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Showing posts with the label mathematics

Talking About "Taking People Home on Time" in a MARKETING 101 Class?

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Wired   I'm out of topics to write for now. However, I'd like to reminisce about some crazy experiences in business school more than 20 years ago at the University of San Carlos-Downtown Campus. I had a marketing professor who one might say has OCD. She was very particular about case studies. She would really warn the class about failing them. Sure, I was able to finally make up for that missing activity so I don't get an NC. I do love that teacher for her meticulous detail. I had many ups and downs with that teacher. In my case, I'd like to discuss an out-of-league case study in a marketing class. The third and fourth case studies were made individually because free riders were becoming common. It was time to look for volunteers. I volunteered to be in the first. I discussed airline rates in a price war. I lost the soft copy because it was from an old PC. I doubt the business administration department will let me dig into their archives. A classmate wasn't paying

Does the Grades-Over-Learning Approach Contribute to Students Hating Mathematics?

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Schoolessons Some time ago, I wrote about why I used to hate school . The big problem has to be that the education system cares more about grades than learning . A good grade is indeed a sign of good character. A good grade is only good if it is achieved without cheating. However, for a grade to be really good--I believe that it must spring out from learning . However, the education system has been so focused on grades over learning that students end up cheating as a result (read here ). It affects every subject since a faulty system is a faulty school of thought. I'm going to really point out that I hated school because of the grades over learning approach. It's always all about grade shaming and even the best teachers end up indirectly or inadvertently participating in it. I still remember two of my best strictest teachers. One was as stern as the late Miriam Defensor Santiago. Another was the reason why I never dropped out.  This time, I'd like to focus again on mathemat

The Solution for Better Mathematics Isn't a Homework Overload, Not Especially During the Holidays

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IgnitED As Christmas vacation comes near, I remember a couple of stuff why "vacations" aren't vacations. The schools tend to give ridiculous schedules. For example, the unit test or the periodical test comes  right after Christmas vacation . Many times, the value of rest is overlooked. It's even ironic how science teachers should say, "Nobody should be sleeping at 9 P.M.  You are in high school and you should sleep even at 10 P.M. Do your work even if it breaks your biological clock." Remembering those words, I also wrote an essay on why sleep-deprived education is one of the biggest problems . Then we wonder why students end up rebelling by doing many things like too much screen time (which I did a lot to the point I lost touch with reality) or even going out with the wrong people. I wonder if the three musketeers back in high school went home late out of rebellion? Sure, they weren't the unruly crowd but they probably did some mischief out of frustrati

Let's Learn the Practical Chinese Method of Mathematics Education

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BBC I could remember that when I was in my fourth year of high school (under K+10)--I frequently threw tantrums in Math class. I felt Trigonometry was the "most useless" mathematics. I always viewed myself as inadequate, and unworthy all because I was labeled "bad at math". I felt I wasn't worthy because of that especially when I once aimed to enter the Ateneo De Manila University (ADMU) and get that "invincibility badge". I looked at some of my previous entries where I felt Chinese math was redundant since students are learning math in their English classes. Maybe, I'm wrong to say that. I decided to Google "Chinese mathematics" and I felt, "Maybe, it's time to apply the Chinese method of teaching mathematics in the English class instead!" I think Mandarin teachers should just focus on teaching 華語 (Huáyǔ) so students can speak better Chinese.  I looked at Chinese mathematics. I heard some people who managed to reach the fou

The Importance of Statistics in Business Decisions

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Toppr   I think another subject worth talking about is statistics. I found it stupid (back then) that economics and statistics were only taught in fourth-year high school under the K+10 curriculum. The statistics subject was meant to teach how to process data in the term paper. College came and statistics was a subject that was required in both computer courses and commerce courses. Business calculus was also a common subject. I wanted to think about how I took statistics subjects during my undergraduate days and graduate school days. I would believe I had a total of nine units of statistics.  Statistics would be defined as follows: Statistics is a branch of applied mathematics that involves the collection, description, analysis, and inference of conclusions from quantitative data . The mathematical theories behind statistics rely heavily on differential and integral calculus, linear algebra, and probability theory . Statisticians, people who do statistics, are particularly concerned w

Are We Teaching Math in School... Wrong?

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Schoolessons I could remember hating math while growing up. I actually and frequently had a vicious cycle that went like this--(1) I hate math, (2) I don't study math because I hate it, (3) I'd rather play video games or watch TV than study and practice math because I hate it, (4) I fail math exam because I didn't study, (5) it's always I hate math because I believe I'll never get it. In fact, I even felt like I wanted to quit school altogether and get into a fight with my parents because of math. It was a vicious cycle hard to break from, especially during our K+10 days. I remember being enrolled in Kumon classes for the summer when I was approaching Grade 6 (graduating year), I almost didn't graduate because of mathematics, and I had to have tutorials. I always felt math sucked, I'll never get good at it, and I'll never get better. I just kept thinking how "I hate math!" was my mantra and hating people who were better in the subject than I am

Thinking About My Journey with Calculus: Initial Panic Attack to Learning Its Value in Business

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I could remember how mathematics was once my most hated subject. Right now, it can be said most students hate mathematics. I complained about how hard it was. Again, mathematics is meant to be hard. No pain, no gain, right? However, I think I could point out how what's wrong with how math is taught or how math was taught. I was a graduate under the K+10 curriculum and the Philippines was left behind with K+12. It really makes Filipino students lack the skills that the other ASEAN countries had aside from lagging with the investment scale. I think about the biggest mistake with mathematics education today is how it's taught. Too much time is focused on studying the properties of numbers instead of teaching students that all mathematics is part of life. Another thing is students have the panic attack that if they don't do good with mathematics in high school--they will be forced to take "substandard courses" like Hotel and Restaurant Management. Yet, even the HRM co