When I worked in American industry, not only did I have coworkers who could not read on a high school level , many of them firmly believed that 3/8ths was more than 3/4ths! Some of them couldn’t read a simple tape measure! Now, when you’re building, firetrucks and ambulances, you kinda gotta know these things!
I know what you mean. I'm a cabinet maker and never cease to amaze me how many times I was asked if I knew how to read a tape measure. All I could think was who the hell don't. But then I actually saw and it was just appalling.
No child left behind! Personally I think it's BS - if you don't pass, repeat the grade or the class you didn't pass! I went to school with several kids that should have been a year ahead of us but got held back to repeat the year.
I can proudly say that I'm 27 years old and can read a tape measure, but i will also admit that school didn't teach me how to read a tape measure my grandfather taught me. My grandfather also taught me how to write in cursive because school never taught me that either, I'll never forget my grandparents legit thought that i was lying when i told them that they don't teach you how to write in cursive in school anymore. They didn't believe me until they called my aunt and she told them that it's true because she had to teach both of her kids how to write in cursive herself
Basic math in grade school wasn't bad, solid A- B+ student. Algebra in JR high, I struggled but the teacher had more than one way to explain/teach the class so I managed to squeak out a B. Algebra freshman year in high school, I was lost after the third day. My teacher was like Bill's wife, it's all right there, just reread the chapter, you'll get it. Nope, failed Algebra, managed to pass in summer school. Sophomore year barely held on to a C- in Geometry, two math classes was all I needed to graduate. College algebra, I was lost again until the teacher found a way to explain it to me completely differently than anyone else had ever explained any kind of math to me. One 20 minute talk and suddenly the switch went off in my head, I finally understood it! Passed the class without beating my head against the wall.
Same. In college I had to take calculus and the teacher was a foreigner no one could understand. Failing so I hired a retired teacher who tutored me just a few times. I got an A for the first time ever in math (mainly because graded in a curve I think). But I made sure it to make the mistake of telling my kids how much I hated math (like my Mom did). My twins minored in math and are engineers.
My wife told me she had a lazy ass Math teacher who never helped her students. She would say SCAT and send them away. I don't remember what the letters stood for (nor do I care). The point is that it was a way for the teacher to sit on her fat ass and avoid teaching.
In 7th grade I got the highest math aptitude score of the entire class. I and others were assigned to what they called "Honors" math. Spent the second semester of 7th and the 1st semester of 8th there. Mom was going through a divorce with the stepdad so I was stressing bad, school work was suffering. I asked to be put back in regular level math. Geniuses in the school office put me in a "Remedial" math class. Because of this I ended up in Algebra (which I loved) for two years instead of one. I got it fixed but when Geometry came I hit a brick wall and thought WTF is this?
Didn’t realize it’s so common to live algebra and hate geometry. I thought it was just because my geometry teacher was really a farmer and didn’t even try to teach us. Sure did hold me back on SAT type tests but otherwise never found a use for geometry.
I was the same way! I did great in math all the way through Algebra (which I loved like crazy) and then hated geometry! I just couldn't figure it out to save my life. I managed to squeak by with (I think) a C maybe? Never went past that point in math. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one. I wound up marrying a math genius, I used to call him my human calculator because he could do all sorts of problems in his head 😀
I was in honors calculus in college. Then I found out that it "buys" you nothing but additional homework. I would recommend to anyone NOT to do the honors thing. There is no such thing as building a bridge with honors or being an honors surgeon.
I love this Man’s comedy. Need more albums of his. I recommend him to anyone with a warning not to listen while driving. I almost crashed due to laughing so much.
I struggled a lot with math, and my problem came from the fact the teacher would spend three days on teaching a equation or formula, then change to a new one on the fourth day, spend three days on that then change back to the first one and I never got enough time to figure out the first one to begin with, and would be so confused. I actually did have a learning disability (ADHD) but nobody in school would give me the extra help i needed, instead they'd stick all the kids with learning disabilities in corners or rooms entirely isolated from the rest of the class and made to sit in silence with NO teacher assistance whatsoever thinking total silence and solitude would somehow motivate us into knowing what the hell to do with what we were struggling with. When i did finally end up in a math class where i sort of knew how to approach the problems, despite showing how i got the answer which i used my own way of figuring it out, and it was correct. Entirely ridiculous and a very long way around to get there, but it worked better with my brain than the equation i was given to use. I still got marked wrong for not using thr formula they gave us which made no sense to me, even though my way worked and gave me the correct answer and i showed it in the homework. It wasnt until i started taking my math courses where i could work on each individual class at my own pace, and doing some of them online that i actually started making progress and understanding the math i was shown and understanding how those formulas were done but it took 6 years (and 4 different schools) for that to actually happen. Then a year after graduating i forgot it all but never needed any of it for the jobs i worked. I use biology, history and english (and elementary school level mathematics) far more than anything else.
I'm sort of in the same boat as Bill's wife. I've always been a math whiz (at least to the mid-college level), but while I intuitively understand how and why various patterns fit a situation, that doesn't mean I'm any good at explaining them to someone else. And I'm in their shoes when it comes to some other topics.
I had a different problem with math. Teachers want students to show their work to prove they're not cheating. Problem for me is that I'm a visual thinker and could figure it out in my head. By the time I wrote the problem down on scratch paper, I had already figured it out, and teachers hated this! Also, if your kid is having problems with fractions, get them into baking. That's how I learned!
You told my story when it comes to showing your work in math. I was in advanced placement math classes through HS, but didn't take another math class after spending my junior year with a teacher who couldn't understand my process and also taught down to the slowest student, so that I got frustrated with having to slow down my thinking to write proofs and constantly reviewing stuff i had learned 1-2 years earlier. Despite improvements, we are still sorely lacking in qualified teachers for gifted students across all subjects.
I’m the same. I got in trouble in 1st grade when my teacher wanted me to do a subtraction problem. I could answer all the problems without writing anything. She said, “how do you do that?” I said that I reversed it and did reverse addition in my head. I could see the answer.
I pissed off every teacher I had because i can’t do anything on paper but can do it in my head and the way my brain works is to screwed up to even attempt to write it down
0:42 Dealt with this same issue in my lawn business. Had customers who didn't want me to use a riding lawn mower. My feelings about this were Exactly what is said here about a Plumber.
