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Help with maths A level

I have just finished year 11 and will be doing ocr maths A level as one of my subjects in september. However looking at the exams they look so difficult and I'm getting a little worried.Can anyone tell me how the jump from gcse to A level was and what you think of each unit. How longdid it take to adjust to the new level of maths?
Reply 1
If you did further maths GCSE, then there is no jump up.
If you didn't it still isn't too bad, as long as you put in the work, focus in class, and have some aptitude for maths.

Of course the exams are going to look difficult, though, you haven't been taught the content yet :wink:

C1 - easiest unit, make sure you fully understand it and even the difficult exams for this unit will be easy
C2 - yet again, not all too bad. Requires you to be confident at rearranging equations. Make sure you understand it all and it won't be too bad

I don't know which applied unit you will be doing (S1, M1 or D1), but S1 isn't hard, just confusing. D1 is also very easy, just requires you to know some algorithms, and there is a lot more of a time constraint on this exam than any of the other AS exams.
(edited 7 years ago)
The jump is certainly significant, but if you're an A/A* student you should have little difficulty. The best way to bridge that gap is to do Additional Maths GCSE, and perhaps familiarise yourself with C1 topics before the term.

Any kind of exam technique will need to be overhauled (I remember passing GCSE maths on no sleep or revision and getting As, didn't happen in A-level), and A-levels demand a lot more understanding than GCSEs. You'll probably like Core units, you might not like Statistics units. ExamSolutions and PhysicsAndMathsTutor are invaluable resources for STEM subject self-teaching
Original post by Gogregg
If you did further maths GCSE, then there is no jump up.
If you didn't it still isn't too bad, as long as you put in the work, focus in class, and have some aptitude for maths.

Of course the exams are going to look difficult, though, you haven't been taught the content yet :wink:

C1 - easiest unit, make sure you fully understand it and even the difficult exams for this unit will be easy
C2 - yet again, not all too bad. Requires you to be confident at rearranging equations. Make sure you understand it all and it won't be too bad

I don't know which applied unit you will be doing (S1, M1 or D1), but S1 isn't hard, just confusing. D1 is also very easy, just requires you to know some algorithms, and there is a lot more of a time constraint on this exam than any of the other AS exams.

Thanks but how could I preapare for c1 and c2?
Original post by Rather_Cynical
The jump is certainly significant, but if you're an A/A* student you should have little difficulty. The best way to bridge that gap is to do Additional Maths GCSE, and perhaps familiarise yourself with C1 topics before the term.

Any kind of exam technique will need to be overhauled (I remember passing GCSE maths on no sleep or revision and getting As, didn't happen in A-level), and A-levels demand a lot more understanding than GCSEs. You'll probably like Core units, you might not like Statistics units. ExamSolutions and PhysicsAndMathsTutor are invaluable resources for STEM subject self-teaching


Thanjs for the advixe but woukd you recommend getting a textbook and a private tutor?
I don't think a private tutor is necessary, ExamSolutions is so comprehensive and step-by-step that you can learn quite well on his YouTube lessons alone. I'll send you a few resources on pm, which exam board are you with?
It will be fine! I did not find much of a jump between them and I think as long as you try and understand and work on the content from the beginning there should be no issues!
You will start with core 1 which helps bridge the gap from GCSE to A level it will have GCSE content and some A level content added in. It is the easiest one and that's why it's a the first one.
Core 2 is the other main AS module (which you have to do) in C2 you will be introduced to differentiation, integration and logs. It's not too difficult as long as you work hard to try and understand these concepts as there are built on in A2! There are some GCSE topics such as bearings too.
The third module you have to take is an applied module which is a either mechanics 1, statistics 1 and decision 1. Which one you do will depend on the school.
Reply 7
Original post by Butterflyshy
Thanks but how could I preapare for c1 and c2?


I wouldn't say there's much point doing any preparation over summer, you'll go over it all in class anyway with plenty of time, and there's less chance of confusion that way.

If you really want to do some prep, then use examsolutions.net and start looking at some of the content, maybe get a feel for it, but there's really no point in doing this.
Original post by Butterflyshy
I have just finished year 11 and will be doing ocr maths A level as one of my subjects in september. However looking at the exams they look so difficult and I'm getting a little worried.Can anyone tell me how the jump from gcse to A level was and what you think of each unit. How longdid it take to adjust to the new level of maths?


I just wrote an article on that last week! http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/content.php?r=26318-What-s-the-difference-between-GCSE-and-A-level-maths :smile:

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