books are written by people who've studied a lot of math in university. So... for the high school level, there already exist good math books written by people who truly know math and can write math texts and I feel there's no need for me to write anything, and that I could not write texts better than they.
I've tried to put together somewhat of a guide for high school math for people who ask me for advice. It's not 100% comprehensive -- I just don't have time to delve into all the textbooks that exist.
Also, it is not for everyone. I realize some students will just take practical math or something like that in high school. I just am a math lover -- not of the calculations but of the thinking processes and logical constructions -- so what I wrote on that page reflects that.
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