A Level Maths

“It’s not that I’m so smart; it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” – Albert Einstein 

At A level, we offer both Maths and Further Maths, with pupils having six hours a week of lessons in each. The textbooks are supplemented by a wealth of extra materials and plenty of support from the department, with support sessions running twice a week after school. For those pupils considering courses of a highly mathematical nature at University, support is also offered with the appropriate University entrance examinations. 

The course contains a mixture of pure maths, statistics and mechanics. Students will build on existing GCSE knowledge and explore concepts in:  

Core Content 

  • Algebra: Proof, Algebra and Functions, Coordinate Geometry in the x-y Plane, Sequences and Series, Exponentials and Logarithms, Trigonometry 
  • Geometry: Vectors 
  • Calculus: Differentiation, Integration 
  • Numerical Methods 

Statistics 

As well as working with a large data set (released prior to the exam) students will develop their statistical knowledge through studying: 

  • Statistical Sampling, distributions and hypothesis testing, including applications to real life. 
  • Data Presentation and Interpretation 
  • Probability 

Mechanics 

For most students, this will be an entirely new part of mathematics building on concepts often met in physics.  Students will develop their understanding of mechanics by studying: 

  • Quantities and Units in Mechanics 
  • Kinematics 
  • Forces and Newton’s Laws 
  • Moments 

Examination 

The A Level is linear with all students sitting three two hour examinations at the end of Year 13 as follows: 

  • Pure Maths 
  • Pure Maths and Statistics  
  • Pure Maths and Mechanics 

 All papers are worth one third of the final grade. 

 Further Mathematics A Level 

 The course contains a mixture of pure maths and optional modules in statistics, mechanics, discrete maths and additional pure maths.  50% of the course is compulsory and the remaining 50% will be made up of two optional modules.   

Core Content (compulsory) 

Learners will extend their knowledge of proof, algebra, functions, calculus and vectors.  They will also broaden their knowledge by exploring complex numbers, matrices, polar coordinates and hyperbolic functions. 

Statistics (optional) 

Students will explore the theory which underlies the content in A Level maths by studying combinatorics, probability distributions and hypothesis tests, chi-squared tests, correlation and regression. 

Mechanics (optional)

Students will look at more complex physical systems such as those involving work, energy and power, impulse and momentum, centres of mass and circular motion. 

Discrete Maths (optional) 

Here students explore real life problems involving optimisation working with graphs and networks to aid them.  We look at critical path analysis, linear programming and game theory. 

Additional Pure Maths (optional) 

Students will study topics which often form the foundation of undergraduate mathematics.  This covers recurrence relations, number theory, group theory and partial differentiation. 

Please note that students cannot study Further Maths without also choosing A Level Maths as an option. 

Examination 

The A Level is linear with all students sitting four 90-minute examinations at the end of Year 13 as follows: 

  • Core Content 
  • Core Content 
  • Option 1 
  • Option 2 

All papers are worth 25% of the final grade. 

The study of Mathematics has many transferable skills which can be applied in a wide range of interesting, stimulating and challenging careers. The following fields of work can all be pursued through the study of Mathematics: Data science, Actuarial, Engineering, Computer Programming, Accounting, Economics, Chemical Engineering, Data Analysis, Investment, Banking, Finance, Automotive Engineering, Meteorology, Research, Statistics and many more!

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