<p>I'm a Senior in HS, but I figured that parents could offer some words of advice. </p>
<p>I'm currently taking Honors PreCal and really struggling. Math has been a big challenge for me my entire life. I can remember having problems with it all the way back to 1st grade when I would copy my friend's answers from her workbook. My math progression in HS has been Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, and now PreCal. This year I have the same teacher I had for Geometry. Initially, I was supposed to be in a class with another teacher, but the school had to do some very last minute shuffling of teachers so I didn't get her.</p>
<p>My experience in Geometry was not good. This particular teacher is a great person, but she is a very confusing teacher. I should have switched to the other PreCal class (with different teacher), but I really didn't think of it until too late. Two years had passed and dulled my memories of Geometry. I'm also better at Algebra based math so I figured PreCal with this teacher would be better than Geometry.</p>
<p>Exams are coming up, and I'm panicking. I have two As and two Bs (including two APs) and then...a D- in PreCal! I got a C in Geometry which isn't great, but I'm okay with considering my math abilities (And I got Bs in Algebra I and II). But now I'm worrying about getting a D or F which is certainly NOT okay! My parents and I are considering going to the school to see if I can switch to the other math class. It's definitely possible especially with the backing of my parents, but I'm TERRIFIED. I'm scared of my current teacher getting angry. Both teachers work together all the time, and I'm afraid it will just be very awkward. Plus, people in my new class are going to ask me why I'm suddenly in their class 2nd semester.</p>
<p>I don't know what to do!</p>
<p>Side Note. Why is current teacher confusing?
1. She has her own way of doing almost everything and often does not follow the book's methods. This makes it hard when I'm confused on homework. I can't refer to the book's examples or use resources like Khan Academy on Youtube. Other teacher follows the book's methods of teaching.
2. Notes- very messy and lots of writing which makes it hard to follow. She often gives us notes already filled out then just talks about them. I try to recopy out of class because writing things down helps me learn, but it's hard to retain math when you just hear it spoken in class and see examples already worked out.
3. Notes use easier examples than what is seen on homework, quizzes, and tests. I'm not even kidding. One good thing she does is go over homework, quizzes, and tests in class and rework problems on the board. But sometimes it takes her a long time to figure out how to work her own problems! "Oops, I guess this one is really hard!" And I'm sitting there thinking "How was I supposed to do it?"</p>
<p>I think you go to your guidance counselor and ask to switch math teachers. You say something on the order of “Teacher X is a lovely teacher and I like her a lot, but she’s not a good fit for me. I really think that my learning style works better with Teacher Y’s methods and I’d really appreciate it if you could make the switch.” If it’s not possible, I suggest you get a math tutor and/or go to any extra help sessions offered by the other teacher (assuming that’s allowed.)</p>
<p>^^
I agree with the previous post regarding how to go about switching. Teachers are generally aware of the need for students to get an alternate teaching perspective, and would not take a switch as a personal statement. There’s no need to “explain” why you want to switch.</p>
<p>I would go further with the need for you to pursue tutoring for this semester (there is still time), and also for next semester (regardless of which teacher ends up being your teacher). Your school perhaps offers peer tutoring. Also consider getting a workbook for the basic concepts in your course, and methodically work through the exercises.</p>
<p>Don’t know what to suggest, except to note that this is a very similar situation to that which my junior D is experiencing. We hired a tutor earlier in the semester, but because the teacher rarely returns quizzes or homework, and everything is done on scantron, there is scant feedback. Also, he does not review homework. I have had communication with the teacher, the math department chair, the head counselor, and the principal. All stated that it was impossible and against policy to change teachers on the basis of a mismatch with student learning style, and they reiterated that it was against district policy for students to get their tests or quizzes back with the actual work. They can be told their grades, but special arrangements have to be made to see the actual quizzes (arrangements have been made btw). I hope that your school takes a more reasonable and student-focused approach, but in case they do not, you may want to bring your parents or guardian in on your behalf. Wishing you the best! A good tutor helps, but not as much as a good teacher!</p>
