what is 4u like? (1 Viewer)

[anonymoushehe]

my teacher recommended me to do 4u maths but im like so iffy about it because i dont think i can do it - how does 4u compare with 3u maths and the others subjects? Is it more conceptual and abstract? is the difference in difficulty level with 3u rlly big?

 

[wollongong warrior]

Not at all
Proofs and inequalities can be tricky the first time around but you'll get used to it
You can't really compare 3u with 4u, it's like comparing yr 11 and yr 12 physics: you can do well in the latter even if you don't know anything about the former (besides general math skills)

 

[arcadian]

I don't mind 4u, it's definitely challenging but with practice I've started to enjoy some parts of it. Most, if not all of 4u is built on 3u topics e.g. integration, proofs from induction, mechanics from projectile, 3d vectors from vectors. But you have to keep up with homework or stay ahead and do revision and past papers early on, because for me 4u was a bit different conceptually in that I feel like it appealed more to my problem-solving/thinking out of the box (which I enjoy a lot more), which I didn't encounter in high school maths previously and so I needed more practice. If your teacher recommended it to you, you should definitely try it out - if you don't like it you can always drop!

(proofs can go die tho)

 

[Susu123]

(proofs can go die tho)

preach, i hate that shit

 

[anonymoushehe]

Not at all
Proofs and inequalities can be tricky the first time around but you'll get used to it
You can't really compare 3u with 4u, it's like comparing yr 11 and yr 12 physics: you can do well in the latter even if you don't know anything about the former (besides general math skills)

how much time do you think needs to be dedicated?? is the workload very big ??

 

[wollongong warrior]

how much time do you think needs to be dedicated?? is the workload very big ??

Hmm conceptually?
Vectors and mechanics: light work, the latter even more so if you're taking physics
Integration: bit more work but still light
Complex numbers and proofs: if you haven't touched concepts like them, it can be challenging at the start and most of your workload will be on them imo

4u was light for me since I had a goated teacher, if you're less fortunate, try everything you can to learn the topics (especially the harder ones) asap so you have more time to consolidate and practice

 

[liamkk112]

not too bad if you’re willing to put in the time and after a sem of uni you’ll have finished 4u anyway pretty much (except for proofs mayhaps)
topic breakdown is like this:
-integration ; fairly easy, as long as you know 3u integration and practice the standard problems you’ll be fine for the majority of problems
-mechanics ; this is pretty much applied integration, if you know physics it’s an advantage but mostly this topic has a lot of generic questions and you just need to know newtons laws
-vectors; this is basically 3u vectors with an added dimension, if you know 3u vectors this topic will be simple to learn
-complex numbers; about half of this topic can be pretty easy and the other part is hard. basic questions are very easy whereas geometric questions and proof based questions can be difficult
-proofs; probably the hardest topic since this marks a fair shift in thinking from the calculation based stuff you’ve done throughout high school. with enough practice and exposure to questions though, most of the topic is fine - it’s just when they mix this topic with the others is when it can get difficult, or they’ll give you one where you need a “trick” to solve the question and thinking of this can take some time

tbh questions 11-14 of 4u are very doable and with enough practice any good 3u student can pretty easily achieve highly, similar for multiple choice. the difficulty comes in the last two questions (15-16), where every question will be a curveball and potentially suck up a lot of time. that being said with enough practice you can probably achieve at least 50% on these questions, and at that point you’ve already secured an e4 because of the ridiculous scaling

 

[nd_bluey]

my teacher recommended me to do 4u maths but im like so iffy about it because i dont think i can do it - how does 4u compare with 3u maths and the others subjects? Is it more conceptual and abstract? is the difference in difficulty level with 3u rlly big?

Well there is definitely a big step up from 3U to 4U, 4U is one of those subjects where if you have seen a question before or anything similar you are at an advantage because a lot of people won't be able to do it. 4U is really technique based, more than logical thinking imo. For example Inequalities in 4U a lot of them just have ways that make sense in the end, however you may not think of that method during the heat of an exam.Vectors is generally really easy, where they can throw curveballs is when they ask you 3D Equation of A Curve and Spirals as most people neglect that so understand how that works. Integration is easy, however they can't just assess you on calculating the integral for every single question as everyone would get that right, so they step it up to reduction formula, proving the formula is easy but they could integrate some of the previous topics like Proofs to make it harder. Complex this topic can be really easy, and really hard, make sure to go over all the various types of questions for Complex in Trial papers as there are many curveballs. Proofs is really hard as well. The main way to get good at 4U, I wouldn't say is about being really smart its just about the exposure to every single type of question there is by doing THSC past papers.

 

[anonymoushehe]

Well there is definitely a big step up from 3U to 4U, 4U is one of those subjects where if you have seen a question before or anything similar you are at an advantage because a lot of people won't be able to do it. 4U is really technique based, more than logical thinking imo. For example Inequalities in 4U a lot of them just have ways that make sense in the end, however you may not think of that method during the heat of an exam.Vectors is generally really easy, where they can throw curveballs is when they ask you 3D Equation of A Curve and Spirals as most people neglect that so understand how that works. Integration is easy, however they can't just assess you on calculating the integral for every single question as everyone would get that right, so they step it up to reduction formula, proving the formula is easy but they could integrate some of the previous topics like Proofs to make it harder. Complex this topic can be really easy, and really hard, make sure to go over all the various types of questions for Complex in Trial papers as there are many curveballs. Proofs is really hard as well. The main way to get good at 4U, I wouldn't say is about being really smart its just about the exposure to every single type of question there is by doing THSC past papers.

wtf

 

[anonymoushehe]

i was also wondering will the total workload be heavy heavy if its on top of phys and chem

 

[liamkk112]

i was also wondering will the total workload be heavy heavy if its on top of phys and chem

probably lol. for 3u u can get by with maybe 3-8 hours (out of school) per week depending on where you're at (ofc your current skill and a lot of things are a factor here but i'm talking on average) + your other time commitments, for 4u you're talking at least 5 especially at the beginning. once you're past a certain threshold you can chill a bit, but specifically when you're just starting out you're encountering things like proofs for the first time that really need a significant time allocation to get through your head. by the end of the year you'll hopefully feel like the things you've learned are second nature but when seeing i for the first time or 3d geometry it can really take some time to make sense to you