We had Geometry in sixth grade, Algebra in seventh, and Trigonometry in ninth grade in NY. I had the same attitude. I derived the answer because the problem was self evident or so I thought. The real problem was I was smarter than the teacher who had only memorized process and procedure without any insight or real understanding of the subject. I became a self taught Electronics Engineer with work on the surface of Mars. In the 50+ years I spent doing Engineering, nobody ever cared how I solved problems, just that the solutions worked, came at a reasonable cost in a timely manor. In other words, practical, common sense solutions.
That's not the point of geometry. You start with a few statements and build upon them. It teaches you to think. In my geometry class, the teacher would show a proof of an assertion, and I would raise my hand and explain a shorter, more direct way. The thought process was necessary, as the question was how do you get this result from the beginning statements. You started with the answers and had to figure out how to get there.
I liked algebra. A lot. I would read my algebra text book at home just for fun. I was a pretty insecure kid. I would always think ahead to the next year or semester when I would be taking the next level of math, fearing that I would not understand it. But I always did. I've tutored many people over the years. Not only is working with math still fun, it's also good brain exercise. Engvall is a funny guy. Keep the comedy coming, Bill.
I remember skipping Algebra 1 and going straight to Geometry my freshman year of HS and I did fairly well. I even helped the instructor grade papers for his other classes during my study hall. heck of a man he was. football coach, too. he recently passed away. anyway, I moved on to Algebra 2 my sophomore year and hit a wall big time. The school moved me to algebra 1 and I took algebra 2 again my junior year. lesson learned? take classes in order. don’t skip anything.
I was never able to finish my degree in nursing because I couldn’t pass college algebra. I tried five times, and my husband’s a mathematical genius, he’s an engineer, and we had so many shouting matches.
@@geminiecricket4798 It's not "brain power". Math is something that some people's brains aren't wired for. I could research and write a paper to explain why some people are better at math than otheres - but I couldn't balance my checkbook even with a calculator.
I was able to get my degree with a D in trigonometry probably because my professor knew I was trying to. That was the only D in my entire educational experience of As and Bs and I was damn glad to get it!
Look up 'dyscalculia'. About 5%-10% of people have this. It's kind of like being a mathematical dyslexic. Hubby is too close. Try different tutors until one speaks your language. I clicked with my college librarian because she not only understood math, but had great communication skills. Try again for that degree!! 👍👍
I loved math. I took a test to get into algebra early, got to high school, and doubled up on Math. I ended up graduating with 5 advanced maths. Now, I have four kids, three in school, and none of them like math. 😛 Edit: would have been six maths, but I had gotten a bad case of senioritis 😂
I was a history major in college. I had to take one math class, an algebra class. Thoroughly confusing. I would be lost within the first ten minutes of every class. The prof could have been writing Chinese on the board for all I knew what he was doing. Tests were a joke. They passed me only because I showed up for every class. It's been nearly 40 years since then, and I can not recall offhand a single instance where I needed to know anything they hoped I might learn in that class. it was a complete waste of my time.
I get it! I almost failed second grade because of my math scores. I had summer school at home- my teacher put together a packet of math homework that my mom made me do every day. I passed, but I still suck at math, and I'm 61!
I have always been very good at math. I could look at the problem and rattle off the answer quickly. The answer was right, But i couldn't put it on paper to show the formulas and how I got there. Still very good at math 45 years later, but don't ask me to write it out.
I always love it when he's telling a story where he has a brilliant idea and then like in 1:58 there's a pause and he does a comparison before going back to the story and how he messed up lol.
I got pretty decent grades in elementary school, but they dropped like a rock when I entered junior high...and this was especially true of math. By the time I was a freshman in high school, they were trying to teach me Pre-Algebra, but I was stressing out big-time because I couldn't understand it. So they eventually put me in Special Education classes, but those were so easy I had tons of extra time to kill every day. Basically, I wound up stuck in an educational crack.
I'm on my daughter's UA-cam. This isn't about math, but it's about school's stupidity. Like Bill's 2+2=4 teaching. During my daughter's freshman, sophomore, and junior year in high school, she took all the classes that she could take, that way when she was a senior she could take it easy. Her senior year covid was just hitting our little town and my daughter was pregnant at the time. The summer just before her senior year she got a full time job. When her senior year started, normally she would've had only one class to take to graduate. But a new class requirement popped up so she had to take two classes to graduate. Because of her being pregnant and covid, she was able to do her school work online. That was fine until my grandson was born. The school wanted her to quit her full time job and come back to school. She was afraid of the principal and asked if I'd go with her. She's my daughter, of course I went. She was getting her school work done on time and was getting A's and B's. He was saying that if she can work full time that she can come to school. I piped up, "Let me see if I got this straight. In junior year she had to take a money management class that is required. Now you want her to quit her job because of an hour and a half of schooling? (The two required senior classes.) What was the point of making her take the money management class if you want her to quit her full time job?" The conversation was over. She finished her senior year online and kept her full time job.
I'm the same way. Once I "cracked the code" of Algebra, I loved it. My freshman year I'd flunked Algebra 1, and retook it the next year. I got an A in Algebra 2 my senior year. I never EVER got geometry. 😂
I entered kindergarten in the year 1970, in NYS. What ticked me off is that they spent 4th grade through 8th grade teaching ONLY add/subtract/multiply/divide, AND THEN, in the 9th grade, we finally saw Algebra… for the very first time… EVER. I mean, in NYS, Algebra was a REGENTS EXAM course. Imagine being sent to compete in the Olympics… and your very FIRST DAY of training doesn’t begin until you arrive at the Olympic Village. THAT IS HOW Algebra was “taught” in NYS !!
I did great with Algebra I. Then went to high school and signed up for Algebra II. I barely got C's in that class, and couldn't wait for that 1st semester to be over so I could drop it. That was the end of math for me, and luckily I never needed it.
I have trouble with math, my brain just doesn't get it once it's past the basics. I had a full scholarship to college based on my ACT scores - yes, I'm old - and my adviser thought there was a mistake on my math score because it was so much lower than the other scores. Nope. My brain just hates math. I had to take 2 no credit basic math classes just to be able to take freshman algebra my sophomore year - and I needed a tutor to pass it. Meanwhile I was already taking junior level classes in every other subject. Some people were meant to do math and some people aren't.
In 1983 I took a Consumer Electronics Repair class and had to take a math class that contained some algebra which I didn't take in high school. In the repair class we were given all of the formulas we'd need.🤷🏼♂️ When I took Data Processing in 1984 we had to take a math class AND accounting. My job in the Army was property accounting.🤷🏼♂️ We also had to learn how to do 1040 series tax forms which I'd started doing my first tour in South Korea in 1976. The books for the forms were easy for me to follow.
I don't think you had a learning problem if you did and liked algebra. I liked algebra. Worked to get the answer myself. When it came to the times we needed to "proof". I told the teacher if he put two random problems on the board,and if I could get them right,to not have to proof them,as sometimes,the longer i worked on a problem the worse it got in my head. Barely into two minutes. I had them both right.I was unable to help my sister as the aforementioned applies.She wanted to know how they got the formulas. I told her that,if she didn't understand how they got the formulas. she didn't know enough to do the work.And yes,I use algebra in my work life. I use more math now,than what I had in school.
I did very well in all math except the Geometry class. I got a D in my first test. I had never had a D in anything before, so I was literally mentally destroyed and saw no way out. But I had a great teacher, and went to him , and he took me to his office and we talked for a long time. And after the help he gave me, he asked that I hang in there, and in a few weeks things would even out and I would see it start to make sense. He was right! From what he had shown me, and a little time for things to start coming together, I was able to complete the course, and even had a passing grade. 2:53 2:53
Speaking of how you get answers, here is a teacher joke. I called a student up to my desk and told him that he cheated on the exam He denied it and challenged me to prove it. I showed him that the student in front of him had written, "I have no idea what the answer is," to question 5. His answer to question 5 was, "and neither do I."
Oh my gosh, i hated the fact the teachers wanted you to show how you got the answer. I never could. I worked it in my head. Worked at home depot and some of those cashiers at the service desk were so dang stupid. Always having to use their phones. I would say they had to pull their phones out but most of the time they were already on the darn things texting
Math and I are not friends. Growing up, when I showed a liking for art and telling stories, my mom and whole family FED it. Every holiday, birthday, you name it, art supplies, paper. To be fair I think that was just because my family was very poor and or lazy, but still. I'm an artist. Logic and geometric-anything, not my forte. I only passed high school 'tech prep pre algebra 1' (read, algebra for morons) because my friends let me copy their homework. I am easily frustrated and when that happens my brain literally just locks up. Nothing goes in. Nothing comes out. Tears, screaming or hysterical laughter are all plausible.
I am with you. I got through college without any math because I was in the last class before SATs were required. Whew.....never did need alegbra or geometry in my life and did well financially.
I've had the same problem with college math. I am getting a degree in counseling from Grand Canyon University and math is the only class I have failed.
Being a high school Geometry teacher, I must correct what a proof is. A proof is not an explanation of how you got the answer--it’s the logical, sequential evidence that a theorem or postulate works. And yes, my students really struggle learning how to properly write one up-it takes all year!! (It’s the same logic and reasoning that Lawyers must use in court and politicians should use in a debate!)
I hated Geometry. I asked the teacher for extra help. He said, "You're a girl. You won't be able to do math." Swear to God. My parents went in to try to get me a different teacher and the school said no way, no one wants that teacher. Everyone is trying to switch out so no one can. (Notice the subtext; we won't get rid of a bad teacher. The students can just suffer.)
When I started 9th grade we were finally allowed to choose our classes. I signed up for General Math. The teacher overseeing our class choices: "You don't want that. You want Algebra 1." Whenever I asked for help and told them I didn't understand, I was told I needed to, "try harder" and "read the instructions again." No tutoring was ever suggested or offered. My final exam score was a 52%. I passed with a D. When I started 10th grade they let me take General Math.😂
Geometry, and proofs in particular, were the bane of my mathematical education, and I honestly think the entire course needs to be reworked or scrapped, because I aced Algebra 1 and 2, Pre-Calc, Physics, etc. In fact, I don't think I've ever used anything I learned in Geometry that wasn't also thoroughly coved in any other math class. So yeah, a big fat waste of time.
After no college and 39 years at IBM as a programmer and lab administrator, I have to say that algebra was never required of me ever after high school. I have no idea who needs algebra in their daily lives but I have done just fine without it.
I tppk remedial math and English all the way through high school. At 81, balancing my checking account and paying my bills is a challenge. I paid off my first house and sold it for enough money to pay off my retirement house. I'm debt free. That should be good enough math.
High School is 4 years of wasted time, the first 2 years of college are 2 years of wasted time..and money....going over a slightly advanced version of the High School Studies you wasted your time on.
High school algebra I and II, no problem. Geometry, OK, tiresome memorizing all those theorems and axioms and corollaries (I remember the categories, but not the data!).Trig - I got lost when they took away the triangles and started juggling sines and cosines for no reason.
In high school my favorite math class was geometry, but I think it really came down to who was teaching it. I had 3 algebra classes, and the first 2 times I had it, I absolutely hated it because it felt like I was basically looking at scribbles. The third time wasn't as bad, except for the fact that the teacher was out for around 1/4 of the school year on maternity leave. I never liked algebra, and I never will. Once they started putting letters in math, I was fucked. Geometry was easier because I took woodshop at the same time, so there was a connection.
I hated algebra because they didteach me how to use it in a practical way. Statistics was more fun and usable, but they didn't teach that til I got to college. I blame my LD in mathematics because I had a teacher who would've loved this DEI crap because he taught hate-white history lessons-instead-to students who had enough trouble understanding the beginnings of algebra and even my next algebra teacher didn't understand how I ended up in Smith's class. I still never caught up to take geometry, calculus, or trig but I was an art student and the only math I would've found fascinating was that of fractals-and I didn't discover them til I saw a video on the book. Of course, the math formula took all the fun out of it.
I was FINE with math until letters showed up. At that point, my brain would simply refuse to play along. If it hadn't been the 90s, I really probably would have been diagnosed with a learning disability.
