Why are Soviet math textbooks so hardcore in comparison to US textbooks? (2017)

Post by [deleted] » Wed, Apr 22, 2020, 3:40 PM UTC

stdbrouw wrote: post #345

gambiting wrote: post #313

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not the same, but I went from the Polish education system to a British university, and it also felt like it was a massive downgrade. What really surprised me was the core principle at British unversities - "don't assume prior knowledge of anything". It basically meant that on a CS course, they teach you basic level maths, basic programming skills, you spend the entire 1st year of university learning what we learnt in…

> What really surprised me was the core principle at British unversities - "don't assume prior knowledge of anything". The rationale is that you want to give 18 year olds the opportunity to pick a field of study that they're excited about now rather than forcing them to choose something based on what kind of education their parents thought proper for them six years ago. If a single "intro to programming" course and a…

Post by gambiting » Wed, Apr 22, 2020, 3:43 PM UTC

Loulybob wrote: post #541

Symbiote wrote: post #511

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The criticism, then, should be directed at Oxbridge, and not at [almost] all other British universities which don't do this. I went to Imperial College. "Work hard, play hard" was some kind of motto. Most people followed the first part, the second part was optional. There was more "play" at weekends, and less during the week, compared with my friends at other universities. Mostly, it meant focussing on work during th…

On your final point about the drinking age: The minimum purchasing/public drinking age is 18 (other than a single pint with a meal), but there's no practical restriction on parents letting their kids drink in private. My parents encouraged me once I was around 16 to join in with the adults whilst they had drinks. This led to me getting silly drunk a couple of times but with proper supervision. Same thing with going t…

Post by atrettel » Wed, Apr 22, 2020, 3:45 PM UTC

elteto wrote: post #539

wenc wrote: post #54

The linked article points to the fact that because the Soviets were resource-constrained, theory was more accessible than equipment which drove the education system to favor theoretical training. I wonder if there's a trade-off to this. On one hand you produce some really elite theoretical minds (Pontryagin, Lyapunov, Kolmogorov, etc.). But the counterfactual is that it excludes those with high IQ but are more practi…

> The linked article points to the fact that because the Soviets were resource-constrained, theory was more accessible than equipment which drove the education system to favor theoretical training. Yes, indeed. Most people don't realize that the soviets were awful at product engineering. Their consumer-oriented products (TVs, radios, cars) were pretty terrible when compared to their western counterparts. My pet theor…

Post by fluffything » Wed, Apr 22, 2020, 3:48 PM UTC

Symbiote wrote: post #399

jojobas wrote: post #353

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You don't get to choose different maths A-levels in Russia. There is one state standard that every school and every student has to stick to. You can have accelerated or deeper "special schools" but you can't evade the state standard on maths or you won't get you high school diploma.

There is a state standard in England and Wales (and another standard in Scotland). It's called the National Curriculum, although I'm not sure if it has a different name for A-levels. There are multiple implementations of that standard, in the form of exams that meet the standards. The government checks the exams satisfy their standards. For example, an exam on history might by on the 20th century Britain, and a diffe…

Post by MR4D » Wed, Apr 22, 2020, 3:50 PM UTC

coliveira wrote: post #126

MR4D wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Somewhat cynically, I think the point of many textbooks is to make money for the authors. There is no reason why a calculus book needs to cost $200 (in the 1990’s) and get refreshed every 2-3 years. That subject has been known for hundreds of years and they rob poor engineering and science student of that $200. Sorry, I just have a bad taste in my mouth from crap like that in undergrad. Not saying you’re wrong, just…

Not only that, but the books are horrible! Authors are incentivized to throw as much verbiage as possible, and this makes students' lives more difficult. It is much preferable to have a more concise book that goes to the core of what you need to learn.