External assessment details

Paper 1 & Paper 2

These papers are externally set and externally marked. Together, they contribute 80% of the final mark for the course. These papers are designed to allow students to demonstrate what they know and what they can do.

Calculators

Paper 1

Students are not permitted access to any calculator. Questions will mainly involve analytic approaches to solutions, rather than requiring the use of a GDC. The paper is not intended to require complicated calculations, with the potential for careless errors. However, questions will include some arithmetical manipulations when they are essential to the development of the question.

Paper 2

Students must have access to a GDC at all times. However, not all questions will necessarily require the use of the GDC. Regulations covering the types of GDC allowed are provided in the Handbook of procedures for the Diploma Programme.

Mathematics SL formula booklet

Each student must have access to a clean copy of the formula booklet during the examination. It is the responsibility of the school to download a copy from IBIS or the OCC and to ensure that there are sufficient copies available for all students.

Awarding of marks

Marks may be awarded for method, accuracy, answers and reasoning, including interpretation.

In paper 1 and paper 2, full marks are not necessarily awarded for a correct answer with no working. Answers must be supported by working and/or explanations (in the form of, for example, diagrams, graphs or calculations). Where an answer is incorrect, some marks may be given for correct method, provided this is shown by written working. All students should therefore be advised to show their working.

Paper 2

Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes

Weighting: 40%

This paper consists of section A, short-response questions, and section B, extended-response questions. A GDC is required for this paper, but not every question will necessarily require its use.

Syllabus coverage

• Knowledge of all topics is required for this paper. However, not all topics are necessarily assessed in every examination session.

Mark allocation

This paper is worth 90 marks, representing 40% of the final mark.

Questions of varying levels of difficulty and length are set. Therefore, individual questions may not necessarily each be worth the same number of marks. The exact number of marks allocated to each question is indicated at the start of the question.

Section A

This section consists of compulsory short-response questions based on the whole syllabus. It is worth approximately 45 marks.

The intention of this section is to test students’ knowledge and understanding across the breadth of the syllabus.

However, it should not be assumed that the separate topics are given equal emphasis.

Question type

• A small number of steps is needed to solve each question.

• Questions may be presented in the form of words, symbols, diagrams or tables, or combinations of these.

Section B

This section consists of a small number of compulsory extended-response questions based on the whole syllabus. It is worth approximately 45 marks. Individual questions may require knowledge of more than one topic.

The intention of this section is to test students’ knowledge and understanding of the syllabus in depth. The range of syllabus topics tested in this section may be narrower than that tested in section A.

Question type

• Questions require extended responses involving sustained reasoning.

• Individual questions will develop a single theme.

• Questions may be presented in the form of words, symbols, diagrams or tables, or combinations of these.

• Normally, each question reflects an incline of difficulty, from relatively easy tasks at the start of a question to relatively difficult tasks at the end of a question. The emphasis is on problem-solving.