James Stewart calculus?

[olstad]

Hey Internet,
One of my former students is at UW this fall, wants to know if it's worth buying all the ancillary stuff that goes with James Stewart's calculus textbook for their Frosh calculus class. Advice?

Comments

[madduckdes]

I used Stewart a long time ago at a different school. Back then I appreciated the extra materials.

[chanusa]

Umm... do they like/feel like they need written out solutions? If so, the solutions manual is nice. Of course, at UW (Washington, right?) there is the math help room which features plenty of helpful TAs. Yours truly was one of them. The room is well staffed. Your student will be just fine without them...

[steuard]

I suspect that the readers of your blog aren't the most balanced sample for this sort of thing. I never even considered buying ancillary materials beyond what was required for my courses, and I was a strong enough student not to particularly need them. My first instinct, then, is to say "Of course not."

On the other hand, I know that some of my current students buy the student solution manuals or what have you, and I assume they get something out of it. Maybe. It probably depends a lot on the individual.

If I were giving advice, I'd suggest not buying the extra stuff to start with: see how the first two or three weeks go, and then decide whether there is enough help available in office hours or tutoring. If you think you need more help, pick one or two of the extra things that sound like they'll best address the points where you need it most.

Buying everything associated with the book just in case you might maybe want it sounds like exactly what the publishers are hoping you'll do.