Calculator Tips

Calculators have come a long way since I was at school. My first scientific calculator cost £20 and had a single line display. Many of the calculations had to be done in a different order to the way they were written so sin (30) was typed in as 30 sin and careful use of brackets (all memorised as they did not show on the screen) was essential to ensure the calculation was done in the correct order. Even so it represented a big leap forward because it removed the need for trigonometrical and log tables.

Now a scientific calculator can be picked up for less than £10 and it has "natural" input meaning that the calculation on the screen looks the same as on the page. Complex calculations such as the quadratic formula have become easier to input and check.

Today's A level scientific calculators can perform Binomial and Normal distribution calculations, that until a year or so ago required tables to look up the answers, as well as numerical differentiation, integration and summation. And as for the quadratic formula - well no need to input it when the calculator can do it for you in Equation mode.

Unfortunately you may not get taught the full benefits of your calculator at school. Technology moves on so quickly that teachers don't always know all the things a calculator can do. One of my favourite tutoring moments is showing tutees the Time button which converts decimals into hours and minutes and visa versa making Speed-Distance-Time so much easier.

There are plenty of useful videos online to help you learn the functions on your calculator like this example from LearnersCloud and I would certainly recommend taking the time to get to know your particular model of calculator during your course and well before the exam. Search the make and model of your calculator in YouTube and you will find videos to help you.

Although the GCSE still has a non-calculator paper there are two calculator papers and knowing how to use yours efficiently can pick up extra marks that can shift a grade. Skills such as storing numbers to avoid rounding errors, finding prime factorisation at the push of a button, and using the table mode for graphs can all help you get the best mark.

At A level owning and understanding the right calculator can give you a real advantage as it can reduce the time required for particular questions whilst increasing accuracy.

A calculator is only as good as the user input and it isn't a magic wand that can cover up for lack of mathematical understanding. However if you know how to use yours correctly then it can be a powerful ally in your exams.