IB Mathematics Exam Tips
Applications and Interpretation
“There are various strategies you may take, but the best time-saving, confidence-building strategy during the high-pressure exam time is to mark the questions you are most confident and comfortable with and tackle those first, while leaving the most difficult and scary questions last.”
Written by: Patricia VladIBDP Mathematics Teacher and Examiner (3 years)
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Regardless of whether you are an SL or a HL student, the AI course is structured in five different topics, as follows:
TOPIC 1: Numbers & Algebra
TOPIC 2: Fractions
TOPIC 3: Geometry & Trigonometry
TOPIC 4: Statistics & Probability
TOPIC 5: Calculus
Short-answer questions will often come from just one of the topics above while long-answer questions will often combine different topics.
When thinking about the five topics above, the first consideration you need to keep in mind is your passion and interest for each topic. For example, some AI students are highly visual learners and love working in 2D and 3D space, so will be naturally drawn to the Geometry & Trigonometry topic; others enjoy the numerical connections between different real-life knowledge areas (such as biology, psychology, business, etc.) and so they are more at ease when dealing with the Statistics & Probability topic. Regardless of your personal preference, your connection with a topic will highly influence your performance.
In addition to your personal preference, you should keep track of your in-class performance in each topic in order to identify your strongest topics as well as the topics you struggle more with. Once you have a clearer idea of what you enjoy and are best at, you will be able to plan an effective exam strategy. There are various strategies you may take, but the best time-saving, confidence-building strategy during the high-pressure exam time is to mark the questions you are most confident and comfortable with and tackle those first, while leaving the most difficult and scary questions last.
The 5-minute reading time before the official start of the exam is the perfect time to skim through the questions, determine the type of topic(s) tested in each question and then label each question with numbers from 1-5 or letters (see image below for an example of how this could be done), according to each of the 5 topics.
A | TOPIC 1: Numbers & Algebra
F | TOPIC 2: Fractions
T | TOPIC 3: Geometry & Trigonometry
S | TOPIC 4: Statistics & Probability
C | TOPIC 5: Calculus
When the invigilator allows you to start writing, it should take you about 30 seconds to label the questions 1-5 in writing as well. Since in the strategy above you have marked Topic 1 to be answered first, Topics 2 and 4 second, and Topics 3 and 5 third, you should start your exam by answering all questions labelled “1”, then continue with “2” and “4”, and so on.
If you only use your reading time to read the questions without following a planned strategy, you would not be giving yourself the best chance to prove your highest potential during the exam. Having a clear plan during reading time will allow you to be fully ready to go once writing is allowed and will also keep your nerves in check if you are prone to strong emotions during exams.
Download link: Math AI SL & HL Formula Booklet
Keeping the formula booklet open and very close to your exam paper is very important, as information inside it can either confirm your chosen solution method OR it can even save you when you are totally lost regarding your next step in solving a particular question.
To optimise the usefulness of the data booklet, you should always keep a hardcopy of it with you whenever you are practicing math and try to use it as often as you can. This will help you familiarise with the formulas and their location in the booklet. Eventually in the exam, you will waste no time in finding where the formula is.
***Bear in mind, even though the data booklet is helpful, there is still a need and advantage of memorizing the key formulas regarding trigonometry and calculus!
- You can use the GDC for all the papers (yay!)
- A 5-minute reading time is given before every paper.
- SL only has 2 papers while HL has 3.
- Both paper 1 and 2 are 90 minutes long while paper 3 is only 30 minutes.
Whenever you read a question, locate the command term first.
Command terms tell you exactly what you need to find AND in what format you should present your answer. They can be categorised as follows:
Group 1:
THE BASIC
“Find / Solve / Calculate / Determine
This is the most common type of question which students is required to show detail working.
Group 2:
THe FAST ONE
“State / Write down / List”
These often carry only 1 mark. The answer is every obvious and can be quickly and easily found. No working required.
Group 3:
THE FOLLOW-UPS
“Hence/ Deduce”
To get the answer, you need to use the answers obtained from the earlier parts of the question (usually the one right before the current part)
Group 4:
THE WORDY ONE
“Show / Prove / Verify”
For these questions, the answer is already given. All you need to do is present all the steps leading from the information given in the question AND/OR answers from the earlier parts to the provided answer for the current part.
Since GDC is allowed in all the papers, most questions will require the use of GDC to get the answers. Beside the basic calculations, GDC has many useful functions:
- Plotting graphs of functions and find coordinates of important points on the graph (axial intercepts, maximum/minimum)
- Equation solvers (all types of equations, simultaneous equations)
- Calculating numerical derivative and integral (calculus)
- Finance mode
- Spreadsheet and data visualisation >> find equation of line-of-best-fit to the data/modelling
- Analysis of data (finding mean, mode, median, standard deviation, etc. )
- Calculating statistic for hypothesis testing
- Calculate probability given the right distribution
Keep track of all the mistakes you have made after each class test and major exams.
This will enable you to analyse and revise accordingly:
Observe a pattern: Which topics made me to lose most marks?
Focus your revision on the topics you need most help on.
Type of mistake: Are these careless mistakes, time constraint, calculation errors, or conceptual errors?
Knowing the reason behind losing your test points will give you an insight on what to focus on when you revise and prepare for your exams.
Practice is key!
Practice the questions you found challenging until you have mastery over answering them before your test.