<p>i remember a couple of years ago my son had the honors pre-cal teacher from hell. what ended up happening was i scoured the back of the text and found a website that proved to be very helpful. it had problems and detailed explanations of how they needed to be worked out. so… have u checked the back of your textbook…?</p>
<p>I can’t really give you any advice on switching teachers or classes, but I would say to study your book and try to work out the problems the way it is teaching you. If you figure out what the book is saying, you may be able to look at the jibberish she is putting up and see where it’s coming from.</p>
<p>I had a prof during my junior year of college who didn’t use the text book at all. It was just there as a reference guide. Everyone warned me about this class going into it… that it was the hardest class of my major and he’s the only one who teaches it… I was told that it’s impossible to do well in and that if I managed a C to consider myself lucky… He did everything his own way, and it was confusing as could be when he’s working stuff out on the board and handing out papers and stuff of his problems. It was a small class, only about 10-15 of us. </p>
<p>I remember when we were about to have our first test of the semester… He gave us some “sample problems” to study from. The whole class was freaking out… we had NO clue how to do them. We decided to get a study group together of about 7 or 8 of us, to see if together we could figure out how on earth to do what we were about to be tested on the next day. We all met in my apartment and tried working through the problems based on what we remembered from class. Got nowhere. Finally, we split into two smaller groups because we had different methods on studying. My group decided to get out the text book and see if we could work through the problems the way it showed us to, and the other group decided to keep tackling the method he used. Finally, at like 2 am, it clicked and when we compared what we were doing to what he was showing us in class, we understood what he was doing. We tried to teach the other half of the group how to do it… they sort of got it but not fully. We called it at night at like 4 am. The 4 of us in my group got A’s and B’s on the test, the other group got B’s and C’s, and the rest of the class (with the exception of one person who studied on his own and got a perfect) failed the test. The grades were so bad that the prof wound up giving everyone a do-over. I got one of maybe 2 A’s in the class for the semester… If I hadn’t broken out that book and figured it out myself who knows what I would have gotten.</p>
<p>What I’m wondering is… are any of the other kids having the same problem? If so, you should get together and try to study through it.</p>
<p>Thank you everyone for replying! I am sorry to hear that other students had or are having bad experiences in PreCal. To be honest, even though I struggle with Math I do actually enjoy it (to an extent) when I understand the material. It’s kind of like solving a puzzle. I have to have a clue what is going on to get to that point though!</p>
<p>My parents are really supportive of me, and my dad booked me a 2 hour session with a nearby tutoring program for today. I went this evening because I have my last test tomorrow before my semester exam (next Tuesday). The current chapter has really gotten me down, and I fully admit to having given up a little bit. Not a smart thing, but I have been trying hard to keep up as much as possible. Well, I wasn’t expecting any miracles for a cram session, but the tutor helped me a lot. Am I going to get an A? No, probably not, but I think I’m easily capable of a C which is a big improvement. </p>
<p>I’m still worried about the exam, and I still have a lot of work to do to pull myself out of this hole. At least this a start though! :)</p>
<p>ETA: Yes, other students struggle with this teacher, but I’m probably one of the ones struggling the most. Also, to be fair, there are also some students with As and Bs in the class. But I do know a couple of Seniors who got As and Bs in Honors Algebra II last year (very similar to regular PreCal…they wanted an easier Senior year or loaded up on harder Science and/or English classes instead) who are really struggling with this teacher’s methods. Material they learned or touched on last year has suddenly become very confusing for them.</p>
<p>Switch, switch, switch! Teachers do understand this. Some kids will be able to grasp the subject well enough by themselves that they can do fine in a class like this, but learning is a very personal thing and for some students the human connection makes the learning possible. You sound very mature and thoughtful and responsible-- your GC will see that, I think, and be willing to help. After all it’s your education that’s at stake–of course you take it seriously. Good luck!</p>
<p>Another thing to try is to make an appointment with the teacher to ask for extra help. Make many appointments. Maybe she will learn your style or you will learn hers or she will be gladly willing to have you move to a different class!</p>