Practising past exam questions is essential if you’re looking to score highly in Maths. Similar question types come up over and over again, but you still need to revise all the topics on your course, as the Maths exam now is NOT predictable anymore. Both sections at higher and ordinary Leaving Cert levels are equally important and the correct amount of time must be left for the longer questions as they tend to require more thought.

The new Maths syllabus at both Junior and Leaving Certificate is quite crowded with a lot of material to get through, not to mention trying to link up topics in true Project Maths style. Incidentally ‘Project Maths’ was the name given to the subject ‘Mathematics’ when it was changed and rebranded in 2008. It has now reverted to ‘Maths’ after this bedding in period.

With so much to cover during class time, it is difficult for teachers to expose their students to any substantial level of exam questions during term time. The reality is that many teachers will only complete the course fully after Easter, through no fault of their own. It is up to each individual student to dust off the exam papers (usually purchased in September) and start attempting some part (a)’s and (b)’s of each question. You should initially focus on topics you have covered yourself in class in order to build up your competence.

You should attempt each exam question by utilising your text book and class notes to the best of your ability. Subsequently, refer to a solutions book to see how accurately you are progressing. With an unprecedented level of detail, my exam paper solution books at both Junior and Leaving Certificate levels are an ideal companion to complete this process efficiently. You are then in a much better position when your teacher commences past exam questions. You should start practising and familiarising yourself with the language on exam papers as soon as you purchase those past exam papers. Waiting until they appear on the board in class isn’t good practice in my opinion.

It is also important not to get too worked up about questions that appear on your Maths mock paper, as these questions have been set by a company independent to the State Exams Commission (SEC). Your exam paper focus should always be on practising previous official state exam questions under time pressure. Replicating exam hall pressure is a brilliant way to hone your skills and really check if you can complete the question asked under the time limit allocated. I would start by taking on a short question or two against the clock, and then try a long question, until eventually you feel confident enough to take on a full paper. Constantly doing questions out from your textbook will never fully prepare you for a sit down full test paper in Maths.

Doing an exam question trial at home every week will improve your speed and accuracy for the final exam, and after some time you will cut out silly errors and feel calmer about tackling a full paper. This process will give you the belief that you can get the awkward question started or tackle the unseen diagram. The following is my reasoning to get quickly onto the ‘exam question’ diet: