Elementary Algebra" by Hall & Knight: A Beginner's Guide

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    Algebra Elementary
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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the book "Elementary Algebra" by Hall and Knight, focusing on its suitability for beginners in algebra. Participants share their experiences and opinions on the book's content, teaching style, and historical context.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants find the book good for beginners, emphasizing its strong fundamentals.
  • One participant notes that the book was historically used as a standard textbook in high schools, suggesting its reliability.
  • Another participant mentions the book's age, written in the 1800s, and suggests that its approach may differ from modern textbooks.
  • A participant points out that while the book is a reasonable start, its language may feel old-fashioned and it has some overlap with modern pre-calculus topics.
  • Advice is given on the importance of thoroughly engaging with the material, including re-reading and working through problems.
  • One participant recommends an alternative book, "Algebra" by Gelfand and Shen, describing it as modern and rich in content.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a mix of positive views about the book's fundamentals and concerns regarding its age and teaching style. There is no consensus on its overall effectiveness for beginners, as opinions vary on its relevance compared to modern texts.

Contextual Notes

Some participants highlight the book's historical context and potential differences in pedagogical approach compared to contemporary materials, which may affect its applicability for today's learners.

Drain Brain
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how do you find the book "ELEMENTARY ALGEBRA" by Hall and Knight? Is this a good book for a beginner?
 
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Drain Brain said:
how do you find the book "ELEMENTARY ALGEBRA" by Hall and Knight? Is this a good book for a beginner?

I have read this book. It is good based on fundamentals.
 
Drain Brain said:
how do you find the book "ELEMENTARY ALGEBRA" by Hall and Knight? Is this a good book for a beginner?

Hi Drain Brain, :)

Sometime ago this book was used as a standard textbook to teach mathematics in high schools in my country. I think it's pretty good. It has lots of exercises to get familiar with the concepts of elementary algebra. However you should realize that this book is pretty old (written in the 1800s') and the approach it uses might be a little different from modern textbooks. You can find a legitimate pdf copy of the book in archive.org.

https://archive.org/details/elementaryalgeb00kniggoog
 
It's a "reasonable start", even if the language is a bit old-fashioned. There's a bit of "overlap" with what is commonly called "Pre-Calc" these days, but it's more of a thorough exploration of algebra, then it is of functions that the calculus is typically concerned with. So there's still a bit of a "gap" there, but after reading this book, you should be in good shape to start to cross it.

Some advice, not just targeted at this book: reading math is a bit like drinking wine, gulping it down doesn't do it justice. Read it once, read it again just to be sure, and try to work out every problem you can (you can, if you like, skip the ones you can solve in your head, as long as you feel that you COULD solve them, in front of witnesses on a timer, with your life at stake).

Another book I can heartily recommend is THIS one:

Algebra: Israel M. Gelfand, Alexander Shen: 9780817636777: Amazon.com: Books

which is an elementary algebra textbook written by a first-class mathematican. It's rather small size belies the depth of information it covers (as one reviewer gushed: "it closes with a proof of the Cauchy-Schwartz inequality!"). It is much more "modern" in tone.
 

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