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RESEARCH PAPER
An analysis of calculus application questions in grade 12 mathematics exams in South Africa
1
Fujairah Boys’ School, Fujairah, UAE
Publication date: 2024-10-13
EURASIA J. Math., Sci Tech. Ed 2024;20(10):em2519
KEYWORDS
ABSTRACT
This study employed a quantitative survey methodology to analyze the 2021-2023 grade 12
calculus application exam questions in the context of South Africa. A total of 11 grade 12 teachers
and 220 grade 12 students participated in the study. Analysis of the survey data and students’ test
results points to the view that examiners sometimes misjudge the level of difficulty of the exam
questions and include questions that are very difficult, which fail to discriminate between strong
and weak candidates. It was noticed that calculus applications questions that most students could
not correctly answer included multiple mathematical skills that were compacted in a short
statement. This paper recommends that mathematics examiners should continuously reflect on
their own work and find ways to improve their skills in setting future exam papers. The inclusion
of item difficulty and item discrimination indices in post-exam analysis of results could be part of
the examiners’ reflective practice. Feedback from the grade 12 mathematics teachers on the
standard of each exam question is just as important to the examiners as the examiners’ reports
are to the teachers.
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| eISSN: | 1305-8223 |
| ISSN: | 1305-8215 |
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