MGTutoring.com. A Rational Perspective on Education.

March 16, 2012

Homeschool Classes, 2012-2013

Filed under: Announcements,MGTutoring — Administrator @ 1:29 pm

True Excellence in Education

Using WebEx, we can enjoy live, online classes, but there is the option of taking the classes by watching the videos, if you so desire or if your schedule demands. Those who take the class live will also be able to watch the videos to review class material after class or at a later date. Classes start in mid-September 2012, but you are welcome to drop in for the second semester, starting in January 2013.

Classes will be on Tuesday and Thursdays, for an hour and a half, more or less, each session, totaling more than 80 hours of instruction for the school year. Algebra, Algebra 2, and Geometry will be offered. With interest, we will also hold classes in Arithmetic, Precalculus, Calculus, Probability and Statistics, Physics, Chemistry, or SAT/ACT Prep.

Geometry will be offered TuTh from 9:00 AM till 10:30 AM, CST; Algebra 1 will be TuTh from 11:00 AM till 12:30 PM, CST; Algebra 2 will be TuTh from 1:00 till 2:30 PM, CST.  Other classes will be later in the day on TuTh, or be on MW. Note that times given are CST; make adjustments for your time zone as necessary.

Buy now.

What you get: personalized attention and small classes; step-by-step, logical methods; focus on how and why, not just the what (not just content); confidence and subject mastery; a solid education in reasoning and thinking skills; an expert instructor who knows more than just the math, who brings in science, history, law, literature, and logic.

 

Arithmetic

Course description: we will cover the concepts of arithmetic in each sequence with stress on practical application, deriving concepts, as much as possible, from real-life examples, and reasoning things out. We will make sure students know how and why something is true. This is critical for higher mathematics, science, finance, accounting, household calculations, and more. We will cover addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and more, as appropriate for the age group.

Possible texts:

1.  Ray’s Arithmetic by Joseph Ray, available online through various sources such as Mott Media, or free on sites such as Google Books

2.  Singapore Math

 

Algebra 1   Buy now.

Course description: we will cover the concepts of algebra with stress on how we know things and on practical application, which are the more important things to get out of algebra. Learning derivations and explanations of algebraic concepts teaches us how to reason and gives us confidence in our ability to understand; not learning the derivations and explanations short-circuits the mind, keeps students from developing the ability to think critically, intelligently, and imaginatively, and stifles their self-confidence. We will cover the real numbers, algebraic expressions, linear equations in one and two variables, systems of equations, inequalities, polynomials, functions, exponents, powers, roots, quadratic equations, rational expressions/equations, radical expressions/equations, and graphing. Time permitting, maybe also other topics like the conic sections, exponential functions, logarithmic functions, probability and statistics.

Possible texts:

1.  Introductory Algebra By Keedy & Bittinger, Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, (c) Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc.

2.  Elementary Algebra by Larson & Hostetler, Houghton Mifflin Company, (c) Houghton Mifflin Company

3.  Algebra: Structure and Method by Dolciani, Brown, Ebos & Cole, Houghton Mifflin Company, (c) Houghton Mifflin Company

 

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“Hard Work ” by Edgar Guest

Filed under: Art — Administrator @ 11:27 am

One day, in ages dark and dim,
A toiler, weary, worn and faint,
Who found his task too much for him,
Gave voice unto a sad complaint.
And seeking emphasis to give
Unto his trials (day-starred!)
Coupled to “work” this adjective,
This little word of terror: Hard.

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March 15, 2012

Aristotle: A Quote

Filed under: Education,Philosophy,Quotes,Science — Administrator @ 10:33 am

“Theories must be abandoned, unless their teachings tally with the undisputable results of observation.”

–attributed to Aristotle in Fathers of Biology by Charles McCrae, within the last 30 seconds of Chapter 2

March 14, 2012

Fathers of Biology by Charles McCrae

Filed under: Biology,Education,Exercise, Health & Nutrition,Science — Administrator @ 11:06 pm

If you are interested in the history of science and how biology developed, you might like Fathers of Biology by Charles McCrae. Available on LibriVox for free, it covers some big names in the Western tradition: Hippocrates, Aristotle, Galen, Vesalius, and Harvey . The book is a historical overview, so McCrae does not go into depth and spend much time on any one person. I’ve listened to only two chapters so far, and, on that basis, it’s good. McCrae seems objective so far.

For example, McCrae does not attack Aristotle, as some small minds do. He praises Aristotle where he deserves it, and criticizes him where he deserves it. He criticizes those who attack Aristotle by pointing out that some of what some people say of Aristotle is outright lies (and he gives examples; they might be generic, as McRae does not mention names, just assertions) and by pointing out that some errors in the writings are more reasonably attributed to later copyists and translators than to Aristotle (e.g., saying that the mouth of a dolphin is on its underside is unlikely for one, Aristotle, who realized that the dolphin was not a fish, who identified its mammary glands, etc.). But he also criticizes those who treat Aristotle as a god by pointing out that Aristotle learned from the Hippocratics, he made plenty of mistakes — while getting a great deal right — etc.

The book in visual format is available on the Internet Archive and Project Gutenberg.

March 8, 2012

“The Dull Road” by Edgar Guest

Filed under: Art — Administrator @ 10:10 am

It’s the dull road that leads to the gay road;
The practice that leads to success;
The work road that leads to the play road;
It is trouble that breeds happiness.

It’s the hard work and merciless grinding
That purchases glory and fame;
It’s repeatedly doing, nor minding
The drudgery drear of the game.

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