Iam a college sophomore with a major in mathematics. I am trying to self-study multivariable and vector calculus (they means the same, right?) and prepare for Summer course on multivariable calculus. Our university uses a course packet for the multivariable calculus which is not theoretical enough to satisfy my curiosity. I am seeking a textbook that covers both theories and applications, with more emphasis on theories.
I have been searching the forum and it seems there are sook good books on multivariable calculus: Hubbard/Hubbard's Vector Calculus, Linear Algebra, and Differential Forms; Marsden/Tromba's Vector Calculus, Collier's Vector Calculus, and Lang's Multivariable Calculus. I want to pick only one from them. Could you help me?
The best introductory textbook on multivariable calculus for the rank beginner that I know is Vector Calculus by Peter Baxandall and Hans Liebeck. I stumbled across this terrific and very underrated book while searching for a modern treatment of functions of several variables that could be used by bright undergraduates without the use of manifolds or differential forms.
Published in 1991 by Wellesley-Cambridge Press, the book is a useful resource for educators and self-learners alike. It is well organized, covers single variable and multivariable calculus in depth, and is rich with applications. There is also an online Instructor's Manual and a student Study Guide.
MIT Professor Gilbert Strang has created a series of videos to show ways in which calculus is important in our lives. The videos, which include real-life examples to illustrate the concepts, are ideal for high school students, college students, and anyone interested in learning the basics of calculus.
This workbook covers the third semester of a traditional calculus course - Multivariable Calculus. The workbook follows the chapters in Stewart's Calculus and can be used as a supplement to Stewart or as a stand alone workbook. Topics covered include lines, planes, graphing, curves, partial derivatives, multiple integrals, change of variables, vector fields, and vector calculus.
So, with these concerns in mind, which free calculus textbooks are the best? I know this is an opinion question at its core, but to make it more objective, my ideal free textbook would have:
We started here: -textbooks/ as suggested by David Steinberg. Their selection criteria seem very good, and as a result many good candidates appear at that page, but many have very subpar image quality and would feel like a "budget book" to our students and administration.
All the other options we looked at had deficiencies in one of the above areas. I am still sad that the Google Group does not seem to be active, and many of the sections in the textbook do not have enough exercises, but for the first year, at least, we plan to have a required purchase of something like a Schaum's Outline at the bookstore to provide supplemental practice problems.
I notice that you teach at a college with a lot of faculty members. One of the biggest blind spots that many faculty (and apparently, you) have is which publisher resources their fellow faculty use.
The point here is not whether those resources are a good idea, but rather whether your colleagues are accustomed to using them and will be blindsided if they disappear when you switch to an OER textbook.
I noticed that nowhere in your question did you mention these kinds of resources. I would strongly recommend that you do research in this direction and include it as potentially the most important factor in your decision. Especially in your situation, where many faculty (did you even consider dual-credit instructors?) will be affected by the decision of a small core group, you could cause significant long-term disruption and animosity by making a change without taking the issue of educational resources seriously.
If you're interested in the ability to customize a text, then the good news is that many free texts make this easy to do. Look at the license and the format that the text is available in. For example, Robbin and Angenent is available in LaTeX format and is under the GFDL license, which means you can modify it however you like and redistribute it to your students.
Would be interested to hear the "after action" report on the text that you used. Also interested to hear if you decided to require a drill book like Schaum's and how that went. Even if it did not work out 100% to your liking or if the kids did not appreciate what you were trying to do for them (or even better if it did).
I would love to see colleges using the better Dover paperbacks. (I think this is cheap enough so that it is virtually free. And you were considered to require a Schaum's so I don't see your cost avoidance stance as absolute.) For example Tenanbaum for ODE. I think in this case, I would definitely try for the ones that have the answers in the back as an instructor or solutions manual may not be an option. So you can't automatically pick one. But there are many good ones available. I'm sure 90% of the students will appreciate your lowering the semester cost of textbook from 200 to 20. (Imagine what that is like for the kids when you add all their classes.)
Most of the main topics of calculus are present, but there are some noticeable exceptions. Some missing topics would be hyperbolic functions, Mean Value Theorem, initial value problems. Some ideas are explored in great detail (like...read more
Most of the main topics of calculus are present, but there are some noticeable exceptions. Some missing topics would be hyperbolic functions, Mean Value Theorem, initial value problems. Some ideas are explored in great detail (like velocity/position) and other areas are only covered superficially (like finding antiderivatives with a stated function).
The textbook is presented in a way to promote Active Learning and to foster student activities for building mathematical ideas. The calculus ideas are sound, but pedagogical swings may contribute to another style of teaching.
The book is highly consistent with its framework. All sections start with an activity to complete before class and an additional 3-4 activities for in-class discussions. There are a small amount of homework questions available at the end of the section.
This book is a good source for activities for active learning in your classroom. It covers the big ideas in calculus, but doesn't necessarily dive into some of its complexities (more involved applications, hyperbolic functions, algebraic manipulations, more complex functions). There is no review of prerequisite material for a reference for students. However, it does have some short supplemental videos available to students for each section with the big ideas presented. There are few worked examples in the book. It is a good base for information/activities, but will need some supplemental work to form a complete course.
The text has the topics I expected to find. Perhaps your favorite application of integration, or your favorite test for the convergence of an infinite series etc is absent, but this is a small price to pay for a concise text. It should be noted,...read more
The text has the topics I expected to find. Perhaps your favorite application of integration, or your favorite test for the convergence of an infinite series etc is absent, but this is a small price to pay for a concise text. It should be noted, however, that this text does not contain the multitude of exercises at the end of each section that most traditional books do.
This text is meant for an active learning approach to Calculus. The sections begin with motivating questions, followed immediately by an introductory activity for students to engage with before ideas are formally presented. There are other activities to engage with throughout the text as well. This is pedagogically sound, and a welcome addition to the literature.
I am pleased to have the pre-activity and activity problems; this suits my teaching style, although it will not suit everyone. Likewise, the inlcusion of some Webwork problems right in the text is another facet that I particularly like seeing.
The text appropriately covers all areas and ideas of the Calculus 1 and Calculus 2 course topics we currently have at Drake University. Has effective and interactive index for the online version, A Short Table of Integrals, Answers to Activities,...read more
The text appropriately covers all areas and ideas of the Calculus 1 and Calculus 2 course topics we currently have at Drake University. Has effective and interactive index for the online version, A Short Table of Integrals, Answers to Activities, and Answers to Selected Exercises.
The topics in the text are presented in a logical, standard to calculus sequence order. I would prefer to have a little review of pre-calc material at the beginning of the text, but it can be easily supplemented from other sources.
For this review I am focusing on Calculus I versus the entire sequence. The issues that I see in the first course in the sequence, I have no doubt will persist through the remainder of the sequence. While the topic list addresses the majority of...read more
For this review I am focusing on Calculus I versus the entire sequence. The issues that I see in the first course in the sequence, I have no doubt will persist through the remainder of the sequence. While the topic list addresses the majority of the major concepts, there is not the same level of depth and exploration that I have seen in the Stewart and Thomas texts. Some of the learning outcomes that are required for MAT 201 based on GT Pathways are not included and would have to be supplemented.
There is also only a short table of integrals vs the standard 120 integrals that are include with the text. While only the first 20 integrals are used in MAT 201, it is useful have students get comfortable seeing the table and understand that they will eventually explore all 120 integrals through the sequence. Also missing are some Algebra and Trig quick reference pages. If students did not build course portfolios, these are quick reference guides for students who need to look something up vs search the web.
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