Mathematics

Mathematics is the most studied of all A Level subjects, both here at King Edward’s and nationally. Not only is it a challenging and interesting subject to get involved in, it gives students the skills and knowledge to access a wide range of courses for further study. So, not only will it help you get where you’re going, the journey itself is part of the attraction. The more maths you know, the better it gets!

There are two types of A Level Mathematics courses on offer at Sixth Form, Mathematics and Further Mathematics. Both courses follow the OCR B (MEI) linear specification.

Course Overview

These courses have been developed by Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI) and are assessed by OCR. This is a well-established partnership that provides a firm foundation for curriculum and qualification development.

The specifications;

• Encourage students to develop a deep understanding of mathematics and an ability to use it in a variety of contexts.

• Encourage students to use appropriate technology to deepen their mathematical understanding and extend the range of problems they can solve.

• Use pre-release data in statistics to enable students to develop an understanding of working with real data to solve real problems.

• Include mathematical comprehension in the assessment to prepare students to use mathematics in a variety of contexts in higher education and future employment.

OCR A Level in Mathematics B (MEI) builds from GCSE Level Mathematics and introduces calculus and its applications. It emphasises how mathematical ideas are interconnected and how mathematics can be applied to model situations using algebra and other representations, to help make sense of data, to understand the physical world and to solve problems in a variety of contexts, including social sciences and business. It prepares students for further study and employment in a wide range of disciplines involving the use of mathematics.

This is a two-year linear qualification with no optional content. The course can be split into three main areas:

Pure Mathematics includes proof, algebra, graphs, sequences, trigonometry, logarithms, calculus and vectors.

Mechanics includes kinematics, motion under gravity, working with forces including friction, Newton’s laws and simple movements.

Statistics includes working with data from a sample to make inferences about a population, probability calculations, using binomial and normal distributions as models and statistical hypothesis testing.