GCSE

Exam blog 7 – Sleep and exams – by Nicola Morgan

Sleep is such a tricky issue. We know how important it is to health, mood and function, but we know that worrying about it makes people more likely to have sleeping troubles. Add the fact that teenagers commonly have biologically different sleeping patterns (needing more sleep and not feeling sleepy till later) and the fact that exam stress is likely to hinder easy sleep, and you have a major potential problem. Luckily, most young people are so keen to get better sleep that they are open to advice about it. Sleep education becomes a valuable part of helping them prepare for exams. Read More

Collins GCSE Maths Festival – Amnesty Questions Answered Part 1

Day 1 of our GCSE Maths Festival saw us host a Maths Amnesty. Prior to the festival we asked you to submit your most burning questions about teaching GCSE maths, how to engage students, and advice for dealing with the changes to the new curriculum. We had some great submissions and our expert Chris Curtis, from Frome Community College, was really excited to get stuck in and answer them for you! Read More

Good strategies to deal with stress – by Nicola Morgan

Stress is a valuable – actually, essential – chemical reaction when we’re faced with danger or challenge. In a split second, faster than we can decide to move, our body is flooded with chemicals, including adrenaline and cortisol. These send blood racing to large muscles and our brain and release glucose into the bloodstream for energy. This allows us to act as powerfully as possible. Read More

Did you know? Notes from the history of Maths

Credit where credit is due Abstract: This article outlines the work of Paolo Ruffini who first gave a proof of the impossibility of an algebraic solution to quintic equations. This year, 2015, will be the 250th anniversary of the birth of Paolo Ruffini (1765-1822). You can… Read More