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Mathematics at high school

In high school, Mathematics begins to cover more abstract ideas than earlier learning. From Year 7, teachers guide students to deepen their understanding of mathematical ideas and how they interconnect.

Rossmoyne Senior High School also runs a selective entry Specialist Mathematics program. The program attracts hundreds of applications each year and takes on 25 new students annually. Learn more about Specialist Mathematics.

Class structure and opportunities in Mathematics

Year 7

All students take a Mathematics class four times a week.

Year 8

All students take a Mathematics class four times a week.

Year 9

All students take a Mathematics class four times a week.

Year 10

All students take a Mathematics class four times a week.

Year 11 and 12

Students can choose to study one or more of the below courses and will attend each course four times a week. Please see the Curriculum Handbook for details on acceptable and mandatory Mathematics course combinations for Year 11 and 12.

  • Mathematics Essential (General)
  • Mathematics Applications (ATAR)
  • Mathematics Methods (ATAR)
  • Mathematics Specialist (ATAR)

Mathematics in Years 7 to 10

Curriculum in Years 7 to 10 Mathematics

The Mathematics curriculum in WA is divided into three major strands, ‘Number and Algebra’, ‘Measurement and Geometry’, and ‘Statistics and Probability’.

Within each of these strands, students observe and explore numbers, objects, and events within their daily lives and build their capabilities.

From Year 7, students learn to:

  • represent numbers in a variety of ways;
  • understand the benefits of algebra, through building and applying algebraic models and geometry;
  • estimate and selecting appropriate units of measurement;
  • explore ways to work with and represent data; and
  • make predictions about events based on their observations.

Extension, accelerated, general, and focus classes in Years 7 to 10 Mathematics

From Semester 2 of Year 7, students at Rossmoyne are grouped into Mathematics classes to suit their learning needs. Students are placed into a class based on their results in the previous year.

In Year 10, students in extension and Specialist Mathematics begin exploring Year 11 content, studying Mathematics Methods (Unit 1) in Semester 1, and Maths Specialist (Unit 1) in Semester 2.

Mathematics courses build on prior knowledge and some course combinations are not possible. View a detailed Mathematics pathway structure.

Mathematics in Year 11 and Year 12

Four course options for Mathematics in Year 11 and Year 12

In Year 11 and Year 12 there are four courses of Mathematics study available. Each course is designed to meet the learning needs, interests and abilities of the students enrolled.

  • General Mathematics Essential
  • ATAR Mathematics Applications
  • ATAR Mathematics Methods
  • ATAR Mathematics Specialist

Mathematics courses build on prior knowledge and some course combinations are not possible. View a detailed Mathematics pathway structure.

More information

Learning content and opportunities

Read more about what content is covered in classes, and what opportunities are available within each Learning Area in the Curriculum Handbooks.

Curriculum in Western Australia

Read more about the curriculum in WA on the School Curriculum and Standards Authority’s webpages for Pre-primary to Year 10 and Year 11 and Year 12.