commenting on two classmates discussions on Linear Equations

commenting on two classmates discussions on Linear Equations

You will just review their Discussions and then make any correction and give correction. And some information to maybe help them make it easier please cite in apa.

Classmate # 1 Addison

In fairness to myself, I am more of a visual learner than I am from reading. I tend to understand things more when I can see it being done and then test the same scenario out by hands-on activity. That being said, in my opinion, graphical representation is the best method. For myself, it’s easier to understand being able to see the graph and understand the equation from a representation. However, a graph doesn’t give everything either. Algebraic expressions is also part of the top because you can easily manipulate numbers to solve equations. I had come up with a shortcut back in high school when learning algebra 1 and algebra 2 that simplified the methods my teacher wanted us to do. I have since forgotten the method, but it shortened the expressions and then allowed for a simpler solution which gave the same result. Both of these pretty much go hand in hand as you can place algebraic equations on a graph and solve both ways just as quickly.

Classmate # 2

For this weeks discussion I chose to write about option one. There are three ways to solve a system of equations, the algebraic method, by substitution and by a graphical representation. It is good to know all of the methods or at least two of them. The reason for that is that you can solve it one way and check your work using the other method. I prefer to use the Algebraic method to solve it and then the substitution method to verify my answer. The Algebraic method allows you to isolate the problem down to a variable and then solve for that variable. If there are two or more variables the substation method allows you to substitute one variable and then solve for the other. One disadvantage is when you manipulate the equation you have to be very careful to follow all the procedures correctly. If you make a simple math error or use the wrong variable you will end up with the wrong answer. For me keeping the positive and negatives alike in the equation is my most common mistake. I need to slow down and make sure that my math is accurate and that I carry over all the negatives. For instance I often times have -3x+y and write it at 3x+y leaving out the – because I am rushing through it.

The graphical method of solving the problems isn’t my favorite way. The logic behind it is understandable but there are limitations. For instance if there are three variables you can’t map the third variable on a two dimension piece of paper. If there are two variables you can put them into a formula of linear functions such as f(x) = mx + b and graph the line. Graphing the line allows you to visually see it but you would have to estimate locations on the graph. An example might be that if x = 0 and y = 2.4, since 2.4 isn’t on the lines of the graph you might mistaken see it as y = 2.5 and that can cause issues.

As I finish up with the problem sets and work through more of these issues things seem to get easier for me. I used to be better at these types of problems but I am hoping it comes back quickly.