07-30-2010, 06:40 PM
http://www.math.uga.edu/~curr/Entering.html
Don't know if this will help, but this is how UGA handles incoming freshmen and math.
About the pricey SAT prep courses; it might be more effective in terms of time and money to get a private tutor (where I live they charge around $40-50/hour) and have them focus on exactly what your son needs in order to get his best possible math SAT score. They will give him a complete sample test, evaluate the test, and do focused tutoring. Where I live the high school math instruction is excellent, but parents wanting kids to get into competitive schools still pay for the prep, it's just become standard.
For my son it paid off, because he took Algebra and Geometry in middle school, and that is the focus of the SAT.
(Unless the one-on-one is uncomfortable for the student, it is for some. Then group tutoring might be better.)
I'm a fan of students at least attempting Calculus at the college level, regardless of major. A lot of non-math majors require it, and I find that the teaching in college is superior to what is usually offered in high school (the teach to the test AP Calculus course often leaves something to be desired.) So, your son may not like math simply because the instruction has been ineffective. He shouldn't give up this early.
I just asked my son about formulas (he's a rising senior, just finished Pre-Calc.) He says that understanding the concept is far more important than memorizing formulas, and sometimes they get formulas, sometimes not. If your son's school is never requiring the kids to learn formulas, they are doing a disservice.
Don't know if this will help, but this is how UGA handles incoming freshmen and math.
About the pricey SAT prep courses; it might be more effective in terms of time and money to get a private tutor (where I live they charge around $40-50/hour) and have them focus on exactly what your son needs in order to get his best possible math SAT score. They will give him a complete sample test, evaluate the test, and do focused tutoring. Where I live the high school math instruction is excellent, but parents wanting kids to get into competitive schools still pay for the prep, it's just become standard.
For my son it paid off, because he took Algebra and Geometry in middle school, and that is the focus of the SAT.
(Unless the one-on-one is uncomfortable for the student, it is for some. Then group tutoring might be better.)
I'm a fan of students at least attempting Calculus at the college level, regardless of major. A lot of non-math majors require it, and I find that the teaching in college is superior to what is usually offered in high school (the teach to the test AP Calculus course often leaves something to be desired.) So, your son may not like math simply because the instruction has been ineffective. He shouldn't give up this early.
I just asked my son about formulas (he's a rising senior, just finished Pre-Calc.) He says that understanding the concept is far more important than memorizing formulas, and sometimes they get formulas, sometimes not. If your son's school is never requiring the kids to learn formulas, they are doing a disservice.