You can find instructional videos by clicking on: topics in the table of contents below, the categories to the right, the tags to the right and down, or by searching in the search bar to the right and up.
- Essential Algebra
- 1 – Substitution, like terms, expanding, binomials, fractions, absolute values
- 2 – Index laws, factorising, substitution
- 3 – Changing the subject of formulas, solving linear equations, solving quadratic equations
- 4 – Linear equations and straight lines, gradient/slope, intercepts, gradient intercept form of a line, one point gradient formula
- 5 – Two point equation of a line, general form of a line, distance, parallel and perpendicular lines
- Functions
- 6 – Relations and functions, domain, range, independent/dependent variables, vertical line test
- 7 – Examples of functions, piecewise, absolute values, polynomials, exponentials
- 8 – Logarithmic functions, log laws, solving exponentials, inverse functions
- 9 – Trigonometric ratios, sin, cos, tan, identities, cosine and sine rules
- 10 – Unit circle for trig ratios, reference/special triangles, radians, arc length, area of a sector
- 11 – Graphs of trig functions, shifts, modelling, equations
- Differentiation
- 12 – Average/instantaneous rate of change, limits, first principles
- 13 – Differentiating polynomials, derivatives as functions
- 14 – Fractions, negative indices, chain, product and quotient rules
- 15 – Critical points, turning points, first and second derivative test
- 16 – Infection points, optimisation problems
- 17 – Anti-differentiation, position, speed, acceleration
- Integration
Diagnosing Your Mathematical Knowledge via Think Literacy
Think Literacy, available at http://thinkliteracy.com/, is a great place to see what your weaknesses are in mathematics. Go to the website, click ‘sign in’, then click on ‘Register a new user’, from here you can fill in your information (I would suggest simply using your student number as the username). Once you are registered you need to join a class, you should join the program you are enrolled in (or want to be enrolled in), the password is probably the least secure one you could imagine (it isn’t qwerty though), so see if you can get in. You are now ready to do the maths diagnostic quiz and ascertain your areas of weaknesses, which in turn tells you what to focus on. Once you have done the test, it give you exercises to work on.
Learning and Practicing Mathematics via the Internet
The Khan Academy, available at http://www.khanacademy.org/, has over 2600 videos, many of which are mathematics. You can watch videos without logging in, but signing up only requires a Google account or a Facebook account and means your activity is recorded so that points and badges are earned by watching videos.
When each problem in the video is presented you should pause the video and attempt to solve the problem yourself. Once you have had an attempt or two, continue watching the video to see the approach taken by the presenter. At the end of the video you can often click the green ‘Practice this concept’ button above and to the right of the video.
Some of the videos start very basic and progress, some are just basic as an introduction for the next video, but if you can’t understand something in the video, there is help available. You could leave a comment on the post that sent you to the video, leave a comment on the video in the Khan Academy, search YouTube (Bullcleo1, AlRichards314 and PatrickJMT are some recommended channels) or other sites for another explanation.
GAIM Foundational – Getting Ahead in Mathematics Foundational – MATH1002 University of Newcastle, Australia
