Courses
GCNU1016 Mathematics Around Us (3 units)
- Medium of Instruction:
- English
This course aims to “make sense” of the mathematical topics Hong Kong students spend years to learn (mainly for examinations). Although the compact syllabus in high school makes good use of students’ golden learning years to improve their calculation skills, the standalone and often unrelated topics can result in a lack of connections and linkages to real-life. Students may wrestle with abstract mathematical concepts and robotic calculations that appear to be unpractical. To change the already-frustrated students’ view towards mathematics and allow them to enjoy and benefit from mathematics, a deeper understanding of both the foreground (i.e. real-life applications around us) and background (i.e., motivation and origin) must be provided. Don't let years of efforts end in vain! This course begins with the mathematical logic in our daily conversions. This practical opening provides students a sense of familiarity and allows them to gradually see the usefulness of mathematics. To answer a common question from students, “Why am I learning this?”, The interconnections between high school geometry, trigonometry functions (i.e. sin, cos, and tan), Pi, nature numbers, and complex numbers will be built from a historical and practical point of view. The applications of these high school topics in daily life and beyond will also be presented, in the hopes that they may capture students’ imaginations.
http://ge.hkbu.edu.hk/course/GCNU-1016/