<p>Hello everyone! Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.
I am in my first semester of college and I am struggling in my math class, but passing with C's.... Basically, I have to pass this final coming up in two weeks but I have never taken a math final before. He told us what chapters to study, but I have no idea what is a good way to go about studying for a math final to get a passing grade? What methods do you use/used?</p>
<p>I’m really bad at math and I also dislike it, but I have found that doing practice problems are the best way. </p>
<p>Do practice problems, double check answers, see what mistakes you’ve done on practice problems and remember to fix that. And do not forget: DON’T RUSH IN MATH! It seems the majority of people always make stupid number or sign mistakes in math which can cost them some desperately needed points.</p>
<p>this is what i usually do for math tests… I look at how much time i have before the test, and then i divide up the units… so for example like unit 1&2 on monday, 3&4 on tuesday, ect, leaving about two days for final review
the key is to do A BUNCH of practice problems
i’m sure you’ll find alot online </p>
<p>good luck!</p>
<p>Yeah I realized when I first started the class I was making some very simple mistakes because I was rushing, so I deff. learned the importance of taking my time lol. Thank you! :)</p>
<p>That is a very good idea! I will try that, the good thing is I still have time!</p>
<p>OMG, math finals are a bummer. What I usually do to study is basically what tortoise5 said. Just divide each chapter by two each day or one for a better study. When studying, depending if you want to understand the concept, you can either reread the whole chapter to understand and or take a small note card and jot down formulas and important theorems to memorize. Also if your professor gave you a study guide or some questions, then you should do all of the questions and plus on the book. Most books have odd question answers, so go with those, unless you feel confident to do the evens then just ask your professor or a tutor to double check. And yourself must double check in case of sign changes and such. If your school has a tutorial center, then it’d be recommended to go there at every opportunity to get help. I’m in Calculus 3, so studying for me takes a lot of time, but I hope you do well on your final, and if you need to, you can private message me and I’d be glad to help you (hopefully you’re not in a stats class lol).</p>
<p>My school posts a ton of old exams on the course website, so I always did a couple practice finals to find my strengths and weaknesses in the class. Thn I did problems from the book or from online about those topics and went over the midterms from the class. I’ve always managed to do well on math finals for some reason. Good luck!</p>
<p>Do not look at the answer key the moment you get stumped. Think and try to remember previous equations/postulates. Ask a friend for help.</p>
<p>From my experience, using the answer key as a way for a “quick solution” isn’t effective.</p>
<p>I am so far from being in stats haha, Math is my worst subject. I will message you if I have any issues, Thanks a lot I really do appreciate it :)</p>
<p>Lots of practice problems.</p>
<p>It depends in big part on what class you’re in though. Some classes have a heavy conceptual basis. In Calculus I, a lot of emphasis tends to be put on understanding how and why the various concepts that are fundamental to the field of calculus work and how they are/can be applied. Depending on the school/professor, a lot of weight can be put on conceptual understanding of these concepts.</p>
<p>A lot of math finals will really come down to a huge problem set to slog through though. In this case, it’s really just best to work a ton of practice problems. Try to hit some problems from all of the major sections in the course. </p>
<p>As others have said, don’t go right to the answer key if you’re struggling with a problem. Do your best to solve it on your own first. If you’re having trouble with it still, try a different problem that’s somewhat similar and then go back to the one you were struggling with. Use the answer keys as a means of checking your answers, or a means of assistance when you’re absolutely stumped. Going right to the answer key to see how a problem is worked out isn’t going to be very beneficial in the long run.</p>
<p>One suggestion my professor gave me is to study backwards; that way you’re looking at the “harder” stuff first, and then the stuff you learned first is easier since Math expands on itself.</p>