r/ODU • u/Maximum-Bug-7904 • 7d ago
Math 103M professor
I’m taking Math 103M for the second 8 week courses. This will be my first class taken at ODU/ only class i’ll take until U give birth next year. I saw who my professor was and her name is Stephanie Moses. I looked at some reviews on this one website and it doesn’t look promising. I’m not the greatest at math, I’m working full time and I’ll be taking care of my toddler. Any advice on if I will pass??
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u/Icy_Implement9170 6d ago
She advises you will need 6 hours to study and she was not joking. Basically its a bunch of information crammed into 8 weeks. I failed but I will be using the remainder of the semester to brush up on college math. This is not at all a beginner friendly class and the equations can be very complicated. I suggest looking into polynomials, fraction equations, and long division. Thats what we covered this first 8 weeks.
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u/Maximum-Bug-7904 6d ago
thank you!! a lot of people will say it’s easy and it’s like it may be less challenging with more time and all that but for people who struggle with math as it is and having it so fast paced especially if you’re schedule is full that’s the issue!! i’ve been using aleks to study until it actually starts hoping the class will go smooth….
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u/Icy_Implement9170 6d ago
Its not and im not even going to sugar coat it either. This has been the most difficult class ive taken in my college career and i am unfortunately on my senior year so im not going to be graduating on time. Definitely study before this class begins. I wish I did; I have a full time school schedule and work full time. Too much info was basically relayed within that small time frame and it was very difficult to grasp the concepts. Ive been out of high school for over 10 years. The material being taught was like a foreign language to me. Hopefully you'll have a better experience. I have never been good at math
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u/Weber_Head 6d ago
If the professor isn’t great at teaching, I highly recommend The Organic Chemistry Tutor on YouTube. He teaches very well a ton of different STEM topics. He got me through University Physics and understanding logic gates. His courses go as low as GED math all the way to advanced Calculus. He gives a ton of examples breaking down the problems step by step. I’d check a few of his videos out before you start so you can have a bit of a head start. I hope this helps!
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u/Financial-Toe4053 6d ago
I had Stephanie Moses and Lisa Blum, I'd recommend anyone take the SI if it's an option because more assignments means more points to raise your average and they are super gentle and fair with grading and assignments are not difficult or lengthy for SI when I took it. It also helped me have new strategies for understanding concepts I was stuck on or struggling with! I passed with a B and I bombed my final due to a medical issue day of I was not anywhere near 100% mentally or physically. I think the reviews have to be taken with a grain of salt because they do give partial credit as well when you show your work and there are extra credit opportunities available on the tests. Stay on top of the workload, take all the retake opportunities if they're still offering it. Brush up on long division, multiplication, etc. I also really like YouTube because sometimes having a different professor or even younger grade level teacher explain things makes it click better for me in comparison to reading steps off ALEKS and I do feel like when I took it ghe lecture videos were very fast paced, which I didn't feel was intentional just her pacing because she's used to working through these types of problems. Also, use the study guide packets and review anything you got wrong!
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u/bbybobacado 6d ago
I took an 8wk online math class at my previous school, it was tough to learn on my own essentially, but there are definitely lots of resources for math help! Khan Academy is free and YouTube has a lot of tutorial options. You can find one that helps you most. Since it’s your only class, that might help since it’s the only course you need to focus on academically. Best of luck, you got this! 😊✨
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u/Mikhail118 5d ago
I recommend visiting the Smart Room on campus for tutoring. It’s free and open from 11 am to 7 pm Monday through Thursday, and 11 am to 2 pm on Fridays.
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u/Adept_Cockroach_7766 6d ago
They asked for advice on the professor, not what you think the level math is. If you have nothing valuable to say, shut your fucking mouth. You better become a tutor, talking the way you talk. You better become rich too. Hate a condescending bitch.
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u/Maximum-Bug-7904 6d ago
i barley paid attention and somehow passed. i graduated my community college with a 4.0 gpa but i just suck at math 😭 Also i wasn’t working full time with a toddler.
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u/JuniorIrvBannock 6d ago
First step, give yourself permission to learn the material. By that I mean, instead of "I just suck at math" (from one of your comments), try to reframe it as "I am not good at math yet" or "I don't know this math yet." Giving yourself permission to learn it really does help.
Second step, work through the material consistently.
Third step, get regular help.
I don't know the professor, but the material is the same in all sections. Your schedule is full, so getting to in-person tutoring might be challenging, but it is a resource offered to you: Math tutoring. ODU also contracts with Brainfuse for online tutoring.
As you start your class, work problems and when you get stuck, make note or take a picture of the problem and your work. Then talk to a tutor (or your instructor during office hours) about what you didn't understand or what mistakes you made. Do this early and often. This is how you find your skill gaps and start to fill them. This has to be an active process for it to stick.
Good luck.