Algebra is very complex and has been a big deal for me since I started it in high school. A question I asked and many others ask is: why do we need to learn algebra? When you solve these problems in class it is very difficult to imagine how you would use them in real life. Until I got to college I was absolutely sure that it was a waste of time and that it made no sense, but I was so wrong. Now I know many reasons why it is a requirement in school, but I'm not entirely convinced that it should be imposed on everyone. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay I was very surprised to find that algebra was created to simplify mathematics. Arithmetic is much simpler and algebra is in a completely different league. Why is algebra so much harder for people if it's supposed to make calculations easier for us? But when you realize real-life situations that you can use to solve algebra, everything becomes much clearer. It can be used to more efficiently calculate grocery budgets, adapting recipes to feed varying amounts of people; it is also used by construction workers, architects and engineers use it to plan, purchase and build. Algebra also helps you think logically and in complex ways; Algebra is believed to teach useful mental habits that open up possible future careers and also helps train people's general problem-solving skills. Going to college made me realize how important mathematics is and how used it is in our society; I didn't imagine that you needed mathematics to become a computer engineer. I know now that I wouldn't even be able to use the computer if it weren't for algebra. Algebra is used in much of our technology, even needed in many hard science courses; it also creates drugs, is used for our taxes, mortgages and interest rates. In an article titled “Why It's Important to Learn Algebra,” Zalman Usiskin states that without algebra, students “can't get many jobs or even get into programs that will get you a job; they are more likely to make unwise decisions, financial and otherwise, and will not be able to understand many ideas discussed in chemistry, physics, earth sciences, economics, business, psychology, and many other areas.” Students who leave middle school with algebra are believed to have more confidence in mathematics; this definitely opens my eyes to how important algebra is to me. Studying algebra in middle school allows students to tackle more difficult mathematics when they enter high school; this makes sense because I didn't touch algebra until I got into high school, and the only other math classes I remember taking were geometry and trigonometry. Getting it first and being able to understand it would be a great help to students. I believe this is very true because here I am in my first semester of college in remedial ALGEBRA. If I had done it since middle school, I think I wouldn't have so many problems. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Now I see how important algebra is in our daily lives and I am happy to do it. We wouldn't have many luxuries in our lives if it weren't for algebra and that needs to be recognized. I still don't consider this a requirement since it is still job specific. If I didn't have a goal of becoming a software engineer, I doubt I would ever use algebra in my daily life. But I don't disagree with the fact that.