Mathematical Skills - GCSE Biology

Mathematical skills

In order to be able to develop their skills, knowledge and understanding in GCSE (9–1) in Biology A (Gateway Science), learners need to have been taught, and to have acquired competence in, the appropriate areas of mathematics relevant to the subject as indicated in the table of coverage below.

The questions and tasks used to target mathematical skills will be at a level of demand that is appropriate to GCSE (9–1) Biology.

In the Foundation Tier question papers, the questions that assess mathematical skills will not be of a lower demand than that which is expected of learners at Key Stage 3, as outlined in the Department for Education’s document 'Mathematics programme of study: key stage 3'.

In the Higher Tier question papers, the questions that assess mathematical skills will not be lower than that of question and tasks in assessment for the Foundation Tier in a GCSE qualification in Mathematics.

The assessment of quantitative skills would include at least 10% GCSE (or above) mathematical skills at the appropriate tier for biology.

These skills will be applied in the context of the relevant biology.

All mathematical content will be assessed within the lifetime of the specification.

This list of examples is not exhaustive and is not limited to GCSE examples. These skills could be developed in other areas of specification content as indicated in the opportunities to cover column.

The mathematical skills required for the GCSE (9–1) in Biology (B), Chemistry (C), Physics (P) and Combined Science (CS) are shown in the table below.

Mathematical Skills Requirements

Ref	Mathematical skills	B	C	P	CS
M1	Arithmetic and numerical computation	B	C	P	CS
M1a	Recognise and use expressions in decimal form	B	C	P	CS
M1b	Recognise and use expressions in standard form	B	C	P	CS
M1c	Use ratios, fractions and percentages	B	C	P	CS
M1d	Make estimates of the results of simple calculations	B	C	P	CS
M2	Handling data	B	C	P	CS
M2a	Use an appropriate number of significant figures	B	C	P	CS
M2b	Find arithmetic means	B	C	P	CS
M2c	Construct and interpret frequency tables and diagrams, bar charts and histograms	B	C	P	CS
M2d	Understand the principles of sampling as applied to scientific data	B
M2e	Understand simple probability	B
M2f	Understand the terms mean, mode and median	B		P	CS
M2g	Use a scatter diagram to identify a correlation between two variables	B		P	CS
M2h	Make order of magnitude calculations	B	C	P	CS
M3	Algebra	B	C	P	CS
M3a	Understand and use the symbols: =, <, <<, >>, >, ∝, ~	B	C	P	CS
M3b	Change the subject of an equation		C	P	CS
M3c	Substitute numerical values into algebraic equations using appropriate units for physical quantities		C	P	CS
M3d	Solve simple algebraic equations	B		P	CS
M4	Graphs	B	C	P	CS
M4a	Translate information between graphical and numeric form	B	C	P	CS
M4b	Understand that y=mx+c represents a linear relationship	B	C	P	CS
M4c	Plot two variables from experimental or other data	B	C	P	CS
M4d	Determine the slope and intercept of a linear graph	B	C	P	CS
M4e	Draw and use the slope of a tangent to a curve as a measure of rate of change		C	P	CS
M4f	Understand the physical significance of area between a curve and the x-axis and measure it by counting squares as appropriate			P	CS
M5	Geometry and trigonometry	B	C	P	CS
M5a	Use angular measures in degrees			P	CS
M5b	Visualise and represent 2D and 3D forms including two dimensional representations of 3D objects		C	P	CS
M5c	Calculate areas of triangles and rectangles, surface areas and volumes of cubes.	B	C	P	CS