Intermediate Algebra for College Students (5th Edition) - Hardcover

Angel, Allen R.

3.06

33 ratings by Goodreads

9780139163210: Intermediate Algebra for College Students (5th Edition)

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0139163212 ISBN 13: 9780139163210

Publisher: Prentice Hall, 1999

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An emphasis on the practical applications of algebra motivates readers and encourages them to see algebra as an important part of their daily lives. Strongly emphasizes good problem-solving skills, uses real-world applications. For anyone interested in Algebra.

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From the Publisher:

Angel's text is one that students can read, understand, and enjoy. With short sentences, clear explanations, many detailed worked examples, and outstanding pedagogy. Practical applications of algebra throughout make the subject more appealing and relevant for students. Key pedagogical features include: Preview and Perspective at the beginning of each chapter; Helpful Hints; Group Activities/Challenge Problems, Writing, exercises, Real-Life Application Problems; and Calculator and Graphing Calculator Corners.

This book was written for college students who have successfully completed a first course in elementary algebra. My primary goal was to write a book that students can read, understand, and enjoy. To achieve this goal I have used short sentences, clear explanations, and many detailed, worked-out examples. I have tried to make the book relevant to college students by using practical applications of algebra throughout the text.

Features of the Text

Full-Color Format. Color is used pedagogically in the following ways:

Important definitions and procedures are color screened.
Color screening or color type is used to make other important items stand out.
Artwork is enhanced and clarified with use of multiple colors.
The full-color format allows for easy identification of important features by students.
The full-color format makes the text more appealing and interesting to students.

Readability. One of the most important features of the text is its readability. The book is very readable, even for those with weak reading skills. Short, clear sentences are used and more easily recognized, and easy-to-understand language is used whenever possible.

Accuracy. Accuracy in a mathematics text is essential. To ensure accuracy in this book, mathematicians from around the country have read the pages carefully for typographical errors and have checked all the answers.

Connections. Many of our students do not thoroughly grasp new concepts the first time they are presented. In this text, we encourage students to make connections. That is, we introduce a concept, then later in the text briefly reintroduce it and build upon it. Often an important concept is used in many sections of the text. Students are reminded where the material was seen before, or where it will be used again. This also serves to emphasize the importance of the concept. Important concepts are also reinforced throughout the text in the Cumulative Review Exercises and Cumulative Review Tests.

Chapter Opening Application. Each chapter begins with a real-life application related to the material covered in the chapter. By the time students complete the chapter, they should have the knowledge to work the problem.

A Look Ahead. This feature at the beginning of each chapter gives students a preview of the chapter. This feature also indicates where this material will be used again in other chapters of the book. This material helps students see the connections between various topics in the book and the connection to real-world situations.

The Use of Icons. At the beginning of each chapter and of each section, a variety of icons are illustrated. These icons are provided to tell students where they may be able to get extra help if needed. There are icons for the Student's Solution Manual; the Student's Study Guide; CDs and videotapes; Math Pro 4/5 Software; the Prentice Hall Tutor Center; and the Angel Website. Each of these items will be discussed shortly.

Keyed Section Objectives. Each section opens with a list of skills that the student should learn in that section. The objectives are then keyed to the appropriate portions of the sections with red numbers such as 1.

Problem Solving. George Polya's five-step problem-solving procedure is discussed in Section 1.2. Throughout the book problem solving and Polya's problem-solving procedure are emphasized.

Practical Applications. Practical applications of algebra are stressed throughout the text. Students need to learn how to translate application problems into algebraic symbols. The problem-solving approach used throughout this text gives students ample practice in setting up and solving application problems. The use of practical applications motivates students.

Detailed; Worked-Out Examples. A wealth of examples have been worked out in a step-by-step, detailed manner. Important steps are highlighted in color, and no steps are omitted until after the student has seen a sufficient number of similar examples.

Now Try Exercise. In each section, students are asked to work exercises that parallel the examples given in the text. These Now Try Exercises make the students active, rather than passive, learners and they reinforce the concepts as students work the exercises. Through these exercises students have the opportunity to immediately apply what they have learned. Now Try Exercises are indicated in green type, such as 35, in the exercise sets.

