GCSE Maths question

[datalol-jack]

How have you overcomplicated it that much? That's not showing your workings, that's doing it in an obscure way.

Hence the 'crank' preamble. I'm pretty sure that most sensible markers would blow a gasket at that one, since the obscure answer sees their strategy and raises them a troll. There's more than one way to crank it up too. An exercise for fellow GDers, perhaps?

edit: if indeed you were asked to work out the answer in the next part of the question, that is where the quadratic would come in.

Yep, the media dropped part(b), but you can find it online. Though, as Rroff pointed out, you can guess the correct answer.

 

[dowie]

The question deserves to be on the higher tier paper.

that is the other thing that amuses me about this, aside from the people in the comments on various newspaper sites missing the point of the first part of the question after declaring it easy....

of course it is easy when you're a fully grown adult with several more years of education beyond GCSE... it is still certainly a higher level GCSE question

IIRC only 1% of candidates got an A* for the exam board used when I was sitting my GCSEs, I'm pretty sure it was only a few of us in the school who were even put in for the highest level paper anyway - a lot of the people commenting on these articles saying 'omg it is so easy' didn't get an A* or even an A when they sat their GCSEs, a large portion of them won't have even sat the highest level paper.

 

[Rroff]

that is the other thing that amuses me about this, aside from the people in the comments on various newspaper sites missing the point of the first part of the question after declaring it easy....

of course it is easy when you're a fully grown adult with several more years of education beyond GCSE... it is still certainly a higher level GCSE question

IIRC only 1% of candidates got an A* for the exam board used when I was sitting my GCSEs, I'm pretty sure it was only a few of us in the school who were even put in for the highest level paper anyway - a lot of the people commenting on these articles saying 'omg it is so easy' didn't get an A* or even an A when they sat their GCSEs, a large portion of them won't have even sat the highest level paper.

Funny thing is at 16 I'd have breezed the first bit... and hit a roadblock with the second - at 33 I managed the second bit almost instantly but it would have taken me a good 5 minutes to get my head around the first one and probably a bit of googling to get my head into the maths/procedures involved - if someone had put me on the spot I'd probably have drawn a blank on the first bit now.

 

[titaniumx3]

Probably because they're just stupid. Typical teenage behaviour today. Start complaining soon as you encounter any form of challenge.

Good question. They need more stuff like this in maths, not all this mickey mouse crap.

 

[Gzero]

Probably because they're just stupid. Typical teenage behaviour today. Start complaining soon as you encounter any form of challenge.

Good question. They need more stuff like this in maths, not all this mickey mouse crap.

What mickey mouse stuff in maths?

You get arithmetic tests, complex arithmetic, basic algebra, basic geometry, basic calculus, and some stats/probability thrown in for good measure.

The ones complaining are probably not the top students anyway, and we all like to have a good moan about the questions that stumped us?

I hate exams with a passion though, as I don't think they prove much apart from the ability to memorise information on a short term basis and solve problems within a very short time frame usually working/relying on the information loaded into the short term memory.

I can't think of a cheaper more efficient way to test youngster's potential though.

 

[Tefal]

At work I expect people to do what they are asked to do not what they would like to do. This question seems to demonstrate quite well, judging from the comments here, that some people are unable to do this. Therefore, I think it's a good question and a good test for a working life!

ironically you were unable to answer the question he asked so gave an unrelated answer while complaining about people not doing what they're asked.

 

[lude1962]

'Some pupils complained the sweets question appeared to be of a higher standard than those in past papers they had used to revise.'
Or as I read it, past questions they had memorized as opposed to problem solving from first principles.

 

[Xordium]

ironically you were unable to answer the question he asked so gave an unrelated answer while complaining about people not doing what they're asked.

But I wasn't answering his exact question I was commenting on his question. In the same way you chose to comment on my answer.

The difference is the question, in the OP, was asked in an exam. That post was placed on a forum where people comment on things and offer their opinion. I had already answered the original question placed in the OP. As to it's exact application in real life then I doubt many statistician's calculate the probabilities and resulting calculations of young girls eating sweet unless they are optimising the colour preference for 70's BBC stars. Therefore, in place of answering where the exact application would be I offered a comment on why it was a good question in my eyes.

 

[[FnG]magnolia]

Just me who finds it a little condescending when several professional adults and at least one Uni lecturer state that they can't believe how a 16 year old might complain about a question which is of a level they are unaccustomed to?

 

[Xordium]

How do you know it is of a level they are unaccustomed to? I remember doing equations like that at their age. Not all children did of course - there was banding based on ability. People were accepted for having differing gifts and abilities they weren't all told they were special **********, that the world would wait for them, and that they had a god given right to go to university. Stuff was earned on merit ...

 

[[FnG]magnolia]

Based upon the very first line of the OP. I assumed that they were not just whining but had a legitimate complaint. Perhaps I was wrong.

I do like how you then did an 'in my day' speech though

 

[Xordium]

I do like how you then did an 'in my day' speech though

I felt it was warranted to make it a sufficiently "proper" GD reply. You have to read it in the imagined voice of 'Faustus' to have the complete effect.

