Mathematics

Assessment

All of our A-level mathematicians study compulsory content in pure and applied mathematics. Applied mathematics is split in equal proportion between mechanics and statistics, and the overall balance between pure mathematics and applications is 2:1. In applied mathematics, you learn how to simplify the complexity of the real world without losing the ability to make accurate, justifiable predictions about its behaviour. As mechanics is the study of the laws that describe motion and stasis, you learn to apply Newtonian principles to answer questions such as ‘at what angle should I kick a football to attain the greatest range?’ or ‘Why does my stomach lurch when a lift comes to a stop?’ Statistics is the drawing of inferences in the presence of uncertainty. If you flip a coin 10 times and it lands on tails every time, would you say the coin is biased? How certain can you be when making such a statement? You will learn to use probability to answer such questions and develop the statistics you have learnt at GCSE, discovering new ways of analysing data to compare populations. There is no course work and you sit all examinations at the end of Year 13. Your assessment takes the form of three papers – one in pure mathematics and mechanics, one in pure mathematics and statistics, and one in pure mathematics with comprehension. We are keen to support you at all stages, so help with homework is always available and we run four weekly Maths clinics at lunchtime and after school, every week of the year.