WITH the exam season coming to an end, why not put your brain power to the test to see if you are smarter than a 16-year-old?

Last year, 1,828 pupils achieved an A* to C grade in GCSE English in the town, 1,846 in GCSE maths and 1,631 in GCSE science and engineering.

But do you have what it takes to pass those all important exams and correctly answer past GCSE questions by examining board AQA?

Some people believe GCSEs are far easier in comparison to their O-Level counterparts and have become less challenging over time.

But Cardinal Newman High School head teacher Julie Warburton disagreed that this was the case and said it was insulting that people have reached this conclusion.

She said: “How can someone pass a judgement when they have not experienced both? Teaching and learning has raised standards and continues to do so.”

Assistant negotiating secretary Warrington NASUWT Kate Morgan added: “Students and teachers alike are tired and demoralised by the constant vilification by the media and the government, at a time when the pressure and the stakes have never been so high.”

Pupils have a long wait before they discover if their hard work has paid off and must now wait patiently for results day on August 21.

Year 11 pupil Beth Robertson, who has just sat her final exam at Cardinal Newman, said: “I recognised it would be hard and thought I was prepared for it but the reality of managing my time and meeting the demands of each exam was really difficult. I just hope it has all been worth it.”

Ailish Draper added: “The demands and challenges were far more than I ever anticipated, with the benefit of hindsight, I wish I had started revising in year seven.”

MATHS 

1. Sophie sells birthday cards. She adds 30 per cent profit to the cost price. She sells the cards for £2.34 each. She wants to increase her profit to 40 per cent of the cost price. How much should she sell each card for?

2. Simplify x + 8x − 3x

STATISTICS

At the beginning of 2012 the town of Brigg had a population of 6000.
In 2012 there were 63 births in the town. Calculate the crude birth rate for Brigg in 2012.

BIOLOGY

One factor that may affect body mass is metabolic rate. What is meant by metabolic rate?

CHEMISTRY

Crude oil is a mixture of many different chemical compounds. Fuels, such as petrol (gasoline), can be produced from crude oil. Fuels react with oxygen to release energy. Name the type of reaction that releases energy from a fuel.

PHYSICS

In the UK, over 70 per cent of the electricity is generated in power stations that burn fossil fuels. Explain one effect that burning fossil fuels has on the environment.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE

‘Homework has no value. Some students get it done for them; some don’t do it at all. Students should be relaxing in their free time.’ Write an article for a broadsheet newspaper in which you explain your point of view on this statement.

GEOGRAPHY

Contrast the positions of granite and chalk on the geological time scale.

HISTORY

Choose one of the factors below which have influenced the prevention and cure of disease and infection:

• religion
• chance

Describe the influence of your chosen factor on the prevention and cure of
disease and infection.

COMPUTER SCIENCE

Give one reason why we use binary to represent data in computers. 

PHYSICAL EDUCATION

How is maximum heart rate calculated?

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Explain briefly why some Christians call the Holy Communion service ‘the Eucharist’.

PSYCHOLOGY

Changing information so that it can be stored in the memory system is known as retrieval. True or false?

For the answers, click here.