What if I Fail 9th Grade Math? (Part 1)

Cartoon:

In 2000 an 2001, I was an “expert” on a website that helped kids with math problems. Most of them concerned problems they were having in school.

I’d like to publish some of the exchanges I had with some of the kids. I must mention some “warnings,” though.

These questions were asked by real kids, struggling with real problems. They express themselves like real kids. I appreciated that, sometimes. The grammar and spelling is generally miserable. I am going to try not to edit them. I think it’s important if a kid writes, “I want to mulily by too,” that the form of writing gives you several clues to what’s going on. Sometimes.

The answers were given by a real person (me.) I do not intend to bowlderize anything. There is quite a bit of swearing in them. Why? Because I tend to do a lot of swearing, especially at hypocrisy. Since the questions had a lot to do with schools, there was a lot of hypocrisy to swear at. I’ll try not to go overboard with it, because on this blog and in Math Mojo in general, I try to keep it to a minimum.
(When we I publish as Joe Archimedes – Hard-boiled Substitute Teacher, the gloves will be coming off, though).

The real reason I am publishing this stuff, is to “speak truth to power.” If administrators feel offended, well…

I feel that there are a lot of parents, teachers, and especially kids out there who have always suspected the things I’m going to say are true, but haven’t heard it expressed. I think it will help to read it.

So here goes nothing…

I’ll be breaking up this post into parts. Here is the first exchange:

A reader wrote:

Dear Professor Homunculus,

hello my name is Truman (not his real name) i am a high school kid i failed gr 9 mh now i am in emath. I ask my teacher butshe wounl’t answer me ca u tell me what it is ad wha effect does it have on my future?ps. can i goto collage?

Professor Homunculus’s answer:

If you WANT to learn, and you do the work, then the ninth grade can more or less kiss your ass. Einstein hated math (although he didn’t fail it like some people think – see the comments below) at your age, and it didn’t seem to hurt his career much.

On the other hand, if you are a lazy kid, and just don’t feel like doing the work, would rather play computer games and talk on the phone all day, college wouldn’t help you anyway.

I would say there is a good chance, that since you bothered to ask for help here, that you really want it, and are not lazy.

What has your teacher done to help you? If s/he just lectures you, bores you and yells at you, s/he needs a boot to the head.

On the other hand, if s/he is trying to help you, give her some credit and help her out. Go to the library and find books by normal people (not math teachers) and study them. For god’s sake, don’t look at textbooks! They are the death of creative mathematical thinking!

You must decide for yourself to excel in that which you previously sucked at. Get a book called “The Realm of Numbers” by Isaac Asimov out of your library (ask them to order it if they don’t have it.) and READ IT! It is old fashioned, but don’t mind that, the information is great.

Then start finding out things about math that your teachers don’t understand. That shouldn’t be too hard. Find them out from at library. Ask a kid who is into math to help you.

Prove all the doomsayers wrong, and start kicking some major butt with math.

Good luck,
Professor Homunculus

Continued at “What if I Fail Ninth Grade Math (Part II)”

JasonMR

December 26, 2007 at 2:04 am

Einstein actually didn’t suck at math, please stop spreading that myth.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E....._schooling
http://www.jimloy.com/physics/einstein.htm

You wont find many high school graduates nor college graduates (excepting most math, physics, and engineering graduates), that are able to read Euclid’s Elements, which Einstein mastered well before reaching that kind of age. It is true that he needed help from people such as Grossman, while working on his General Theory of Relativity, but that’s a whole different ball park.

Brian

December 31, 2007 at 8:08 pm

Jason,

Thanks for the heads-up. My bad. Of course Einstein didn’t suck at math. He didn’t love school math, though, which is evidenced by the Wickipedia article you cite, where it can be found that:

“In his early teens, Albert attended the new and progressive Luitpold Gymnasium. His father intended for him to pursue electrical engineering, but Albert clashed with authorities and resented the school regimen. He later wrote that the spirit of learning and creative thought were lost in strict rote learning.”

That pretty well sums up my point, which is that school math and math usually have nothing of relevance to do with each other.

I could not find the documentation for the following quote, but it is often attributed to Einstein:

“The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education.”

Here’s another thing that may bug you about what people sort of say about Einstein) I know it bugs me):
Any product, consumer item, “philosophy”, etc. that uses Einstein to sell itself, without Einstein specific endorsement should be viewed with extreme suspicion. That goes for DaVinci, Mozart, Jesus et.al. (Think of that despicable ad for “Scientology” that features a big picture of Einstein.)

Mea culpa, though, that I inadvertently may have spread the false rumor that Einstein sucked at math at any age.

KristinMarie

December 14, 2009 at 1:14 am

i hate math. im only trying to do my work cause my boyfriend wants me to. my mom doesnt punish me for my grades, so i stopped caring. till i met him. i got out my home work. im in 9th grade btw. i got out my homework and i didnt have the book to do the work i went all across google trying to find that stupid website for the book and nothing. i even looked on the schools page, nothing. so im thinking im gonna fail 9th grade and thats my worst fear. i failed 4th and lost alot of friends. i made alot more and im nbot gonna lose them too. what the hell should i do?!?! advise me??