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is it possible to be too stupid for further maths?

basically - im not doing too good at maths right now in school due to missed years - due to mental health.
i really wish to change this in the future. taking maths at a-level is something id like to do, but i was considering further maths as well. is it even possible to be too stupid for further maths?

ig what i mean is if someone isnt naturally good at maths, but still enjoys it, is it worth taking it? it would be horrible to take it and then realise i'm no good and have to drop it for a different subject.
Original post by gxllenfilm
basically - im not doing too good at maths right now in school due to missed years - due to mental health.
i really wish to change this in the future. taking maths at a-level is something id like to do, but i was considering further maths as well. is it even possible to be too stupid for further maths?

ig what i mean is if someone isnt naturally good at maths, but still enjoys it, is it worth taking it? it would be horrible to take it and then realise i'm no good and have to drop it for a different subject.

What year are you in? Some people are not good at maths. No matter how hard they try they would never succeed with maths A level let alone further maths. So the answer to your original question is that yes there are definitely some people who should not even consider further maths A level. You will usually only be accepted for further maths with a very good GCSE grade - at least a 7 and at my school an 8. If your hard work delivers an excellent GCSE grade then with hard work there is no reason why you can't do the same with Maths and Further Maths A levels. What do you see yourself doing after A levels? Is further maths required?
(edited 1 year ago)
Reply 2
Original post by gxllenfilm
basically - im not doing too good at maths right now in school due to missed years - due to mental health.
i really wish to change this in the future. taking maths at a-level is something id like to do, but i was considering further maths as well. is it even possible to be too stupid for further maths?

ig what i mean is if someone isnt naturally good at maths, but still enjoys it, is it worth taking it? it would be horrible to take it and then realise i'm no good and have to drop it for a different subject.


When you say "missed years", how much content have you missed? Maths is a "foundational subject" i.e. higher-level content builds on lower-level knowledge and skills. If you've missed GCSE content then you'll really struggle with A level, and if you struggle with normal A level then FM is a big no-no.

Only take Maths if you've got a solid background and enjoy it - don't take it for the wrong reasons or because you feel you should. And as per the other poster, what are your long-term ambitions - is Maths even required for what you want to do?
Reply 3
Original post by gxllenfilm
basically - im not doing too good at maths right now in school due to missed years - due to mental health.
i really wish to change this in the future. taking maths at a-level is something id like to do, but i was considering further maths as well. is it even possible to be too stupid for further maths?

ig what i mean is if someone isnt naturally good at maths, but still enjoys it, is it worth taking it? it would be horrible to take it and then realise i'm no good and have to drop it for a different subject.


try these self study further maths videos, they're honestly so good
https://amsp.org.uk/resource/fm-videos

if u bascially go through the year 1 course over the summer before you even look at it in school you should be fine. You might need more time to get some concepts, but if u start early and are organised you can totally do well in A level further maths
Reply 4
Original post by davros
When you say "missed years", how much content have you missed? Maths is a "foundational subject" i.e. higher-level content builds on lower-level knowledge and skills. If you've missed GCSE content then you'll really struggle with A level, and if you struggle with normal A level then FM is a big no-no.

Only take Maths if you've got a solid background and enjoy it - don't take it for the wrong reasons or because you feel you should. And as per the other poster, what are your long-term ambitions - is Maths even required for what you want to do?


a lot. didnt do year 6, year 7, year 8, year 9, or yrear10. barely scraping by with gcse right now.
maths is required - engineering and or computer science.
Reply 5
Original post by gxllenfilm
a lot. didnt do year 6, year 7, year 8, year 9, or yrear10. barely scraping by with gcse right now.
maths is required - engineering and or computer science.


oh my god how?? I'm sorry you were out of school for so long
Reply 6
Original post by rebelw
oh my god how?? I'm sorry you were out of school for so long


haha, just a lot and a lot of untreated depression and anxiety. no need to apologise lmao
Reply 7
Original post by gxllenfilm
haha, just a lot and a lot of untreated depression and anxiety. no need to apologise lmao


as an 11 year old?
Reply 8
Original post by rebelw
as an 11 year old?


yep! my mental health issues started very early.
Reply 9
Original post by gxllenfilm
a lot. didnt do year 6, year 7, year 8, year 9, or yrear10. barely scraping by with gcse right now.
maths is required - engineering and or computer science.


So do you have your GCSE or are you studying for it at the moment? With that amount of schooling lost you're going to need to get up to a solid 8 or 9 grade at GCSE before even contemplating A level :smile:
Original post by gxllenfilm
basically - im not doing too good at maths right now in school due to missed years - due to mental health.
i really wish to change this in the future. taking maths at a-level is something id like to do, but i was considering further maths as well. is it even possible to be too stupid for further maths?

ig what i mean is if someone isnt naturally good at maths, but still enjoys it, is it worth taking it? it would be horrible to take it and then realise i'm no good and have to drop it for a different subject.

As someone who is in her 4th year of a maths degree: No I don't think anyone is too stupid for maths. I just think that it can take some people longer to consolidate the same information. I'd a friend who did really well at GCSE (because she had a crush on the teacher and so went to all his revision sessions) and got at A-Level for Maths. She dropped after a month or two, because she realised it was taking literally all her time to keep up and it was at the detriment to her other subjects.

There's also the fact that maths, perhaps more than any other subject, builds upon itself. If you have gaps, it can bring your whole understanding crumbling down. Now, if you attend to these gaps and fill them in then you should have no issues. The best way to do this would be to ask your teachers for personal learning checklists, and for topic tests to see where you're at, and then go and work on the things you don't understand. There are loads of online resources you can turn to, and teachers love it when a student is taking their learning into their own hands and really going for it so will be more than happy to help.

I would say, to know if you could do FM, you need to know truly how quick you are at understanding maths. That will be the limiting factor. You can't know this until you smooth over any gaps you have (and working independently to fill those will give you a good feeling for it.)

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