Syllabus
Past Papers
Specimen Papers
Video Resources
Cambridge IGCSE
Mathematics (0580)
The syllabus year refers to the year in which the examination will be taken.
Syllabus overview
Cambridge IGCSE Mathematics encourages learners to develop their mathematical ability as a key life skill, and as a strong basis for further study of mathematics or to support skills in other subjects.
The syllabus:
- develops learners’ competency, confidence, and fluency in their use of techniques with and without the use of a calculator, cultivating mathematical understanding.
- develops learners’ feel for quantity, patterns, and relationships, encouraging learners’ reasoning and analytical skills.
- places a strong emphasis on solving problems in mathematics and real-life contexts.
- promotes appropriate presentation and interpretation of results, encouraging learners’ understanding of how to communicate and reason mathematically.
- is tiered to allow candidates of all abilities to achieve and progress in their mathematical studies.
Know all about
- Changes to Content.
- Changes to Assessment.
- What’s added.
- What’s removed.
- Exam paterns.
What is the difference between IGCSE Core and Extended?
To take account of different abilities, there is a choice between Core and Extended papers. This helps teachers decide on the most appropriate level of papers for their students.
The cure curriculum provides a full overview of the subject and is targeted at students expected to achieve grades C to G.
The Extended Curriculum, covering the Core entirely with the supplement, has been designed for the more academically able and leads naturally into higher education or professional training. It is targeted at students expected to achieve grades A* to E. The supplement contains the extra topics or depths that must be added to the Core curriculum to produce the Extented Curriculum.
Target Grades Grades Available
Core Curriculum C D E F G
Extended Curriculum A* A B C D E
The overlap of three grades (C, D & E) is designed to accommodate students who perform either better or worse than the teacher expects. Students who fail to meet the minimum satisfactory standard for either the Core curriculum (grade G) or the Extended curriculum (grade E) will be ungraded.
What is considered a good IGCSE result?
The grades from A* to D are considered good results, as E to U are not considered passing grades.
Grading System A*–G and 9–1 grades
IGCSEs are traditionally graded A*-G worldwide. However, recognizing the evolving educational landscape, Cambridge International offers 9-1 graded IGCSEs in select regions alongside the traditional grading system.
Traditional A*-G grading scale
The traditional grading scale, recognized globally, is as follows:
A*(90-100%)**: Excellent performance
- A (80-89%): Excellent performance
- B (70-79%): Good performance
- C (60-69%): Satisfactory performance
- D (50-59%): Fair performance
- E (40-49%): Sufficient performance
- F (30-39%): Poor performance
- G (20-29%): Very poor performance
- U (0-19%): Ungraded, indicating that the minimum standards required for grade G were not met.
9-1 Grading Scale
In response to
changes in the UK GCSE system, the IGCSE has also introduced a 9-1 grading scale in some regions, particularly in the UK. This scale offers more granularity at the higher end of the grading spectrum:
- 9 (highest grade): Indicates exceptional performance, surpassing the old A* grade
- 8: Roughly equivalent to an A* in the traditional scale
- 7: Corresponds to an A
- 6: Aligns with a high B
- 5: Matches a low B/high C
- 4: Equivalent to a low C
- 3: Comparable to a D/E
- 2: Equivalent to an F
- 1 (lowest grade): Comparable to a G
- U: Ungraded
What is the difference between Cambridge IGCSE and Cambridge O Levels?
Cambridge IGCSE and Cambridge O Level are equivalent qualifications grade for grade. Please see below a comparison of these qualifications:
Background to Cambridge IGCSE
Cambridge IGCSE syllabuses have been developed to support modern curriculum development, and to encourage good teaching practice. They set internationally recognised standards (equivalent to British GCSE and to GCE O levels). Cambridge IGCSEs can be taken as individual subjects or as qualifications towards the International Certificate of Education (ICE), which is awarded for a minimum of seven IGCSE passes from different subject areas. For more information on the ICE award, please see the official website.
Features of Cambridge IGCSE
• Cambridge IGCSE is aimed at a wide ability range of students, with a range of grades awarded from A* (highest grade) to G (lowest). There is a core and extended curriculum available in some subjects – the available grades for each of these tiers will be listed in each subject’s syllabus document.
• Cambridge IGCSE uses a variety of assessment techniques to test oral and practical skills, initiative and problem-solving and application of skills, knowledge and understanding.
• A coursework option is available in many syllabuses, allowing schools an element of personal choice and giving teachers the chance to share in the process of assessment.
• Learners are rewarded for positive achievement (what they know, understand, and can do).
• Cambridge IGCSE prepares students for progression to employment, or further study. It also prepares students very well for Cambridge International AS & A Levels.
Features of Cambridge O Level
Cambridge O Level shares some of these features, but the following differences should be noted:
• Cambridge O Level candidates are only awarded grades from A* to E, where A* is the highest achievable grade.
• Cambridge O Level offers fewer coursework options than Cambridge IGCSE.
• Some Cambridge O Level syllabuses were developed to meet specific local needs, such as minority languages.
• The focus of Cambridge O Level languages is on writing and reading skills
• There are more restricted practical test options in Cambridge O Level sciences. These constraints are advantageous to some schools where resources are limited.
Is Cambridge IGCSE equivalent to the UK GCSE?
Cambridge IGCSE was developed as a GCSE examination for international use and the academic demands and standards of Cambridge IGCSE are equivalent to those of the UK GCSE. Cambridge IGCSE exams are tailored for a multi–cultural, multi–lingual audience in a way that UK GCSE exams are not. They are aligned to the standards of the UK GCSE, and are equivalent on a subject–for–subject, grade–for–grade basis. On official website, we have produced a document outlining how we align the standard of Cambridge IGCSE with equivalent qualifications taken in England.
UK NARIC, the national agency in the UK for the recognition and comparison of international qualifications and skills, carried out an independent benchmarking study of Cambridge IGCSE and found it to be comparable to the standard of UK GCSE. This means students can be confident that their Cambridge IGCSE qualifications are accepted as equivalent to UK GCSEs by leading universities worldwide. Please visit official website for further information.
Due to the United Kingdom leaving the European Union, the UK NARIC national recognition agency function was re-titled as UK ENIC on 1 March 2021, operated and managed by Ecctis Limited. From 1 March 2021, international benchmarking findings are published under the Ecctis name.
Why are there several versions of the same component available on the School Support Hub?
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In order to maintain the security and integrity of the examinations, Cambridge operates a system based on location codes.
In practice, this means that the component number given in the syllabus will not always match up with the component code on past papers downloaded from the School Support Hub. When the component code has two digits, the first digit is the component number given in the syllabus, and the second number is the location code. Papers 11, 12 and 13 are, therefore, all Paper 1.
When choosing a set of papers to use as a mock, always choose components with the same final number e.g. 12, 32, 62 or 11, 31, 61. The content of these exams is not specific to location, so they can all be used for practice examinations.
How many papers are in IGCSE Math?
All candidates take two components.
For Core, students will pass two papers, paper 1 and paper 3, based on the core content.
- Paper 1: Non-Calculator (Core)
- Paper 3: Calculator (Core)
- Paper 2: Non-Calculator (Extended)
- Paper 4: Calculator (Extended)