Parents stumped by GCSE math question as 92% fail to answer

Parents have been stumped by a GCSE math question 92 percent failed to answer.

This will, of course, come as no surprise to students as many youngsters don’t believe that their parents’ math skills are up to scratch.

Countless mums and dads have likely been unable to help with their children’s math homework beyond primary school.

You know exactly what we’re talking about!

New research by revision website SaveMyExams shows that a mere 42 percent of pupils believe their parents could pass a maths GCSE exam today and 30 percent of kids said their parents were left confused when trying to help them out with exam-style questions.

SaveMyExams

One particularly problematic question that completely threw parents for a loop left the majority of parents stumped. Over 92 percent said they were unable to answer it and rather poor eight percent tried to guess.

We can totally understand why…

The question involves a shape with all measurements in centimetres. Underneath the shape it says: "The area of the shape is A cm². Show that A=2x²=24x=46."

If you’re extremely confused, don’t fret because lots of us are!

Unsplash

For those of us who need an extra hand when it comes to algebra, SaveMyExams has a number of experts on hand to explain how to solve the question.

"Seeing questions with loads of algebra can be scary but breaking them down into smaller chunks will help you work through them more easily,” expert Lucy Kirkham said.

"Our maths experts at Save My Exams create colour-coded model answers which break down each question into easier steps to carefully guide users to the correct answer.

"This question gives you the answer you’re working towards, which can sometimes be off-putting as you wonder ‘How am I ever going to get there?

SaveMyExams

"Don’t let it worry you, just try to start with the first step and you’ll surprise yourself with how far you can get! Even if you don’t get all the way through, marks are awarded for different stages of your working - so you can always try to pick up some marks and use our model answers to see how you’d pick up the rest."

GCSE students take two to three maths papers between today, 19 May and 14 June.

Good luck to you all!

Topics: Parenting

Gregory Robinson

Gregory is a journalist working for Tyla. After graduating with a master's degree in journalism, he has worked for both print and online publications and is particularly interested in TV, (pop) music and lifestyle. He loves Madonna, teen dramas from the '90s and prefers tea over coffee.