I know that all of the concepts in Algebra 2 are important for success in higher-level math, but if you had to choose the most important topics necessary for higher-level math that are covered in Alg. 2, what would you say the MOST important topics you should 100% for sure know? Main question here is, what are the absolute bare minimum concepts someone would have to master in Alg. 2 in order to be successful in higher -level math and the ACT/SAT??
Asking for a friend who is taking a more liberal arts approach to learning math and the sciences and doesn’t think she needs Alg. 2 for some reason but anyways…
Taking Algebra 2 will make the SAT a lot easier in my opinion. Off the top of my head, I’d say some of the most important concepts that appear on the SAT would be things like systems of equations, inequalities, some probability, an understanding of functions (how to solve them and how to create an equation from given information), and absolute value concepts.
Review everything you did in Algebra I, and take it up a notch. You definitely should be way past system of equations, inequalities, functions(slope and quadratic), and absolute value. Being comfortable with the simple things like integers, mental math ect. can also extend your knowledge, and can save a lot more time. Also its important to be very very very very very comfortable in graphing, the sections ( x,y – -x,-y ) and easily spotting zeroes and slope on graphs and equations
I’m currently a junior and my school doesn’t offer AP (just honors) so our math progresses like this: Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, College Algebra, Trigonometry, Calculus. I took Algebra II my sophomore year and for my junior year took semester College Algebra and semester Trig (it was awful, very demanding). But from my experience, College Algebra is basically taking Algebra II and going more in depth, so you will need a pretty solid foundation in Algebra II to continue to more upper level math classes.
That being said, my school is quite a bit different than a lot of other schools. As far as standardized testing goes, I’ve never taken the SAT but the ACT only has a few upper level math problems. If you’re aiming for just an okay score, simply knowing Algebra I and Geometry will get you by. If you want a good score, a solid foundation in Algebra II will be necessary.
There is the different parts that make up the mathematics ACT. According to this, there is around 9 problems that have to do with Algebra II (intermediate algebra). Even if you didn’t know any of these 9 problems, it is unlikely that you would miss all of them because you would probably be able to figure basic ones out or even just guess correctly on some. However, if you missed all 9 of them for some reason and got every other question right, that would still put you at a 30. Math test scoring often fluxuates between tests, but that’s a pretty solid estimate, and you can read more about it here.
I hope that’s a helpful answer! That being said, I have to say that taking Algebra II did help me because not only do you learn basic skills that you will see on the ACT but it solidifies your knowledge of simple Algebra I concepts that will come up. The math is my least favorite section for sure but it’s definitely manageable.
Oh, also another thing that helped me was Kaplan’s 100 Key Math Concepts for the ACT. Just google that and it’ll pop up. It’s basically a crash course on things that you could see on the math. I went through it a few days before I took the ACT and started writing all of it down in a notebook so I would remember it. It was very helpful!