I was the same. In the 80s. I didn't understand the letters in math. I actually thought a=1, b=2, c=3 and so on. I was finally diagnosed with a learning disability called discalculia. It's the math equivalent to dislexia. I had dislexia in elementary school and got into a great program in middle school that turned that around and I loved English and reading and writing after that. But felt so stupid when it came to math. I was diagnosed with discalculia in college. I was so relieved because they told me my brain just couldn't process math equations.
maybe there's no way to know this without being traumatized by math (as most people experience) ... but math is ... a symbolic language used to describe the RELATIONSHIPS between things in the natural world F=ma (an example) letters are SYMBOLS ... the equals sign and implied multiplication sign are symbols as well ... each symbol represents SOMETHING (a part of the 'unseen' world) ... so the result (using math) is a WAY to show how things RELATE ... in the part of WORLD that humans have NO way of SEEING ... (and math lets the visual human creature see it) 🥴
Though I'm not privy to his age, he appear's to be extremely close to the same generation I am. In my grade school youth, which was then including kindergarten some 9 year's, then one went high school for four year's. Then onto either a college or took a job simular to their father's. My entire generation was the last to be taught only "ARITHMETIC" in grade school, didn't learn MATHEMATIC'S until high school. Mathematic's has in it core, numerios way of utilizing number's in various way's. Such as geomery, calculist, algebra and in it's center core; Simple Arithmetic. Utilzing any and all other form's of Mathematic's but simple arithmetic, allow's for one to get any answer they have on their agenda. It's been done and found out so many time's, there a phrase for it now, called or referred to as "FUZZY MATH". When something doesn't add up the way one desire's for what ever reason. Using simple arithmetic, one can assuming one know's how or someone who does. Simply utilize any one of the various other form's of mathematic's to get the answer they deem nessasary.
I didn't even finish second grade but I guarantee you I know more than most high school graduates today. I went to McDonald's and I asked a girl who was wearing a high school senior graduation t-shirt, (she had graduated that year) for a half dozen nuggets. She looked me square in the face and said, "I'm sorry sir we only have six piece." 🤔
christian studies major does not need any STEM classes, history classes or any rational based class. Just need faith based memorization and a dislike of anything not in a single old dusty book. Not sure if they teach hated of others with different beliefs or that's just a natural most students already learned.
I battled my way through proofs. I didn't have a clue what to do. Then one day it all clicked for me. That day was the final exam and I got the high score.
They still had long Cadillacs back then. You had to know how to pay for one of those things. Today they just have grossly expensive Cadillacs. You ask your congregation to pay for it. No math needed.
had this British woman in Grade school a teachers aid she had her husband on a very very very short leash she had red orange hair color blue eyes and was worse than Thatcher. She could not teach basic arithmetic to save her life she would keep a kid in from lunch recess pe why you have to learn math then the next school A Polish teacher not much better then Jr high I hated math so much by then I said forget it had a teacher in High school oh boy down the rabbit hole when he was irritated with us yelled at us in Spanish by the time I get to Jr college had to repeat a class because a male professor I had was much like the teachers in grade school and High school but then in the 2000s I finally got a professor that got me passed it with flying colors
had a geometry teacher in school that looked like porky the pig.. ( not tryna be rude ) but... so this teacher made tests 90% the grade but they're 5-6 questions long.. 1-2 questions are not geometry questions in example its about finding light-year distance... but he also lowered grade percentage so that if you get 40-69 % its a D.... EVERYBODY GOT A D, and I'm good at mathematics... some should get Fs but he wants to give Ds... so I drew a picture of him as porky and wrote D D D D dats all folks... cuz we all got Ds.. my theory was that he was picked on being called porky the pig, so in revenge he gave everyone Ds cu that reference, but that's not legal or fair... I labeled it porky pigthagorean theorem cuz I'm not dumb...
It is a vehicle to learn how to think, analyze, and predict outcomes. If you don't value education I get it. Burn the books. Put the ten commandments in every classroom. Eliminate standardized test. Be friends with your children. Just like leglizing all drugs in Oregon... the road to hell is paved with good intention. It is true some don't need it. We can not turn our backs on those that can.
"why does a christian studies major (me) even need math ..." both the christian studies AND the math describe things that are BEYOND you ... so the ME's and the I's in your thinking don't apply ... (since it's about what's beyond YOU)
A Christian major makes them learn math because in the world they want religion to make $$$$$ as to Not about teaching people about the Bible. Whereas we have the example of Jesus in the Bible getting mad at those “making the house of my father into a house of commerce.” John 2:14-16. As a Jehovah’s Witness we on the other hand have No paid clergy class & teach people about the Bible for Free as Jesus said receive free then give free. Jehovah’s Witnesses are known around the world for their preaching as they are fulfilling Mathew 24:14
@@ChipArgyle-- Someone once told C.S. Lewis about passing by a cemetery and seeing a gravestone which read 'Here's lies an atheist, all dressed up and nowhere to go.' Lewis' response? 'I'll bet he wishes that was true.'
When I worked in American industry, not only did I have coworkers who could not read on a high school level , many of them firmly believed that 3/8ths was more than 3/4ths! Some of them couldn’t read a simple tape measure! Now, when you’re building, firetrucks and ambulances, you kinda gotta know these things!
And they’re in management.
I know what you mean. I'm a cabinet maker and never cease to amaze me how many times I was asked if I knew how to read a tape measure. All I could think was who the hell don't. But then I actually saw and it was just appalling.
In America today you don't have to know anything and graduate HS
No child left behind! Personally I think it's BS - if you don't pass, repeat the grade or the class you didn't pass! I went to school with several kids that should have been a year ahead of us but got held back to repeat the year.
I can proudly say that I'm 27 years old and can read a tape measure, but i will also admit that school didn't teach me how to read a tape measure my grandfather taught me. My grandfather also taught me how to write in cursive because school never taught me that either, I'll never forget my grandparents legit thought that i was lying when i told them that they don't teach you how to write in cursive in school anymore. They didn't believe me until they called my aunt and she told them that it's true because she had to teach both of her kids how to write in cursive herself
Basic math in grade school wasn't bad, solid A- B+ student. Algebra in JR high, I struggled but the teacher had more than one way to explain/teach the class so I managed to squeak out a B. Algebra freshman year in high school, I was lost after the third day. My teacher was like Bill's wife, it's all right there, just reread the chapter, you'll get it. Nope, failed Algebra, managed to pass in summer school. Sophomore year barely held on to a C- in Geometry, two math classes was all I needed to graduate. College algebra, I was lost again until the teacher found a way to explain it to me completely differently than anyone else had ever explained any kind of math to me. One 20 minute talk and suddenly the switch went off in my head, I finally understood it! Passed the class without beating my head against the wall.
