3 Simple Tricks to Nail your IB Maths Exams

For some a dream come true, for others their worst nightmare: after years of preparation, the IB Maths exams finally arrive. How can you maximize your chances of success? Luckily, there are some simple tricks that work regardless of your level, and regardless of which IB Maths course you take. Here I present to you my top 3 tips for getting high marks as possible in the IB exams:

1) Don't do the questions in order

A lot of people make the mistake of starting with question 1, then doing question 2, then 3, and so on. Don't do that. What if question 9 is actually on your best topic, but once you get there you are short on time and have to rush it?

Instead of doing the questions in order, take 30 seconds at the start of the exam to skim through all the questions, and mark the ones that you think will be easiest for you. Then start with those.

This might sound like spending precious time on nothing, but it will in fact save you time. By getting your best questions out of the way first, you will have more time left over for the harder problems. This will in turn make you less stressed overall, which increases your chances of success.

To put it briefly: if you're an expert on sequences but struggle with calculus, then you should always do the sequences question first and the calculus questions last, regardless of where in the exam each one is.

2) Move on quickly when you're stuck

Normally when doing class work, we are encouraged to never give up on the tough questions and stick with them until we get a breakthrough. On an exam, however, this is a horrible strategy.

Since the exam is time pressured, the last thing you want to do is to spend a lot of that time on a question that you will probably not get many marks from anyways.

If you get stuck on a question and realize it will take a long time to get anywhere with it, move on immediately. Any more time spent on that question is time lost from other questions. Do the other questions first, and only come back to the hard one at the end if you still have time.

3) Always write something down, even if it's stupid

In the IB, there is no such thing as negative marks for doing stupid things.

The worst that can happen is that you get zero marks on the question. However, there are often quite a lot of so-called method marks that you can get even if you don't solve the problem.

Very often, these marks can be gotten just by indicating that you have some idea of which topic you are dealing with, or which equations might be relevant.

So if you come upon an impossible question, but realize it's probably about Trigonometry, then jot down at least one equation from Trigonometry. Even if you have nothing else, you might get lucky - if that was indeed the right equation to use, you'll get a mark for just writing it down.

An extension of this is that you should never cross out your working, unless you are absolutely sure that you have found a better approach. Even if your answer seems stupid to you, you might pick up a mark or two for having done a correct step along the way. And those marks can prove vital.

Some final advice

The IB Maths exams are never easy, and your degree of success will always depend on how well you have studied the topics. However, there are certain steps that can increase your chances of success regardless of how confident you feel.

Using the advice in this post, you will give yourself a better shot. Try to keep calm as you look through the questions, and remember: play to your strengths by focusing on the things you think you can do first. Only at the end should you try to push yourself on the hardest questions.

Was this useful? You can get more advice like this, and further help with your understanding of each topic, by connecting with a tutor. Here at Lindahl Tutoring, we have a proud reputation of helping students overcome their hardest challenges, as evidenced by our reviews. Try out our trial class here to see if a personal tutor might be exactly what you need: Trial class.

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