Matric Maths disaster looms

phiber said:
students couldn't draw the line for equation y = x + 2.
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I have to say that 30 something years later I don't even understand the question so as for the answer, who knows.

I always that that ' if 2y=x and 10x =9b then what is m+z ' to be the most pointless exercise and personally I have never needed to know the answer since leaving school.

But I do accept some find it useful ( 5 % ? )
 
Do you chaps have a link to this 'monumentaly difficult' paper? And by whose standard is regarded as difficult? Certainly not Chinese or Romanian or Russian. Ok, let me not jump the gun - link please . . .
 
Nihilanth said:
Well if everyone would please take a look at the ANC's freedom charter all questions concerning a low standard will be answered. The ANC and our government believes in 'basic education' not being the best and providing for gifted students.
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I'm sure you can quote the part that says exactly that.

Not important, it isn't the "gifted" students that need the extras, it is the ordinary students. There was a serious lack of this even at what were considered the best schools. Far too much of the additional learning and training was focussed on those who were already doing well, i.e. the ones who needed it the least. The ones who needed to develop their problem solving and studying skills were those with lower marks. It was a rare teacher that recognised this simple fact.
 
noxibox said:
I'm sure you can quote the part that says exactly that.

Not important, it isn't the "gifted" students that need the extras, it is the ordinary students. There was a serious lack of this even at what were considered the best schools. Far too much of the additional learning and training was focussed on those who were already doing well, i.e. the ones who needed it the least. The ones who needed to develop their problem solving and studying skills were those with lower marks. It was a rare teacher that recognised this simple fact.
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Good point. However not being able to work out 14% of 200 is a problem that needs to be addressed at a lower level. For instance middle school?

"Here is Maths Paper 1: http://www.quickshare.co.za/files/q1..._2009.pdf.html"

[email protected]
 
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I looked at Paper 1 and it's really not that tough at all. If you studied for the paper and actually understood the principles behind the different concepts then one should have absolutely no difficulty passing the paper.

And a paper like this I would say should be the standard, if not a bit tougher, for the coming years because it prepares one for the kind of stuff you see on university level. It's a joke when you see a class of 250+ students sitting in a 1st year maths class but that same class has reduced in size to less than 100 in second year.

If you think that paper was hard, look at some of the papers they write in Korea/Japan.
 
I tried - got zip, zero, absolutely nothing.

Couldn't even understand the questions.

I felt very stupid..

Then I wondered how knowing this would make any difference to me.

Now I feel better.
 
daveza said:
I tried - got zip, zero, absolutely nothing.

Couldn't even understand the questions.

I felt very stupid..

Then I wondered how knowing this would make any difference to me.

Now I feel better.
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It's irrelevant whether this would make a difference to you or not.

My opinion is that when a paper like this is shown to a young mind, he/she should be able to apply the different concepts in a systematic matter and not just try to regurgitate it like curd. That's a skill that can be applied in life in general...the actual content i.e differentiation, trig etc. are only really applied in a few field but I feel that the aim of papers like Physics and Maths is to see how well one understands the syllabus...whether it'll be relevant or not in later life is moot.
 
Take away the calculators for starters and teach the "learners" (hate that word) how to think, reason and apply logic! Bring back the times tables!
 
Well perhaps things are different now, but back in the dark ages we did not have the option of not taking maths and as I recall a fail in maths was a fail in the exams.

The bright boys were able to make sense of this stuff - but couldn't wire a three pin plug, change a flat tyre or iron a shirt.

Nowadays they don't even go to the army so I really hope they find algebra advantageous 'cos they are taught squat about anything really useful.
 
feo said:
You're joking, right?
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Why? There should be no call to use calculators until they start learning trigonometry. There is value in learning to do basic calculations in your head.

daveza said:
The bright boys were able to make sense of this stuff - but couldn't wire a three pin plug, change a flat tyre or iron a shirt.
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All things that can be learned in about 30 seconds when needed. Mathematics on the other hand cannot, and is absolutely necessary for a wide range of important fields.
 
noxibox said:
Why? There should be no call to use calculators until they start learning trigonometry. There is value in learning to do basic calculations in your head.
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You definitely need a calculator for trig and calculating logarithms. Nobody said that there's no value to doing quick calcs mentally but to ban calculators outright is ridiculous. In any case, the paper should be geared towards calculating most things mentally or by hand...calculators should only be necessary for trig (like you say) and logs. (and maybe for double checking answers)
 
Oh - calculators hadn't been invented back then.

I still have my slide-rule though. Why I don't know.

Pah ! Calculators for maths is like Google for history.
 
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daveza said:
Well perhaps things are different now, but back in the dark ages we did not have the option of not taking maths and as I recall a fail in maths was a fail in the exams.

The bright boys were able to make sense of this stuff - but couldn't wire a three pin plug, change a flat tyre or iron a shirt.

Nowadays they don't even go to the army so I really hope they find algebra advantageous 'cos they are taught squat about anything really useful.
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It's called engineering. Algebra is extremely useful in jobs that actually contribute to society.

EDIT:
Sorry, I'm irritated by something else.
 
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Ok, so if you aren't going to be an engineer or physicist ie 99% of the class, then what is the point of trig or algebra ?

Would it be fair to say that, at the least, 80% of the class will never have a need for trig or algebra once they leave school ?
 
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daveza said:
Ok, so if you aren't going to be an engineer or physicist ie 99% of the class, then what is the point of trig or algebra ?
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Well, (at least for most people) algebra and Trigonometry are difficult. It exercises mathematical concepts. If a child wants math that they can use in everyday life, Mathematical Literacy was designed for exactly that.
Reading a water meter, working out VAT, measuring volumes etc. Everyday stuff. Mathematics is a subject created for students that want to study further at a university etc.
 
Nihilanth said:
Mathematics is a subject created for students that want to study further at a university etc.
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A pilot does not need a university education, but he'd better be damn good at maths.

Maths is used daily in most jobs, just at different levels depending on the job, and not only those careers that demand university education.
 
Frankie said:
A pilot does not need a university education, but he'd better be damn good at maths.

Maths is used daily in most jobs, just at different levels depending on the job, and not only those careers that demand university education.
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Correct, but perhaps you should focus your eyes on what we were discussing. The importance of Trigonometry and Algebra to average professions.
Like daveza mentioned, the above mentioned isn't used in average professions.
 
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