With Jerome Kaufmann's successful "conceptual" approach, students get a better foundation for understanding algebra: they learn to use concepts to make connections between mathematics and real-world problems. Focusing on and reinforcing problem solving throughout, Kaufmann helps students learn to analyze a word problem by approaching it logically and extracting all its essential mathematical components so that the process of solving a problem can be approached with ease. Kaufmann's proven approach of "learn a skill," then "use a skill to solve equations and inequalities," and finally, "use equations and inequalities to solve word problems" helps students apply their newly learned skills immediately for better comprehension and retention. He uses the same approach in his highly successful developmental mathematics texts.