ALEKS

ALEKS is a sophisticated Web-based system we use at Andrews for our Arithmetic and Algebra Review courses, MATH 091 and 092. Other versions of ALEKS teach college algebra, precalculus, and trigonometry, and you may access those and use them if you like.

ALEKS begins by assessing your state of knowledge, then starts teaching you at a level at which you are comfortable. It can start with addition of whole numbers, if that is what you need, and proceeds in carefully planned stages. At each stage the computer generates problems (which you do on paper), scores them instantly, and provides explanations. You must learn the appropriate skills before you can go to the next stage. ALEKS allows you to go at your own pace and drills you thoroughly. Many students need to spend from 90 to 120 hours online with ALEKS to achieve the algebra skill level required at Andrews University.

If you are a reasonably self-disciplined person and you are not enrolled in school (during the summer, for instance), you might wish to use ALEKS independently. It is available at the Web site www.aleks.com for around $20 per month of use. But we do not advise using ALEKS on your own during the school term. Since you are enrolled in college, you must maintain a given course load to avoid losing financial aid, and doing ALEKS is time consuming since doing it is just like taking a class.To give it the attention you should is difficult unless you are taking it as a course.

If you do decide to use ALEKS on your own, here are some pointers:

1. On the ALEKS Web site, click on "Higher Education" in the upper righthand corner of the screen. Then click on "ALEKS Math for Individual Students." There you have an option for a 48-hour free trial.
2. If you missed questions on section 1 of the self-test, start ALEKS with "Basic Math."
3. If you need Algebra review, start with "Intermediate Algebra."

A good textbook to use with ALEKS in reviewing algebra is Elementary Algebra by Mark Dugopolski, published by McGraw Hill. 

If you start ALEKS the summer before you come to Andrews University and then enroll in MATH 091, you can continue without duplicating most of what you have covered.