From: balden@wimsey.bc.ca (Bruce Balden)
Subject: Re: Math ( and other ) education.
Organization: Wimsey Information Services
Distribution: na
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 07:49:42 GMT
Summary: Visit a good library

In article <4932@execu.execu.com> dont@execu.execu.com (Don Thompson) writes:
>
>	Hello,
>
>	Regarding the recent thread discussing the state of mathematical
>	education in the U.S.
>
>	I decided about a month ago to try to salvage the wreckage of my
>	math education after realizing that the things I wanted to do
>	require more than + - /  and *. Some of the math I need to
>	to learn is the higher levels of Trig, Calc, and Geometry.
Well, I would start by taking the book "Mathematics for the Million"
out of your local library.  Amongst other things, this book discusses
trigonometry (including spherical trigonometry) in the context of
astronomy.  Surveying and astronomy remain the most visible benefits
of trigonometry.

If this book is too elementary for you, I would start looking at books
on "operations research".  

>
>
>	I always thought that education was a continuing process. It seems  
>	that the educational establishment disagrees. The only thing that
>	people want to learn after they get their degree is dBase or MSWord
>	and other "fun" classes. Unless of course you completely trash your
>	life and start over again.
>
>	Any suggestions?
> 
>-- 
>________________________________________________________________________________
You see, my intuition is that mathematics is best learned in the context
of applications.

Colleges and universities also see things this way.  Unless your ultimate
goal is a mathematics degree itself, then you will need to know it in
the context of some subject area.  In other words, a person taking
random high-level math courses is an oddity, and colleges don't know
where to put him.  They figure that people who understand this stuff
are bright and studied it much earlier in their lives.  On the other
hand, colleges see middle-aged teachers studying statistics every day
as part of Master's Degrees in education.

In other words, if you give yourself some "status" and "purpose", by
enrolling in an MBA or something, then regular college courses become
open to you, and you don't have to rely on "evening classes".  

Of course,  the situation I've described isn't fair, but that's
what I see around me (in Vancouver), and what I've seen in 
Washington, D.C. where I used to teach.

I can't quite tell from your message if you're

dBase and MSWord classes are not silly: they are a response to demand.  You
and I may think that other topics deserve some attention, but the public
pays big bucks and line up ten deep for WordPerfect, whereas complex analysis
doesn't pack 'em in.

There is a tendancy, nevertheless, for community colleges to offer more
high-level classes, frequently as part of extension programs from various
universities.  While I observed the sort of educational decay you cite
when I visited Tampa, I thought Austin was a little more advanced.
Perhaps some Austinites in Netland can redeem their city and give
you some more alternatives.

If you don't find any, as I said, my best advice would be to enroll in
some sort of MBA program.  These programs are usually very flexible
and will give you an opportunity to take a variety of graduate and undergraduate
courses.  Since it is interdisciplinary (a 90's concept I like),
you shouldn't be questioned too severely for taking either elementary
or advanced courses.

Finally, check out some of the recreational mathematics literature.  No one
becomes good at math by studying it.  It must become your friend and a natural
activity.

This article is longer than necessary to answer your question, but I thought
it  gave me a good excuse to spout my long-held opinions on this subject.


>Don "Syco" Thompson                 |   I may be opinionated, but at least
[1]  	
Newsgroups: sci.math,sci.physics