Failed a quiz, exam, or course in math? Personally, It is OK!

When we think of the word fail.. the word failure comes to mind.
Sure, a failing grade on a quiz, exam, or course is not the best thing ever, but it's nothing to necessarily beat yourself to the curb about. Just because you receive a failing grade on something, doesn't mean you are a failure. If you are giving this course, exam, or quiz all you have, you've studied, you've gone for extra credit, you've done your homework, and yet you're still getting a failing grade, it's okay. You shouldn't consider yourself a failure when you're doing all you can to try and understand the content you're struggling with. A failure is someone who stops trying, doesn't do their work, and just gives up.
I would have to say, I considered myself to be a failure around this time about a year ago. I was enrolled in this math course. I had a great, positive attitude about it when it first began. Once I started to take the quizzes and exams, and was flunking them, I immediately gave up on not only the subject, but myself as well. I had such a negative outlook on everything that we would learn about, to the point where I wouldn't even understand what was being taught. I stopped doing the take home assignments, would not attend class some days, stopped studying for the exams and quizzes, and hardly even took notes or looked over them.
I look back now and realize, by not doing anything to improve my grade or trying to pass the course, I caused myself more stress then I would have if I just tried harder, cared, and put in the effort to pass.
Instead of focusing on the negatives, it was time to start focusing on the positives.
I knew I needed this course for my major. So I knew I was going to have to retake it. When I decided to retake it, I told myself, You can do it this time. Make math a priority.
It's the littlest things that matter the most. Now, when I sit down to do some homework, I always make sure I get my math done first. I make sure math is my main priority. Yeah, my other classes matter, but I really knew I needed to put a lot of focus towards this math class. I took advantage of doing all of the textbook homework assignments.. not only to receive the 5 extra points on the exam.. but they were extremely helpful!! I'm sure if you ask anyone who also took the time to complete the homework assignments they would agree. At times, they were time consuming and some problems were tricky, but in the end, getting a 90 something on my exam made all that time spent on doing homework worth it. The textbook work was also a great study tool for the exams. Especially the short answer word problems. That was one thing that made a difference in my grades.
Another thing that made a difference in my grades was paying attention during class, taking notes, and going over the notes once I got home. Doing this really helped with all the quizzes that we've taken throughout the semester. It's amazing how just by paying attention and actually caring could receive you a better grade on a quiz.
So, bottom line, my theory is.. If you ever fail a math test or course, don't let it be the last time you care about your grades. Retaking this course has really made me learn from my mistakes and better myself as a person who now cares about math class and math grades. It's never too late to fix or learn from a mistake, Strive to succeed!

Kindergarteners and Mathematics

In today's world, we must stop for a moment and think to ourselves about this topic- Kindergarteners and Mathematics. 

What do you think of? 

What was mathematics like back when you were in kindergarten? 

As much as I can remember from when I was in kindergarten, things are A LOT different now then they were then. Back then, we were taught the basic concepts of math through structures of play. Play was everything in young children's lives of learning years ago. Today, not so much. It seems to be that kindergarteners are being taught not only math, but every subject in a more structured, strict way, with little to no play involved. 

When I say little to NO play.. I kid you not. It's sad to notice and observe how the standards and curriculums have changed drastically over the years. All these education courses I'm enrolled in are always stressing how important it is to link play to infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and kindergartners learning. Reading through multiple articles that I stumble upon on the internet, it astonishes me that these children are learning math concepts such as geometry, algebra, statistics, and probability.

Thinking of all those concepts, jeez, I don't think I was introduced to them until at least the sixth or seventh grade!! Another funny thing is, you hear some of these students' parents talk with other parents about their children. What do you hear? "Oh, little Johnny pulled out a math worksheet he had to complete for homework and asked me for some help on it. I took one look at it and had no idea what to do!" Now isn't that just terrible? A young child's own mother is unable to help him with his math homework. Something needs to be done here. Either parents meet at the school with the teacher to get an understanding of what the children are learning so they can know how to help them when they need it, or the children's work needs to be a little less complicated for them to work on at home without guidance from a teacher. 

Although mathematics is not one of my favorite or best subjects out there, I would do anything to make mathematics more fun for these young children to learn! When learning is linked to play, it is linked to fun. When children are having fun, they want to keep doing whatever it is that's fun for them. If you make learning fun, the children will want to learn more! 

