Calculus kids exposed to math problems in real-life settings

Elizabeth Barrett, Editor of the Gothenburg Times in Gothenburg Nebraska writes, "From Monsanto to the superintendent’s office at Gothenburg Public Schools, high school calculus students are learning how math works in the real world."

MONSANTO EXPERIENCE: Gothenburg High School calculus students recently visited the Monsanto breeding building where they learned how employees use trigonmetery with a global positioning system (GPS) to track and plant different hybrids of corn. Pictured during a presentation are Remmy Rocha (left) and Amanda Kowalewski.

Recently, the class visited Monsanto where they listened to how employees use trigonometry to track and plant the different hybrids of corn.

From using satellites and connecting to maybe 18 of the 24 satellites available in the solar system, math teacher Sharise Scherer said they find the coordinates of the plots of corn exactly.

“So someone in St. Louis working for Monsanto can plug in these same coordinates on their iPhone, iPad or computer and see the plot of the hybrid of corn they want to collect data from,” Scherer explained. “They can also run and/or see the equipment that plants corn from these GPS systems and be very exact in the placement of the crop.”

Because the class is interested in real-life activities, Scherer invites the public to let her know other possibilities. She can be contacted at sharise.scherer@goswedes.org.
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Source: Gothenburg Times