十二班維州學生Thor Taylor十三歲時考取了Specialist Maths, 十四歲時考了Math Mathod 及Physics, 十五歲時考了大學一年級數學及物理,今年出了一本電子課本,教授學生學習Math Method.
問題是這樣由數學天才出版的的課本,真的適合普通能力的學生學習嗎?能把數學演示出來,一個數學老師也可以,問題是普通學生如何能學習?
看來這樣的課本實用性不高.
The Age
It all adds up for young maths whiz
Margaret Cook
September 8, 2008
Thor Taylor
Maths is a hard slog for some students. For others, like 16-year-old Thor Taylor, it's as though it's in the air they breathe.
Thor completed VCE specialist maths when he was 13 and, a year later, passed VCE maths methods and physics. Last year he got first-class honours in first-year maths and physics at the University of Melbourne.
Now the year12 Melbourne Grammar student has written a textbook for maths methods, which has been published as a CD-ROM. Cambridge University Press commissioned it after an editor read an article about Thor's achievements.
"Maths has always come easy for me, and my parents say that even when I was little I was good at it," says Thor, of Glen Iris, who also plays the cello in the school orchestra.
"I tried to keep my comments (on the CD-ROM) aimed at students, and I talked about the exercises and things that I remembered as being odd or different. I wanted it to come from the point of view of someone who had done maths methods recently."
Thor wrote the text over the summer holidays, often working six to seven hours a day. He enjoyed doing it but admits it took longer than he expected and by the end was a little tedious. "But I'm glad I did it - it was a wonderful opportunity and I count myself very lucky," he says. "It will also be good when it comes to applying for scholarships."
The exercise had an unexpected benefit. "I hadn't organised any work experience so I did it at Cambridge University Press," says Thor. "It meant my work experience problem was solved."
Why do some students find maths so difficult? "You tend to hear about people being bad at maths more often than you do about them being bad at other subjects," he says.
"Maybe it's because it's compulsory (for longer). If you're bad at, say, geography or history, you don't do them. But if you persevere, you can learn how to do each maths problem.
"Some people need to do less work than others, but anyone can get it if they work."
This year Thor is doing VCE English, French ("because half my family if French) and Latin ("which I really enjoy").
He loves all learning but admits English is not his favourite subject. "I enjoy debating and reading, but I'm not so fond of essay writing. It doesn't appeal to me. One advantage about maths is that it's very definite - it's right or wrong - and everything has an answer."
Thor hopes to do a science degree at university, followed by another degree once he decides on a career.
Essential Mathematical Methods CAS 3 & 4 - Worked Solutions CD-ROM costs $49.95 and is available from education bookshops and Cambridge University Press.
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