General Mathematics aims to develop learners' understanding of

concepts and techniques drawn from number and algebra,

trigonometry and world geometry, sequences, finance, networks
and decision mathematics and statistics, in order to solve applied
problems
Skills in applying reasoning and interpretive skills in mathematical and statistical contexts
and the capacity to communicate in a concise and systematic manner using appropriate
mathematical and statistical language will be developed. Learners will develop the capacity
to choose and use technology appropriately and efficiently.

Rationale

Mathematics is the study of order, relation and pattern. From its origins in counting and
measuring, it has evolved in highly sophisticated and elegant ways to become the language
used to describe much of the physical world. Mathematics also involves the study of ways of
collecting and extracting information from data and of methods of using that information to
describe and make predictions about the behavior of aspects of the real world, in the face of
uncertainty. Mathematics provides a framework for thinking and a means of communication
that is powerful, logical, concise and precise. It impacts upon the daily life of people
everywhere and helps them to understand the world in which they live and work.

Studying General Mathematics provides the learner with a breadth of mathematical

experience that enables the recognition and application of mathematics to real-world
situations. General Mathematics is also designed for those learners who want to extend their
mathematical skills in order to pursue further study at the tertiary level in mathematics and
related fields.

Aims

General Mathematics aims to develop learners’ understanding of concepts and techniques

drawn from number and algebra, trigonometry and world geometry, sequences, finance,
networks and decision mathematics and statistics, in order to solve applied problems. Skills
in applying reasoning and interpretive skills in mathematical and statistical contexts and the
capacity to communicate in a concise and systematic manner using appropriate
mathematical and statistical language will be developed. Learners will develop the capacity
to choose and use technology appropriately and efficiently.
Calculus

The major themes of Mathematical Methods are calculus and statistics. They include as necessary
prerequisites studies of algebra, functions and their graphs, and probability. They are developed
systematically, with increasing levels of sophistication and complexity. Calculus is essential for
developing an understanding of the physical world because many of the laws of science are
relationships involving rates of change. Statistics is used to describe and analyse phenomena
involving uncertainty and variation. For these reasons this subject provides a foundation for further
studies in disciplines in which mathematics and statistics have important roles. It is also
advantageous for further studies in the health and social sciences. In summary, the subject
Mathematical Methods is designed for students whose future pathways may involve mathematics
and statistics and their applications in a range of disciplines at the tertiary level.

For all content areas of Mathematical Methods, the proficiency strands of the F-10 curriculum are
still applicable and should be inherent in students’ learning of this subject. These strands are
Understanding, Fluency, Problem solving and Reasoning, and they are both essential and mutually
reinforcing. For all content areas, practice allows students to achieve fluency in skills, such as
calculating derivatives and integrals, or solving quadratic equations, and frees up working memory
for more complex aspects of problem solving. The ability to transfer skills to solve problems based
on a wide range of applications is a vital part of mathematics in this subject. Because both calculus
and statistics are widely applicable as models of the world around us, there is ample opportunity for
problem solving throughout this subject.

Calculus was developed out of a need to understand continuously changing quantities.

Newton, for example, was trying to understand the effect of gravity which causes
falling objects to constantly accelerate. The speed of an object increases constantly
every split second as it falls. How can one, for example, determine the speed of a
falling object at a frozen instant in time, such as its speed when it strikes the ground?
No mathematics prior to Newton and Leibnitz's time could answer such a question,
which appeared to amount to the impossibility of dividing zero by zero. The solution
to this type of issue came to be known as the derivative. Derivatives are slopes of
particular lines called tangent lines, and the reader may recall that slope of a line is a
concept from Descartes' graphing.

Differential calculus is one side of calculus, the part concerned with continuous
change and its applications. By understanding derivatives the student has at his or her
disposal a very powerful tool for understanding the behavior of mathematical
functions. Importantly, this allows us to optimize functions, which means to find their
maximum or minimum values, as well as to determine other valuable qualities
describing functions. Real-world applications are endless, but some examples are
maximizing profit, minimizing stress, maximizing efficiency, minimizing cost,
finding the point of diminishing returns, and determining velocity and acceleration.

The other primary side of calculus is integral calculus. Integration is a process which,
simplistically, resembles the reverse of differentiation. This amounts to efficiently
adding infinitely many infinitely small numbers. This allows us, in theory, to find the
area of any planar geometric shape, or the volume of any geometric solid. But the
applications of integration, like differentiation, are also quite extensive.