Algebra Foundations for Calculus
What you'll learn
- Solve equations and inequalities involving exponents, logarithms, trigonometric functions
- Graph polynomials and exponential, logarithmic, and trigonometric functions
- Define and use the derivative--the most important concept in Calculus--to better understand how functions behave
- Use limits to graph functions and find the derivative
- Find sums of finite and infinite series
Requirements
- Students should know the order of operations, basic arithmetic, and how to evaluate functions at a particular value
- Students should have paper and pencil handy as they work through the course so that they can attempt the exercises and check their answers
Description
Welcome to Algebra Foundations for Calculus! In this course, you'll learn the foundational Algebra principles needed to be successful in Calculus.
Instructors:
Arun Sharma, PhD, Calculus professor at UC Berkeley
After majoring in math, Arun got his PhD in pure mathematics from UC Berkeley in 2009. Since 2010 he has been teaching introductory math classes at UC Berkeley. Because of this, he intimately understands the areas in which students struggle. He feels many students entering college math classes are not as prepared in Algebra as they should be. Because of this, he is excited to offer this course to help ensure students succeed in Calculus and beyond. A fun fact about Arun is that he is highly ranked in chess and runs the US Chess League.Katie Kormanik, CEO, TURN THE WHEEL
Katie designs the courses, selects the experts and leaders the courses feature, and creates all the engaging content that you’ll see when you sign up. She is passionate about education and particularly excited about the potential of online learning. She has designed courses for Udacity, Stanford Graduate School of Business, and McKinsey Academy. Click here to see samples of her work. She has consulted for a number of education non-profits, start-ups, and for-profit companies on product development, curriculum development, pedagogy, and investments in edtech. And of course, she has been an educator in a number of capacities, from tutoring to teaching supplemental college courses, after-school programs, and summer school programs. Her two greatest passions are learning and making learning fun for others.
In this course, you'll watch videos in which Arun and Katie explain concepts and work through examples. We also provide many practice exercises so you can solidify what you're learning. Remember, learning math is just like learning a language, and the goal of this course is to make you fluent. Or, at least conversational. :)
A few tips as you work through this course:
Re-watch the videos to refresh your memory
Keep a pen and paper with you so you can do the exercises
Pause the videos occasionally to give you time to process the concepts
There's no need for calculators. This course is less about performing basic calculations and more about understanding the principles
Who this course is for:
- This course is meant for anyone preparing to take Calculus, as well as anyone who would like a foundational understanding of pure mathematics
- This course is NOT meant for those who seek to learn applied mathematics (for these students, I recommend our textbook Street-Smart Stats: A Friendly Introduction to Statistical Research Methods)
Instructor
![Katie Kormanik](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 64 64"%3E%3C/svg%3E){kind=avatar}
- 4.7 Instructor Rating
- 349 Reviews
- 7,101 Students
- 4 Courses
Hi! I love creating online courses and instructional materials on topics I love. So far, I've written a statistics textbook (Street-Smart Stats: A Friendly Introduction to Statistical Research Methods) and created an introductory chess course, a penmanship course, and an algebra course that focuses on topics that are essential in understanding calculus.
To actually pay the bills, I run an instructional design consulting firm, TURN THE WHEEL, that helps organizations create digital learning experiences for their clients, customers, and workforce. These courses have much larger budgets than the ones I make by myself. For one thing, we do professional video shoots rather than filming on my iPhone, as I've done for my own personal courses.
I love both creating my own courses--my side hobby--and working with big organizations. I love having the creative control to design curricula on topics I'm passionate about, and I love working with people to design courses that meet their needs (and learning a lot from the subject-matter experts with whom I collaborate).
Another side project is creating a mobile learning platform that anyone can use to both create and take courses directly from their phone. I'm hoping this will empower people all over the world who don't have computers to create learning materials that will benefit their local communities and beyond.
I'm really passionate about online learning, and am especially excited to see how VR and AR revolutionize the way we learn.
Thanks for reading!