Practical Advice for Those Taking College Calculus

Ok, just a few pointers and observations for those who are unsure what to expect when taking their first college calculus class!
Long and boring without any pretty visuals! SORRY! : )

[anddrestorres]

i graduated high school with a 2.1 gpa, in college i failed pre algebra twice then passed it, failed algebra twice then passed it, failed calculus twice then passed it, passed calculus 2 in my first try thank god lol.

[oldestgamer]

my experience is that the teacher makes a HUGE difference.  And no, I am not talking about an "easy" teacher/grader, but one who understands how to teach.  For myself, and 80% of my classmates, those teachers that had you do problems in class had huge success rates, they would ask for the answers and those students who got it wrong felt NO shame about asking what they had did wrong, the upside being total class participation and genuine excitement in class.  Also, the teacher said it helped him to see where the students were going wrong and position his teaching in that direction.  Compare this to teachers that sit there and drone on about theories and do a handful of problems on the board, with the students eyes glazing over.  I think too many teachers think that their "words" are magic and when they speak, all students will immediately be infused with the knowledge of calculus...

[patrickjmt]

paying my tuition was my commitment to me.
pay for it yourself, and you will go to class i bet

[francispiche]

Watching this 11 hours until my calc 3 final... might be too late for me

[albertpienaar]

Tips for College students taking Calculus :
Watch Patrick's videos regularly.

[Convexhull]

Having a good professor and good communication with that professor can really help you as well. You can’t always avoid professors who are bad at teaching, but thanks to websites like ratemyprofessor, you can. Having a study strategy can make or break your grade as well

[MaicoMoon]

Go to RateMyProfessors website and check out the professors in your school offering this class. I picked one with good ratings and comments, and I wasn't disappointed. The class was still hard as fuck, but my teacher was very pleasant, eccentric, and extremely helpful which made it all worth it. Passed with an A+

[bepotts]

" If somebody is telling you they aren't doing any problems at all they're just, you know, trying to impress you with their immense intellect, but they're, you know, clearly bullshitting you "

LMAO, I about died laughing

[patrickjmt]

yes, i figured some people start classes on monday : ) that is what had me thinking about this in the first place : )

good luck with it all! very exciting time!

[weimontage]

Thank you for your advice!!! I will be taking calculus I in 30 days. I'm pretty scared of taking calculus, but your video has helped me regain my confidence.

[traciessister]

Here! Here! This is true of most college classes - math or other.

[mathteacher]

Very sound advice, Patrick.

I would humbly suggest the following:

1) Form a study group dedicated to studying and reviewing for the class. Different people bring different perspectives on problems to the table, and this is a great way to get your mind wrapped around a difficult idea.

2) Use the library to find other texts on calculus. Some texts have better examples or exposition than others. Sometimes one text will 'speak' to a student more than another.

[daviddanielgraham]

Thanks Patrick JMT! You have helped a lot of students breath easy.

[michele]

Thank you so much for posting this video! I am about to take Calculus for Social Life and Sciences in the Fall...aka the easy version of calculus, as my math friends like to say. :)

[patrickjmt]

yep - i have also seen the same thing many times!

[patrickjmt]

get ready to do proofs!!

this is usually the first class where one encounters proof writing techniques!

[lightbulb]

I'm taking CALC II right now in the summer. We are moving fast and my professor has a deep Asian accent. I don't recommend taking this because we are fitting CALC II in 5 weeks. My advice if you have an teacher with a accent is to check what subject you'll be learning the next day on youtube and just watch the video. After the lecture watch some more video on the subject. That's what im doing and I'm pulling a B and I hardly do hw.

[fast_gtr]

I found college level calculus easier than high school AP Calculus. It was way more in depth, and they actually explained everything.

[MaicoMoon]

Oh, and watching Patrick's videos on YouTube helped out a lot sometimes too. So watch them, noobs! As well as reading the book.

[sabah]

Excellent advice! These rules apply to pretty much any subject at any university...these are the things I learned quickly when I started college. The biggest shock for me was rule # 2 haha.