Tips to ace VCE maths

When it comes to further mathematics, Rachel Tan is one of the best in the state.

The top all-round VCE high achiever won Premier’s Awards in maths, Japanese second language and English. Her top study tips are:

Practice exams

Do as many as you can ... but also remember that it’s not enough to just do an exam. Rachel says correcting and reflecting should take just as long as the exam does.

Examiner’s reports

The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority releases an examiner’s report for every exam each year. These are the secret to doing well, as they give you tips and advice about what examiners are looking for. Rachel says they also highlight areas where students perform badly, which will likely be areas tested in future exams.

Be consistent

Try to revise each subject regularly, as this will help you retain what you’re studying.The former Mount Waverley Secondary College student made a document with questions she’d answered incorrectly, with a step-by-step guide on how to solve them.

‘‘I find that when you reflect on mistakes in this way, they tend to stick better in your mind,’’ she says.

She also recommends learning some shortcuts on your calculator and all the functions that are available to you so you can save time in the exam. But Rachel says no matter what, there are bound to be questions that stump you. ‘‘Remember that they can’t test you on anything outside the study design. You definitely have the skills to be able to do the question – you sometimes just have to think outside the box to apply them.’’

Leading VCE maths teachers Rachael Gore and Hayley Dureau say it is not too late to consolidate learning.

Gore, Albert Park College’s leading numeracy and maths teacher, who also won the 2021 Victorian Education Excellence Award, says it is important to use the holiday period ‘‘very wisely’’ and to keep a class schedule to maintain sleep patterns.

She says study ‘‘the things that scare you’’ first. ‘‘Those are the ones you need to study first because they are the gaps in your knowledge,’’ she says. On exam day, however, she says to tackle the questions you find easy first.

Dureau, a master teacher of mathematics at the Victorian Academy of Teaching and Leadership and a leading teacher at Mount Waverley Secondary College, says students should remember it’s a marathon, not a sprint.

Don’t compare yourself with other students. Instead, focus on yourself and the areas of the course you don’t understand. ‘‘The reality is they have enough time over the next few weeks to identify areas of study design they don’t fully understand and seek help,’’ Dureau says.