Y11 considering 4u maths (1 Viewer)

[kanra3431]

Yes I've read the pinned thread for y11s, but I still feel really indecisive.
I'm a student at a selective school that's ranked quite well. In a few weeks, we will pick our subjects for y12. I've been thinking about taking up 4u for a long time as maths is one of my stronger subjects, but I need to dedicate a lot of my time next year to English. It's my single weakest subject ever since y7, and it will definitely drag my ATAR down if I continue at the same rate. The head of maths at my school said that 4u students spend at least 2h on it each day. I've heard of people spending even more time on it, and I doubt that I can manage this on top of the time that I will need for English. I've also heard of people dedicating 50%+ of their study time to 4u, which I can't imagine myself doing at all. I got 92% for my ext1 test, and my teacher thinks that I can handle 4u. But I feel as though I only did well because I'm quite accurate with my calculations, but my abstract problem-solving skills are lacking severely. My classmate said that the jump from 2u to 3u is greater than that from 3u to 4u, but I've heard that it's the opposite. I don't think that I will pursue a career that requires the mathematical rigour of 4u, but I feel pressured into taking it because my classmates think I'm good at maths. If anyone who currently does/did 4u maths can give me some insight to what the course is like, I would really appreciate it

 

[Etho_x]

Yes I've read the pinned thread for y11s, but I still feel really indecisive.
I'm a student at a selective school that's ranked quite well. In a few weeks, we will pick our subjects for y12. I've been thinking about taking up 4u for a long time as maths is one of my stronger subjects, but I need to dedicate a lot of my time next year to English. It's my single weakest subject ever since y7, and it will definitely drag my ATAR down if I continue at the same rate. The head of maths at my school said that 4u students spend at least 2h on it each day. I've heard of people spending even more time on it, and I doubt that I can manage this on top of the time that I will need for English. I've also heard of people dedicating 50%+ of their study time to 4u, which I can't imagine myself doing at all. I got 92% for my ext1 test, and my teacher thinks that I can handle 4u. But I feel as though I only did well because I'm quite accurate with my calculations, but my abstract problem-solving skills are lacking severely. My classmate said that the jump from 2u to 3u is greater than that from 3u to 4u, but I've heard that it's the opposite. I don't think that I will pursue a career that requires the mathematical rigour of 4u, but I feel pressured into taking it because my classmates think I'm good at maths. If anyone who currently does/did 4u maths can give me some insight to what the course is like, I would really appreciate it

Your solution to this is to probably be realistic, and what I mean by that is considering whether 4U is right for you given that what you want to do in the future doesn't need the math 4U offers. Do you have the time? Factor in how much time you're going to spend on 4U in comparison to other subjects. Sure, you're going well in math and that's great to hear! But if you have subjects which perhaps may need more attention than Math, I would not recommend taking 4 units unless you're 100% sure you're able to manage it properly with everything else on your plate (could be best to trial it and then drop if necessary). It's important to note that English is compulsory too so you may find yourself spending way too much time on 4U math and English (the "important subjects") whilst disregarding the other subjects you have or spending less time than you would on English and Math. However, I guess all of this comes down to your work ethic which I'd assume is good. What I've said is a general response to your concern but it's your choice at the end of the day really

 

[mikikieko12]

The current 4U course is actually much easier than the previous one. There are 5 main topics and most are very straight forward so you don't need strong abstract problem-solving skills. Let me break them down:
- Complex Numbers: this requires a good foundation in algebra and extension 1 vectors. It is probably the most straightforward topic out of all of them (especially since a lot of graphical and geometrical aspects have been taken out of the syllabus).
- Nature of Proofs: this topic also requires a strong foundation in algebra and algebraic manipulation, there is not much geometrical or abstract topics here except some inequalities and induction style questions.
- Vectors: Probably the most abstract course in extension 2, its a continuation of the extension 1 vectors topic and explores 3D vectors and 2D planes. (the geometrical topics aren't too hard, but it might just be hard to visualise as its in 3D).
- Integration: continuation of integration from extension 1 (however volumes topic has been removed, so its not as abstract or hard as it used to be previously).
- Mechanics: continuation of projectile motion from extension 1 topic, can be a bit abstract if you don't do physics. It also includes simple harmonic motion (previous extension 1 topic). It can be challenging to conceptualise if you do not do physics, but you can easily grasp it with practice.

Personally the leap from Extension 1 to Extension 2 isn't that huge, its just that Extension 2 is a subject that stands by itself (like it has lots of topics that you haven't done before like complex numbers and nature of proofs). So the leap is just that you are learning some new topics in extension 2.
Also personally its not as time consuming as people say it is, but again it really depends on how fast you are able to understand the content and type of questions. Also you don't need to study 2 hours a day! You can survive as long as you don't fall behind and regularly practice questions.

