The Path to College Calculus: The Impact of High School Mathematics Coursework

This study addresses a longstanding question among high school mathematics teachers and college mathematics professors: Which is the best preparation for college calculus—(a) a high level of mastery of mathematics considered preparatory for calculus (algebra, geometry, precalculus) or (b) taking calculus itself in high school? Mastery of the mathematics considered preparatory for calculus was found to have more than double the impact of taking a high school calculus course on students’ later performance in college calculus, on average. However, students with weaker mathematics preparation gained the most from taking high school calculus.