How to prepare for WASSCE Elective Mathematics

Topic areas to revise

These are the areas candidates revise for WASSCE Elective Mathematics. A heading is not a promise that every unit appears on your paper. Glearn does not host the WAEC file. If the file your school gives you uses a different name, follow the file.

1. 1. Algebra and sequences

   Indices, logarithms, quadratics, polynomials, and sequences. Write the rule before you substitute. A quadratic usually has two roots. Keep both unless the question excludes one, and say why.

2. 2. Trigonometry and coordinate geometry

   Identities, equations, the gradient of a line, and the equation of a line. Know whether the angle is in degrees. A gradient is a change in y divided by a change in x, in the same order.

3. 3. Calculus

   Differentiation and integration of the functions on your syllabus. The derivative is a gradient. A definite integral between limits is a number. An indefinite integral needs a constant.

4. 4. Vectors and mechanics

   Components, magnitude, and the simple force and motion questions the syllabus asks. Add components separately. Do not add an i component to a j component. If your file uses another name for the mechanics, follow the file.

5. 5. Statistics and probability

   Averages, variation, and probability, including a draw without replacement. A probability larger than one, or less than zero, is a sign to read the line again. Show the fractions before you cancel.

WASSCE syllabusWASSCE Elective Mathematics past questionsDifferentiationIntegrationCoordinate geometryVectorsProbability

How to answer the theory paper

A theory mark is for a step a marker can see. The command word tells you which step that is.

1. 1. Match the command

   Find or calculate means a value, with the working that reaches it. Show that means the result is given and the marks are the steps. Prove or show means the same habit: do not stop when the last line matches, because the last line was given. Sketch means the shape, the intercepts, and a turning point if you found one. A sketch is not a plotted table unless the question asks for a plot.

2. 2. Answer every part you were given

   Parts such as (a), (b) and (c) are separate marks. Label each one. A later part often uses the result of the earlier part, so keep that result easy to find.

3. 3. Define a symbol you introduce

   If you let a letter stand for a length, an angle, or a number of ways, say so in words. A marker cannot credit a letter that was never named.

4. 4. One line, one move

   Write the rule, then the substitution, then the result. A jump from the question to a number hides the method mark.

5. 5. Check the result against the question

   A length that came out negative, or a probability outside zero to one, means a line needs reading again. Say which root you rejected when the question only wants one.

6. 6. Obey the rubric

   Answer the number of questions the instruction asks for. An extra unfinished question does not repair a blank compulsory part.

WASSCE exam tipsWASSCE Elective Mathematics past questions

Calculations and working

Elective Mathematics is almost all working. The final number is the last line, not the whole answer.

1. 1. Show the rule before the number

   Name the identity, the formula, or the operation, then substitute. The core formula sheet is a reminder of the shared identities. It is not a substitute for the lines on this paper.

2. 2. Differentiate term by term

   To differentiate a power of x, multiply by the power and reduce the power by one. A constant on its own becomes zero. Write the derivative before you substitute a value of x.

3. 3. Integrate, then decide on the constant

   Raise the power and divide by the new power. When no limits are given, add a constant. When limits are given, substitute the upper limit and the lower limit and subtract. Do not add a constant on a definite integral. Swapping the limits changes the sign.

4. 4. Keep both roots

   A square root and a quadratic usually have two values. Write both unless the question excludes one. If you reject a root, give the reason in the question, such as a length that cannot be negative.

5. 5. Set the calculator to the angle in the question

   Know whether the angle is in degrees. A calculator left in the other mode gives a number that is not the angle the question asked for. This page does not name a button. Write the angle unit beside the value.

6. 6. Add vectors in components

   Add the matching components, then find a magnitude from the squares of those components. The magnitude is positive. Do not add unlike components and then square once.

WASSCE Core Mathematics formula sheetDifferentiationIntegrationVectors

A short way to revise

Alternate a short objective set with one full theory question. A week of reading formulas, with no working on the page, does not prepare Paper 2.

1. 1. Give each paper a turn

   One session for objective items, where you reject the wrong options, and one session for a theory question written out in full. Do not leave calculus for the last night.

2. 2. Redo two kinds of question

   Each session, one calculus question and one question from another area, such as vectors or probability. Close the note before you start.

3. 3. Use the core sheet, then close it

   The Core Mathematics formula sheet holds the shared identities. Read the one you need, close the sheet, and write the elective question from memory.

4. 4. Have the answer marked

   Anna marks WASSCE Elective Mathematics on glearn. Kevin marks BECE Mathematics. A written answer is marked point by point. Practise with Kevin and Anna on glearn.now. The first questions need no account.

5. 5. Keep the elective inside the wider plan

   The revision plan orders the weeks across every subject you sit. Core Mathematics is a different paper. Physics is a different paper. This page does not copy a date.

WASSCE revision planHow to pass the WASSCEWASSCE Core Mathematics formula sheetWASSCE Physics tipsTry WASSCE practice free

Mistakes chief examiners keep returning to

WAEC chief examiners write a report after a sitting. This page describes the habits in general. It does not quote a report, and it does not give a figure.

1. 1. A number with no working

   Reports often describe a final value with no line before it. The method marks live in the lines. Write them even when you are sure of the result.

2. 2. The wrong operation

   Differentiating when the question asked for an integral, or integrating when it asked for a derivative, answers a different question. Read the command again before you start.

3. 3. A missing constant

   An indefinite integral without a constant is incomplete. A definite integral does not need one. Mixing those two habits is a mark lost on an otherwise correct antiderivative.

4. 4. One root when the equation has two

   Dropping the negative root, or forgetting the second square root, leaves half the answer. Keep both, or say why the question rejects one.

5. 5. A sign that spreads

   A sign error in one term is then used in every later line. Check the sign before you substitute, and again before you use the result in the next part.

6. 6. Treating the elective as the core

   The core formula sheet does not cover this paper. Calculus, vectors, and the mechanics the syllabus includes still have to be practised on elective questions.