Should I Retake Calculus 2 in the Summer?

[Quadruple Bypass]

Well this semester I am taking cal 2 and so far, i feel as though i didnt learn anything...no joke. The teacher i am taking it with this semester is teaching from another book so he skipped ahead about 4-5 chapters. I am a mechanical engineering major and i wanted to go as far as i could in math. I also kind of wanted to get another major in psysics, but after this semester, that dream died because of my cal 2 teacher. AWFUL TEACHER! (and book).

SO my question is, should i take cal 2 in the summer and see if i can continue on to cal 3? The person that is teaching cal 3 is my teacher from cal 1 who is a really good teacher. By the way, i have a B in that cal 2 class, but i don't know how i am passing.

 

[JasonRox]

Honestly, I felt the same way.

The best way to sum up Calculus II for me is...

I did not learn f^(& all in that class. I passed with a 60%.

I went on to Calculus III and passed with an A at 82% even while working full-time while attending school.

You'll be fine.

You may not fully understand Power Series, and Taylor Series and other things, but these things will come together when they are re-introduced in other courses.

Calculus III can be done with no knowledge of Calculus II.

 

[Quadruple Bypass]

well, the part that i didnt understand was finding the areas, volumes, densities, center of mass of objects, curves, etc... We are just now going into taylor series'.

 

[Cyrus]

Dear god yes. You better learn your calculus for thermodynamics and fluid mechanics.

well, the part that i didnt understand was finding the areas, volumes, densities, center of mass of objects, curves, etc... We are just now going into taylor series'.

Those are the main things you need to know my friend. RETAKE IT 100%!

If you do not understand this, you will fail statics, your first real engineering course.

 

[quantumdude]

You may not fully understand Power Series, and Taylor Series and other things, but these things will come together when they are re-introduced in other courses.

A word of caution here: That approach to schooling is very annoying to instructors, and it causes us to be cranky when it comes time to start grading papers. Courses have prerequisites for a reason, and I have a near-zero tolerance when students come into my class and don't have the knowledge they are supposed to have. My position is that a student should either remember it or review it, and I know that many other instructors feel the same way.

My answer to Quadruple Bypass is this: If you don't take Calculus II again, then make sure you learn it on your own.

Calculus III can be done with no knowledge of Calculus II.

That's true. But Differential Equations cannot be done without it.

 

[JasonRox]

A word of caution here: That approach to schooling is very annoying to instructors, and it causes us to be cranky when it comes time to start grading papers. Courses have prerequisites for a reason, and I have a near-zero tolerance when students come into my class and don't have the knowledge they are supposed to have. My position is that a student should either remember it or review it, and I know that many other instructors feel the same way.

My answer to Quadruple Bypass is this: If you don't take Calculus II again, then make sure you learn it on your own.



That's true. But Differential Equations cannot be done without it.

I learned nothing from Calculus II. Well actually I did. All that area/volume stuff was easy.

I'm sure my professor would have traded me (a C- in Calculus II) over a student with an A in Calculus II any day. I was like one of two who knew what was going on. I would have got 90% in my Calculus III class because I missed some assignments.

 

[DizzyGillespie]

im only a senior in high school but i have taken calc III, and true, i don't remember anything about taylor or mclauren series in calc III but I am pretty sure calc III will be pretty difficult if you didnt understand all that area and volume and stuff.

 

[JSBeckton]

calc 3 is easier than algebra, calc 2 is the hardest but most essential as far as I'm concerned. It would be foolish to go on w/o a good understanding.

 

[Quadruple Bypass]

TANK youse all, ill probably go retake it then over the summer, or just learn the area volume stuff myself, from a different/BETTER book. so i leave you with this: SCREW YOU "CALCULUS SINGLE VARIABLE HUGHES-HALLETT, GLEASON, MCALLUM, ET AL 4TH EDITION"! BECAUSE OF YOU, YOU BASTARD, I HAVE TO TAKE CAL 2 AGAIN. and screw you teacher who teaches it (whos name i will withhold)

 

[Chronos]

I side with more ancient minds. Calc II is essential to understanding the concepts that will follow. You need to be able to translate coordinate systems in your sleep to solve differential equations [which is an essential element of mechanical engineering]. I was roadkill when I ran up against diffEQ [as we fondly referred to it back then] for precisely the reasons you have stated. You will be doing yourself an enormous favor if you retake calc II during the summer session [and only calc II]. Mastering those skills will spare you enormous headaches [not to mention free up enough time for trivialities like eating and bathroom breaks] when you scale mount DE.

 

[Beam me down]

TANK youse all, ill probably go retake it then over the summer, or just learn the area volume stuff myself, from a different/BETTER book. so i leave you with this: SCREW YOU "CALCULUS SINGLE VARIABLE HUGHES-HALLETT, GLEASON, MCALLUM, ET AL 4TH EDITION"! BECAUSE OF YOU, YOU BASTARD, I HAVE TO TAKE CAL 2 AGAIN. and screw you teacher who teaches it (whos name i will withhold)

I'm in high school down-under, and I remember those names. I've got the book Calculus: Single and Multivariable (second edition). By Hughes-Hallet, Gleason, McCallum et al. Is that book equivilent to the American Calculus III?