What does Contemporary Math coursework entail?
A contemporary math class is designed to survey some of the important ideas and practical applications in mathematics. In a typical program, you will study such topics as problem solving, finance, number concepts, art and math, and mathematical modeling. You will develop critical thinking and problem solving strategies, and learn about the use of the various technologies, such as calculators and computers. You will acquire knowledge and understanding across a wide range of mathematical disciplines, such as the distribution of data and their shapes, and histograms, as well as an array of plotting concepts and techniques, including number line plots, box plots, stem-and-leaf plots and scatter plots. You'll learn the basics of associations, tracking techniques for time and trends, measures of center including mean, median, mode, and their various associated properties. You'll learn about the measures of variation including percentiles, interquartile ranges, mean absolute deviation, and their associated properties, as well as the transformations of data. In addition, you'll learn about concepts like exponential growth, exponential functions, fractals, exponential decay, recursion, half-life, compound growth, finding equations to fit exponential patterns in data, and properties of exponents, as well as three-dimensional shapes, spatial visualization, perimeter, area, surface area, volume, and the Pythagorean Theorem.
Why Study Contemporary Math?
Math is important in virtually every area of business and industry. Finance, engineering, marketing, or pretty much any field of employment you can name requires some level of skill with mathematics. By applying yourself to contemporary math, you will develop skills relevant to math as it is commonly employed in today's everyday work world. Of course, it's always possible that your interest in math could lead you to study it at ever more advanced levels, resulting in work as a mathematician or physicist.
Career and Salary Outlook with a focus on Contemporary Math
While there are many fields in business and industry where you will find math not only helpful, but also crucial and directly applicable, the field of mathematics itself is an obvious objective for developing the skills you learn in a contemporary math class. According the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, advancements in technology will lead to expanding applications of mathematics, and more workers with knowledge of mathematics will be required. The average annual income for mathematicians in 2004 was about $80K, while the highest paid earned as much as $120K per year.