Looking at your marks, give it a try. If it doesn't work out there is always the option of dropping it.
Btw its a pretty fun course, you don't really need to be aiming for a mathematical degree to do it.

 

[Velocifire]

The current 4U course is actually much easier than the previous one. There are 5 main topics and most are very straight forward so you don't need strong abstract problem-solving skills. Let me break them down:
- Complex Numbers: this requires a good foundation in algebra and extension 1 vectors. It is probably the most straightforward topic out of all of them (especially since a lot of graphical and geometrical aspects have been taken out of the syllabus).
- Nature of Proofs: this topic also requires a strong foundation in algebra and algebraic manipulation, there is not much geometrical or abstract topics here except some inequalities and induction style questions.
- Vectors: Probably the most abstract course in extension 2, its a continuation of the extension 1 vectors topic and explores 3D vectors and 2D planes. (the geometrical topics aren't too hard, but it might just be hard to visualise as its in 3D).
- Integration: continuation of integration from extension 1 (however volumes topic has been removed, so its not as abstract or hard as it used to be previously).
- Mechanics: continuation of projectile motion from extension 1 topic, can be a bit abstract if you don't do physics. It also includes simple harmonic motion (previous extension 1 topic). It can be challenging to conceptualise if you do not do physics, but you can easily grasp it with practice.

Personally the leap from Extension 1 to Extension 2 isn't that huge, its just that Extension 2 is a subject that stands by itself (like it has lots of topics that you haven't done before like complex numbers and nature of proofs). So the leap is just that you are learning some new topics in extension 2.
Also personally its not as time consuming as people say it is, but again it really depends on how fast you are able to understand the content and type of questions. Also you don't need to study 2 hours a day! You can survive as long as you don't fall behind and regularly practice questions.

Looking at your marks, give it a try. If it doesn't work out there is always the option of dropping it.
Btw its a pretty fun course, you don't really need to be aiming for a mathematical degree to do it.

Yay the legend herself comes on again

 

[kanra3431]

Your solution to this is to probably be realistic, and what I mean by that is considering whether 4U is right for you given that what you want to do in the future doesn't need the math 4U offers. Do you have the time? Factor in how much time you're going to spend on 4U in comparison to other subjects. Sure, you're going well in math and that's great to hear! But if you have subjects which perhaps may need more attention than Math, I would not recommend taking 4 units unless you're 100% sure you're able to manage it properly with everything else on your plate (could be best to trial it and then drop if necessary). It's important to note that English is compulsory too so you may find yourself spending way too much time on 4U math and English (the "important subjects") whilst disregarding the other subjects you have or spending less time than you would on English and Math. However, I guess all of this comes down to your work ethic which I'd assume is good. What I've said is a general response to your concern but it's your choice at the end of the day really

Thank you for your response! I picked up chem on a whim after fluking it in y10, and it's now my favourite subject and I'm doing surprisingly well in it for missing 4 weeks of t1 content lol. From this, I believe that anything can happen from now to y12. Trialling 4u is a really good idea, as I can see what it's really like for myself, and how it would fit into my schedule. I think I'll see how my prelims go as I underperformed last term across everything due to covid related issues.

 

[kanra3431]

The current 4U course is actually much easier than the previous one. There are 5 main topics and most are very straight forward so you don't need strong abstract problem-solving skills. Let me break them down:
- Complex Numbers: this requires a good foundation in algebra and extension 1 vectors. It is probably the most straightforward topic out of all of them (especially since a lot of graphical and geometrical aspects have been taken out of the syllabus).
- Nature of Proofs: this topic also requires a strong foundation in algebra and algebraic manipulation, there is not much geometrical or abstract topics here except some inequalities and induction style questions.
- Vectors: Probably the most abstract course in extension 2, its a continuation of the extension 1 vectors topic and explores 3D vectors and 2D planes. (the geometrical topics aren't too hard, but it might just be hard to visualise as its in 3D).
- Integration: continuation of integration from extension 1 (however volumes topic has been removed, so its not as abstract or hard as it used to be previously).
- Mechanics: continuation of projectile motion from extension 1 topic, can be a bit abstract if you don't do physics. It also includes simple harmonic motion (previous extension 1 topic). It can be challenging to conceptualise if you do not do physics, but you can easily grasp it with practice.

