British vs American Math

I noticed that in England, Math is more of generic term which covers topics from a large range of areas. This is the same at sixth form and university apparently.

Do you prefer the american way where a person typically only learns the area of math such as Calculus which he/she will require?

Even in universities in the U.S, a personal typically specializes in a field such as calculus, algebra, statistics etc. It's unheard of in high school to deviate from calculus and go into anything else in most schools aswell.

I ask because I've met quite a few brits who dont even know the definition of Calculus or if what they are answering is indeed a branch of it. Everything is just math to them.

Is there a reason why its so different in both countries?

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 1

User995789

14

Original post by Zilch

I noticed that in England, Math is more of generic term which covers topics from a large range of areas. This is the same at sixth form and university apparently.

Do you prefer the american way where a person typically only learns the area of math such as Calculus which he/she will require?

Even in universities in the U.S, a personal typically specializes in a field such as calculus, algebra, statistics etc. It's unheard of in high school to deviate from calculus and go into anything else in most schools aswell.

Is there a reason why its so different in both countries?

Because we have AQA and Edexcel who like to screw over students, get their resit money and go on holiday with it. :gah:

But in all seriousness, its probably to develop a broader way of thinking :smile:

Reply 2

Smaug123

15

Original post by Zilch

I noticed that in England, Math is more of generic term which covers topics from a large range of areas. This is the same at sixth form and university apparently.

My courses at university are modular (Numbers and Sets, Vectors and Matrices, Analysis 1, etc). I do find it strange that courses could be called "Algebra 1" or "Analysis 1" (for example) - it's not as if all of maths is sitting there nicely chunked ready to be learnt.

Reply 3

Bobifier

13

Original post by Zilch

I noticed that in England, Math is more of generic term which covers topics from a large range of areas. This is the same at sixth form and university apparently.

Do you prefer the american way where a person typically only learns the area of math such as Calculus which he/she will require?

Even in universities in the U.S, a personal typically specializes in a field such as calculus, algebra, statistics etc. It's unheard of in high school to deviate from calculus and go into anything else in most schools aswell.

I ask because I've met quite a few brits who dont even know the definition of Calculus or if what they are answering is indeed a branch of it. Everything is just math to them.

Is there a reason why its so different in both countries?

I am about to take my final exams at a highly respected university for Maths in the UK. However, if you asked me to explain differential geometry to you, I wouldn't even know where to start. Everybody specialises in university Maths.

Reply 4

Zilch

OP

1

Original post by Bobifier

I am about to take my final exams at a highly respected university for Maths in the UK. However, if you asked me to explain differential geometry to you, I wouldn't even know where to start. Everybody specialises in university Maths.

Probably so but I'm still willing to wager that you have a more broad knowledge of mathematical areas than the average american. I'm currently here in Canada and the lecturer from Cambridge expressed similar concerns which is what sparked my interest in the topic.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 5

Jkn

11

Original post by Zilch

I noticed that in England, Math is more of generic term which covers topics from a large range of areas. This is the same at sixth form and university apparently.

Do you prefer the american way where a person typically only learns the area of math such as Calculus which he/she will require?

Even in universities in the U.S, a personal typically specializes in a field such as calculus, algebra, statistics etc. It's unheard of in high school to deviate from calculus and go into anything else in most schools aswell.

I ask because I've met quite a few brits who dont even know the definition of Calculus or if what they are answering is indeed a branch of it. Everything is just math to them.

Is there a reason why its so different in both countries?

maths*

Reply 6

Octohedral

16

I don't know the details of the American system, but I suspect we get to do more because we don't have the whole 'majoring' thing - we spend our entire first year getting a broad basis for maths. In later years we specialise more.

Without knowing what Americans mean by 'maths' I can't really comment, but here it's main branches are Mechanics, Statistics, Algebra and Calculus. This isn't an official division, and the boundaries are quite vague. I also think our 'calculus' might not have exactly the same definition as yours.

I know in some countries Mechanics is classed as Physics, but I think it goes with maths better personally, certainly at A-level.

Reply 7

Faye_m

14

I'm in an American high school and I've seen the AP calculus which is equivalent to A-Level math. I seem to think the UK system is wayyy better for a few reasons.
First of all we the uk system is broader, plus A-level vs AP- A level covers more and you are able to pick modules to suit your career/choice. Thirdly I feel like the American way of learning is to pass tests not to understand it!! I'm not kidding but even math in the US is multiple choice! So u have a 1/5 chance of getting each right just by guessing.

Reply 8

fash777

Original post by Jkn

maths*

Exactly what I was thinking!!!