Study Skills Section. Many students taking this course have poor study skills in mathematics. Section 1.1, the first section of this text, discusses the study skills needed to be successful in mathematics. This section should be very beneficial for your students and should help them to achieve success in mathematics.

Helpful Hints. The Helpful Hint boxes offer useful suggestions for problem solving and other varied topics. They are set off in a special manner so that students will be sure to read them.

Helpful Hints—Study Tips. This is a new feature. These Helpful Hint-Study Tips boxes offer valuable information on items related to studying and learning the material.

Avoiding Common Errors. Errors that students often make are illustrated. The reasons why certain procedures are wrong are explained, and the correct procedure for working the problem is illustrated. These Avoiding Common Errors boxes will help prevent your students from making those errors we see so often.

Mathematics in Action. This new feature stresses the need for and the uses of mathematics in real-life situations. Examples of the use of mathematics in many professions, and how we use mathematics daily without ever giving it much thought, are given. This can be a motivational feature for your students and can give them a better appreciation of mathematics.

Using Your Calculator. The Using Your Calculator boxes, placed at appropriate locations in the text, are written to reinforce the algebraic topics presented in the section and to give the student pertinent information on using a scientific calculator to solve algebraic problems.

Using Your Graphing Calculator. Using Your Graphing Calculator boxes are placed at appropriate locations throughout the text. They reinforce the algebraic topics taught and sometimes offer alternate methods of working problems. This book is designed to give the instructor the option of using or not using a graphing calculator in their course. Many Using Your Graphing Calculator boxes contain graphing calculator exercises, whose answers appear in the answer section of the book. The illustrations shown in the Using Your Graphing Calculator boxes are from a Texas Instruments 83 Plus calculator. The Using Your Graphing Calculator boxes are written assuming that the student has no prior graphing calculator experience.

Exercise Sets

The exercise sets are broken into three main categories: Concept/Writing Exercises, Practice the Skills, and Problem Solving. Many exercise sets also contain Challenge Problems and/or Group Activities. Each exercise set is graded in difficulty. The early problems help develop the student's confidence, and then students are eased gradually into the more difficult problems. A sufficient number and variety of examples are given in each section for the student to successfully complete even the more difficult exercises. The number of exercises in each section is more than ample for student assignments and practice.

Concept/Writing Exercises. Most exercise sets include exercises that require students to write out the answers in words. These exercises improve students' understanding and comprehension of the material. Many of these exercises involve problem solving and conceptualization and help develop better reasoning and critical thinking skills. Writing exercises are indicated by the pencil symbol.

Problem Solving Exercises. These exercises help students become better thinkers and problem solvers. Many of these exercises involve real-life applications of algebra. It is important for students to be able to apply what they learn to real-life situations. Many problem solving exercises help with this.

Challenge Problems. These exercises, which are part of many exercise sets, provide a variety of problems. Many were written to stimulate student thinking. Others provide additional applications of algebra or present material from future sections of the book so that students can see and learn the material on their own before it is covered in class. Others are more challenging than those in the regular exercise set.

Cumulative Review Exercises. All exercise sets (after the first two) contain questions from previous sections in the chapter and from previous chapters. These cumulative review exercises reinforce topics that were previously covered and help students retain the earlier material, while they are learning the new material. For the students' benefit the Cumulative Review Exercises are keyed to the section where the material is covered using brackets, such as (3.4).

Video Icon Exercises. The exercises that are worked out in detail on the videotapes are marked with the video icon, iii. This will prove helpful to your students.

Group Activities. Many exercise sets have group activity exercises that lead to interesting group discussions. Many students learn well in a cooperative learning atmosphere, and these exercises will get students talking mathematics to one another.

Chapter Summary. At the end of each chapter is a chapter summary that includes a glossary and important chapter facts.

Chapter Review Exercises. At the end of each chapter are review exercises that cover all types of exercises presented in the chapter. The review exercises ...

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