Third semester Calculus has a very awkward and at times confused curriculum.\u00a0 The first third of the class isn’t even about Calculus at all.\u00a0 Instead there is a mini course on vectors wedged into the beginning of a Mathematics course.\u00a0 This material is necessary since the ensuing math is centered around vectors, but it would probably be better if a separate prerequisite class existed and the time was instead spent on calculus-based topics.<\/p>\n
I have heard many people claim that this is the easiest of the three semester Calculus series, but that was not my experience.\u00a0 From Pre-Calculus<\/em> to Linear Algebra, <\/em>this was the math course that gave me the greatest difficulty.\u00a0 After the initial unit on vectors, which is about as straightforward as can be and might even be considered as review for anyone who has already taken Physics, things ramp up considerably.\u00a0 In fact, attempting to fully conceptualize and understand all of the material that is covered in the second half of the class will almost certainly make one’s head spin around like it’s on a swivel.\u00a0 Students also lose their calculators on exams, so this would potentially be another source of difficulty depending on one’s technological dependencies.<\/p>\n After completing the course I cannot imagine having missed out on this final semester of Calculus.\u00a0 A lot of the concepts covered in the first and second semesters really come together and are cemented in place by the material covered here.\u00a0 I would have felt terribly cheated if I had been cut off after only two semesters.\u00a0 I feel sorry for those medicine folk as they are gluttons for peculiar forms of punishment–according to academia, this sort of treatment behooves them for some reason or another.<\/p>\n – Forthcoming<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" MATH4A — Calculus III Third semester Calculus has a very awkward and at times confused curriculum.\u00a0 The first third of the class isn’t even about Calculus at all.\u00a0 Instead there is a mini course on vectors wedged into the beginning … Continue reading Exams<\/h3>\n