Which operation should be performed first according to the order of operations?44 • 2 – [(5 + 20 • 3) – 12] + 16 ÷ 2
a.44 • 2
b.5 + 20
c.20 • 3
d.16 ÷ 2

Hey there!

The order of operations is as follows:

P-Parentheses E- Exponents M- Multiplication D-Division A- Addition S- Subtraction

Therefore, we go inside the parentheses first. In the parentheses, we follow the order of operations again, so we do multiplication first. This means we compute 20 * 3 first.

Your answer is C.

Hope this helps!