Advanced Placement Computer Science

For the past three years of my high school career, and now my fourth, I have made it an obligation to continually expand my horizons in regards to math; when I cannot fully grasp an idea or concept, rather than giving up, I relentlessly pursue the idea until it is understood. During freshman year, math did not come easily to me. I was forced to go in early some days because, simply, I did not comprehend the concepts. However, taking initiative with my school work, and constantly working through problems that were difficult can be deemed one of the best decisions I have made. Although my final grade may not have been an

Being the oldest of four children, it was always hard me to learn things fast. My parents weren’t able to help me with schoolwork because they both dropped out of school at a very young age. As I entered high school, I was terrified of all the hard classes I would be taking. Although I am not the best in every subject, a topic in which I have excelled in is Mathematics.

The reason why I took this course was because I felt like technology has definitely influenced this world on a larger scale than previously imagined. If you look in our ordinary lives, you will see products of technology and computing. Everyday objects like iPhones, calculators, even cars are being born out of programming and computing. The scale of this mass technological improvement is also a reason why I am taking AP computer science. If you think about it, just a century ago computing was just an idea, having machines complete everyday tasks. Now if you fast forward to our time, right now, once massive computers have shrunk down

A biographical description of who you are (e.g. your family, where you grew up, etc.)

Prior to Math 2414, my knowledge of mathematics consisted primarily of the math courses that I completed at Salesian High, Sierra Academy of Aeronautics, and Alvin Community College during the fall, spring and summer semesters. During my four years at Salesian High, I completed three math courses, which included Algebra I, Algebra II and Geometry. My education began with Algebra I, which focused primarily on linear equations and eventually taught me the basics of solving quadratic equations. Upon completion of Algebra I, I proceeded to Geometry, which centered on the basic elements of geometry and taught me how to use the Pythagorean Theorem. The highest level math class that I completed in high school was Algebra II. The Algebra II course further

Tynan statement, “…you’ll have to push yourself hard to work even when you don’t like it” resonates with me. I have always been a fairly decent student, tried my hardest in all my classes, but for some reason without fail Algebra and I have never connected. For as long as I can remember I have struggled with math, it’s always been my weak link in school. I know may people enjoy math, but to me it’s a lot of work. Now I am having to relearn Algebra and I don’t like it, but in order to achieve my goal of becoming a physician assistant this is the course I must stay. Maybe Tynan is right and by the end of this I will have learned to love math.

Throughout my education I excelled in every subject, until I entered high school. I began to take more rigorous courses and my grades began to drop. The coursework was a dozen times harder than any other courses I’ve ever taken and I struggled greatly. Instead of taking one AP course my junior year, I took three: English Literature, Physics 1, and Psychology.

From an early age, I was very gifted in math. I remember in kindergarten when all my classmates were so confused how I could count without using my fingers. They would ask me questions and tell me to teach them how to do it too. Every year in high school, I was asked to go to competitions involving mathematics. So, with this gift I figured a major I would be great at would be computer science. It is one of the most math heavy majors out there. I have come to realize that computer science is much more than math. I find myself typing and reading more words than numbers. This was definitely an issue for me because reading has always been a weakness of mine. I just never enjoyed

Yes, math can be confusing and frustrating. However, that does not mean that you cannot learn it. Take advantage of the free online math flashcards Varsity Tutors offers. Use them on your own or with friends. Consider them to be mini-study sessions. The more you look at and think about something, the better you understand

This year has been very big for me not only as a student, but as a person, citizen, and teenager. Many things have happened to me that have made me rethink my choices and aspirations. One of the most important things that happened to me this year was that I took two AP’s: AP World History and AP Computer Science. These classes challenged me and I got my first B for the quarter in World History. On the day of the AP Computer Science exam I knew that I hadn’t prepared enough, even though I wasn’t prepared for the Computer Science exam it did help me to gauge how the test would be formatted for World History and what to expect time-wise—which seems to be my worst ability during testing season. Those two classes also helped prepare me

As a high school student, one of my frustrations regarding the school system stems from spending so much time learning advanced math I will never use. Although I do not know what

I would lie awake at night, worrying about when I was going to find time to work and study for my classes while also getting enough sleep. As the year progressed, I began taking my victories where I could, instead of worrying over my scores. Despite my pre-calculus grade, which seemed stagnant at a solid C+, I refused to feed into my worry. I wouldn’t let it bother me unless it was an immediate threat. Thus, an idea developed: I decided that I would survive the entire year, focusing on the victories and pushing away the failures. This was a huge oversight on my part. When chemistry 101 began to reach new depths, my strategy fell through the ice. Even as I found myself falling farther behind, I continued to put my misunderstandings to the side. I told myself I could wait for one more day. This worked, for a few weeks, until I got my third test back, practically bleeding red ink and topped with a heart-wrenching 56. I realized that I couldn’t put it off for any longer: I asked questions, no matter how ridiculous they seemed. If I didn’t comprehend the way something was explained, I continued asking for clarification until I understood. I practiced chemistry problems for much of my free time. My failure pushed me to never stop questioning, to always be curious, and most importantly, to never let myself give up, even when failure is inevitable and frustration imminent. Without my grit, I wouldn’t have ended the year with a final exam score of 90 and an undeniable passion for

As a mathematics major, the concept that most people overlook is that I did not choose to study mathematics because I do well at it; I chose to study mathematics because it makes me smarter. In fact, all throughout junior high and high school I was in remedial mathematics classes and worse, I did not even place into a freshman year mathematics class in high school. I had to re-take 8th grade mathematics. However, something about mathematics excited me. Maybe it was the fact that mathematics never came easy to me and I wanted to prove to myself that not only could I pass mathematics classes, I could actually understand and excel at them. For me, mathematics is not about the arbitrary numbers, trivial solutions, meaningless formulas, or repetitive computation: it is about the progress of knowledge and human understanding.

I knew, I would do all right in speech and writing courses. Math was never my strong point. However, I found out that I would have to take a remedial math course before enrolling in the math course for computer science. I also discovered that since I had not taken physics in high school. I would have to complete a college physics course before beginning the science courses. Most working students also find out as I did that they have very little time for homework, they have to reduce their courses loads.

In junior High School, things started to turn around for me. Although I was still placed in lower level classes, I developed a love for learning. In the years to come from Junior High to High School, I had a strong urge to make up for lost time. One class I started to excel in was the one I used to have the most trouble with, Mathematics. It seemed as though the once boring and complex equations now seemed meaningful and simple. As I progressed into 8th grade, I was able to advance to normal classes. I felt that the hard work I put in was finally paying of. At this point, I felt that I could handle a higher level. At the end of 8th grade, I took the necessary procedures and tests to try and get into honor - level courses in 9th grade. After taking a summer course of Algebra 1 and several tests I was able to succeed and take the classes. The experience was great. I felt that I was finally going the right direction