How to Score an A in A/L Combined Maths: A Practical Plan

Getting an A in Combined Mathematics is less about being "good at maths" and more about doing the right practice, consistently. Here is the plan MathDOC students follow.

1. Find out where your marks go

Take your last term test or a past paper and list every question where you lost marks. Next to each, write the reason:

• Didn't know the method — a gap in understanding
• Knew the method, made a mistake — algebra slips, sign errors, careless arithmetic
• Ran out of time — speed or question choice

Most students discover that one or two topics, plus careless mistakes, cost them most of their marks. That is good news: it is fixable.

2. Fix gaps one topic at a time

Don't try to revise "all of applied maths". Pick one topic — for example projectiles — and work on it until you can do past paper questions on it without help. Then move on.

3. Practise the way the exam works

• Do past paper questions under time limits
• Mark them honestly with the marking scheme
• Redo every question you got wrong a few days later, without looking at the answer

4. Learn the standard results until they are automatic

For example, under constant acceleration:

$v = u + at, \qquad s = ut + \tfrac{1}{2}at^2, \qquad v^2 = u^2 + 2as$

You should be able to write these — and know when to use each — without thinking.

5. Plan your time in the exam

Read all of Part B first, choose the questions you are most confident about, and don't spend ten minutes stuck on one step. Move on and come back.

Need help finding your weak spots?

A one-to-one Math Power Slot in the MathCLINIC is the fastest way to find exactly what is costing you marks, and get a plan to fix it.