Mathematics at Applecross Senior High School aims to develop the numeracy capabilities that all students need in their personal, work and civic life, and provide the fundamentals of mathematical specialties and professional applications of mathematics.
Students will use ideas about number, algebra, measurement, geometry, statistics and probability and mathematical ways of representing patterns and relationships, to describe, interpret and reason about their social and physical world. Mathematics plays a key role in developing students’ numeracy and assists in learning across the curriculum.
Students should learn to read, write and speak mathematics in various contexts and forms so that they can understand and convey mathematical ideas and continue to use and learn mathematics autonomously. Whether dealing with familiar or unfamiliar tasks, they need to:
- recognise when mathematics might help
- choose appropriate mathematical methods
- decide on levels of precision and accuracy
- perform calculations
- interpret the results
- evaluate the reasonableness of results and appropriateness of the methods used.
The Mathematics Learning Area comprises experienced staff across all learning standards and courses. The school is fortunate to have such a talented pool of subject matter experts.
Pathways in the Mathematics Education
To cater to the students’ different abilities, the Mathematics Learning Area streams students into different pathways to help them achieve to their highest potential. Academic Extension and Accelerated Mathematics classes form our Extension Program where we will challenge students and prepare them for the highest ATAR courses in the future. Pathway 1 consists of the mainstream program where students are given a good solid grounding on the Australian Curriculum to prepare them for ATAR courses in the future. Pathway 2 is available in Years 9 and 10 and consists of a modified program where students are given a good solid grounding on the Australian Curriculum to prepare them for future study in basic ATAR courses. Pathway 3 is a further modified program where students are prepared for non-ATAR general courses in the future and help students who are struggling to pass OLNA.
