3 Ways to Prepare Your Child for the IB Math Exam

The IB Math exam is one of those exams that would demand serious preparations from its takers. And the students planning to take it really should give the IB Math exam the attention it needs, especially when hoping to get into a good university.

The IB Math exam seeks to evaluate student’s aptitude in various areas of mathematics which include algebra, functions and equations, circular functions and trigonometry, vectors, statistics and probability, and calculus.

With the need to be proficient in all these areas (even more if taking the Higher Level or HL program), your child would appreciate your help in preparing. We have collated x ways on how you can do just that:

1. Prepare based on the exam format your child is taking

The first thing you need to do to help your child in preparing for the IB Math exam is to know what exam he is taking. The IB Math exam comes in two levels: Standard Level (SL) and Higher Level (HL). Both exams are composed of an internal and external assessment. With college students and other graduate levels, there are things we call preparatory courses and books. These help people review their knowledge on topics that they are planning to take an exam on. A lot of these can be viewed on ExamGenius.

For both cases, the internal assessment (which makes up 20% of the exam taker’s mark) is a mathematical investigation paper. As a general rule, it is best to aim for full marks in the internal assessment as this helps in giving some room for error in the external assessment.

The SL exam covers the areas of mathematics mentioned above and leads to 2 papers in the external assessment. The HL exam covers an “option” or an additional area of mathematics, which also becomes the third paper for HL exam takers.

Knowing what level of the IB exam your child is taking will help you and your child in preparing for the exam. When engaging IB math tuition services, this knowledge will also help shape your child’s program.

2. Know formulas from the heart

Being well-versed with formulas is critical in acing the IB math exam. While the formula booklet can help, it won’t really matter if your child does not know how to use the appropriate formula. Best to practice using all the formulas until it comes to a point that the child is confident in using them.

It is also a good idea for your child to be familiar with using the calculator in working with these formulas, and where possible, to know shortcuts in getting the result needed.

3. Practice using past exams

Practicing with exams from the previous year would definitely be of great help for your child. It gives him an idea of how the actual exam will be like so he won’t be taken by surprise. If you avail of IB math tuition services, then it would be a standard strategy that they expose your child with a number of practice exams.

To get the full benefit of working with past exams, make it a point to identify and address the topics that your child finds very challenging, as made evident by the results of the practice exams. You should spend some more time preparing for subjects that your child finds most challenging.

Working with past exams, your child would also be exposed to some questions that get asked all the time.

Having worked with past exams, your child will be more confident and ready to take the actual IB Math exam.

Preparing for the IB Math exam will help boost your child’s future. So take preparations very seriously. Work with your child in order to ensure that he can ace it, and with the three steps above, your child will have better chances in achieving just that. Of course, if possible, it is always best to seek the services of an IB Math tuition center or agency to help you out.