<p>I'm a high school freshman in an Oregon high school, I'm extremely good at English, best in the class, and I'm in honors. However, my mathmatic ability isn't the best. At the 9th grade I'm only in Pre-Algebra. At first I thought that wasn't so bad as my high school has an Intro to Pre Algebra class, Pre Intro to Pre Algebra class, and an Intro to Pre Intro to Pre Algebra class. Yes I'm serious we have those, but after doing some research I found out that Pre-Algebra is the lowest form of math available at most high schools. I would like to go to a University and I think being in this current math class will really bring me down.</p>
<pre><code> I've talked to my current math teacher about the issue and pleaded to him requesting him to transfer me to Algebra. All he said was I'm smart enough but I'll be behind, so it's best to keep my Algebra skills ready until next year. I didn't concur with him at all, the next day I even offered to bribe him with five dollars in order to move me up, but still nothing. Is there any hope for me? Or should I might as well drop out of high school get a girl pregnant, have her get an abortion, and desperately try to make my living on selling illegal drugs?
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<p>...That last sentence was a joke, but really; what can I do?</p>
<p>If your school isn’t willing to help you with math, there are options outside of school for you to learn math. You could take a class at a local community college, or an online class. I know BYU has online classes that my school recognizes for credit. (I’m from Oregon too.) Maybe your school has something similar. </p>
<p>I’m not sure about skipping pre-algebra though. It’s important to get a good foundation in pre-algebra to do well in more advanced math classes. You might want to take a community college pre-algebra class concurrently with your school pre-algebra class. If you school offers pre-algebra (my school doesn’t at all…) it probably isn’t very good at teaching math. You would get a better foundation at community college.</p>
<p>After that, you should take algebra, either at your school or at community college. If you really want to catch up in math (most people at my school take geometry freshman year), after algebra you should take both algebra 2 and geometry at the same time. Another option is taking classes in the summer. </p>
<p>That way you would have:
9th - pre-algebra
10th - algebra
11th - geometry and algebra 2
12th - precalc</p>
<p>You really should get up to at least precalc, for college admission and for doing well in math once you’re in college. If you go outside your school to supplement your math education, that would show initiative and look great on your college app.</p>