Same. In college I had to take calculus and the teacher was a foreigner no one could understand. Failing so I hired a retired teacher who tutored me just a few times. I got an A for the first time ever in math (mainly because graded in a curve I think).
But I made sure it to make the mistake of telling my kids how much I hated math (like my Mom did). My twins minored in math and are engineers.
My wife told me she had a lazy ass Math teacher who never helped her students. She would say SCAT and send them away. I don't remember what the letters stood for (nor do I care). The point is that it was a way for the teacher to sit on her fat ass and avoid teaching.
In 7th grade I got the highest math aptitude score of the entire class. I and others were assigned to what they called "Honors" math. Spent the second semester of 7th and the 1st semester of 8th there. Mom was going through a divorce with the stepdad so I was stressing bad, school work was suffering. I asked to be put back in regular level math. Geniuses in the school office put me in a "Remedial" math class. Because of this I ended up in Algebra (which I loved) for two years instead of one. I got it fixed but when Geometry came I hit a brick wall and thought WTF is this?
What????
Didn’t realize it’s so common to live algebra and hate geometry. I thought it was just because my geometry teacher was really a farmer and didn’t even try to teach us. Sure did hold me back on SAT type tests but otherwise never found a use for geometry.
I was the same way! I did great in math all the way through Algebra (which I loved like crazy) and then hated geometry! I just couldn't figure it out to save my life. I managed to squeak by with (I think) a C maybe? Never went past that point in math. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one. I wound up marrying a math genius, I used to call him my human calculator because he could do all sorts of problems in his head 😀
I was in honors calculus in college. Then I found out that it "buys" you nothing but additional homework. I would recommend to anyone NOT to do the honors thing. There is no such thing as building a bridge with honors or being an honors surgeon.
I love this Man’s comedy. Need more albums of his. I recommend him to anyone with a warning not to listen while driving. I almost crashed due to laughing so much.
I struggled a lot with math, and my problem came from the fact the teacher would spend three days on teaching a equation or formula, then change to a new one on the fourth day, spend three days on that then change back to the first one and I never got enough time to figure out the first one to begin with, and would be so confused. I actually did have a learning disability (ADHD) but nobody in school would give me the extra help i needed, instead they'd stick all the kids with learning disabilities in corners or rooms entirely isolated from the rest of the class and made to sit in silence with NO teacher assistance whatsoever thinking total silence and solitude would somehow motivate us into knowing what the hell to do with what we were struggling with.
When i did finally end up in a math class where i sort of knew how to approach the problems, despite showing how i got the answer which i used my own way of figuring it out, and it was correct. Entirely ridiculous and a very long way around to get there, but it worked better with my brain than the equation i was given to use. I still got marked wrong for not using thr formula they gave us which made no sense to me, even though my way worked and gave me the correct answer and i showed it in the homework.
It wasnt until i started taking my math courses where i could work on each individual class at my own pace, and doing some of them online that i actually started making progress and understanding the math i was shown and understanding how those formulas were done but it took 6 years (and 4 different schools) for that to actually happen. Then a year after graduating i forgot it all but never needed any of it for the jobs i worked. I use biology, history and english (and elementary school level mathematics) far more than anything else.
I'm sort of in the same boat as Bill's wife. I've always been a math whiz (at least to the mid-college level), but while I intuitively understand how and why various patterns fit a situation, that doesn't mean I'm any good at explaining them to someone else. And I'm in their shoes when it comes to some other topics.
I had a different problem with math. Teachers want students to show their work to prove they're not cheating. Problem for me is that I'm a visual thinker and could figure it out in my head. By the time I wrote the problem down on scratch paper, I had already figured it out, and teachers hated this! Also, if your kid is having problems with fractions, get them into baking. That's how I learned!
You told my story when it comes to showing your work in math. I was in advanced placement math classes through HS, but didn't take another math class after spending my junior year with a teacher who couldn't understand my process and also taught down to the slowest student, so that I got frustrated with having to slow down my thinking to write proofs and constantly reviewing stuff i had learned 1-2 years earlier. Despite improvements, we are still sorely lacking in qualified teachers for gifted students across all subjects.
I’m the same. I got in trouble in 1st grade when my teacher wanted me to do a subtraction problem. I could answer all the problems without writing anything. She said, “how do you do that?” I said that I reversed it and did reverse addition in my head. I could see the answer.
I pissed off every teacher I had because i can’t do anything on paper but can do it in my head and the way my brain works is to screwed up to even attempt to write it down
Some people hate it when your smarter then them
In high school, I could do the Math faster in my head than the kids with the Log Log Duplex Deci-Trig slide rules.
0:42 Dealt with this same issue in my lawn business. Had customers who didn't want me to use a riding lawn mower. My feelings about this were Exactly what is said here about a Plumber.
We had Geometry in sixth grade, Algebra in seventh, and Trigonometry in ninth grade in NY. I had the same attitude. I derived the answer because the problem was self evident or so I thought. The real problem was I was smarter than the teacher who had only memorized process and procedure without any insight or real understanding of the subject. I became a self taught Electronics Engineer with work on the surface of Mars. In the 50+ years I spent doing Engineering, nobody ever cared how I solved problems, just that the solutions worked, came at a reasonable cost in a timely manor. In other words, practical, common sense solutions.
I totally agree with him saying that basically showing work isn't really needed, as long as you get the answer.
That's not the point of geometry. You start with a few statements and build upon them. It teaches you to think. In my geometry class, the teacher would show a proof of an assertion, and I would raise my hand and explain a shorter, more direct way. The thought process was necessary, as the question was how do you get this result from the beginning statements. You started with the answers and had to figure out how to get there.
@bite-sizedshorts9635 I also would in trouble for cutting to the chase😅
I liked algebra. A lot. I would read my algebra text book at home just for fun. I was a pretty insecure kid. I would always think ahead to the next year or semester when I would be taking the next level of math, fearing that I would not understand it. But I always did. I've tutored many people over the years. Not only is working with math still fun, it's also good brain exercise.
Engvall is a funny guy. Keep the comedy coming, Bill.
I remember skipping Algebra 1 and going straight to Geometry my freshman year of HS and I did fairly well. I even helped the instructor grade papers for his other classes during my study hall. heck of a man he was. football coach, too. he recently passed away. anyway, I moved on to Algebra 2 my sophomore year and hit a wall big time. The school moved me to algebra 1 and I took algebra 2 again my junior year. lesson learned? take classes in order. don’t skip anything.
