Course title

Financial Algebra

Pre-requisite

Successful completion of Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II

Course description

Course Description:

• Mathematical Finance is an applications-based college-preparatory course designed to give high school students the tools to become financially responsible young adults. The course incorporates elements of algebra 1; geometry; algebra 2; probability; and statistics to examine financial situations that occur in the following aspects of everyday life:
o Career pathways: goal-setting/budgeting; paying for education; making a living; and retirement
o Banking: money management; savings accounts; checking accounts; credit cards; identity theft; and taxes
o Financing: consumer credit; loans and interest; mortgages; automobile ownership; and insurance
o Investing: stocks; bonds; mutual funds; inflation; risk and diversification
Real-world problems are solved by applying relevant mathematics; such as piecewise functions; regression; limits; exponential functions; linear/quadratic systems; and more.
• Field projects; computer spreadsheets; and the use of graphing calculators are key components of the course.

Course Topics:

I. Employment
a. Students will analyze the criteria for selecting a career and the impact of career choices on income and financial stability.
b. When choosing between job opportunities; it is often necessary to convert salaries and compare equivalent rates.
c. When looking for employment; consider common benefits; as well as pay and additional deductions that will affect net earnings.
d. Gross salary is total salary before deductions; net salary is the amount that you take home after taxes and adjustments are taken out.
e. Math topics: Cusps; exponential functions; graphs; linear functions; literal expressions; measures of central tendency; percent discount; piecewise functions; spreadsheets and formulas
II. Banking
a. To determine what accounts are appropriate for their lifestyles; individuals must consider the variety of services available; types of interest associated with each type of account; and any additional fees.
b. Math topics: Exponential base (e); exponential functions; exponential growth and decay; formulas; limits; linear equations and inequalities; order of operations; recursive and iterative thinking
III. Taxes
a. Taxes affect everyone - whether it is through sales tax; property tax; or income tax. Students will use tax tables; as well as discover the equations and piecewise functions used when completing their taxes.
b. By filling out a variety of income tax forms; students will determine what information is needed and will then be able to choose the correct form to use for different life situations.
c. Math topics: Cusps; domains; linear equations and inequalities; literal expressions; percents; piecewise functions
IV. Life Expenses
a. Changes in life circumstances frequently require individuals to change budget constraints.
b. Comparison shopping allows individuals to get the best rate on purchases (phone plans; insurance; etc.); making it easier to live within one’s means.
c. Life insurance companies take into account such things as age and health to help calculate rates based on how much money goes into the policy versus how much will go out.
d. Math topics: Circle; cusps; domains; fractions; decimals and ratios; expected value; greatest integer functions; linear equations and inequalities; literal expressions; matrices; piecewise functions; proportions; rational and exponential equations; read and interpret data; slope and graphing linear functions; spreadsheets and formulas; systems of equations; volume
V. Credit
a. Most people have to obtain loans for the following purchases: cars; houses; and post-secondary education. With these loans come interest rates. Understanding how compound interest works will help you decide whether the loan is affordable or not.
b. Understanding how credit works will help individuals make informed financial decisions.
c. Math topics: cubic regression; exponential growth and decay; linear equations and inequalities; linear regression; measures of central tendency; natural logarithms; percents; quadratic regression; spreadsheets and formulas
VI. Automotive Ownership
a. When purchasing a car; individuals must decide whether to buy or lease a car; and whether it can be new or must be used. They must compare insurance rates and coverage to get the best deal for their budgets and circumstances.
b. Math topics: circles; distance formula; exponential growth and decay; linear and exponential functions; linear equations and inequalities; measures of central tendency; metric system; natural logarithms; percents and proportions; piecewise functions; quartiles; range; read and interpret data; slope; slope-intercept form; spreadsheets and formulas; square root equations; straight line equations; systems of linear equations and inequalities in two variables
VII. Housing and Independent Living
a. Being able to read ads for houses or understand what a realtor is talking about when looking for a place to live is essential.
b. Being able to know the value for your money will help you make the best financial decision when choosing a place to live.
c. Math topics: Area and scale factors; area and irregular regions; bar graphs; exponential regression; greatest integer function; literal expressions; Monte Carlo method; probability; rational and exponential equations; scale drawings; scatter plots and linear regression; spreadsheets and formulas; systems of linear equations and inequalities in two variables
VIII. Investments
a. Knowing the difference between saving and investing is essential to growing wealth.
b. Individuals must compare long-term and short-term investment strategies.
c. You can save money by utilizing various sources of investment information and knowing ways to buy/sell investments.
d. Math topics: candlestick charts; fractions; decimals; and percents; line graphs; linear equations; literal equations; mean; percent increase and decrease; ratios and proportions; simple moving averages; spreadsheets and formulas
Standards:
• Framework 1: A-CED.1; A-CED.2; A-CED.4; A-REI.3; F-BF.1; F-IF.2; F-IF.4; F-IF.7b; F-LE.1; N-VM.6
• Framework 2: A-SSE.1a; A-CED.3; F-BF.1a; F-IF.2; F-IF.7b
• Framework 3: A-SSE.1a; A-SSE.3c; A-CED.4; A-REI.1; F-IF.2; F-IF.7e; F-IF.8b; F-LE.1a
• Framework 4: A-CED.1; A-CED.2; A-CED.4; A-REI.3; N-Q.1; N-Q.2; N-Q.3
• Framework 5: A-SSE.1a; A-SSE.1.b; A-SSE.2; A-SSE.3; F-BF.1a; F-IF.8b; F-LE.4; F-LE.5; N-Q.1; S-ID.6a
• Framework 6: A-SSE.1; A-CED.2; A-CED.3; A-CED.4; A-REI.1; A-REI.2; F-IF.2; F-IF.6; F-IF.7a; F-IF.7b; F-IF.8b; F-LE.5; S-ID.1; S-ID.2
• Framework 7: A-SSE.1; A-CED.2; A-CED.3; A-REI.6; F-BF.1; F-BF.1a; S-ID.6; S-ID.8
• Framework 8: A-SSE.1a; F-IF. 2; F-IF.7; F-IF.7a; N-VM.6; S-MD.5a; S-MD.5b
• The 8 Math Practice Standards are utilized throughout every Framework.

School country

United States

School state

Arizona

School city

Tucson

High school

Palo Verde High Magnet School

School / district Address

1010 E 10th St.

School zip code

85710

Requested competency code

Math

Date submitted

Approved

Yes

Approved competency code

  • MTHA
  • 4 years of Math

Approved date

Online / Virtual

No