MATHEMATICS

Our Mathematics department aims to equip our IP students with essential mathematical knowledge and skills to prepare them not only for the eventual A-Level curriculum, but also with a strong foundation in reasoning which is an essential life skill. Our syllabus is carefully designed and crafted, where we strategically select relevant topics and problems to develop strong problem-solving skills in our students.

CURRICULUM

Our department’s vision is to:

• provide students with mathematical knowledge and skills;

• develop thinking, reasoning, communication, application and metacognitive skills through a mathematical approach to problem solving; and

• enable students to see connections in ideas between mathematics and other subjects through application and creating rules for naturally occurring patterns.

In their first 2 years, our IP students will study Fundamental Mathematics, which aims to develop mathematical competency in algebraic and symbolic manipulation. As they progress to IP Years 3 and 4, students will have many opportunities and platforms to explore mathematical topics in greater depth as they offer Intermediate and Advanced Mathematics.

We start training our students in problem-solving skills from IP1, where we harness Schoenfeld's Problem-Solving Framework and Polya’s Problem-Solving Strategy to guide them in a systematic approach to problem-solving. In addition, we adapt ideas from Computational Thinking in collaboration with Master Teachers from the Academy of Singapore Teachers (AST) to further sharpen their skillset. Our students also apply their problem-solving skills in programming, where our tutors take them to a higher level of abstract thinking through coding and exploring real-world applications. Through our innovative curriculum, students get to explore natural phenomena occurring around them as well as examining and devising mathematical models to arrive at mathematical solutions to the identified problem.

Our tutors also leverage selected mathematical software and the use of the graphing calculator in IP Year 4 to enhance the learning experience of our students. By the time they enter JC Year 1, our students can confidently explore how outcomes can be altered by varying specific conditions, honing their ability to identify patterns and interpret data.

ENRICHMENT

Our department seeks out various opportunities such as competitions, seminars and learning journeys to Institutes of Higher Learning for students of all abilities to participate. Higher-ability students who demonstrate an exceptional talent in Mathematics will be enrolled in the Temasek Academy (Mathematics) Programme. This programme further enhances their problem-solving, computational thinking and research abilities as they pursue their passion and achieve their potential.