# Were you good at high school mathematics? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 21, 2011, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298 "2011-06-21T16:02:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Junkman209](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/junkman209/32/5522_2.png) [@Junkman209](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Junkman209)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2011, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298/81 "2011-06-24T20:26:41Z")
My experience was that how well I got along with the teacher determined how much I learned in the class. I did not get along very well with my geometry teacher and did poorly in the class. I got along with my algebra teacher, but found him boring, and I did ok in the class. I listened to every word of my calculus teacher and aced the class. I ended up getting a B.S. in math, and my career was in computer programming. ---
**Author:** ![Tracyfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f14d63/32.png) [@Tracyfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tracyfish)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2011, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298/82 "2011-06-25T04:10:39Z")
I voted that I didn’t fit into the categories given. I took algebra and geometry in middle school, and then algrebra II, some other math class, calculus, and discrete math in high school. Algebra was a struggle at first, but I eventually got the hang of it. Geometry was a lot easier. By high school, it was back to being fun again. My favorite class in high school was AP calculus my junior year. Everything just seemed to click. Discrete math senior year was all right but just not as interesting. I was going to major in math in college, but after taking honors calc 3 and abstract algebra my first semester, I changed to accounting. Honors calc 3 would’ve been a lot better if I’d switched into the class taught by my honors calc 4 professor. The honors calc 4 professor was pretty much like my high school calc teacher. Abstract algebra just taught me that I don’t like proofs. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2011, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298/83 "2011-06-25T05:29:37Z")
Up till and including studying quadratic equations, I was steadily getting lower marks in algebra and finally into failing grades. never had a problem with geometry. My parents sent me away for two weeks in the summer to live with my high school math teacher grandfather who made me solve tons of math problems grueling day after grueling day. At some point a light clicked on in my head and I found math easy and delightful from then on, but then I was willing to do the homework day after day. ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2011, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298/84 "2011-06-25T11:38:52Z")
I picked, “I was good at algebra and I was good at geometry.” But I was technically kind of middling-good at both. I’d do well at most maths for the first semester or so, but I found second-year algebra a bit much. ---
**Author:** ![Sleel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Sleel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleel)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298/85 "2011-06-27T02:27:49Z")
I made careless mistakes in algebra sometimes because I skipped steps in my head, but geometry was relatively easy to double-check. It wasn’t just memorization of the order and steps, but reasoning. Everything “clicked” in calculus, which my high school didn’t even offer. I got to finally take it in college, and wondered why in the FUCK they didn’t teach that stuff sooner. Finally, all of the algebra made sense, and it was tied together with geometry. Practical problems (word problems) actually made use of the math and applied it to real-world situations that you couldn’t solve just as simply through measuring directly or doing simple arithmetic instead of the more complicated variable manipulation. ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298/86 "2011-06-27T02:49:35Z")
I was good at algebra (both years of it) and geometry (I took all a year earlier than the norm for my school district). Trigonometry, however, I hated with the fire of a thousand suns. I never took calculus, mostly because math bored me to tears by that point, and partly because by then I knew my interests lay more on the liberal arts side of things and decided to take another French elective instead (which has come in surprisingly handy on a number of occasions, much more so than a year of calculus probably would have). ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2011, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298/87 "2011-06-27T03:09:18Z")
I was good at both algebra and geometry. I then went on to get a BA in Mathematics, and currently work as a SysAdmin. ---
**Author:** ![GoodOmens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@GoodOmens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GoodOmens)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 10:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298/88 "2011-06-28T10:55:48Z")
I got a 5 on the AP Caculus BC exam, and got straight A’s in every math class before that. I’m a math teacher now. Not trying to brag, that’s just what happened. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2011, 11:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298/89 "2011-06-28T11:33:06Z")
I checked good at both, but in college I had a tough time with linear algebra. I use math extensively at my job, mainly co-ordinate system transformations (polar to geodetic, geodetic to ECEF, etc.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/were-you-good-at-high-school-mathematics/586298.md?page=4)