Maths revision for assessment

[JP66725]

Hi all

Looking for help please. Looking for books or websites to revise for railway assessments, Recently took a ScotRail assessment and was unsuccessful with it. I failed it on the maths section ‍♂️. So got 6 months until I can reapply for roles

Examples of the maths were

? x 24 - 37 = 140
104 ÷ 16 x ? = 230

Any help with where to study for these would be great. I’ve looked on Amazon for a book but couldn’t find anything that stood out.

 

[Coupling]

Save your pennies. YouTube is a brilliant resource for this sort of thing.

Would recommend: https://youtube.com/@mathantics

Really clear explanations.

Best of luck.

 

[Aviator88]

I hope this wasn't a timed mental maths exam - the answer to the first has three decimal places and the second one has six decimal places recurring!

I'm guessing you just arbitrarily picked some numbers, though, and the real ones would divide down perfectly.

In any event, you need BIDMAS, long multiplication, long division and some basic algebra to perform those types of calculations quickly with a pen and paper.

100% second YouTube as a resource, and the channel linked above is great for the kind of arithmetic you'll need.

Good luck on the next try!

 

[Mattydo]

Hi all

Looking for help please. Looking for books or websites to revise for railway assessments, Recently took a ScotRail assessment and was unsuccessful with it. I failed it on the maths section ‍♂️. So got 6 months until I can reapply for roles

Examples of the maths were

? x 24 - 37 = 140
104 ÷ 16 x ? = 230

Any help with where to study for these would be great. I’ve looked on Amazon for a book but couldn’t find anything that stood out.

This will be remembering your long ago studied orders of mathematical operation. BODMAS. So brackets, orders of power, division, multiplication, addition and subtraction. You can't just solve the equation left to right. Helps to separate the parts of the equation into those parts. You'll also need to use a little basic algebra. So for your first one for example

? x 24 - 37 = 140

Using BODMAS, the mutliplicaiton holds order so separate it out.

(? x 24) - 37 = 140

Then basic algebra to get all your unknowns on one side. Let's move the -37 to the right of the equals sign which will reverse it and simplify by solving out.

(? x 24) = 140 + 37
=>
(? x 24) = 177

Then stick it in a formula triangle if it helps to get the unknown on its own

177
? X 24

Which implies 177 ÷ 24 = ?
=>
? = 7.375

A bit of a horrible answer.

This is a long winded explanation but once you get the basic principle you'll find you can see the end formula more easily.

 

[Aviator88]

This will be remembering your long ago studied orders of mathematical operation. BODMAS. So brackets, orders of power, division, multiplication, addition and subtraction. You can't just solve the equation left to right. Helps to separate the parts of the equation into those parts. You'll also need to use a little basic algebra. So for your first one for example

? x 24 - 37 = 140

Using BODMAS, the mutliplicaiton holds order so separate it out.

(? x 24) - 37 = 140

Then basic algebra to get all your unknowns on one side. Let's move the -37 to the right of the equals sign which will reverse it and simplify by solving out.

(? x 24) = 140 + 37
=>
(? x 24) = 177

Then stick it in a formula triangle if it helps to get the unknown on its own

177
? X 24

Which implies 177 ÷ 24 = ?
=>
? = 7.375

A bit of a horrible answer.

This is a long winded explanation but once you get the basic principle you'll find you can see the end formula more easily.

Yeah, I think (hope) they just picked some random numbers to use as an example. Pretty brutal otherwise!

 

[CloudyManday]

This will be remembering your long ago studied orders of mathematical operation. BODMAS. So brackets, orders of power, division, multiplication, addition and subtraction. You can't just solve the equation left to right. Helps to separate the parts of the equation into those parts. You'll also need to use a little basic algebra. So for your first one for example

? x 24 - 37 = 140

Using BODMAS, the mutliplicaiton holds order so separate it out.

(? x 24) - 37 = 140

Then basic algebra to get all your unknowns on one side. Let's move the -37 to the right of the equals sign which will reverse it and simplify by solving out.

(? x 24) = 140 + 37
=>
(? x 24) = 177

Then stick it in a formula triangle if it helps to get the unknown on its own

177
? X 24

Which implies 177 ÷ 24 = ?
=>
? = 7.375

A bit of a horrible answer.

This is a long winded explanation but once you get the basic principle you'll find you can see the end formula more easily.

