A-level Strategy...

[DavidHooper]

...i am but a student taking his a-levels in the next few weeks. strategy wise should i:
1)race through the paper really quickly, running off the easy questions and then spend the rest of the time on the others.
2)take my time slowly, check all calculations/proofs and maybe run out of time.

the exams i have to do are P1,P2,P3,M1,S1 and S2. P exams are ok and M isn't so bad though i hate statistics!

[HarryW]

Yeah I hate stats too, stats sucks. You're doing the same modules I did, except I did M2 instead of S2.

I've never had any problems with exam (as far as technique goes anyway ) because I stay very calm. Not just in exams, everything, but anyway... I think the best way to tackle exams is to first of all read through the exam paper, looking at what kind of answers each question is looking for, and thinking about which ones you will get the most marks on in the shortest time. When you've read through the paper for a few minutes (10 mins for a 2 hour exam, say) you'll have had time to settle and get into the correct state of mind.

The most important thing is not to panic. That doesn't mean take your time, unless you think that spending longer on a question will get you more marks than going onto a different question. Just be at ease, and concentrate on doing the best you can. If you get to the stage, near the end of the exam, where you can't answer any remaining questions, go back and look at the ones you've already done and see if you can pick up some more marks.

Well that's what I tend to do, and it works well for me. I've never had any problems due to exam technique.

Good luck anyway!

[DavidHooper]

...this is good advice. checking out the paper in the first 10mins is a good idea. i'll let you know how i get on when i get my results in july/august time.

in the meantime, everyone look at this polynomial:
f(x)=n^2+n-1
why is it (very) special?
you'll know if you get it!

[HarryW]

Cool, good luck again =)

No idea about the polynomial.... the roots are (-1 +/- sqr(5))/2 but I don't know if that means anything.

[DavidHooper]

f(n)=n^2+n-1
try putting n=1, n=2, n=3 etc all the way to about 40.

what grade did you get in the end then?

[HarryW]

Ah, produces small primes?

I got a B in A-Level maths, mainly due to revising the wrong things for the last exams and getting a particularly bad grade in P3.

[DavidHooper]

yep well done.

apparently they've made the as levels too hard this year (i'm meant to be doing two to make an a2 level but hey) so the A boundary will be nearer 70% than 80%. but hey.

ever do any step papers? i'm meant to be doing levels 1-3 but even 1 is hard enough. i can actually do some of them but no way in the time limit.

[HarryW]

Never heard of step papers.