Monacan High School - Legend Yearbook (Richmond, VA)

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Figures That Boggle The Mind. Teaching her class about polygons, Mrs. Swecker explains how to find the center to her Geometry class. Qualified Teacher Answers Stu- dent’s Question. With the help of Mr. Carloni, Robert George is able to bet- ter understand his computer problem. High school mathematics has recently received in- creased attention nationwide from a concerned public which considers it a top priority for the future success of Ameri- 'ca’s youth. The importance of math is not overrated; nor is it ignored at Monacan. Guidance counselors press students into taking more advanced classes, following a progres- sion up to AP Calculus, which offers the opportunity of col- lege credit for work per- formed. Now, some of the less fore-sighted of our breed : might argue that the math re- a subjects are, in fact, ir- relevant and useless in mod- -ernlife. Admittedly, very few of us will be offered an all-ex- pense-paid trip to Cleveland by a stranger on the street if we Can just solve a quadradic equation; nor are we likely to eeniront a soft drink machine displaying a placard: ‘‘Insert : coin of cash value equivalent to the definite integral from zero to ten of the function x squared.’’ Although some math teachers may disagree, such everyday applications of higher mathematics are just not that common. However, math is an essential segment of today’s mushrooming engi- neering, scientific and com- puter fields and the logic and problem-solving skills demon- strated by a good math stu- dent are clues for an employer looking for creativity and de- termination. Calculus might not help you shovel grease at your local fast food establishment, but most bosses know that if an applicant has put up with inte- grals, related rates, and trigin- ometry long enough to gra- duate, he is more likely to ac- cept the challenge of too much work — too little pay with nary a grumble. The school’s math depart- ment supports well the entire sequence of mathematical learning, offering a niche for almost any want or need. Ba- sic Algebra, Geometry, Trigin- Math and Computers Indispensible ometry, Intermidiate Algebra, Math Analysis, and Calculus are included in course offer- ings. Of special interest is the newest addition to the Mona- can math family: a Special To- pics class has been created for interested seniors who have passed Pre-Calculus but choose not to take Advance Placement-oriented Calculus class. This is a prime example of how classes are altered or added in response to stu- dents’ needs. An important, heretofore un- mentioned, subset of the math department is the computer department. Using the school’s new Apple lles, stu- dents can take classes from basic computer skills to the new Pascal-oriented AP Com- puter class. This year’s AP students faced the problem that few colleges immediately grant credit for the Advanced Placement Test in computer science because this is the first year that it is offered. With any luck, this problem will be resolved and students as- piring to advanced learning will be given appropriate cred- it for their work. In addition to taking a separate computer class, students can choose to take basic computer work as part of their Algebra Il — Trig class. Finally, the computer department helps the student body by offering SAT prepara- tory classes aimed in improv- ing scores on College Board Tests. In today’s growing high-tech society, math is clearly an im- portant subject to learn. High schools such as ours are the important link to expanded math understanding, and with qualified teachers such as the ones in the mathematics de- partment, the future is as boundless as the interest of the student. So when you think math, don’t think irrelevant, think indispensible. Math and Computers 37

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Helping A Fellow Student. Compar- ing their work, Lee Walke and Neal Smith are able to gain a better under- standing of the perplexing computer lesson. More Challenged Class. With her AP Calculus class, Mrs. Lewis uses the overhead to teach the lesson. — Mal LLL) computer oriented, Mike McBride p pares for the future by taking a co puter class. he

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38 Science Department Taking A Peak. Looking into his ste- reoscope, Jeff Bennett examines the growth of the beans on the petri dish. Precise Measurements. Mising up their substances in test tubes, and heating them on the bunson burner Daniel Shim and Donald Dobbs make their observations.