Numerical Skills
- A range of numerical skills are needed throughout the final exam papers
Proportion and ratio
- Proportion is relating one part to the whole
- In a group of 100 if there are 20 people who are 15 and 80 people who are 14
- The proportion of those 15-year-olds is 20/100 or 20%
- Ratio is the comparison of two quantities
- In a group of 100 if there are 20 people who are 15 and 80 people who are 14
- The ratio is 1:4 so for every person that is 15 there are 4 people who are 14
Magnitude
- Refers to the relative size usually of an event such as an earthquake
Frequency
- Refers to how often something occurs
Worked example
Analyse Figure 1
For 1960 calculate the ratio of rural population to urban population
[1 Mark]
Answer:
- Any of the following could be awarded 1 mark
- 5.5:1
- 550 to 100
- 55:10
- 110:20 (or 110 to 20)
- 22:4 (or 22 to 4)
- 11:2 (or 11 to 2)
Exam Tip
Always check when making calculations what the question has asked you to do. Is it asking for units to be stated or calculate to the nearest whole number or quote to 2 decimal places?