Customer Reviews

College Algebra

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The marketing machine for Stewart's books is working wonders, but the books aren't. Too many colleges and universities are duped into adopting these books while students and conscious instructors exploit minimal benefit from them, specially in the problem sets, which are quite poor.

This book is the worst math book I ever had. I had to buy this for my class, but I barely take a look at it because the explanations are so messed up. They do things the long way and do thing more complicated, but the thing that bothers me the most is that their explanations can confuse you more than clarify things. This book has some bad editing because some of the answers in the back are wrong and they don't show the process of the problems. I only use this book for the homework assignments. I usually just jog down what the teachers says, which gives out better explanations which are shorter and clearer ways to do things.

I had this book in my college algebra class, and non of the students liked it. It didn't explain things well enough to enable you to do the chapter problems. The teacher explain everything in class using her own notes and only used the book for us to practice the math problems. If anyone missed a day of class, they were in trouble because they missed the teachers notes, which was the only way to understand the problems in the book. I hope the school stops using this book. I'm sure there are other better college algebra books out there.

We use this book by Stewart, Redlin and Watson for our College Algebra class, one of the two bridge classes between intermediate algebra and the college-level calculus course (the other bridge course is trigonometry). The first chapter is a review of key concepts (one that I've found almost every algebra book tends to cover, regardless of level). Real numbers, algebraic expressions, exponents, radicals, and factoring are reintroduced to students in ways that will carry through the rest of the text. Depending upon the sequencing of study, this section can be glossed over fairly quickly. However, the student would be well served to see the Discovery Project in this section, which shows an interesting graphic/visual way of seeing how equations operate.

The Discover Project is one of the unique features of this text overall. Each chapter contains a Discovery Project designed to bring 'life' to the numbers and concepts with which the student is working in the rest of the chapter. Discovery Projects include looking at equations through the ages (how did people do math in the past?), just what is zero anyway, how do exponents work exponentially, and how does the increasingly popular concept of chaos fit into math at this level?

These are part of the 'rule of four' the authors employ - 'topics should be presented geometrically, numerically, algebraically, and verbally.' Another part of this is the Focus on Modeling sections found at the end of each chapter, which encourage students to apply the concepts to real-world applications and situations - just what do these lines and graphs mean? How do these numbers and the way they are played out correspond to anything that means anything? These exercises will help.

The pages are visually interesting, with side-bar information laid out separated from the main strand of text. Sometimes these will include brief biographies of mathematicians and scientists, and sometimes illumination of key and interesting concepts related to the main text topic. These also serve to connect mathematics back to practical, real-world situations.

The text also takes advantage of the ready availability of graphing calculators and graphing aids on the computer/internet. There is also a skill-building CD-ROM included with the text, that includes Spanish subtitles and graphic calculator tutorials. Students also might be interested in purchasing the Student Solutions Manual (ISBN 0534-40601-7) by John Banks, in which the solutions to all the odd-numbered problems are fully worked out with all work shown (the final answers to these problems are included in the back of the regular text).

The chapters cover functions, graphing and coordinates, systems of equations, exponential and logarithmic functions, matrices and determinants, conic sections, sequences and series, and probability theories.

I have few criticisms of this book. I wish it had been around when I was doing this subject for the first time 25 years ago (of course, back then I was privileged to have a simple calculator that had the four arithmetical functions, and nothing else). One thing I might have wished for was a Mathematical Vignette on Hypatia, the mathematician from Alexandria from the fourth and fifth centuries (women are represented in the Vignettes, but certainly Hypatia deserves a place among the list in this text). However, this is a very minor flaw in an otherwise great text. The text is almost worth buying just for the picture of Ronald Graham juggling Rubik's Cubes.

I am a math major trying to find this book because I wasn't able to keep it after I took College Algebra. Yay! I've found it! This has to be the best-written text I've ever used ... over Trigonometry, Calculus 1,2,& 3 (using two different college's different texts), Discrete Mathematics, Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Abstract Algebra, Real Analysis, Probability and Statistics, and college Geometry. The writing is interesting, explanations are very clear, and practice exercises representative of what was taught. This is one of the few texts I could read before class and get a good idea of what was going on! Highly highly recommended, even if you just need a good reference book!

This textbook is used for an Algebra III course, at community college. Three weeks into the course: the material challenges the students while expanding knowledge in the field. Think about it. Using the Trapezoidal Formula is nothing more than using addition/subtraction, multiplication/division. Once those basics have been mastered, there should be no problem solving any math problem. Algebra, no matter at what level, is more of the same, same. The problems are well illustrated taken from real life, real problems found in physics, chemistry, astronomy, health, biology and so on. The student at level III is expected to apply automatically basic rules and procedures.

New: the book costs $200. Say what? As always, I have questions about the price of these books. What is the book teaching that is so important that it should cost $200. A price range beyond many people.

Is the book well organized? And here, as a model, I have Blitzer's Algebra 5th ed which presents summaries at the end of the chapter for review, with step by step procedures for solving problems, . By comparison, Stewart lacks the extensive summary that Blitzer offers. Are explanations clear and sufficiently detailed? You have to wonder about people who can read an algebra paragraph and get it. Hat's off to them. I read it but I didn't get it. I read it again, and I still didn't get it. So in some sense, the question of whether explanations are sufficient relies on the reader able to decipher instructions on mathematics with pen and paper. The explanations seem adequate, but my brain doesn't work that way. Fortunately YouTube will offer somewhere a video of someone explaining in less than 10 minutes the problem; for example 'finding symmetry of a circle.' And if one presenter doesn't reach the viewer, another will. And once the explanation has been made visually, the reader/viewer says: "Oh, now I get it." And the internet presents a cornucopia of explanation for various procedures. Through search and more search, the right someone will offer an explanation that will make sense to the student.

Education should be a democratic affair; at the price of $200, education becomes an experience for an elite. And I just don't think the information found in the book is worth that price. Thanks to Amazon, the book became affordable.

I was very pleased to get this item before school started. So far the book is pretty good taking you step by step on how to do the problems.

This college algebra textbook is the best one on the market. James Stewart is the leader seller in Calculus textbooks. I love James Stewarts textbooks. The explanations in this textbook are clear and easy to understand. It covers all the material needed college algebra especially for pre calculus. James Stewart also has "algebra and trigonometry" textbook which I use as well he also has "Trigonometry" but I havent got that one. This is textbook is the best one out there!!!!

I don't really feel like doing a detailed criticism, but I'm typically real good at math and I'm used to learning out of the book. This has to be the absolute worst I've ever encountered.

Very deceiving, the book looked as if it was beaten with a bat. 15 percent return fee is something I feel the seller actually would rather have in hopes of duping another customer with this crummy textbook.