Sophia Algebra

[Lacedonia4]

Khan Academy is good but I do tend to get bored/distracted with videos, so I try to keep them to a minimum. If you like videos, that's fine. I know some people learn better with videos. I usually learn better by reading/doing.

I took this course.

Unlike many on here that attempt to speed through courses just to gain credit, I wanted to make sure I learned the material because I'll be taking calculus in the near future.

This course took me 42 days at ~ 8 hours per week. I filled up an entire three-subject note book with notes, practice problems and milestones.

I used the provided text exclusively; I didn't watch the videos.

I think I spotted two typos during the course, and I had to go to an outside source for additional support on understanding a concept twice (I just used google both times).

With that said, it's entirely possible to learn the material using a text-only approach.

I am taking Sophia algebra too and it is taking me longer than I expected. Algebra is my weak subject too. Although I remember enough of it, I believe I spotted a few typos here and there in addition to some explanations in the hints that made little sense. I also learn better reading than with videos. And I am also using an algebra from dummies book and workbook to better understand some topics. I downloaded the algebra openstax ebook for the TESU course but I do better when studying on actual books.

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I also purchased the algebra course on SL.

But haven't started that yet. How does that one compare to the one from sophia?

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I requested a time extension on my algebra course on sophia so I can work on it at my pace.

[rachel83az]

I don't know how to compare SL algebra with Sopha; I've never taken SL algebra. But I do know that if my HS algebra classes had been as poorly worded/designed as Sophia then I would've come out of school hating algebra/math. Thankfully, I do have someone who is willing (eager, even) to tutor me in difficult math subjects.

I've made it to the second unit, so far. Almost ready to move to unit 3. It definitely feels like some of this stuff is being taught backwards. Absolute value is brought up and taught after absolute value is used in exponents/radicals. Formulas, and how to solve them, are taught in the middle of everything and not at the beginning, where they should be (IMO).

Sophia is good for people who know algebra already and just want to prove to a university that they know it. It's not ideal as a refresher and I believe that it'd be absolutely confusing if taken by someone with no algebra experience at all. I would not be happy about having spent $330 for this course. Thank goodness it's free.

Algebra for Dummies is a good idea. If you have the money, I'd really recommend ALEKS for math. Very clear examples and explanations. I need to get some more notebooks so that I can write out and work on the problems.