Spend your money wisely

Without mathematics, important financial decisions like buying a car become much more difficult! Mathematics helps us understand the dynamics of loans, down payments, and resale value, enabling a comprehensive comparison of different financing options. By applying mathematical concepts, we can estimate the resale value of a car years down the road, figure out how much we’ll have to pay in interest, and determine the affordability of monthly payments given our income and expenses.

Note: The below question uses a made-up currency called “zeds.”

This question tests students' ability to employ mathematical concepts, facts, procedures, and reasoning to solve mathematically-formulated problems.

This is a level 6 problem. At level 6, students can conceptualise, generalise and utilise information based on their investigations and modelling of complex problem situations, and can use their knowledge in relatively non-standard contexts. Students can apply insight, understanding, and a mastery of mathematical operations and relationships to develop new strategies for attacking novel situations.

As this question was not included in the main survey, the % of students who got it right is not calculated.

While Henry Ford is often credited with inventing the assembly line, it was mathematical principles that supercharged his vision, leading to the mass production of automobiles. Credit goes to a man named Frederick Winslow Taylor, who combined detailed observations with mathematics to optimise each job at the Ford factories. He used arithmetic, algebra, and elementary calculus to break down and analyse tasks into their parts, time each segment, and then rearrange the production process to minimise movement and maximise efficiency. This mathematical approach reduced the assembly time for a Ford Model T from 12 hours to just 93 minutes and revolutionised industrial manufacturing!