Students were given old and new tricks on how to face those mind-boggling math problems at a workshop Wednesday.

The Learning Center sponsored the “Solve Your Math Problems Workshop”, in the learning center at 5 p.m Wednesday in Ninth Street Hall.

Mark May, assistant director of the Learning Center, lead the workshop explaining why people have problems passing their math classes.

“”The number one reason why people fail their class is because they don’t keep up with the math problems and procedures taught,” May said.

He said students don’t do the homework so they don’t realize they don’t know how to solve the problem until they get to the test.

“Ninty nine percent of the time, the problems that you go over in the class or that you have on your homework is what will be on the test,” May said.

“The best way to study for a math test is pull out problems from the book, make up your own test and then grade it after you have finished it to find out where you are having problems.”

May said that the second most common problem with college students and math is they have forgotten the mathematical terms that are used.

“When a math problem asks you to give them the product, quotient or perimeter and you must know what it means before you can attempt to figure out the formula,” he said.

May said students have to be willing to go over some of the things from their basic math classes they have had in the past in order to handle their current math courses.

Tenesia Crowder, a freshman family and consumer sciences major said she hasn’t taken math since her “junior year in high school.”

She said the math workshop put her back into the mode of how to work strategically when doing a math problem.

May cautioned all of the students to use the tutors available and not to be afraid to ask their professor when they feel problems to surface in their class.