Let us do a breakdown and analysis of the H2 Math Paper.
Paper 1 was in general quite manageable. A few questions stood out, i.e., question 9iii and 10ii. These two are in fact “knowledge” from H2 Further Mathematics. These are considered to be application questions in the eyes of SEAB, thus, it is fair for such questions to appear.
Question 9iii introduced the idea of arc length. The question is clear on what they expect the students to do, copy the given formula, substitute everything in, simplify and integrate. It is not difficult, however students must have the confidence to do such questions.
Question 10ii was a different taste of Differential Equations. Students need to be able to relate on the spot, the many equations given and also focus properly in the face of the many unknown constants. Some students might give up and also forsake their marks in the subsequent parts. This is not wise as the papers in general, often are set such that students can still continue and attempt. T
The rest of the paper is manageable. Good students might pick up that q8 – 11 takes up 50% of the marks, while the first seven questions is another 50%. The first half of the paper is simple knowledge and skills. Students that were not careless should be able to manage them with ease. Doing the specimen paper would have helped the student slightly too. Personally, I feel that a good score for the first seven question is 43 while a good score for the next four questions should be about 37.
Paper 2 was a different ball game. Firstly, it penalized students who were spotting the topics and had Differential Equations again, while not testing Graphings entirely. Section A was rather tedious and students have to be very surgical while doing the questions. The good thing was that section A did not contain much unknown constants. Good students would be able to check their answers if they had enough time.
Section B on the other hand, was slightly different. If a student had panicked or spent too much time in Section A, they might not be able to clear Section B. Most students would have expected Section B to be a breeze given their school examinations but this time wrong, it is not the case. Questions were rather subtle in their information. There are also quite a handful of “show” questions. As what I shared with students every time, a “show” question allows us to walk out of the exam hall knowing we have the marks in the bag.
In conclusion, the papers definitely showed us what SEAB expects of students, i.e., to be thinkers and respond on the spot. Students must have strong mental fortitude now, and cannot fumble as the paper is rather rigorous. Top-tier JCs should find the paper rather ok since they ought to be used to such rigor in their regular examinations.
