In the Mathematics learning area, students learn to use ideas about number, space, measurement and chance, and mathematical ways of representing patterns and relationships, to describe, interpret and reason about their social and physical world. Students learn about what maths is and how it is used in making decisions and solving problems. Mathematics involves observing, representing and investigating patterns and relationships in social and physical phenomena and between mathematical objects themselves.
The Mathematics course has been created to offer all senior secondary students the opportunity to advance their mathematical skills, to build and use mathematical models, to solve problems, to learn how to conjecture and to reason logically, and to gain an appreciation of the elegance, beauty and creative nature of mathematics. Students use numbers and symbols to represent many situations in the world around them. They examine how mathematical methods associated with number, algebra and calculus allow for precise, strong conclusions to be reached, providing a form of argument not available to other disciplines.
The Mathematics course allows for multiple entry points to accommodate the diversity of students’ mathematics development at the point of entry into senior school as well as the diversity of post school destinations.
Students can choose units based on their particular need: to develop their general mathematical skills for further training or employment, to enable university entry where further mathematics may not be essential, to prepare them for university courses where further mathematics studies is required or for preparation for higher level training in technical areas.
For further information please visit the School Curriculum and Standards Authority website.