“Junior Cycle Maths: Mostly Fair, Unexpectedly Challenging”

For this year’s junior cycle higher-level maths paper, teachers declared it to be a tale of two extremes. Niall Duddy, a staff member at Presentation College Athenry and ASTI maths representative, felt that while much of the paper was readily comprehensible to students, some latter parts proved to be unexpectedly tough.

A particular point of difficulty, as highlighted by Duddy, was the 12c question regarding patterns and sequences which inquired about shaded and non-shaded sections of a square – a concept potentially unfamiliar to the learners. Additionally, question 13c, though directly linked to teachings in class, posed a challenge for some. This was due to its focus on a roof shaped like an isoceles triangle.

A criticism voiced by Duddy was the continuous lack of a grading scheme readily available to students, stating the absence of information about the worth of each question being disconcerting for them. He further expressed that a persistent concern among teachers is the inadequate choice provided in the papers across various junior cycle subjects.

Alternatively, Stephen Begley, who is not only an expert of Studyclix.ie but also the head of maths at Dundalk Grammar school, found the higher-level paper to be versatile, though remained transparent, equal, and impartial overall. Mathematics staples such as statistics, coordinate geometry, trigonometry, and area & volume prevailed in the paper and are growing in popularity each year. The simpler queries regarding probability, algebra, patterns, sets, and financial maths would have been well-received by the majority.

However, there were some testing areas. Students might have found themselves struggling with Q7(c), in which they were required to reverse engineer using algebra (or possibly guesswork) to ascertain the dimensions of a cuboid. This was notably similar to a question found on the 2021 Leaving Cert higher-level paper, as per Mr Begley.

The missing components from the paper reached out to geometry, distance, and constructions, yet functions made their debut on the paper, as Begley reported.

Discussing the ordinary level examination, Begley admitted it to be fair, supplemented by suitable questions and hurdles that encouraged pupils to apply their learned subject knowledge.

He remarked that pupils would certainly have been satisfied to spot a couple of constructions on the test, coupled with a pair of standard algebra problems. Although the context and diagram for the trigonometry query may have initially startled some, if they adhered to the question’s instructions, they would have made it through. On the whole, he found the examination was equitable.

If you want to give it a go, here’s a higher-level junior cycle maths question:

Question 4

Consider a scenario where Ciara is preparing an orange beverage. This beverage is produced by combining a concentrated solution with water in a ratio of 1:4.

a) Ciara prepares 15 litres of the orange beverage. Help determine the number of litres of concentrate Ciara utilises in the beverage creation.

b) Ciara retails glasses of the orange beverage for €0.20 a pop. Each glass holds 250 ml of the refreshment. In total, she sells 10 litres. The overall expense was €5.50. Calculate her profit as a percentage of the total expense. Your answer should be accurate to 1 decimal place.

Written by Ireland.la Staff

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