Is A2 maths harder than AS?
With so many A level choices, it’s hard to know what the right decision to make is. It’s also more of a worry when you aren’t prepared for how difficult these qualifications can get. If you’re a student concerned about how hard A levels get after the first year of study, particularly in maths, read on for more information!
A2 compared to AS
It’s no secret that A2 maths is a lot harder than AS maths. Whilst many students are shocked by the step up from GCSE to AS level, this shock can repeat itself when comparing AS level to A level. Numerous factors affect this difference in difficulty.
The content
A2 content in maths is much more complex than content in AS level maths. There’s just no avoiding it! You can expect to be introduced to difficult concepts and theories that many students struggle to get their head around. You’ll do pure mathematics as well as statistics and mechanics.
Pure mathematics tackles a wide range of content. This can include proof, algebra, differentiation, integration, and vectors. Statistics include probability, statistical distributions, and statistical hypothesis testing. Thirdly, mechanics can involve kinematics, forces, and moments. As you can see from these lists, the content you’ll have to know increases and gets more complicated as time goes on.
Workload
With all the added content introduced in the second year of college, this creates a much heavier workload than students had to deal with at AS level. A2 is notorious for its large workload, especially when comparing it with GCSE and AS level workloads. This can add a strain to the difficulty, as there becomes more to revise. This makes it harder to keep concepts and theories memorised inside your brain. With more content, there’re usually more exams to prepare for at A level too. Students might find that they have to spend a lot more time working on maths, practising questions, and exam papers to keep on top of remembering all the content. Attending a Edexcel A Level Maths Revision Course could certainly help give you a last minute boost to your confidence and for you to learn some new techniques.
Managing your time
Managing your time in A2 becomes harder than at AS. This is because you have other A levels to deal with aside from maths too. Not only will your maths qualification become harder, but you’ll also have to deal with at least two other subjects becoming harder as well. As each subject becomes more demanding, this can create stress and create more revision. Students might find it hard to balance their time when it comes to dealing with three increasingly difficult subjects all at once. This is one of the reasons why doing four A levels is a rare occurrence.
There’s more pressure
There’s no doubt about it – there’s more pressure to do well at A2 than at AS level. Students will have university offers, apprenticeship offers, or job offers to demand certain grades. This is something they might not have experienced at AS level, and this pressure can certainly make things a whole lot scarier and more difficult to manage.
Overall, it’s certain that A2 maths is harder than AS maths from just looking at the few factors above!
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