9
$\begingroup$

TL;DR: do you know of an undergrad textbook that covers numeracy with an emphasis on genuine context (as opposed to the artificial word problems that are all too common)?

Less concisely:

I am an instructor in the US, teaching in a large, research university. I am looking for a textbook that teaches numeracy at the college-level (so above the level of algebra 2) to students who need math courses for their degree, but have limited interest in the subject.

More specifically: I am looking for a book that teaches the students different skills (logical, statistical, etc) for analyzing the math that appears in the newspaper.

I am aware of books like "A Mathematician Reads the Newspaper," and I would be happy to find other books like this, but am hoping to discover a textbook on or near this topic.

Improve this question
$\endgroup$

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
6
$\begingroup$

I've heard good things about Bolker and Mast's Common Sense Mathematics, though I haven't used it myself. I can't imagine the MAA wouldn't send you a review copy in your situation.

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
3
$\begingroup$

Not direct answers (not textbooks), but there have been several books published recently on estimation that might serve as background:

Weinstein, Lawrence, and John A. Adam. Guesstimation: Solving the world's problems on the back of a cocktail napkin. Princeton, NJ, USA: Princeton University Press, 2009.

                     
Weinstein, Lawrence. Guesstimation 2.0: Solving today's problems on the back of a napkin. Princeton University Press, 2012.
Mahajan, Sanjoy, and Carver A. Mead. Street-fighting mathematics: The art of educated guessing and opportunistic problem solving. MIT Press, 2010.

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.