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It covers modernised assessment features such as calculator use, redesigned layout, multiple-choice questions, and the balancing of Mechanics, Statistics, and Pure, supported by assessment objectives and example question 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assessment  \nThe features of our papers and why they matter for you and your students  \nMeet Dan Rogan  \nChair of Examiners  \n“We set questions that all students can access, while building in appropriate challenge for the strongest, so that we give every student the best chances of success.  \nMoving away from the modular approach, particularly for pure maths, challenged us to see what maths is about:  \n• learning new concepts  \n• combining them with existing techniques  \n• applying our understanding to problem solving in a wide range of contexts.  \nWe want students to celebrate maths as a tooland as a discipline in its own right.”  \nFour things you need to know  \nabout our papers  \n1 More opportunities for students to get the marks they deserve Our new, better mark schemes introduce a new mark type, more marks for follow-through, credit for different approaches – we’re doing more to make sure that students get the marks they deserve.  \n3 Our multiple-choice questions  \nStarting a paper with these questions is a winning formula for GCSE. And the research and evidence say they’rea reliable test for students too. Since they’re right for students, they’re hereto stay.  \n2 Papers for 21st century students  \nModernised papers that:  \n• take advantage of what the latest calculators can do  \n• responded to research and best practice  \n• have a new layout designed to improve students’ experience.  \n4  \nKeeping students’strengths at the heart Students tend to be stronger at either Mechanics or Statistics.  \nWe want well-balanced, fair assessment.  \nSo separating Mechanics and Statistics and dividing out the Pure balances the papers for more even performance.  \nOur promise: These four features are at the heart of our aims for the qualification and will be in all our practice papers and in the live exams.  \nThe thinking behind great assessment  \nContents  \n\n| Contents | Page |\n| --- | --- |\n| Assessment objectives you can understand | 3 |\n| Better mark schemes | 5 |\n| How we assess calculator use | 17 |\n| Clearer layout | 21 |\n| Multiple-choice questions | 23 |\n| Splitting the applications | 24 |\n| Consistency in assessment | 25 |\n| Clearer language | 35 |\n| Appropriate marks for questions | 39 |\n\nThe thinking behind great assessment  \nAssessment objectives you can understand  \nLet’s begin with a recap of the assessment objectives (AOs) that we must design our assessments in line with.  \nOur assessments must be a fine balance between ensuring appropriate coverage of the AOs, overarching themes and specification content, which were finalised for us by the DfE.  \nBelow is an AO summary and breakdown. Keep returning to this as you read on to cement your understanding and confidence in how they’re assessed.  \nThe thinking behind great assessment  \nThe thinking behind great assessment  \n\n| | The details that make the difference\u003Cbr>Let’s see the elements that make better assessment by exploring some questions from our specimen papers.\u003Cbr>See the summary box at the top of each question and then have a look at the extra left-hand annotations to help you understand the thinking that goes into writing our questions.\u003Cbr>Better mark schemes\u003Cbr>We’ve redesigned our mark schemes to help you and your students fully understand what’s expected in order to gain marks. Here are the important changes you need to know:\u003Cbr>􀁸 our marking instructions focus on the mathematical principles being assessed without being over-prescriptive of the techniques or methods to use\u003Cbr>􀁸 the typical solution on the right-hand side of the mark scheme shows what avery good solution could look like, but doesn’t describe what students must do\u003Cbr>􀁸 we’ve introduced a new mark type for reasoning (R)\u003Cbr>􀁸 a high proportion of marks are ‘method’ marks (M)\u003Cbr>􀁸 you’ll see how the assessment objectives are assessed with each mark allocated an AO\u003Cbr>􀁸 we won’t always need a particular metho","cbCaihXfnUCAXQxE","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaihXfnUCAXQxE","pdf",2069436,48,"English","# Assessment objectives you can understand\n# Better mark schemes\n## Mark types and marking approach\n# The finer details\n## Example question: proving an increasing function\n# Multiple-choice questions\n# Clearer layout and language","[{\"question\":\"What is the main purpose of the A-level Maths specimen paper commentaries?\",\"answer\":\"To explain the thinking behind assessment design, including question accessibility, appropriate challenge, and how the assessment objectives and mark schemes work in practice.\"},{\"question\":\"What changes are included in the redesigned mark schemes?\",\"answer\":\"The mark schemes focus on mathematical principles, include a new reasoning mark type (R), use many method (M) marks, and provide follow-through credit after incorrect results when the next step is completed successfully.\"},{\"question\":\"How does the document describe assessing calculator use and paper layout?\",\"answer\":\"It highlights modernised papers that take advantage of the latest calculators and use a new layout designed to improve students’ experience, along with clearer language and structure across the papers.\"}]","A-level Maths - Specimen paper commentaries by our Chair of Examiners | PDF",1792464945,121]