(it may have been said slightly tongue-in-cheek)

 

[ebilcake]

I can barely remember anything from GCSE maths so no clue.

Other than the things I use everyday in work and in life my maths is probably very limited, just goes to show how much of it is a waste of time.

 

[Gammawolf]

There's nothing wrong with having questions they're unaccustomed to, several question like this will not ruin a persons grade. The real issue is our education culture has got to the point where everything must be served up in a silver platter. In order to show continuing improvements they devalue the system little by little to the point where it no longer differentiates students abilities.

Case in point, my dad told his PhD lab student (biochemistry) how to do a square root in excel. She then came back in a later session and asked the same question. (So first mistake here, can't even google a simple excel function). So he says, if you can't remember how to do the square root function then do it using another function (raising the value to the power of 0.5). She didn't know what this other way was.

So he thinks "maybe she's just a bit weak on maths, could have dropped it at GCSE level". As it turns out she'd done A-Level maths and A-Level further maths. She then confessed that she remembered non of it because they drive you into passing modules, which you learn a section, pass the exam then forget it and move to the next section.

 

[dowie]

I hate exams with a passion though, as I don't think they prove much apart from the ability to memorise information on a short term basis and solve problems within a very short time frame usually working/relying on the information loaded into the short term memory.

I can't think of a cheaper more efficient way to test youngster's potential though.

well it does improve beyond GCSE/A Level - plenty of maths modules at various universities will either allow notes or provide handbook books listing a bunch of formulas - the exam is then more a test of your understanding of the subject/ability to apply your knowledge

 

[balky12]

She then confessed that she remembered non of it because they drive you into passing modules, which you learn a section, pass the exam then forget it and move to the next section.

We have a winner! I echoed this earlier.

Multiple modules throughout the year. Learn small bits, then exam. New bit, exam. Virtually none of the modules take skills from one to another (besides the basics of the subject). No need to really remember an awful lot.

Also gives students multiple chances to resit failed exams. Not ideal to be doubling up on modules over just taking one. But at least the option is there instead of sitting one maybe two big exams at the end of the year within days of each other.

Gives the impression on paper that people are brighter and that they have retained/ memorised a lot more than that actually have

 

[balky12]

How do you know it is of a level they are unaccustomed to? I remember doing equations like that at their age. Not all children did of course - there was banding based on ability. People were accepted for having differing gifts and abilities they weren't all told they were special **********, that the world would wait for them, and that they had a god given right to go to university. Stuff was earned on merit ...

I have quite a few friends who are teachers of varying age groups.

Schools are really trying to push away from grouping students based on ability... it's a nightmare.

Various other things I have heard include not being able to mark in red pen (too negative) and if you write down a criticism of the student you have to follow it up with a positive.

 

[dowie]

Just me who finds it a little condescending when several professional adults and at least one Uni lecturer state that they can't believe how a 16 year old might complain about a question which is of a level they are unaccustomed to?

mixed views - I think lots of the adults laughing it off and saying how easy it is are probably hypocritical as most of them didn't get an A or A* either

on the other hand I don't think it is unreasonable for a higher paper, it isn't testing things off the curriculum AFAIK and while the bulk of an exam paper is going to contain similar questions to previous years you need to have one or two which are a bit different where the students who really understand the topics can apply their knowledge and the students who are only able to answer questions they've remembered how to answer might struggle a bit

I'm sure most of the students could have solved part b of the question... and some of the ones who were struggling with part a initially might have been able to go back to it and at least make an partial attempt at it

 

[Nitefly]

Ok - am I missing something here? Apparently loads of GCSE students are complaining about this question:

There are 'n' sweets in a bag.

6 of the sweets are orange.
The rest are yellow.

Hannah takes one sweet at random.
She eats the sweet.

She takes another sweet at random.
She eats the sweet.

The probability that Hannah eats two orange sweets is 1/3

a) Show that n(squared) - n - 90 = 0

The factorisation (e.g. solving 'n') part is not challenging, but it's not very obvious at face value what the question is asking you to do. I probably would have fluffed the question if I had tried to answer it (without practice)!

There are six orange sweets and n sweets overall. If she takes one, there is a 6/n chance of getting and orange sweet. When she takes one, there is one less orange sweet and one less sweet overall.
If she took another orange sweet, the probability would be (6-1)/(n-1)=5/n-1. Now, you have to find the probability if she gets two orange sweets so you simply times the two fractions: 6/n * 5/n-1 = 30/n^2-n.
It tells us the probability of two orange sweets is 1/3 which means 1/3=30/n^2-n.
We need to make the denominators the same so simply times 1/3 by 30/30 which would equal 30/90. if 30/90 = 30/n^2-n, then n^2-n=90. if n^2-n=90 then n^2-n-90 will equal zero.

Tom0's explanation is the best.

 

[PhysicsMan94]

I think lots of the adults laughing it off and saying how easy it is are probably hypocritical as most of them didn't get an A or A* either

You know this, do you?