What Students Do To Succeed In Math
• GET TO CLASS ON TIME. Math is cumulative, so they don’t miss important review of skills.
• LISTEN DURING CLASS. These students watch for things the teacher emphasizes even if just in words and not written on the board. The more important your teacher thinks a topic is, the more likely that it will show up on assessments!
• ASK QUESTIONS AND LISTEN WHEN OTHERS ASK QUESTIONS. They are not shy to ask, chances are they are not the only ones who don’t understand. They also listen to other’s questions and answers. Maybe the student asking the question thought of something they didn’t think of. They do not have side conversations when other students are asking questions. They listen!
• TAKE GOOD NOTES. Students write down everything the teacher puts on the board. Often, things are not so easy when it comes time to do it alone. You need to be able to listen while you are writing down the important parts of the lecture. Stay focused!
• MAKE A SET OF INDEX CARDS. With important formulas and concepts. Carry these around to look over when you get a few spare minutes. Students use them to help remember and understand as well as to solve homeworks faster.
• LEARN THE PROPER NOTATION. Math is a language with a formal structure. Your teacher will assume you know it. Students who do this score higher by avoiding bad notation.
• GET INTO A STUDY GROUP. A majority of successful students study individually as well as in groups. Someone else may see how to solve a problem you can’t do or help you understand a topic that you find confusing. Refrain from off-topic conversations or wasting time getting ready.
• BUDGET ADEQUATE TIME FOR STUDYING AND FOR HOMEWORK. Math often requires longer studying time. Homework will often take more time than you originally think to fully understand the concept.
• PRACTICE, PRACTICE AND PERSEVERE. The only way to really master a topic and learn how to do problems is to work lots of them. Easy problems. Difficult problems. Lots of them. Lots of them. Practice lots of them. Persevere! Do not limit yourself to just the homework that your teacher assigns. The more problems that you work the better off you’ll be. Yes, these students do more. They often find that a topic that initially baffled them all of a sudden makes sense.
• KEEP OLD HOMEWORK AND EXAMS. Well-organized and complete homeworks are a good source of study material for exams. Exams are a good source of study material for final exams.
• SEEK HELP AND USE YOUR TEXTBOOK. These students also use their textbook for examples not worked in class or for a different approach to a problem. They explore internet resources, go to their teacher or hire a tutor. See “get into a study group.”
• HAVE THE PROPER ATTITUDE. They always do (truly) the best they can. Those who just try enough "to get by" get into major problems. If you are trying to do just enough to get by then all it takes is one bad exam and you are now failing the course.
Edited and adapted by Mr. Angel Perez (Department of Mathematics, Pembroke Pines Charter High School, FL) based on a presentation from midnighttutor.com, personal experience and the advice from educators of successful math students.