Reply 9

Faye_m

14

Can't believe I've become Americanized :s
MathS*

Reply 10

emma1220

I am just about to graduate from high school in the US, but I was born and raised in England until year 7. Over here, I did pre-algebra, then algebra, then geometry, then advanced algebra, then pre-calculus and then this year I took calculus. In the American system, its more of a step by step system, we couldn't move on to geometry unless we had passed the classes before it because they teach it so that you need the information from the year before for the next class. For example, in pre-calc last year, I learned trigonometry which I now need all the time in calc. Its just a different system, but they both work just fine in my opinion! Over here, calc is considered the top of the math pyramid, you have to learn everything else to be able to do it, which I pretty much agree with. Statistics is a whole different area over here.

Reply 11

123formyabc

12

Original post by emma1220

I am just about to graduate from high school in the US, but I was born and raised in England until year 7. Over here, I did pre-algebra, then algebra, then geometry, then advanced algebra, then pre-calculus and then this year I took calculus. In the American system, its more of a step by step system, we couldn't move on to geometry unless we had passed the classes before it because they teach it so that you need the information from the year before for the next class. For example, in pre-calc last year, I learned trigonometry which I now need all the time in calc. Its just a different system, but they both work just fine in my opinion! Over here, calc is considered the top of the math pyramid, you have to learn everything else to be able to do it, which I pretty much agree with. Statistics is a whole different area over here.

I read that in an american accent

Reply 12

Swanbow

19

Original post by Faye_m

Can't believe I've become Americanized :s
MathS*

*Americanised. :wink:

Reply 13

Faye_m

14

Original post by Swanbow

*Americanised. :wink:

Lol well that was my phones autocorrect! Not my fault -_-

Reply 14

Jkn

11

Original post by Zilch

I noticed that in England, Math is more of generic term which covers topics from a large range of areas. This is the same at sixth form and university apparently.

Do you prefer the american way where a person typically only learns the area of math such as Calculus which he/she will require?

Even in universities in the U.S, a personal typically specializes in a field such as calculus, algebra, statistics etc. It's unheard of in high school to deviate from calculus and go into anything else in most schools aswell.

I ask because I've met quite a few brits who dont even know the definition of Calculus or if what they are answering is indeed a branch of it. Everything is just math to them.

Is there a reason why its so different in both countries?

I do not know the answers to most of your questions but what I will say is that the typical Mathematics syllabus at sixth-forms is inadequate for roughly 3-4% of those that take the subject at a-level. In other words: the system is broken for everybody who is not lucky enough to have a teacher who gives them regular extensions and enrichment. This has created a sort of "corrupt" divide between those from high-level private schools and the rest of the country. Even our olympiads, such as BMO2, which typically have 50-100 people in the country sitting it, will largely consist of 5 or so people from each of the few schools in the country that are in a position to extend their students academically. Top universities struggle to account for this during the admissions procedure and, hence, it is often a source of great controversy (though this may be the same in the US).

Back a-levels, getting the top UMS scores on most exam boards is a bit of a lottery. As a result of such a large portion of the population who are not adequately challenged by the exams, top scores tend to be a measure of how well such a student can avoid making silly mistakes (i.e. forgot to draw an angle in a diagram even though it was obvious). One example I can give you of how bad it had got is that, although the A/A* grades should typically require 80/90% on an exam respectively, this is rarely the case. Last year I had an exam that required 98% for an A* and 96% for an A.

For the top universities in the country for Mathematics (Cambridge, Warwick, etc...) they regard obtained the A* grades as a necessary but not sufficient accomplishment in order to have a chance at succeeding in their university. The reason being that the correlation (SMCC) between a-level success and university success is roughly 0.3-0.4 (compared to a subject-wide average of 0.7). As a result of this, though students still need to sit all their a-level exams, they are often asked to sit an exam like STEP, which requires abilities in mathematical problem-solving as well as creative thinking (for STEP, SMCC ≈ 0.8).

The government, however, are reforming the educational system for the top 2% and so, as of 2014, there will be a string of "Elite Mathematical Academies" springing up all over the country. They will be free schools and a full part of the state school education system, aiming to bridge the gap between Mathematicians from a range of backgrounds. At these academies, students, as well as being coached towards the STEP exam, will be trained in problem-solving; mirroring the former-soviet education model.

Hope this helps answer at least some of your questions (I don't know much about the US so what I have said may prove to be a typical occurrence) :smile:

Reply 15

FrancisPM

9

there are a couple of major failings in the uk system . eg how on earth can you learn the math behind calculus when the syllabus has no limit theory! It is a shame really because a large proportion of the a-level is no longer maths as such, but rather a methods course. Luckily there are many solid math teachers who teach on what lies beneath regardless.