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girls doing ext 2? (1 Viewer)

~ ReNcH ~

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Slide Rule said:
Up to year 10, Australia is labout 1 to 2 years behind. In year 11 we jump about two years ahead and are roughly up to American standard. Roughly.

It's a problem.
There is a big jump between Yr 10 and Yr 11....in Aust, they should probably introduce elementary calculus in Yr 10 - it would make life easier for students who don't like it or don't understand it that well.
 

Slidey

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~ ReNcH ~ said:
So would the difficulty of MX2 exceed or bee on par with the highest level of maths offered in the US?
Btw. is MX2 the highest level of maths offered in Australia?
Well... it's hard to compare, since other stats have different topics. On average, since NSW is the most consistent, and since NSW is pretty rigourous in its coverage, I'd say yes. QLD's system is interesting, but lacks consistency from school to school.

Re Americans: Just straight comparing syllabi, you'd think they're pretty equal. But talking with friends who live there and are studying things like AP calculus, for the students that WANT to excel, they excel. Generalising of course, but here, there isn't much of that until university.
 

~ ReNcH ~

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Slide Rule said:
Well... it's hard to compare, since other stats have different topics. On average, since NSW is the most consistent, and since NSW is pretty rigourous in its coverage, I'd say yes. QLD's system is interesting, but lacks consistency from school to school.

Re Americans: Just straight comparing syllabi, you'd think they're pretty equal. But talking with friends who live there and are studying things like AP calculus, for the students that WANT to excel, they excel. Generalising of course, but here, there isn't much of that until university.
I've always wondered...what does AP stand for? I've heard of AP Chemistry, and now AP Calculus.

And back to the standards between states/countries...I read an article (I think it was on the Buchanans' website) that said that MX2 was up to world standards, coz every year a maths forum is held for the best of the best in which they sit a test which is meant to be of a considerable difficulty...few even get 1 mark. Yet there was a question in the exam in one year that could be solved with a simple "Volumes" calculation using Integration...
 
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ishq

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Maths and Sciences in Australia are nowhere near the standards imposed by Asain Countries though.
Puts things in perspective...
 

Slidey

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Yeah. America's education system isn't a very good one to compare to - it's beginning to face exactly the same problems Australia's is.

AP = Advanced Placement. It's the honours stream of a subject. Has something to do with AP courses counting somewhat towards university credit, I think.

I do complain that they cover partial derivatives in AP Calculus whilst we don't. =/
 

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yer althou in america they have like no subject that is compulsory... they are put is a group of classes depending on wot they want 2 do in collage. like advanced calculs and physics for like architecture. there skools are prob a lil better thann austrialian (althou most dont go 2 skool, they bum around), althou there collage system and wot they learn in them far excceds australia
 

~ ReNcH ~

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Slide Rule said:
Yeah. America's education system isn't a very good one to compare to - it's beginning to face exactly the same problems Australia's is.

AP = Advanced Placement. It's the honours stream of a subject. Has something to do with AP courses counting somewhat towards university credit, I think.

I do complain that they cover partial derivatives in AP Calculus whilst we don't. =/
Ah ic...so it'd be along thie lines of our Distinction Courses? Or at least in that it ccan count towards uni credit.

As for partial derivatives...is that when you solve an equation in terms of d2y/dx2 and dy/dx? - or am I thinking of something different?
 

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JamiL said:
yer althou in america they have like no subject that is compulsory... they are put is a group of classes depending on wot they want 2 do in collage. like advanced calculs and physics for like architecture. there skools are prob a lil better thann austrialian (althou most dont go 2 skool, they bum around), althou there collage system and wot they learn in them far excceds australia
I wouldn't mind studying at an Ivy League College...except that it costs around $30 000/year :( - and that's in $US as well I think.
 

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stella8h8chang said:
We're an all-girls school, but I think normally they start with 25 people or so doing 4U math, and then the next year they drop to about 10-15. (I'm in y11, but I plan to do Ext. 2 for the HSC)
My accel. class dropped from 11 down to 9 in Year 11 when two guys left the school (one for SGS). Currently 8 MX2 students.

Btw. I like that description in your sig :p
 

Slidey

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~ ReNcH ~ said:
As for partial derivatives...is that when you solve an equation in terms of d2y/dx2 and dy/dx? - or am I thinking of something different?
I think you're thinking of differential equations, I think.

As for Ivy League, that's where I'll be doing my graduate studies if all goes to plan. That or M.I.T., Stanford or Rice.
 

ishq

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Slide Rule said:
I think you're thinking of differential equations, I think.

As for Ivy League, that's where I'll be doing my graduate studies if all goes to plan. That or M.I.T., Stanford or Rice.
I was thinking of that too!
I gave SAT I too.
But you're right. The US is a much better plave for post graduate studies, rather than undergraduate.
MIT? Wow!
Last year they took two Australians.....
 

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Back to the original point of this thread: I was looking through the archive, and found a girl (gasp!) – Alison Elizabeth Parker – who topped 4U maths in 1993 (further gasps!). And, not only that, but I believe she got 120/120 - equal first with Henderson who got a gold medal at Moscow in the IMO, as far as I know.
 

~ ReNcH ~

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Slide Rule said:
I think you're thinking of differential equations, I think.

As for Ivy League, that's where I'll be doing my graduate studies if all goes to plan. That or M.I.T., Stanford or Rice.
Ah...that's the one :p
So what are partial derivatives?
 

~ ReNcH ~

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ishq said:
I was thinking of that too!
I gave SAT I too.
But you're right. The US is a much better plave for post graduate studies, rather than undergraduate.
MIT? Wow!
Last year they took two Australians.....
Does anyone know how many Australians unis such as Harvard/Standford/Yale took in?...out of pure curiosty.
 

chooette

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I did 4u last year, doing my HSC this year, I was the only one doing 4u maths at my school, and i'm female... I think this year theres one of each doing it...
 

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