CALCULUS BC 

Calculus BC   2000 - 2001                             Mr. Dillow

Congratulations!You have arrived in this class after having completed Calculus AB. An AP class is for you if you are a self-directed learner with an interest in math who wants to satisfy and receive credit for college calculus. I am assuming that you will be challenging the AP Exam in May 2001. If, at any time,  you feel that you are overwhelmed or "lost", please see me for extra help.  A danger that many of you face as Seniors in an AP class is getting in "over your head". Be wise about your committments. I'm generally in my room on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at lunchtime and Tuesdays and Thursdays after school for "drop-in" help.  If I know you're coming, I'll be there for sure.

PHILOSOPHY. Calculus AB and Calculus BC are primarily concerned with developing the students' understanding of the concepts of calculus and providing experience with its methods and applications.  The courses emphasize a multi-representational approach to calculus, with concepts, results, and problems being expressed geometrically, numerically, analytically, and verbally.  The connections among these representations also are important. Both courses are intended to be equally challenging and demanding. Calculus BC is an extension of Calculus AB rather than an enhancement; common topics require a similar depth of understanding. Broad concepts and widely applicable methods are emphasized.  The focus of the courses is neither manipulation nor memorization of an extensive taxonomy of functions, curves, theorems, or problem types.  Thus, although facility with manipulation and computational competence are important outcomes (do you remember your Algebra??), they are not the core of these courses. Technology (graphing calculators) is used regularly by students and teachers to reinforce the relationships among the multiple representations of functions, to confirm written work, to implement experimentation, and to assist in interpreting results. Through the use of the unifying themes of derivatives, integrals, limits, approximation, and applications and modeling, the course becomes a cohesive whole rather than a collection of unrelated topics.  These themes are developed using all the functions listed in the prerequisites.
 
 
 

Comments or Questions? Click here to mail me