Fact—students who do not take four years of math courses in high school enter college or the workforce underprepared compared to students who do complete four years of the subject.
Also, according to CollegeBoard, lifelong skills are obtained from taking mathematics in high school and college. These include the abilities to:
- Identify and analyze patterns
- Expand logic and critical thinking skills
- See relationships
- Problem solve
I’ve also written an article regarding why math is important so as you can see, it is true that math is a tool you will use in high school and beyond!
On to the Celebration!
With April being national “Math Awareness Month,” we wanted to put together something special for students. For many of you, math can be one of the more challenging subjects, but there are many steps you can take to set yourself up for success, the first of which is completing a math placement test.
To encourage you to take a math placement test, we’re offering them for FREE the month of April 2014. To register, go to the UNHS Facebook page.
The University of Nebraska High School offers two—Algebra and Geometry—to help measure your knowledge in various foundational math skills.
Students often come into the placement test with a mindset of “I need to pass,” when actually the purpose of the placement test is to measure your strengths and weaknesses. Placement tests are not graded on a pass or fail scale, instead the score that is generated is based on the knowledge you currently have. This score indicates what math course would best serve your educational needs.
By understanding where your skills currently are and entering at the right level, students tend to be more successful, which builds confidence with the subject going forward.
Taking a placement test is a sign of a motivated student, so to those of you who complete one this month, I applaud you—you are setting yourself up for success!