Problems of Practice Preview

Three years ago my school district made a significant change to the math curriculum. Geometry was changed from a 10th grade class to a 9th grade class. The significance of this move is that it means many students will now take the class without taking a yearlong algebra class first. Much of the materials that exist(ed) required algebra skills that some of the students have not had. On the other hand, some students do take algebra in the 8th grade and have the skills to complete the exercises without extra time spent. So the problem is that the class is geometry and expecting learners to complete exercises with algebra they are not prepared for is not fair, but at the same time the students who have had algebra should have exercises that include those skills. These latter students should be challenged and pushed and not have their algebra skills lie dormant for a year before going into Algebra 2.

The problem described above especially shows itself during the unit for volume of solid objects. There are many formulas used and in some types of exercises algebra is a much needed skill. The students without those skills tend to struggle not so much with the formulas or the concepts of volume, but with solving for certain variables once values are inserted into the formula. However, some of the best real world type problems do not require a simple calculation of volume. More common is that the volume is already known and what needs to be calculated is the height or area of the base. These types of problems are difficult for students without the algebra skills, but very worthwhile for all.