Following two years of unprecedented disruption to learning, this year’s cohort of November resit students has received a very limited education. The breadth of maths topics they learnt in Year 11 maths is also much more standardised across the cohort because it will more than likely have followed the Advance Information that was released in February for their end of year 11 exams.
This means that, unlike any other resit cohort, students may not have studied certain topics that will appear in November for several years. In fact, the majority of students will never have studied some of them at all.
This blog post identifies the topics that appear in this November’s Advance Information for AQA’s Foundation exam that did not feature in the June 2022 Advance Information for Foundation. These are the topics students are likely to have not yet studied, and are the areas where teachers can make the greatest gains with their students.
This process is slightly more complicated for teachers of resit GCSE classes, as students come to sixth form or college from different institutions. Students in the same classroom may not necessarily all have studied the same exam board. Approximately 65% of students across the UK study Edexcel, whilst approximately 25% study AQA†. These two exam boards have dictated what the vast majority of students will have learnt in their Year 11 maths classes.
The list below identifies the topics that appear in the most recent Advance Information for AQA, which would not have been taught to year 11 classes studying AQA. Topics marked with an asterisk appeared in the Edexcel Advance Information. The topics without an asterisk are likely to not have been learned by over 90% of students across the UK.
Number
- Decimal long multiplication
- Related calculations
- Odd and even
- Cube root problem
- Value (indices)
- Units
- Square*
- Lowest value*
- Rounding*
- Significant figures*
- Use of calculator*
Algebra
- Distance-time
- Expression
- Fibonacci problem
- Set up and solve*
- Change subject*
- Linear sequences*
Ratio
- Capacity problem
- Combined proportion
- Inverse proportion
- Relative frequency problem
- Currency*
- Percentage total*
- Distance problem*
Geometry & Measure
- Rhombus
- Arc length
- Congruent shapes
- Enlargement
- Parallelogram
- Surface area of cube
- Volume of cuboid problem
- Trigonometry exact value*
- Rectangle (area)*
- Trapezium (area)*
- Triangle (area)*
- Opposite angles*
Statistics
- Venn diagram
- Interpret correlation
- Line of best fit
- Mode from diagram
- Frequency table*
- Median*
- Composite bar chart*
- Pictogram problem*
Probability
- Ordering probabilities
- Probability*
- Probability from diagram*
On CENTURY, we have created a course that collates all the topics mentioned in the AQA Advance Information for Foundation. Book a demo to find out more about the content we offer, or speak to your Account Manager if you are an existing customer.
*Featured in Edexcel June Advanced Information, but not in AQA.
†Annual Qualifications Market Report: 2020 to 2021 academic year.