I was never able to finish my degree in nursing because I couldn’t pass college algebra. I tried five times, and my husband’s a mathematical genius, he’s an engineer, and we had so many shouting matches.
YES, same here…..I learned that algebra is a language just like Russian or Japanese NOT everyone has the brain power to learn it.
@@geminiecricket4798 It's not "brain power". Math is something that some people's brains aren't wired for. I could research and write a paper to explain why some people are better at math than otheres - but I couldn't balance my checkbook even with a calculator.
I was able to get my degree with a D in trigonometry probably because my professor knew I was trying to. That was the only D in my entire educational experience of As and Bs and I was damn glad to get it!
Look up 'dyscalculia'. About 5%-10% of people have this. It's kind of like being a mathematical dyslexic. Hubby is too close. Try different tutors until one speaks your language. I clicked with my college librarian because she not only understood math, but had great communication skills. Try again for that degree!! 👍👍
I loved math. I took a test to get into algebra early, got to high school, and doubled up on Math. I ended up graduating with 5 advanced maths. Now, I have four kids, three in school, and none of them like math. 😛
Edit: would have been six maths, but I had gotten a bad case of senioritis 😂
I was a history major in college. I had to take one math class, an algebra class. Thoroughly confusing. I would be lost within the first ten minutes of every class. The prof could have been writing Chinese on the board for all I knew what he was doing. Tests were a joke. They passed me only because I showed up for every class. It's been nearly 40 years since then, and I can not recall offhand a single instance where I needed to know anything they hoped I might learn in that class. it was a complete waste of my time.
I got the pity pass, in algebra, too. Lol
I love math. Especially math proofs. It was that which got me hooked on programming and a 44 year vocation that paid well.
I get it! I almost failed second grade because of my math scores. I had summer school at home- my teacher put together a packet of math homework that my mom made me do every day. I passed, but I still suck at math, and I'm 61!
I feel your pain . I'M that way with spelling ..! 😔
I have always been very good at math. I could look at the problem and rattle off the answer quickly. The answer was right, But i couldn't put it on paper to show the formulas and how I got there. Still very good at math 45 years later, but don't ask me to write it out.
"... Aced it!". 😂😂😂
I always love it when he's telling a story where he has a brilliant idea and then like in 1:58 there's a pause and he does a comparison before going back to the story and how he messed up lol.
I got pretty decent grades in elementary school, but they dropped like a rock when I entered junior high...and this was especially true of math. By the time I was a freshman in high school, they were trying to teach me Pre-Algebra, but I was stressing out big-time because I couldn't understand it. So they eventually put me in Special Education classes, but those were so easy I had tons of extra time to kill every day. Basically, I wound up stuck in an educational crack.
I'm on my daughter's UA-cam. This isn't about math, but it's about school's stupidity. Like Bill's 2+2=4 teaching. During my daughter's freshman, sophomore, and junior year in high school, she took all the classes that she could take, that way when she was a senior she could take it easy. Her senior year covid was just hitting our little town and my daughter was pregnant at the time. The summer just before her senior year she got a full time job. When her senior year started, normally she would've had only one class to take to graduate. But a new class requirement popped up so she had to take two classes to graduate. Because of her being pregnant and covid, she was able to do her school work online. That was fine until my grandson was born. The school wanted her to quit her full time job and come back to school. She was afraid of the principal and asked if I'd go with her. She's my daughter, of course I went. She was getting her school work done on time and was getting A's and B's. He was saying that if she can work full time that she can come to school. I piped up, "Let me see if I got this straight. In junior year she had to take a money management class that is required. Now you want her to quit her job because of an hour and a half of schooling? (The two required senior classes.) What was the point of making her take the money management class if you want her to quit her full time job?" The conversation was over. She finished her senior year online and kept her full time job.
Loved highschool algebra, but geometry and trig...scraped through!
Math was my worst subject. But back when I was growing. up there was NO tutors. No help. I had a horrible time.
I'm the same way. Once I "cracked the code" of Algebra, I loved it. My freshman year I'd flunked Algebra 1, and retook it the next year. I got an A in Algebra 2 my senior year.
I never EVER got geometry. 😂
My favorite math class was a Discrete Math class I took in college. Easiest math class I ever had. Easy ace. I loved that class.
thank you Bill for all the funny memories & laughter & good times buddy how I miss the old days blue collar comedy is the best here’s your sign 🪧 😀😀
I entered kindergarten in the year 1970, in NYS. What ticked me off is that they spent 4th grade through 8th grade teaching ONLY
add/subtract/multiply/divide, AND THEN, in the 9th grade, we finally saw Algebra… for the very first time… EVER. I mean, in NYS, Algebra was a REGENTS EXAM course. Imagine being sent to compete in the Olympics… and your very FIRST DAY of training doesn’t begin until you arrive at the Olympic Village. THAT IS HOW Algebra was “taught” in NYS !!
I had a similar problem.
Teach: "how do you know that's the answer?"
Me:"Common knowledge!"
Teach: F+
I did great with Algebra I. Then went to high school and signed up for Algebra II. I barely got C's in that class, and couldn't wait for that 1st semester to be over so I could drop it. That was the end of math for me, and luckily I never needed it.
I have trouble with math, my brain just doesn't get it once it's past the basics. I had a full scholarship to college based on my ACT scores - yes, I'm old - and my adviser thought there was a mistake on my math score because it was so much lower than the other scores. Nope. My brain just hates math. I had to take 2 no credit basic math classes just to be able to take freshman algebra my sophomore year - and I needed a tutor to pass it. Meanwhile I was already taking junior level classes in every other subject. Some people were meant to do math and some people aren't.
I worked as a tutor in college.. mine was more IT and programming based. Everyone wanted me to do the stuff for them.
In 1983 I took a Consumer Electronics Repair class and had to take a math class that contained some algebra which I didn't take in high school. In the repair class we were given all of the formulas we'd need.🤷🏼♂️ When I took Data Processing in 1984 we had to take a math class AND accounting. My job in the Army was property accounting.🤷🏼♂️ We also had to learn how to do 1040 series tax forms which I'd started doing my first tour in South Korea in 1976. The books for the forms were easy for me to follow.