"You Can't Study For Math!" Fact or Myth?

Ask yourself, How many times do you hear students talking to their friends in the hallway about how you can't study for mathematics? That statement is a full blown myth. Of course you can study for mathematics!! I believe that there are so many students out there who don't believe there is a way to study for math because of the reason that they don't KNOW how to, or are unaware of some of the popular ways that others study for mathematics.

The first step to successful mathematics experiences is to have a positive outlook on the subject. Also, come to the realization that math is no where near similar to any other subject studied in college. You cannot look at a math review packet the night before the test and expect to do well. Other subjects, you MAY be able to get by with that, but it is definitely not recommended.
I guess the more accurate term that should be used for this would be to PREPARE yourself for a math test, rather than to study for it. Many students take the word "study" to mean; look over your notes, skim through a book, and memorize what you need to remember. In mathematics, this won't work. Trust me, i've tried. Memorization is not as popular in mathematics as it is with other studied subjects.
To PREPARE yourself for a math exam, there are plenty of tasks that you can do.
Math is known to be a skill. And skills are developed by lots and lots of practice. Preparing for a math test begins the very first day you start to learn the material on whatever chapter the professor is teaching. You continue to prepare yourself from that day all the way up to the test day. Because, as they say.. "Practice makes perfect!"Not saying any of us are going to be perfect math pros, BUT the practice WILL dramatically increase your chances of getting a high grade on the test.
Coming from a more personal perspective, I would love to share some of the ways I myself prepared myself, or "studied" for math tests in my past. A concept that worked really well for me (may not work well for others.. depends on your type of learning) was to look at a problem we did in class, take that problem and make up my own problem very similar to it and set up my own little mini quiz. This challenged me to know how to solve the problem, how to show my work (fully), and also how to overcome a fear of taking tests and quizzes!
Other popular ways to prepare yourself for a math quiz or test are to use flashcards, watch YouTube videos, (Just search what you are preparing for..YouTube has almost everything!), and just taking the TIME out of your day, your life, to work on and practice your math skills. Organize your study time wisely and you will do just fine on your math tests and this will also help you to overcome your mathophobia! (If you have it)
So, Whenever you hear a friend or acquaintance in the hallway or in the classroom say that they can't study for their math test you tell them otherwise and share these tips with them! I can guarantee it will help, it did for me!
Here is just a short video clip off of YouTube that I liked because this man states many things that I just stated on how to study for mathematics.

Mathophobia

Mathophobia can be defined in many different ways. Generally, we consider mathophobia to be "the fear of math". In other words, mathophobia is an anxiety, a frustration, or a confusion, that comes along with learning or using mathematics. Some people in today's world hear the word math and instantly they have an uneasy feeling upon themselves.
All throughout high school, I was one of those students who LOVED math. All of my friends would always ask why, because "it's so hard and so confusing". During high school, math was one of those classes where I said to myself.. "I'm actually going to use this information throughout my daily life down the road!" Unlike those other classes like history and english. My senior year in high school I was required to take a class called Financial Math. This class was unbelievably useful in so many ways. We learned life like lessons having math involved with them. I knew after taking that class that it would come in handy for me one day down the road.
I think a major part of realizing whether you enjoy math or not depends on what course you are taking and who is teaching you it. For example, I loved it in high school because of what I was learning. Also because I had an awesome teacher. She explained everything so thoroughly, and if you didn't understand it, she would go over a problem as many times until you did. She was always available for after school help too.
Then, my first year of college rolled around. I went to East Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania. I took the same math course as I am now. My teacher was not so great at explaining things. She also had that attitude where she just didn't care about her students. She was there to teach the material and that was it. This was when I began to dislike mathematics and start to have a little bit of mathophobia. Ever since that class, whenever I hear anything about math I cringe. However, after taking this course at DCC, I believe I can overcome my fear of math and work on my test taking anxiety. My problem is, I'll do the homework assignments and everything will make sense, then the morning of the test, I suddenly draw a blank. I need to come up with some type of strategies to overcome this and do better on my tests.
I believe in myself, and that is all it takes if you all want to overcome your fear of math as well! Good luck to myself and everyone else in their journey of elementary mathematics! :)