It is important to study math because it is used in many sciences and other fields. The world today depends on math more than ever.
As a math tutor, I tutor many subjects related to math. Subjects such as business, engineering, science, and others all depend on math in one way or another. Since it is obvious that much of the world depends on the knowledge contained in these subjects, it would also depend on math. One of the things that help out the student in his quest for learning math is to understand its value in the world around him. For example, business decisions depend on being able to calculate rates of return to your on investment. In order to calculate these rates of return, percentages must be divided by other percentages and raised to the power of some number usually represented by time.
In engineering, math is used to give definition to new concepts. For example, a new design would require a blueprint with certain measurements on it. The design on the blueprint would be calculated to perform a certain function which would give the desired result. The task of putting something in numbers and relating it mathematically is called quantification. By quantifying something we're giving it a mathematical definition. As a result, when something is defined by math we can tell exactly what it will do.
In the field of medicine, the dosage of medicine has to be known in order to give a patient a proper dosage. When a new drug is discovered, it is tested the laboratory to find out the effects of various doses and the effects of these doses are measured on subjects or specimens. When the drug enters the real world, it has to be known how it will affect people of different body sizes and metabolisms. Getting the drug to work properly requires knowing math in order to get the desired result.
In the sciences such as physics, math is used to quantify phenomenon in the universe. Physical forces and their effects are represented by numbers and the effects of these forces are calculated using mathematical formulas. This is not just in physics but also in other sciences such as chemistry. Also in biology, energy cycles are measured and relationships between animals and living organisms in the environment are calculated in measured. In economics, interest rates and growth rates are calculated using math in order to understand what state the national economy is in. Math is used in other sciences as well such as psychology, sociology, geology as well as others.
When one can see that math is all around them and is manifested in many different forms it is easier to understand why it is important to learn. With this understanding in mind students who learn math are motivated to learn and understand mathematical concepts. They would better understand how to apply math to solve problems in the real world.
