This is the first of a two-volume trig and precalculus tutor. How much of the class this covers depends on your school's curriculum. In my college, the precalculus class started with a review of algebra, then went into the material on angles, finding the trig functions of the angles using triangles and the unit circle (which this volume covers), then went on to the more advanced material like solving trig equations and the like which Jason covers in the Trig and Precalculus Tutor volume 2. This volume starts out with complex numbers, exponential and logarithmic functions, then gets into the material on angles, triangles, trig functions, and then ends on trig identities. So, in my pre-calc class, this would get through about the first exam. Depending on your school, the early sections may have been covered in college algebra, so you kind of have to pay attention to your class syllabus and then figure out which DVDs cover what parts of the class. Between Jason's algebra 2, advanced algebra, and two volumes of trig/pre-calc, you get about 95% of the material that you would see in combination college algebra and trig class, or a split up college algebra class and pre-calc class. Really, the only main subjects you would get in those classes that Jason does not cover in any of the DVDs are the conic functions and their graphs, and partial fractions (although he does cover partial fractions in the calculus DVDs).
I personally feel that Jason's teaching style is great. He goes through everything step-by-step, and rarely ever skips steps. When he does skip steps he will usually say so, and it is because the example he is working through uses the same process that several earlier examples have used. He does occasionally make mistakes. Sometimes they get corrected in post-production, and sometimes he will say while working out the problem that he made an error and fixes it as he goes. He also gives a lot of good problem-solving tips that really help. Specifically, on this set, one of the biggest is a "tree" that you can write in the corner of your paper to help you remember the trig functions and their inverses.
Like with his other DVDs you have to balance some considerations. First, he is just standing in front of a whiteboard doing problems. So, your learning style has to mesh with that. Second, you obviously cannot interact with him and ask questions as he is working out the problems like you could with a live tutor. But, the cost of the DVD is a lot less than a couple of sessions with a tutor unless your school provides them for free. But, I personally think the way Jason explains the material is as good or better than many of the teachers I had and a lot better than the explanations in the textbook. He provides just enough of the theory to understand the concepts and then just spends the bulk of the time working through problems. So, if that fits your learning style, this is definitely worth picking up, as long as you understand that it is a supplement to class, not a replacement for going to class. If you just rely on this and skip class because you think you will know everything from class, you will probably be in for a rude awakening after your first test. But, if you use it as intended, it will absolutely help you.
I personally feel that Jason's teaching style is great. He goes through everything step-by-step, and rarely ever skips steps. When he does skip steps he will usually say so, and it is because the example he is working through uses the same process that several earlier examples have used. He does occasionally make mistakes. Sometimes they get corrected in post-production, and sometimes he will say while working out the problem that he made an error and fixes it as he goes. He also gives a lot of good problem-solving tips that really help. Specifically, on this set, one of the biggest is a "tree" that you can write in the corner of your paper to help you remember the trig functions and their inverses.
Like with his other DVDs you have to balance some considerations. First, he is just standing in front of a whiteboard doing problems. So, your learning style has to mesh with that. Second, you obviously cannot interact with him and ask questions as he is working out the problems like you could with a live tutor. But, the cost of the DVD is a lot less than a couple of sessions with a tutor unless your school provides them for free. But, I personally think the way Jason explains the material is as good or better than many of the teachers I had and a lot better than the explanations in the textbook. He provides just enough of the theory to understand the concepts and then just spends the bulk of the time working through problems. So, if that fits your learning style, this is definitely worth picking up, as long as you understand that it is a supplement to class, not a replacement for going to class. If you just rely on this and skip class because you think you will know everything from class, you will probably be in for a rude awakening after your first test. But, if you use it as intended, it will absolutely help you.
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