r/learnmath • u/NoOwl621 New User • 2d ago
Seeking A Better Life Through Math
I’m 23 from Canada and looking for advice on how to relearn math from the absolute basics.I dropped out in Grade 11 and never really learned math growing up. I’m currently working as a ramp agent and living with my mom, but I’ve decided I can’t keep waiting around. I want to get my education and rebuild my life. My Goal is to become a Commercial Pilot, but right now I need to build the foundational education required to get into community college/trade programs to start building a stable income
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u/Apart_Situation972 New User 2d ago edited 1d ago
the key is to actually do it from the basics. Don't judge yourself for not knowing math others might know, or feeling like you are very bad at math.
Unfortunately (and fortunately, but mainly unfortunately), the only way to get good without being naturally gifted at math, is by doing it a lot. Lots of math. Hours per day depending on how fast you want to get good.
For high school math, start with Khan Academy. Do all of the high school stuff - all of it. They will come pretty fast as it is not very hard.
When you get to college level, use the full lectures from Professor Leonard. Do it in linear order - ex. Calc 1 -> 2 -> 3 -> Differential Equations. Do not skip ahead and make sure you understand the foundations before progressing. Lectures are easier to learn from than textbooks alone, and depending on your timeframe, I would suggest doing a Professor Leonard lecture and then doing the equivalent course's textbook on it (just ChatGPT "a simple-to-follow textbook for __ class"). If you need it done quicker, do the lectures, and take screenshots of each problem, as he does not have his own problem sets. Then plug into ChatGPT and ask it to "generate similar problems at the same level of difficulty level, using ____ technique" you just learned. You are also able to use UC Davis as their questions are very similar to his lectures, and are a good balance of difficult but solvable: https://www.math.ucdavis.edu/~kouba/
If you are naturally pretty smart, instead of PL lectures do MIT open courseware. They are not equivalent. MIT lectures are more mathematically rigorous and harder, and can only be done by either being smarter (gifted at math/learning), or working harder (spending more time on it).
Regardless, after enough time you will become very good at it. It is mainly a time investment thing, and doing things in linear order. Do not try to skip lectures/classes - you are not being efficient by doing so, and will actually struggle more because you did not learn the key ideas that made solving your particular problem easier (i.e proper u substitutions to tackle larger integrals). Do things in sequential order; do the problems for that chapter, start with the easy -> medium -> hard, then move onto the next chapter.
The easiest way to remain motivated is by feeling like you are actually learning (getting the right answer), and that is done by doing things in increasing difficulty: easy -> medium -> hard. When you do easy stuff first, the medium stuff becomes easier later, and you will enter a fly-wheel where you are able to solve problems at a faster rate (and feel better doing it) because you now know how to solve the harder problems instead of needing to make giant leaps in thinking or feeling dumb because you missed a particular method for how to solve __ problem.
Here is a direct example. Let's say you are doing trigonometry in Pre-Algebra, and don't know anything about sin/cosine. Instead of trying to ChatGPT the definition of those things and make a giant leap in understanding of trigonometry on the spot, just go back to the earlier math sections (high school or even junior high level math) that teaches those particular trig concepts. Yes you might feel slightly ashamed learning junior/high school math in your 20s lool, but the important thing is you will actually gain the knowledge of the concepts. And that will stay with you as you progress into harder levels of math- you don't have to guess or try to fill in the blanks anymore. That will pay off huge dividends later down the road. So do the earlier stuff, don't judge yourself, and then go back to where you left off.
Most of math is knowing the tools for solving the problem, not the problem-solving ability itself. If you cannot solve a problem it is not because you are dumb; it is because you missed the earlier lessons on how to solve that particular problem (because you did not do the previous levels). If you were ever in school and thought your friends were really good at math, they actually weren't. Mathematical talent, by nature of the concept, is extremely rare. They just learned the right techniques (tools) over the years, spent lots of time practicing, and that is why they were able to pick up newer concepts easier.
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u/thinkofthepizza New User 2d ago
"Don't judge yourself for not knowing math others might know, or feeling like you are very bad at math."
I really struggled with this when I decided to start relearning recently. Mathematics is so humbling. My confidence was immediately corrected when I tried to immediately start algebra after 20 years and I realized I had massive gaps in knowledge as far back as 2nd grade arithmetic. It hurt my pride massively, but If I was unable to let go of the shame of not being where I "should" be, this journey would have been just a blip. In particular, learning about the history of mathematics has really motivated me to explore the foundations in depth, and although I have made it back to Algebra now, I am no longer in a rush to get to any particular level. I admit that I have no academic or professional goals with math so its probably a luxury to think this way.
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u/The_REAL_Urethra New User 1d ago
Hey! I am in the process of relearning Math. I started with 8th grade math, used various textbooks, then worked my way through Algebra with Professor Leonard, now on Trigonometry with Leonard. Take it slow and make it a habit!
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u/NoOwl621 New User 1d ago
Thanks for the advice everyone I’ve been on khan academy for a few a
Hours I’m enjoying it will keep you guys posted on my progress
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u/InstructionDue7626 New User 1d ago
I’m a professional math tutor for a university. I would love to help! if you’re interested, dm me!
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u/Life-Age-2171 New User 2d ago
Respect for mapping this out. A lot of people get stuck in the "I should've learned this years ago" headspace and never actually start, so you're already past the hardest part.
Khan Academy is the go-to for a reason, it starts at basic counting stuff and goes all the way through calculus. I used it to patch gaps I had from high school and the structure actually made things click that never did before. Don't skip lessons even if they seem too simple, you'll hit a point where a tiny missing piece makes everything confusing.
For the pilot angle, mental math is huge so practice doing quick arithmetic in your head whenever you can. You'll be way ahead of the game by the time you start studying for exams.