I don't think you had a learning problem if you did and liked algebra. I liked algebra. Worked to get the answer myself. When it came to the times we needed to "proof". I told the teacher if he put two random problems on the board,and if I could get them right,to not have to proof them,as sometimes,the longer i worked on a problem the worse it got in my head. Barely into two minutes. I had them both right.I was unable to help my sister as the aforementioned applies.She wanted to know how they got the formulas. I told her that,if she didn't understand how they got the formulas. she didn't know enough to do the work.And yes,I use algebra in my work life. I use more math now,than what I had in school.
Analytic Geometry was my downfall too. Until I hit that, I always got A in math.
I did very well in all math except the Geometry class. I got a D in my first test. I had never had a D in anything before, so I was literally mentally destroyed and saw no way out. But I had a great teacher, and went to him , and he took me to his office and we talked for a long time. And after the help he gave me, he asked that I hang in there, and in a few weeks things would even out and I would see it start to make sense. He was right! From what he had shown me, and a little time for things to start coming together, I was able to complete the course, and even had a passing grade. 2:53 2:53
Speaking of how you get answers, here is a teacher joke.
I called a student up to my desk and told him that he cheated on the exam He denied it and challenged me to prove it. I showed him that the student in front of him had written, "I have no idea what the answer is," to question 5. His answer to question 5 was, "and neither do I."
Oh my gosh, i hated the fact the teachers wanted you to show how you got the answer. I never could. I worked it in my head. Worked at home depot and some of those cashiers at the service desk were so dang stupid. Always having to use their phones. I would say they had to pull their phones out but most of the time they were already on the darn things texting
Math and I are not friends. Growing up, when I showed a liking for art and telling stories, my mom and whole family FED it. Every holiday, birthday, you name it, art supplies, paper. To be fair I think that was just because my family was very poor and or lazy, but still. I'm an artist. Logic and geometric-anything, not my forte. I only passed high school 'tech prep pre algebra 1' (read, algebra for morons) because my friends let me copy their homework. I am easily frustrated and when that happens my brain literally just locks up. Nothing goes in. Nothing comes out. Tears, screaming or hysterical laughter are all plausible.
I am with you. I got through college without any math because I was in the last class before SATs were required. Whew.....never did need alegbra or geometry in my life and did well financially.
I've had the same problem with college math. I am getting a degree in counseling from Grand Canyon University and math is the only class I have failed.
Bill, I also loved algebra and hated geometry
Slog your way through Geometry. The reward is Trigonometry, Integral and Differential Calculus.
I feel your pain.
Being a high school Geometry teacher, I must correct what a proof is. A proof is not an explanation of how you got the answer--it’s the logical, sequential evidence that a theorem or postulate works. And yes, my students really struggle learning how to properly write one up-it takes all year!! (It’s the same logic and reasoning that Lawyers must use in court and politicians should use in a debate!)
"No math education" and the proceeds to list the math classes he took, including algebra, geometry, and remedial math.
I loved pre-algebra I could Ace that class and not even study.
That's wild, algebra made no sense to me, couldn't figure how a+b could=c. Now geometry at least I could see a relationship between angles and area.
I hated Geometry. I asked the teacher for extra help. He said, "You're a girl. You won't be able to do math." Swear to God. My parents went in to try to get me a different teacher and the school said no way, no one wants that teacher. Everyone is trying to switch out so no one can. (Notice the subtext; we won't get rid of a bad teacher. The students can just suffer.)
When he mentioned proofs, I had some unpleasant flashbacks. I do not want to repeat that horror show.
Thank god I have an aunt who knows more math than I do.
Very hilarious
When I started 9th grade we were finally allowed to choose our classes. I signed up for General Math. The teacher overseeing our class choices: "You don't want that. You want Algebra 1."
Whenever I asked for help and told them I didn't understand, I was told I needed to, "try harder" and "read the instructions again." No tutoring was ever suggested or offered.
My final exam score was a 52%. I passed with a D.
When I started 10th grade they let me take General Math.😂
Geometry, and proofs in particular, were the bane of my mathematical education, and I honestly think the entire course needs to be reworked or scrapped, because I aced Algebra 1 and 2, Pre-Calc, Physics, etc.
In fact, I don't think I've ever used anything I learned in Geometry that wasn't also thoroughly coved in any other math class.
So yeah, a big fat waste of time.
algebra is another language that not all people will ever understand.
After no college and 39 years at IBM as a programmer and lab administrator, I have to say that algebra was never required of me ever after high school. I have no idea who needs algebra in their daily lives but I have done just fine without it.
I tppk remedial math and English all the way through high school. At 81, balancing my checking account and paying my bills is a challenge. I paid off my first house and sold it for enough money to pay off my retirement house. I'm debt free. That should be good enough math.
Moral of the story is, everyone asks "show me how you got the answer" and nobody wants to do it. Not even the wife.
Goddamn biblical right there
Here's your sign 😊
High School is 4 years of wasted time, the first 2 years of college are 2 years of wasted time..and money....going over a slightly advanced version of the High School Studies you wasted your time on.
High school algebra I and II, no problem. Geometry, OK, tiresome memorizing all those theorems and axioms and corollaries (I remember the categories, but not the data!).Trig - I got lost when they took away the triangles and started juggling sines and cosines for no reason.
In high school my favorite math class was geometry, but I think it really came down to who was teaching it. I had 3 algebra classes, and the first 2 times I had it, I absolutely hated it because it felt like I was basically looking at scribbles. The third time wasn't as bad, except for the fact that the teacher was out for around 1/4 of the school year on maternity leave. I never liked algebra, and I never will. Once they started putting letters in math, I was fucked. Geometry was easier because I took woodshop at the same time, so there was a connection.
I hated algebra because they didteach me how to use it in a practical way. Statistics was more fun and usable, but they didn't teach that til I got to college. I blame my LD in mathematics because I had a teacher who would've loved this DEI crap because he taught hate-white history lessons-instead-to students who had enough trouble understanding the beginnings of algebra and even my next algebra teacher didn't understand how I ended up in Smith's class. I still never caught up to take geometry, calculus, or trig but I was an art student and the only math I would've found fascinating was that of fractals-and I didn't discover them til I saw a video on the book. Of course, the math formula took all the fun out of it.
I was FINE with math until letters showed up. At that point, my brain would simply refuse to play along. If it hadn't been the 90s, I really probably would have been diagnosed with a learning disability.
