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A level Maths should be awarded extra Ucas points

I saw this item on the Irish Examiner today and wondered what you all thought about the scheme.

http://www.irishexaminer.com/breaking/story.asp?j=239564759&p=z3956567x&n=239565693&x=

Academics in Ireland believe that students who are applying to University to study Mathematics, and who have got the top grades at A Level, should get an extra 40 points added to their total score because of the extra effort involved in studying such a demanding subject!

Opinions please, from both mathematicians and others. :smile:

Reply 1

brimstone

7

Pathetic... Maths may be hard in the eyes of some but not for all. This is just discrimination against those not taking 'harder' subjects, yet again.
:p:

Reply 2

~Bex~

14

I haven't read the article, but from what you've said, it makes no sense, because if you're applying for mathematics, everyone applying will have a level maths, so everyone applying will get the extra ucas points, so it would make no difference whatsoever.

Reply 3

fblade

14

Yes maths is hard, but if you practice at it you can get better at it, however for subjects like english, history other subjects related you hvae to have a certain skills to pass the subject, they should be the ones getting the extra points.

though i do maths and i wudnt mind the extra points :biggrin:

Reply 4

A Shining Light

Reply 5

Biffy Clyro

12

Maths A level isn't really that hard for those who are looking to go into a Maths related course at Uni.

I only need 30% in my last exam to get an A, and others in my class need 20%. Many more people have a high A in Maths than any other subject at my school.

An A at Physics however... should get you 600 ucas points alone :p:

Reply 6

stratomaster

People studying Alevel sciences and maths should get double Ucas points :p:

Reply 7

username51312

15

A level math is easy, but if you want to study math at uni you have to do futher math which is really hard (and i think it is much more harder than any subject at A level) and i think futher math should be counted as two subjects =)

Reply 8

tomdav

10

Rubbish, subjects such as History are just as demanding in their own field.

Reply 9

db

17

they are referring to Irish Higher Level Maths, not A-Level.

In the Irish system the course content would be different than that in A-Level, which really isn't any harder than any other subject. I don't know how you canjustify giving certain A-Levels more points than others.

and yes, I did A-Level Maths before the flaimng begins :rolleyes:

Reply 10

kellywood_5

17

I dropped maths after GCSE, but I don't see why certain A-levels should be awarded more points than others. Maths is just like any other subject- hard for some people, easy for others.

Reply 11

ImperceptibleNinja

13

Heck, if you lot get extra points for your A-Level Maths, I certainly want more points for my Advanced Higher Maths.

However, I don't see why Maths should get more points than any other subject - it depends on the individual, as many people have pointed out. But if they want to give me more points, I won't be complaining too loudly.

Reply 12

~CAROLINE~

11

Its just a joke why should just this 1 subject get more points! Its just more of the constant ranking of difficulty of subjects! Its just not necessary, I dont do maths so i cant really make a judgement on that subject, but all the subjects should get the same credit cos at the end of the day u have to work in any subject to get an A! No-one can say oh they do x and y therefore they worked harder and deserve more ucas points!

Reply 13

wave_o_mutilation

1

in a sense, maths IS given extra weight. unis prefer people who take 'real' subjects than people who take media or psych, for example.

Reply 14

twiga

15

This is a load of rubbish and will just turn into another tedious debate over which are the hardest subjects at a-level.

Reply 15

halfoflessthan50p

12

Biffy Clyro

Maths A level isn't really that hard for those who are looking to go into a Maths related course at Uni.

I only need 30% in my last exam to get an A, and others in my class need 20%. Many more people have a high A in Maths than any other subject at my school.

An A at Physics however... should get you 600 ucas points alone :p:

This is a ridiculous idea. Maths is the easiest subject i do without a doubt and I have no idea why it has a reputation for being hard. They've already cut the syllabus by 1/3 to make it easier. I spent one day revising M2 and got an A theres just so few topics, its easy to master them. And Im not a maths genious (i struggled with GCSE maths)

People have different strengths and saying that someone whos good with numbers deserves more UCAS points than someone who can draw is stupid.

Yes, if anything Physics and Chemistry deserve some bonus points. One requires a really broad knowledge and amazing later thinking skills. The other requires a memory like a computer

Reply 16

Swayum

18

No, if ANYTHING it should be Greek.

Reply 17

yawn

OP

17

I have read the link again, more closely this time. :wink:

Not only is there the perception that Maths and other sciences require more effort, but less than 20% of students took the higher level paper this year in Ireland.

So, if we had the same situation here where there was a big drop in the numbers taking double maths or sciences, should there be an incentive (by way of loading and extra Ucas points) to entice a bigger uptake?

Bear in mind we have already seen uni chemistry courses closing in this country because of a drop in applicant numbers.

Reply 18

yawn

OP

17

halfoflessthan50p

This is a ridiculous idea. Maths is the easiest subject i do without a doubt and I have no idea why it has a reputation for being hard. They've already cut the syllabus by 1/3 to make it easier. I spent one day revising M2 and got an A theres just so few topics, its easy to master them. And Im not a maths genious (i struggled with GCSE maths)

Wow - my brother did Maths and Further Maths A levels in 2003 and his Maths text books standing in a pile measured nearly a metre tall!

They must have cut the syllabus drastically - or has it just been 'merged'?

I really can't see the Dfes (for 14-19 stage) being able to cut out whole topics from the syllabus since undergraduates would be starting their degrees with only a limited knowledge of their subject.

Reply 19

Profesh

20

zys209

A level math is easy, but if you want to study math at uni you have to do futher math which is really hard (and i think it is much more harder than any subject at A level) and i think futher math should be counted as two subjects =)

Not English Language?

A level Maths should be awarded extra Ucas points

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