Combinations no longer required for Ordinary Level Maths
In the new syllabus published in September 2011 combinations have been removed from the ordinary level syllabus .Bernouilli trials are still on.You cannot be asked the definitions of the differen types of data univariate etc . But you must be able to recognise them. Trig equations involving quadratics can be asked but you have to be guided through them.
Proofs of Junior cert Theorems cannot be asked !
Geometry and Project Maths (what not to study)
Many students and teachers are concerned about what geometry they must study for leaving cert Project Maths .
The following is a reply received from the SEC which clarifies the matter and should help teachers decide on what Geometry to cover.
The NCCA and the support service have received some enquiries on this matter. Accordingly, the NCCA has answered as follows on their website, and the support service have a link to the same text:
What synthetic geometry is required for Leaving Cert Maths candidates in 2012, 2013 and 2014 who opt for the alternative problem-solving question as provided for in Section 2.1 of the Leaving Cert Maths syllabus (page 22)?
For all candidates, whether opting for the synthetic geometry question based on section 2.1 (page 22) or the alternative question of a problem-solving nature, ‘knowledge of the geometrical results from the corresponding syllabus level at Junior Certificate is assumed’ – as stated in the introduction to Strand 2 on page 21 of the syllabus. For students sitting Leaving Certificate in 2012, 2013 and 2014, this refers to the geometry in the JC Maths syllabus they followed at junior cycle i.e. the revised syllabus which was introduced in 2000.
Knowledge from that syllabus at Junior Cert. together with the remainder of the Leaving Certificate Strand 2 (i.e. not including the new material of Section 2.1), can be expected to form the basis for contexts and problems associated with Strand 2 that may arise in Section B of the examination paper at Leaving Cert over the same period of years.
The SEC will ensure that the examinations conform to the above. It may be noted that there is no stated or implied commitment in the documentation to the location of this choice on the examination paper. However, it may safely be assumed that it will occur in Section A.
I trust that this clarifies the matter.
Kind regards,
SEC
What this means is that for Higher level Students the new geometry (Syllabus 2.1 Theorems,constructions,definitions)can only be examine in Question 6A and nowhere else on the paper .It is therefor possible to ignore all the new Geometry and just revise the Junior Cert Higher geometry. This will save a couple of weeks teaching geometry .It also means that questions on the centroid,orthocentre,cannot be asked except in Q6A Enlargements are not part of 2.1 therefore they must be covered.
For Ordinary level students just ignore the new geometry(Constructions,Definitions,knowledge of what the new theorems say) and practice Junior Cert Ordinary Geometry problems Note you cannot be asked to prove any theorems .
This is good news for all leaving cert students and teachers .
Project Maths Solutions Now available
Project maths solutions now available for both Higher and Ord level just click the link below .
http://www.leavingcertsolutions.com/mall/leavingcertsolutions/products/product-2412839.stm
Making Project Maths Results look good !
Analysis of the Leaving cert higher results for the last 10 years show that the average mark (mean mark) is 67% with a standard deviation of 16% .The mean has not changed by more than 1% in all that time and the standard deviation has varied by less than 1% .
Analysis of the Leaving Cert H project maths for 2011 .
The average mark (mean mark) is 70.2% with a standard deviation of 12.87 .
Indicating that most people doing project maths did a lot better than those doing the regular exam .
Despite the fact that most students could not make head or tail of paper 1!
Interesting !
Project maths results credible ?
Extract from the SEC report on Project maths
LCH 2011 (project Maths) 90% get an honour (ABC) < 1% fail .
LCH2011 Higher maths regular paper 80% get (ABC) , > 3% fail
LCOrd 2011 (project maths) 76% get an honour (ABC) <7% fail
LCOrd (2011) regular paper 69% get (ABC) ,10% fail.
Marks awarded for project maths questions up to 50% higher than similiar questions on regular papers .
See the following example
Question 4a; Project Maths LC H 2011 for writing down the scale factor students were awarded 15 marks .
Leaving cert (Ordinary Level ) regular exam Q4c(i)2011 (yes 2011) for writing down the scale factor students were awarded 5marks. In leaving cert Ord 2005 and 2007 5 marks were awarded for writing down the scale factor.
Project maths students get 3 times as many marks as regular LC students for the same answer!
New Project maths Solution Books available soon!
Two new Solution Books for Ord and Higher maths available now.
Each Solution Book will contain
(i)Solutions of all SEC sample Papers 2010,2011 .
(ii)All NCCA Sample papers 2010,2011.
(iii) All actual exam papers 2010 (paper 2) 2011 (paper 1 and 2)
(iii)The “must know “files
(iv)The new syllabus and what is gone from the old syllabus)
Concern growing in Pilot schools
Project maths.com Has been informed of the huge concern in the pilot schools concerning the 2011 HMaths(project) exam .The fuss over the regular HM paper 1 totally eclipsed any comment from the pilot schools .
All the principals of Pilot schools have been in contact with each other and all have written to the the SEC to complain about Papers 1 and 2 .The JMB have become involved .Individual parents have been urged to write to the SEC to let them know how their children were disadvantaged .
In a local pilot school 2 students who have been offered places in Cambridge which depend on them getting an A1 in higher maths are now sure that they will not get an A1 .Another student who had been offered a place in a medical school in the UK needed an A1 which he knows he will not get ,all three students said if they had taken the regular paper they were likely to get an A1 . In another Dublin pilot school the principal advised all students to write to the SEC to complain about the HL Project maths papers .
We have today been given information by a corrector of the regular HLCmaths that “they are already messing with the marking scheme”.We will be in a position to give updates on how the marking scheme is being manipulated
Let us be very clear there is no way the results of the project maths Hpapers 1 and 2 will be statistically the same as the regular LCH maths unless the marking scheme is seriously compromised !
As in 2010 the regular students will be sacrificed to make the project results look good !
The Minister Quinn must intervene before the reputation of maths in Ireland is ruined
Compare and Contrast project Maths P1 v Regular maths P1
Simple question
Was it easier to get the 1st 100 marks in Project Maths H paper 1 or the Regular Maths P1
No question about it the first 4 Pmaths questions (100 marks) were barely Ord level standard .
very unfair on the rest of the regular students
SEC sample and Actual papers compare and contrast
If you click on the link below you will the latest information as to what or what not can be asked on the LCH project maths paper 1 .
Also we give the layout of the two SEC sample papers and the SEC 2010 actual paper .
Note the layout for 2011 is different than that of 2010 SKMBT_60002062210110
Junior Cert Higher Mock Paper another disaster from the NCCA
Following on from the diastrous LC Project Maths mock papers comes the mock Junior cert H Paper set by the NCCA. Does anybody in the NCCA project maths committe know anything about maths? Is anybody watching what is produced in the sample papers? The Junior cert Higher Maths mock is another example of sloppy work and basic errors.