I remember doing these. Yup, the numbers all worked out properly and give a whole positive number. Probably the most stressful of the tests as you get about 30 seconds to read and do the calculation (might have been less or varied between rounds) then it vanishes and then you get 10 seconds to write it down.

When I did it I went through the practice ones around 5 times so I could work out exactly how to do each type and get me used to the really short time to read, do the calculation and write down the answer. I'm no slouch when it comes to arithmetic but this wasn't particularly easy.

 

[Mattydo]

Your second one seems more tricky but it works the same.

104 ÷ 16 x ? = 230

This time division holds order so separate it out with brackets.

(104 ÷ 16) x ? = 230

Simplify to unknowns on one side and solve our. (Remember moving across the equals sign makes an addition a subtraction and multiplication a division and vice versa).

So

(104 ÷ 16) = 230 ÷ ?

6.5 = 230 ÷ ?
OR
? = 230/6.5

? = 35.385 (to 3dp)

Another horrible answer. One suspects a calculator is provided if these are actual questions.

 

[CloudyManday]

Your second one seems more tricky but it works the same.

104 ÷ 16 x ? = 230

This time division holds order so separate it out with brackets.

(104 ÷ 16) x ? = 230

Simplify to unknowns on one side and solve our. (Remember moving across the equals sign makes an addition a subtraction and multiplication a division and vice versa).

So

(104 ÷ 16) = 230 ÷ ?

6.5 = 230 ÷ ?
OR
? = 230/6.5

? = 35.385 (to 3dp)

Another horrible answer. One suspects a calculator is provided if these are actual questions.

Yup, calculator is used and the test is done online at home

 

[Mattydo]

Math under time pressure is horrible. Plus if it's been a long time we forget. I read space exploration physics as a module at uni... Think very advance calculus and algebra. I couldn't do a single bit of it now. Long division is a stretch frankly. Because in reality unless you're a theoretical physicist most every day math is confined to a bit of basic addition, subtraction and a times table or two. And in 2023 most will pick up a calculator. Some will say you should work the old brain, and to an extent I agree, but the calculator has existed, in some form, for centuries and personally I value accuracy over mathematical prowess.

I'm sure a little practice will take the nerves out of it and you'll be fine next time.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Jun 2023 ==

Yup, calculator is used and the test is done online at home

If you invest in a basic scientific calculator and don't throw out the instructions you can plug these type of equations with unknowns straight in and it'll work out orders and unknowns for you. Sadly the instructions for scientific and graphic calculators are probably more difficult to understand than just getting the formula into a basic one yourself.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Jun 2023 ==

Yeah, I think (hope) they just picked some random numbers to use as an example. Pretty brutal otherwise!

Quite. Smacks of being taught equations of lift, Nav gen, and radio nav maths and then realising you only ever use your 3 times table hey?

 

[CloudyManday]

Math under time pressure is horrible. Plus if it's been a long time we forget. I read space exploration physics as a module at uni... Think very advance calculus and algebra. I couldn't do a single bit of it now. Long division is a stretch frankly. Because in reality unless you're a theoretical physicist most every day math is confined to a bit of basic addition, subtraction and a times table or two. And in 2023 most will pick up a calculator. Some will say you should work the old brain, and to an extent I agree, but the calculator has existed, in some form, for centuries and personally I value accuracy over mathematical prowess.

I'm sure a little practice will take the nerves out of it and you'll be fine next time.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Jun 2023 ==


If you invest in a basic scientific calculator and don't throw out the instructions you can plug these type of equations with unknowns straight in and it'll work out orders and unknowns for you. Sadly the instructions for scientific and graphic calculators are probably more difficult to understand than just getting the formula into a basic one yourself.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Jun 2023 ==


Quite. Smacks of being taught equations of lift, Nav gen, and radio nav maths and then realising you only ever use your 3 times table hey?

They give you a practice test that you can do as many times as you like before it. They send the link when they send the assessment invitation. 30 seconds per question, so practicing doing it quickly and accurately is really important, especially as the question goes away when the answer screen comes up. Think it was three sets of ten questions.

 

[JP66725]

Many thanks to all that replied.

If anyone could suggest any books for revision for this, That would be great. Means I can revise at my current job

 

[CloudyManday]

Many thanks to all that replied.

If anyone could suggest any books for revision for this, That would be great. Means I can revise at my current job

Could you print out the Nat 5 algebra stuff on BBC Bitesize? I find Bitesize explains things brilliantly and gives good examples to work through.