Personally the leap from Extension 1 to Extension 2 isn't that huge, its just that Extension 2 is a subject that stands by itself (like it has lots of topics that you haven't done before like complex numbers and nature of proofs). So the leap is just that you are learning some new topics in extension 2.
Also personally its not as time consuming as people say it is, but again it really depends on how fast you are able to understand the content and type of questions. Also you don't need to study 2 hours a day! You can survive as long as you don't fall behind and regularly practice questions.

Looking at your marks, give it a try. If it doesn't work out there is always the option of dropping it.
Btw its a pretty fun course, you don't really need to be aiming for a mathematical degree to do it.

it sounds like you're handling ext2 very well! I personally enjoy problem solving, which is what made me look towards 4u maths. Do you use the Cambridge books for ext1? They have these enrichment/extension problems that the book recommends to those looking to do 4u; I was wondering how those compare to the real thing in terms of difficulty?

 

[mikikieko12]

it sounds like you're handling ext2 very well! I personally enjoy problem solving, which is what made me look towards 4u maths. Do you use the Cambridge books for ext1? They have these enrichment/extension problems that the book recommends to those looking to do 4u; I was wondering how those compare to the real thing in terms of difficulty?

Cambridge enrichment questions from the extension 1 textbook are generally not hard (their just tedious). Plus as I said before extension 2 is a subject that stands by itself, so most content you learn will be topics you've never done before. So you can't really compare the difficulty to the extension 1 Cambridge enrichment section.

But honestly though don't look at a extension 2 textbook until you study the course (its quite harder than extension 1, but if you have a good mathematical foundation from year 11 you should be fine).

 

[vinlatte]

Also you don't need to study 2 hours a day! You can survive as long as you don't fall behind and regularly practice questions.

Yes! Study often but not too much that it's a drag. Especially revise past topics every now and then if you have a goldfish memory haha. And completing questions is part of homework since class focuses on theory.

Mechanics: continuation of projectile motion from extension 1 topic, can be a bit abstract if you don't do physics.

That is true, unlucky for a non-science student like me. But projectiles is also part of ext 1, so you're not gonna be completely lost. Mechanics is an applied calculus topic, so it mainly focuses on deriving and integrating.

 

[po45gp]sedorgmjkpoerdjgf]

4u isnt that hard but its quite a lot harder than the ext 1 yr 12 course. Personally I found yr 11 ext 1 to be fairly difficult and im smashing 4u now. Wouldnt worry too much about the english mark, if youre doing reasonably well in your other subjects it can only bring you down so much. If you want marks like 90% you will be looking at some decent hours put in, but the scaling in the past has been very good, even for marks in the 60s or 70s, which are probably achievable with just a couple hrs a week.

 

[MrGresh]

I know this is impressively late but I'll give my two cents to anyone else who is tossing up 4u.

When I chose 3u in Y11, I was almost certain that I would drop down to advanced. The first topic, which I shit you not is like Y9 maths, I struggled with so much. But I managed to keep working at it, and ended up rank 2 in year 11 ex1 maths.

I chose 4u with similar intentions - I didn't think I would keep it but I just wanted to do it for fun. But here I am, rank 3/10 in 4u. Now, I'm not great at it, but it scales so well that it's one of my best subjects.

So let me break down what i did for 4u maths:

Workload
I really didnt do much work during the week for 4u. Maybe max 2 hours a week. I just didnt see any purpose in doing the work. I do have a tutor, which helps me immensely, but i didnt work super hard.

In terms of weekends, I did about maybe an hour a weekend of study during the term.

Now, obviously i did way more work in the lead up to exams. Notably, I went through the whole course in 1 12 hour day before my 4u exam (cannot reccomend).

How I Studied
During the year, I basically religiously did textbook questions from Maths in Focus. They were easy, but they helped me get the hang of stuff nicely.

Coming up to exams, I would do (a) past papers (if they were available) and (b) work from harder textbooks like Cambridge or Howard Mathematics.

I didn't do notes, but they can be helpful, especially considering the theoretically challenging nature of ex 2.

So... Should you do 4u?
YES. I really think that if you are in a position where you are legitimately considering picking up extenstion 2, then you shoud for sure give it a go. Hell, if things go pear-shaped you can always drop with the knowledge that you gave it a red hot go.

Things that would tell me that you should DEFINITELY DO 4u:
1. You actually like doing maths
2. You don't mind having maths twice a day, every day
3. You want to do something STEM-related in uni
4. You are ok at maths

(NOTE: I said you are ok at maths. You really don't need to be a maths god to do 4u. It scales really well, so even if you are getting 50%ish, youre still heading for an E3!)

 

[beetree1]

Just for reference, I did 4 units of maths and 2 units of english and am aiming for Law in uni lol! So just do the subjects that will get you the marks to get you into your course.