The Student Room Group
Reply 1
Mathswatch CD
Its amazing, got me through, got me A* in mock & real gcse :biggrin:

Also do bare in mind that
although an A* is generally 80%
It can go up/down
For instance in my mock an A* was 80%
in my REAL gcse it was 90% , or so my teacher says. So don't be complacent about achieving whatever grade, work hard, print out lists of topics & KEEP going over them.
Reply 2
Jeneewenz
Mathswatch CD
Its amazing, got me through, got me A* in mock & real gcse :biggrin:

Also do bare in mind that
although an A* is generally 80%
It can go up/down
For instance in my mock an A* was 80%
in my REAL gcse it was 90% , or so my teacher says. So don't be complacent about achieving whatever grade, work hard, print out lists of topics & KEEP going over them.


90%?!? Thats ridiculous to be honest.

What is mathswatch?
This is good advice. I'm retaking my maths GCSE and my teacher has put me on the higher paper (shock as I've never been on the higher paper except for English) I will also look into that CD. Thank you :smile:
Reply 4
Yeah MathsWatch maybe as well as revision guides, practice papers and past papers shoudl really help :smile:
Reply 5
Mymaths.co.uk isn't too bad either. You need a login number you're school probably has one.
90% for Maths in the real GCSE doesnt seem odd, for my exams this year, the boundary came DOWN to 86% so it may well go up but it would never go below 80%

Just work hard and don't focus on grades!!!!! Do your best, thats all you can do
Why on earth are you re-sitting an A at GCSE?
Reply 8
TheMeister
Why on earth are you re-sitting an A at GCSE?
Do you feel that you lack so many desirable characteristics that you think that GCSEs will help re-enforce your other good ones?


Haha, no I've been told by the school that I have to.
Reply 9
toblerone93
Just a quick question really.

In past papers I keep getting around 70%, but I would obviously like to get an A Star in Maths but can never manage that 80%(ish).

Any tips on how to revise or tips in general for maths would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks :biggrin:

EDIT: Taking in November


If your finishing your paper way before the 2 hours are up then that may be your problem

go slowly through the paper making sure your checking as you go along as opposed to waiting to go through it at the end, this way you spot mistakes intstantly

this can make all the difference, i had the same problem and i was getting 69% and other marks much lower than what i wanted (within 90% boundary for secure A*) i went slowly and started to get 80% and then 90% 94% 96% even 100%. it really makes all the difference, and i got my A* :smile:

hope this helps :smile:
What specification are you taking? I took the AQA Maths Pilot, its only 2 exams, 'Data handling' and 'number' (1/3 of marks, out of 100 UMS), 'Shapes, Space and measure', and "Algebra" (2/3 of marks, out of 200 UMS) so out of 300 lol. I've taken the Data Handling + number exam already and so far I have 90/100, and taking the shapes, space, measure and algebra exam in june. Then we're doing another GCSE in year 11 lol.
toblerone93
Haha, no I've been told by the school that I have to.

Fair enough.
Reply 12
toblerone93
90%?!? Thats ridiculous to be honest.

What is mathswatch?


Yep, i was shocked too, throughout the WHOLE gcse period i was confident i'd get an A*, cos i thought it was 80% for it and i got 87% in my mock .... so i was like, yeah, i'll get it, should do.
But i ended up getting 92% in the real exam, so not much into an a*. I don't get why it was so high :s-smilie: I was actually so shocked. But then again this is just one exam board, you may not be doing the same one, also remember the boundaries do go up and down according to the difficulty of the paper.
Maths watch is a CD that has like clips of everything you need to know, its brilliant, go on the website and see how u can get hold of one.
If u can't get one, i'd advise just working your way through the topics (in your own time).
If you're decent at maths, and start working through now, theres every chance you'll get an A*. I think a lot of people overestimate how hard it is TBH. Maths gcse is pretty straightforward once you just learn everything you need to know. I know, easier said then done. But its really not particularly difficult, just make sure you know it ALL. Basic rules & formulas. You have ages to go through the course plenty of times, but don't leave it too late (and this applies for all of your subjects).
Having a tutor helps too, in my opinion.
Reply 13
Jeneewenz
Yep, i was shocked too, throughout the WHOLE gcse period i was confident i'd get an A*, cos i thought it was 80% for it and i got 87% in my mock .... so i was like, yeah, i'll get it, should do.
But i ended up getting 92% in the real exam, so not much into an a*. I don't get why it was so high :s-smilie: I was actually so shocked. But then again this is just one exam board, you may not be doing the same one, also remember the boundaries do go up and down according to the difficulty of the paper.
Maths watch is a CD that has like clips of everything you need to know, its brilliant, go on the website and see how u can get hold of one.
If u can't get one, i'd advise just working your way through the topics (in your own time).
If you're decent at maths, and start working through now, theres every chance you'll get an A*. I think a lot of people overestimate how hard it is TBH. Maths gcse is pretty straightforward once you just learn everything you need to know. I know, easier said then done. But its really not particularly difficult, just make sure you know it ALL. Basic rules & formulas. You have ages to go through the course plenty of times, but don't leave it too late (and this applies for all of your subjects).
Having a tutor helps too, in my opinion.


Thanks for the advice - MathsWatch is GREAT!!

Just out of interest, what exam board did you take?
Reply 14
I THINK it was Ocr.
Can't be sure though.
Reply 15
Jeneewenz
I THINK it was Ocr.
Can't be sure though.


Cheers for all your help. I'm doing AQA.
keep on trying those pesky past papers
Reply 17
Take the time to check as you go along. Don't bother waiting until the end to go through the paper as in my experience, this isn't that productive.

As the above poster says, keep doing past papers and make sure you are aware of where you are going wrong and the areas you need to improve.
Reply 18
MAKE A MATHS BOOK or just buy tons of revission guides.. nt much yu cn d or maybe theres a specific topic your not very good at..

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