Professor Rising new book "Program Your Calculator" remedies math deficiency in nation's schools

HERSHEY, Pa. - June 29, 2013 - PRLog -- A new book aims to improve the teaching of mathematics in our nation's schools published by William R. Parks, www.wrparks.com,  of  Hershey, PA, "Program Your Calculator - Programming with the TI-84 Calculator" written by Dr. Gerald R. Rising, State University of New York (SUNY) Distinguished Teaching Professor Emeritus, University at Buffalo, who is principal author, with co-authors Dr. Eileen K. Schoaff, Professor of Mathematics Emeritus, Buffalo State College, and Dr. Deborah Moore-Russo, Assistant Professor of Mathematics Education at the University at Buffalo,

Professor Rising said, "Programming was a central part of the school mathematics curriculum in the past. Today it is rarely taught except in specialized computer science courses. In Germany and Japan the situation is different: calculator programming is widely taught and applied." Rising says he hopes "Program Your Calculator" will address our nation's deficiency: "Our book is a brief, straightforward presentation that can be used in school or college classrooms or by individual learners."

James Easton, instructor at Erie Community College in Buffalo, New York, finds  "Program Your Calculator"  a very useful text for both individual and classroom settings, especially at a time when programming is rarely taught in mathematics classes. Easton said, "Students gain much insight into mathematical concepts through simple programming and this book opens that opportunity to them. This doubles or triples the power of the calculator."  

Professor Rising explains why he considers their book important: "Check any science lab or engineering workplace and you will find an extraordinary number of hand-held calculators in daily use, but too few users employ the programming power of their calculators. By programming them according to the instructions this text provides, they can make their tiny devices respond to the specific problems in which they are interested: solving complex equations, replicating experiments, modeling real world applications and creating exquisite graphs. The power of the calculator increases significantly."

A simple example of a program Rising wrote is called LOTTERY, which models the national MegaMillions lottery. It allows users to "buy" as many dollar tickets as they wish and see the probable outcome. "Running this program," he says, "shows in striking fashion what little return players receive from their 'investments.'"  

Rising has written another popular book about programmable calculators  "Inside Your Calculator,"  published by John Wiley and Sons, which explains the math behind the calculator functions.