I was the same. In the 80s. I didn't understand the letters in math. I actually thought a=1, b=2, c=3 and so on. I was finally diagnosed with a learning disability called discalculia. It's the math equivalent to dislexia. I had dislexia in elementary school and got into a great program in middle school that turned that around and I loved English and reading and writing after that. But felt so stupid when it came to math. I was diagnosed with discalculia in college. I was so relieved because they told me my brain just couldn't process math equations.
maybe there's no way to know this without being traumatized by math (as most people experience) ...
but math is ...
a symbolic language used to describe the RELATIONSHIPS between things in the natural world
F=ma (an example)
letters are SYMBOLS ...
the equals sign and implied multiplication sign are symbols as well ...
each symbol represents SOMETHING (a part of the 'unseen' world) ...
so the result (using math) is a WAY to show how things RELATE ...
in the part of WORLD that humans have NO way of SEEING ...
(and math lets the visual human creature see it)
🥴
2 and 2 is 5 see how good i did !!!
Yeap, I was useless in algebra & math but loved geometry😅
I loved math too, but I hated geometry as well.
I hear you Bill! Why do you need math for a history degree? We only add and subtract years. We don't need no sticking math class!!
Though I'm not privy to his age, he appear's to be extremely close to the same generation I am. In my grade school youth, which was then including kindergarten some 9 year's, then one went high school for four year's. Then onto either a college or took a job simular to their father's. My entire generation was the last to be taught only "ARITHMETIC" in grade school, didn't learn MATHEMATIC'S until high school. Mathematic's has in it core, numerios way of utilizing number's in various way's. Such as geomery, calculist, algebra and in it's center core; Simple Arithmetic.
Utilzing any and all other form's of Mathematic's but simple arithmetic, allow's for one to get any answer they have on their agenda. It's been done and found out so many time's, there a phrase for it now, called or referred to as "FUZZY MATH". When something doesn't add up the way one desire's for what ever reason. Using simple arithmetic, one can assuming one know's how or someone who does. Simply utilize any one of the various other form's of mathematic's to get the answer they deem nessasary.
In HS we had to have basic math
FUNNY STUFF!!!!!
I never passed the qualifying test and had to take 2 math classes and 2 classes in English. It didn't help
I didn't even finish second grade but I guarantee you I know more than most high school graduates today. I went to McDonald's and I asked a girl who was wearing a high school senior graduation t-shirt, (she had graduated that year) for a half dozen nuggets. She looked me square in the face and said, "I'm sorry sir we only have six piece." 🤔
I did as well
christian studies major does not need any STEM classes, history classes or any rational based class. Just need faith based memorization and a dislike of anything not in a single old dusty book. Not sure if they teach hated of others with different beliefs or that's just a natural most students already learned.
The only math I like was geometry. It was the only one that made sense.
I battled my way through proofs. I didn't have a clue what to do. Then one day it all clicked for me. That day was the final exam and I got the high score.
👍🤣
That’s me if you get the answer what does it matter how you get the the answer.
They still had long Cadillacs back then.
You had to know how to pay for one of those things.
Today they just have grossly expensive Cadillacs.
You ask your congregation to pay for it.
No math needed.
You need math for a sciences degree. Any sciences degree. Here's your sign.
had this British woman in Grade school a teachers aid she had her husband on a very very very short leash she had red orange hair color blue eyes and was worse than Thatcher. She could not teach basic arithmetic to save her life she would keep a kid in from lunch recess pe why you have to learn math then the next school A Polish teacher not much better then Jr high I hated math so much by then I said forget it had a teacher in High school oh boy down the rabbit hole when he was irritated with us yelled at us in Spanish by the time I get to Jr college had to repeat a class because a male professor I had was much like the teachers in grade school and High school but then in the 2000s I finally got a professor that got me passed it with flying colors
😀
had a geometry teacher in school that looked like porky the pig.. ( not tryna be rude ) but... so this teacher made tests 90% the grade but they're 5-6 questions long.. 1-2 questions are not geometry questions in example its about finding light-year distance... but he also lowered grade percentage so that if you get 40-69 % its a D.... EVERYBODY GOT A D, and I'm good at mathematics... some should get Fs but he wants to give Ds... so I drew a picture of him as porky and wrote D D D D dats all folks... cuz we all got Ds.. my theory was that he was picked on being called porky the pig, so in revenge he gave everyone Ds cu that reference, but that's not legal or fair... I labeled it porky pigthagorean theorem cuz I'm not dumb...
college , where they build there money for all the classes that you really didnt need.
It is a vehicle to learn how to think, analyze, and predict outcomes. If you don't value education I get it. Burn the books. Put the ten commandments in every classroom. Eliminate standardized test. Be friends with your children. Just like leglizing all drugs in Oregon... the road to hell is paved with good intention. It is true some don't need it. We can not turn our backs on those that can.
Wait he went to school for Christian studies major
2+2=? TUTU, a pink one for sure.
"why does a christian studies major (me) even need math ..."
both the christian studies AND the math describe things that are BEYOND you ...
so the ME's and the I's in your thinking don't apply ...
(since it's about what's beyond YOU)
Damn he got old.
My question is why in the hell did you have to have a religious degree. That seems like a waste of 4 years
A Christian major makes them learn math because in the world they want religion to make $$$$$ as to Not about teaching people about the Bible. Whereas we have the example of Jesus in the Bible getting mad at those “making the house of my father into a house of commerce.” John 2:14-16. As a Jehovah’s Witness we on the other hand have No paid clergy class & teach people about the Bible for Free as Jesus said receive free then give free. Jehovah’s Witnesses are known around the world for their preaching as they are fulfilling Mathew 24:14
math is useless. Period. Anybody who's good at it can go to hell
When useful knowledge is too hard, always gravitate to religion.
I don't know about that. Some preachers are harder to understand than any math proof I've ever been puzzled by.
On Judgement Day God is not going to ask you about your math grades.
@@johnmckown1267 That's just the inbreeding coming through.
@@gregb6469 Nobody will be asking me anything at that point, except maybe, "Can you hear me?" as they're shaking my dead body.
@@ChipArgyle-- Someone once told C.S. Lewis about passing by a cemetery and seeing a gravestone which read 'Here's lies an atheist, all dressed up and nowhere to go.' Lewis' response? 'I'll bet he wishes that was true.'
The problem is that now days, in the new math, 2+2 does not equal 4 anymore.