Is IGCSE Economics hard?

I've finished my year 9 and i've chosen my options already, I chose Economics and many of my friends that have done year 10-11 say that it is hard and it takes a lot of effort to receive an A*, because apparently in econ it is an imperative to use the correct economic terminology for everything. Is it really hard?

Reply 1

MouseyBrown

Original post by adityac3688

I don't think it is that hard, but a lot of people tend to say that you either 'get' economics or not; so may be I (hopefully) do, but others would say it is more difficult.

A lot of it just makes sense. You need to know the terminology and all that, but it's not so hard - just keep your eyes on public affairs etc. as well and it soon sticks in your head.

I'll probably get an F now I said that!

Reply 2

pbunny

Original post by adityac3688

I agree with the above user. Economics was never particularly hard for me. I had a rubbish teacher and still managed to do well. Economics is a conceptual subject so you need to *understand* things (especially for macroeconomics and microeconomics/international) as you can only get away with rote memorisation with the development chapter and definitions (which are of the utmost importance, you literally get 2-3 marks for definitions alone). Just read over the textbook (recommend the oxford one) several times and if you don't understand things ask your teacher to explain things. I'm sure you'll do fine. And if you are interested I can PM you all my IGCSE Economics notes. If you study from them and understand everything I can assure you that you'll get an A or A*.

Reply 3

adityac3688

Original post by pbunny

Thanks a looot once! :smile:

It would be great help if you could PM me the IGCSE Economics notes, i'd like to start preparing for my new courses early, Once again thanks a lot for the great advice!

Reply 4

keynes24

Original post by adityac3688

It is harder than the regular GCSE Economics. The CIE IGCSE Economics is also significantly harder than the Edexcel equivalent. To get an A* you need to get around 75% with Edexcel. Structure of the paper doesn't change (Q1 and 2 Micro Q3 and Q4 Macro) but the tricky parts are the questions that require 2 sided analysis and conclusion. The syllabus covers quite a lot of things so there is a lot of content to remember. Public affairs are not tested in either IGCSE paper but it helps as part of general knowledge.

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 5

wyf101

Original post by pbunny

which oxford textbook do you mean?

Reply 6

pbunny

Original post by wyf101

which oxford textbook do you mean?

https://global.oup.com/education/content/secondary/series/complete-economics/?region=international
http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Economics-Cambridge-IGCSERG-O-level/dp/0199129584/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1416332281&sr=1-1&keywords=complete+economics+for+cambridge+igcse+and+o+level+second+edition&pebp=1416332286687

Reply 7

wyf101

Original post by pbunny

thanks!

btw does economics involve a lot of maths?

Reply 8

pbunny

Original post by wyf101

thanks!

btw does economics involve a lot of maths?

Your question is quite ambiguous! If you're referring to IGCSE economics then no there is barely any maths. The only maths you'll do is calculate demand/supply/elasticity/unemployment/costs. It's honestly not much and it's very basic math so if you're worried that you'll struggle with the maths portion, don't worry it piss easy.