Failed Algebra final - now what

[Blossom'sGirl]

My 2nd ds is in 9th grade this year and has been working through the Foerster Algebra since the summer before his 8th grade year.  I bought the publisher's tests and have been giving him tests and quizzes since the beginning.  For the most part he has scored in the 80's and 90's with a few 70's.  Well,  I decided to give him the final to make it more like high school and he got a 50%.  Some of the mistakes were carelessness and simple mistakes, like sign errors.  He did put a question mark for some problems like graphing a quadratic equation which it hasn't been that long since we covered it.  In part, it hasn't been easy because we have been trying to wrap up Algebra this summer and his grandpa died in early August which really got us off track.  On the hand, he knew a final was coming and really didn't take much initiative to study for it.  (I am still waiting for maturity to kick in)

 

I don't know how to proceed from here.  My oldest didn't take the final so I am wondering if it is fair to kill younger ds's grade with it.  Also, do I continue with Algebra or move forward to geometry with Algebra review.

 

Suggestions anyone?

 

 

[MomatHWTK]

I would probably repeat Algebra using a different program in order to provide for a solid foundation going into 10th grade.  It's not as if the math gets easier as the grades advance, KWIM?   

[bobbeym]

I would go back through and heavily review the problem areas until he fully understands those concepts, then let him retake the final.

 

Algebra was a sore spot for us.  We changed curriculum way to much and after 2 years of battling over it I said enough was enough and assigned a final grade based on the cumulative of the exams he'd done to that point.  I'm almost positive he's going to have to take a remedial level math course next year at the CC but we both decided we're okay with that.  He needs much more thorough math tutoring than DH or I can provide.

[Cosmos]

I would consider it a pretest and have him study the topics he missed and then take a new test. I would not let a student finish algebra who only got 50% on the final. Neither would I make him redo an entire course unless it became apparent it was necessary. The point is to learn algebra, and until you are convinced that he has learned it, he isn't done.

[maize]

I would consider it a pretest and have him study the topics he missed and then take a new test. I would not let a student finish algebra who only got 50% on the final. Neither would I make him redo an entire course unless it became apparent it was necessary. The point is to learn algebra, and until you are convinced that he has learned it, he isn't done.

I am inclined to agree with this. Did you walk him through how to study for a final? If he has never done cumulative review for a final exam that is a skill that needs to be taught--teach him to take out his old tests, rework the problems, review the material for anything he is struggling with. This is a skill that will serve him well in the future.

 

With the exam he just took, I would start by having him go through and rework all the problems he got wrong, with explanations of the mistakes he made. Then have him come up with a study schedule to go over the areas he struggled with. Maybe re-take exams from those areas before moving on to taking another final exam.

 

As the teacher, you can determine how you want to handle the score. Classroom teachers do not always stick to straight percentage scoring. They may apply a curve, for example, or allow students to recoup partial points by completing corrections, or give bonus points for extra credit. Your primary concern at the moment is making sure your student understands the material before moving on to a higher math class.

[maize]

One more thought on scoring: at the secondary level, my teachers always gave partial credit for partially correct work. If, for example, I generally worked the problem correctly but made a sign error somewhere along the way, I might get half points or more for that problem. If the 50% score was based only on correct/incorrect answers, that is a harsher grading scheme than most math teachers in my experience use (conversely, a correct answer with no work shown would also have earned only partial credit from my teachers).

[MarkT]

Did he do spiral problems along the way?  (This is one big plus of the Saxon program.) My son's current Holt text has spiral problems.  I would count it as a practice test and create a new test after he did some more review problems.   For your next course make sure you do some spiral problems.

[Michelle_NC]

My dd did pretty well in Algebra 1 in 8th grade and chose to take it again in 9th - she was at a traditional school for both grades. So glad she did because she *really* knew it forwards and backwards by the end of 9th and is confident in math now.  For those who are not as math inclined, it really might take 2 years to learn and master the concepts.

 

The other option might be to use Saxon Algebra 1 and Algebra 2 over the next two years.  I've heard that the 3rd edition includes Geometry throughout, so at the end of  the 2 books the student gets credit for Algebra 1, Geometry and Algebra 2.

[Jann in TX]

Maturity...

I would not expect an 8th or 9th grade student to have the maturity to study for a final on their own.  VERY few students can do this well at this age.

 

Back in the dark ages when I was a PS teacher and the school required semester exams I ALWAYS gave my students a study guide to work through-- kind of like an open book test of sorts.  They could access their notes, previous homework and tests for problems they did not immediately remember.  The semester exam was not a total surprise.   I would do the same procedure for a final.

 

--

Being homeschoolers we also have additional flexibility... if your student makes a grade lower than 80% they need to go back through the material BEFORE moving on... if they keep on progressing through the text the deficiency can (and probably will) snowball...

 

Also for those 'careless' errors (90% of Algebra  errors are this type) make sure any problem missed in the homework is reworked until correct.  Students need to be able to find their errors and self-correct (re-work).  Often they will see the most common error types they make and will learn to avoid the extra work by being more careful while working the problems....

 

Most of the time careless errors are due to students 'speed reading' the problem, their brain skips the operation sign completely ( so 2 - 5 = 7) this is NOT an arithmetic issue-- their brain only noticed the 2 and the 5... most of the time when there is a 2 followed by a 5 the process has been addition... kind of like when a 5yr old reads the work cat.  They "see" the c and the t and GUESS the middle sound... even though they know the sound an a makes...

 

 

 

 

 

[Blossom'sGirl]

Thank you all for the excellent advice.  I have decided to treat it as a practice test.  We went over most of it today (he has a horrible headache).  After we go over all of it, I will walk him through the studying process.  Then I will give him a new final which, unfortunately, I get to put together.

 

I do grade using partial credit.  This is my smart but lazy, with writing,  boy.  He did AOPS pre-algebra before this.  With Algebra, I wanted a strong focus on setting up his work properly and labeling variables.  It has been an uphill battle.

 

I already own the new Math Without Borders Geometry and plan to do that next. Fortunately the book does have built in Algebra reviews.

[kiana]

Sounds good.

 

Teaching a student how to study for a final exam is very, very important. It is one of the largest gaps I see in my students at the university -- they do ok on doing the homework for TODAY, but not well on "ok, that was difficult, so I need to review it again tomorrow and put it on my daily review schedule until I really get it" or "ok, that was easy, I'll check back in a week to make sure I still understand it" 

[Lanny]

Sounds good.

 

Teaching a student how to study for a final exam is very, very important. It is one of the largest gaps I see in my students at the university -- they do ok on doing the homework for TODAY, but not well on "ok, that was difficult, so I need to review it again tomorrow and put it on my daily review schedule until I really get it" or "ok, that was easy, I'll check back in a week to make sure I still understand it" 

 

+1

 

IMHO, the student needs to stay with this material until he is rock solid with the subject matter. Then, he can move on to the next Math course. The Final examinations DD takes at the end of each semester count for 25% of the semester grade and if a student does not pass the Final exam., they do not pass the course. DD studies diligently before she takes a Final exam. He will need to learn how to take Final examinations at the end of each semester and do well on them and also how to prepare for the PSAT, SAT, ACT, etc.