LD Adult Learning Algebra

Algebra is just finding the missing number.x + 3 = 15Solve for x.It sometimes helps to understand that all algebra is is a variation on that problem. You move on to solving for two missing numbers as well.If someone had presented algebra that way to me, I might have understood it better.Consider going back to the beginning with your tutors and doing the first operations again with that in mind.Good luck.Hello,: I am 53 and attending college. I am struggling through intermediate
: algebra. I am using tutors and paying them for extra time.: I rarely ever understand the professor.: Where should I be posting for ideas on how to learn intermediate
: algebra?: I have never been taught any strategies on learning algebra. I never
: had intermediate algebra in high school and I don’t remember my
: one year of beginning algebra in 1964-65.: I wasn’t diagnosed until I was age 45! My latest diagnosis just
: showed processing problems. Previously I was told I was dyslexic
: and I should not take math. I also have memory problems for new
: facts.: I have been very successful in college for non-math courses. I am on
: the deans list.: I am on the deans list! I appreciate any ideas!

This is my field!! I work as a private tutor in math and reading. For some years I taught Intermediate Algebra part-time at local colleges. I had some students over 50 too (and we won’t mention my age, which my daughter has learned has been murfle-murfle for the past ten years) Please ask me for help any time. Generalities are welcome on this board; for specific questions, please email me.Some points: (1) I wish we could go back and retroactively fire all the “guidance” counsellors who spend their lives guiding kids out of any real study. Their motto seems to be “At the first sign of academic difficulty/challenge, quit.”(2) A fact of college: in high school, you have 110 to 120 class hours for one math course. In college, for a more challenging course, you have only 35 to 40 class hours, or one-third of the time. (Multiply class minutes by days met, and you will see this). EVERYBODY thinks the professor goes too fast in college until they catch on to this idea. That includes my own classes; I couldn’t stretch the clock any more than anyone else could (Exception — some instructors make plenty of time by watering the material down. Then the professor NEXT term takes the flak when he/she has to fail everybody who doesn’t know Term 1. If you get an instructor who makes everything easy, run away.). You have a lot more responsibility for your own learning, and as an adult, that’s good. You can decide what you need to work on and how and don’t have to play the time-filling games high school teachers use. A standard rule published by one college I worked at: for every hour in class, you must spend AT LEAST two hours out of class (and usually more). Makes sense, given the times above.(3) Many colleges have some sort of tutoring centers. They are often free. I worked in some of these for several years. Some are better than others. The best are those where you schedule an appointment with a particular tutor and work up a mentoring relationship with a faculty member or very advanced student. The worst are chaotic walk-in setups run by students who know little more than you do. Check out what your college has; sometimes offered as a general service to all students, sometimes part of Disability Support Services, sometimes both.If you can get a good one, grab on to the services availablePlease email and ask anything you wantVictoria [email protected]: Hello,: I am 53 and attending college. I am struggling through intermediate
: algebra. I am using tutors and paying them for extra time.: I rarely ever understand the professor.: Where should I be posting for ideas on how to learn intermediate
: algebra?: I have never been taught any strategies on learning algebra. I never
: had intermediate algebra in high school and I don’t remember my
: one year of beginning algebra in 1964-65.: I wasn’t diagnosed until I was age 45! My latest diagnosis just
: showed processing problems. Previously I was told I was dyslexic
: and I should not take math. I also have memory problems for new
: facts.: I have been very successful in college for non-math courses. I am on
: the deans list.: I am on the deans list! I appreciate any ideas!

Hi,Congratulations on doing something wonderful for yourself! Going back to school at any age is worthwhile if you’re up for the challenge. For those who think they will be “too old” or “XX years old” when they finish, just remember that you’re going to be “that old” anyway…only without the college credits. If you want to return to school, you owe it to yourself to give it a try. Lots of women growing up in the 60’s didn’t get the encouragement their brothers did to go to college, nor were their LDs recognized and addressed.What is your major? Will you be required to take more math classes after this algebra class? Sometimes with a documented LD you can substitute classes, such as computer courses for the math. It depends on the school and the major. Have you looked into this possibility? JJ: Hello,: I am 53 and attending college. I am struggling through intermediate
: algebra. I am using tutors and paying them for extra time.: I rarely ever understand the professor.: Where should I be posting for ideas on how to learn intermediate
: algebra?: I have never been taught any strategies on learning algebra. I never
: had intermediate algebra in high school and I don’t remember my
: one year of beginning algebra in 1964-65.: I wasn’t diagnosed until I was age 45! My latest diagnosis just
: showed processing problems. Previously I was told I was dyslexic
: and I should not take math. I also have memory problems for new
: facts.: I have been very successful in college for non-math courses. I am on
: the deans list.: I am on the deans list! I appreciate any ideas!