2023 WASSCE: Best Maths Study Tips for Effective Learning

You have an algebraic expression problem the night before your midterm math test. So what else is new? You never got what your teacher was trying to teach you.

And if you have to try to understand it her way for one more second, you might just give up. But here’s a secret: you probably need a different plan or strategy that will work better.

When you know different tips and strategies for studying math, it can help you learn faster and better.

This is important even after you finish your math tests. Math skills will help you with banking, solving problems, and many other things long after you finish school.

So, we’ve put together a list of the top 9 math study tips that we think will help you with your math problems. Let’s dive in!

1. Practice, Practice, Practice

“Practice makes perfect,” as the saying goes. Even though some students are good at math by nature, most are not. If you want to get better at math, you’ll have to work at it.

Imagine playing the piano or painting a picture. You’ve got to start somewhere. And you’ll only keep getting better if you practice.

Doing math problems over and over and as often as you can train your brain to solve problems and find answers.

Not sure where to look for things to help you practice? Here are some suggestions to get you started:

• Ask your teacher for more worksheets or other materials.
• Use your textbooks or workbooks. Most likely, your teacher hasn’t gone over every problem, so you’ll probably have a few more to do.

• Have you got a competitive side? Join the International Math Challenge online.
• If your school has a math club, you might want to join.
• Use the internet to find math exercises.
• Visit the library at your school or in your neighborhood to find books you could use.
• Check out a charity shop to see if they have any old math books you can buy.

2. Make sure you have enough time to study

As a student, you’re always doing something. But you’ll need to slow down if you want to get good at math. Math isn’t something you can learn quickly and then remember for a long time.

You should instead try to understand the material, not just memorize it for an exam.

You have to work through math problems and ideas slowly and carefully. So, give yourself plenty of time to study.

Start by getting good at managing your time. This will take the pressure off of you and help you feel less stressed about math.

When you take your time and get ready to study, you’ll feel more at ease and ready to learn any math concept that comes your way.

3. Challenge Yourself

You want to get better at math. But you can’t do that if you only do math problems that are easy.

Choose math problems or tasks that will make you think and push you to do better.

You might be wondering, “How will I know if the material is hard enough?” The simple answer is that a problem isn’t hard enough if it’s easy to understand and quick to solve.

But if it makes you stop and think about how to do something, you’re on the right track.

Make it a slow process to push yourself. There is such a thing as being too hard on yourself. Instead, set your own pace and pick math problems that get a little harder as you go.

So, you can improve your math skills and your confidence by doing one task at a time.

4. Know what you’ve done wrong and learn from it

Have you ever gotten math homework or a test back from your teacher covered in red ink because you made so many mistakes?

Even though it’s not fun, seeing where you went wrong is the first step to getting better at math.

Henry Ford once said, “The only mistake that counts is the one we don’t learn from.” So, when your teacher gives you back a quiz or test, you can deal with your mistakes by

• Look at your answers and try to figure out where you could do better.
• Look for mistakes that keep happening and work on fixing them before moving on to something more difficult.
• Keeping a list of ideas to learn more about or keep practicing.
• If you don’t know why your answer is wrong, ask your teacher for help.
• You might want to hire a private math tutor to help you out.

5. Try as hard as you can to remember your formulas

We know that the last thing a student wants to do is spend hours at their desk doing math problems.

When it comes to math, there aren’t many shortcuts or ways to save time, but there is one you need to know about.

Learn your math formulas by heart! If you do this, you won’t have to stop and look up the formula in your textbook or notes. This will help you solve math problems faster.

You should write them down as often as you can. This will make it much easier to remember them.

6. Stay the same

For math, playing the piano, learning a new language, etc., you need to practice regularly.

Your math skills will get back on track if you practice math regularly, do your homework, go to class, and ask for help when you need it.

Make a plan for how you will study math, and stick to it!

7. Learn how your calculator works

Your best friend in math is a calculator. Using your calculator correctly can save you time and help you figure out hard math problems like square roots, exponential operations, and more.

Take the time to figure out how your calculator works.

Find out what it can and can’t do. But ask your teacher if it’s okay to use a complicated calculator for homework or practice before you do.

They may want you to figure out how to do something or understand a concept on your own first.

8. Review what you know about the basics

If you want to understand more complicated math ideas, you need to get the basics down. Imagine if you learned to run before you learned to walk.

Math is a cumulative subject, which means that each lesson builds on the ones before it. This means that as you go along, the lessons get harder and harder.

If you know how to do the basics of math well, you’ll be ready for more difficult math concepts down the road.

9. Don’t just study for tests.

You’ll need to study if you want to do well on a math quiz or exam. But getting good grades isn’t the only reason to work hard.

You should instead learn math concepts and see how they fit into the bigger picture of math. Think of learning math as a long-term way to improve your ability to solve problems.

Critical and logical thinking is an important life skill that is needed in most school subjects and future jobs.

No matter if you want an A in General Math, Math Methods, or Advanced Math, our math study tips can help! Just remember the big picture: the only way to really get an A is to study so that you understand and remember what you’re learning.

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