Higher Maths :: Post-Exam Discussion :: 2010 :: Did you make it out alive?

Anxiety?

ie close this thread.....its demotivating pepo

...

I would, trust me, but there's people who want to discuss solutions and crap.


I want you to get off this thread, off TSR, off the computer and either put on a film or music or both. Immerse yourself in it. You'll feel the drowsiness come eventually.

Wow really? Okay that just made me feel TONS better. Cheer sfor that!

I probably should.

But the problem is, that it's like I'm waiting for someone to pop out and reassure me that everything is okay. And all that crap. But even at that I know I would argue with them and such and so would feel even more depressed and worried.

It's ****. Very, very ****. But, due to the nature of Highers, if you let one knock you down then it's like the domino effect. I know this is much easier said than done, but you've got to bite the bullet and focus on your next exam (physics, yeah?), and ensure that you make it the complete opposite of maths. This might sound corny, but having a nice thrash about/cry could really release some of the anxiety.

Try your best to forget about it, throw out the papers, don't for the love of god look at the solutions for 2010, put all notes, books etc in a cupboard and chillax. Ok, you may haven't done well, but it isn't going to affect your right now, leave it until August. Just think of all the lovely other grades - and I'm sure you've done fine in maths - which can still get.

Also, a goodnight's sleep will balance your mindset.

I hope I helped a bit, cos I know exactly how you feel.

It's ****. Very, very ****. But, due to the nature of Highers, if you let one knock you down then it's like the domino effect. I know this is much easier said than done, but you've got to bite the bullet and focus on your next exam (physics, yeah?), and ensure that you make it the complete opposite of maths. This might sound corny, but having a nice thrash about/cry could really release some of the anxiety.

Try your best to forget about it, throw out the papers, don't for the love of god look at the solutions for 2010, put all notes, books etc in a cupboard and chillax. Ok, you may haven't done well, but it isn't going to affect your right now, leave it until August. Just think of all the lovely other grades - and I'm sure you've done fine in maths - which can still get.

Also, a goodnight's sleep will balance your mindset.

I hope I helped a bit, cos I know exactly how you feel.

wait, sorry. I misread it on the st Andrews website. It seems to be somehat of a gray area and they don't make it clear at all. I'll phone them up tomorrow and ask.

Aberdeen blatantly tell that you should get an unconditional with 4A's
and a B/5A's and a conditional with less. I haven't checked Dundee or Glasgow but I can't imagine it would be too different. With the exception of Edinburgh, they're all roughly the same standard right?

8root2 is 11.3

And I really doubt you'd lose anything. As long as you didn't use negative in your final area I don't see why they would. All you're doing is determining stationary points on a curve

Grade boundaries vary from year to year. SQA try to get it at 50,60 and 70% for C, B and A respectively. For what ever reason, maths always seems to be higher than this. The reason for the difficult paper 2 may have been to get the marks down to the normal marks. I think its pretty much a certainty you'll get a B, although pretty unlikely you'll get an A. Saying that, it depends how harsh/forgiving you were in your marking.

General commentary on grade boundaries
• While SQA aims to set examinations and create marking instructions which will allow a
competent candidate to score a minimum of 50% of the available marks (the notional C boundary)
and a well prepared, very competent candidate to score at least 70% of the available marks (the
notional A boundary), it is very challenging to get the standard on target every year, in every
subject at every level.
• Each year SQA therefore holds a grade boundary meeting for each subject at each level where it
brings together all the information available (statistical and judgemental). The Principal Assessor
and SQA Qualifications Manager meet with the relevant SQA Business Manager and Statistician
to discuss the evidence and make decisions. The meetings are chaired by members of the
management team at SQA.
• The grade boundaries can be adjusted downwards if there is evidence that the exam is more
challenging than usual, allowing the pass rate to be unaffected by this circumstance.
• The grade boundaries can be adjusted upwards if there is evidence that the exam is less
challenging than usual, allowing the pass rate to be unaffected by this circumstance.
• Where standards are comparable to previous years, similar grade boundaries are maintained.
• An exam paper at a particular level in a subject in one year tends to have a marginally different
set of grade boundaries from exam papers in that subject at that level in other years. This is
because the particular questions, and the mix of questions are different. This is also the case for
exams set in centres. If SQA has already altered a boundary in a particular year in say Higher
Chemistry this does not mean that centres should necessarily alter boundaries in their prelim
exam in Higher Chemistry. The two are not that closely related as they do not contain identical
questions.
• SQA’s main aim is to be fair to candidates across all subjects and all levels and maintain
comparable standards across the years, even as arrangements evolve and change.

Was the exam worse than last years?
I sat the 2009 paper and it was awful!!

I think it was roughly the same. Paper one was easy last year as well as this year but both paper 2's were pretty damn solid. If I had to choose, I'd probably say that this year was slightly harder (not being biased or anything, just imo)

I think it was roughly the same. Paper one was easy last year as well as this year but both paper 2's were pretty damn solid. If I had to choose, I'd probably say that this year was slightly harder (not being biased or anything, just imo)