One of the most underestimated reasons students lose marks in VCE General Mathematics is misunderstanding what the question is actually asking them to do. This is not about content knowledge. It is about command terms.
The General Mathematics Study Design uses very deliberate language to describe the skills students are expected to demonstrate. Those same words appear, often quietly, in exam questions. When students gloss over them, they answer a different question to the one being marked.
The Examiner’s Reports make it clear that this happens far more often than students realise.
Command terms are instructions, not decoration
In General Mathematics, command terms are functional. They determine what kind of response earns the mark.
When a question asks a student to state, the expected response is usually a single value, relationship, or observation. No explanation is required, and none is rewarded. Students who explain often waste time and still fail to provide the exact response required.
When a question asks a student to calculate, the assessment focus is the numerical result. Showing method does not compensate for an incorrect answer in low-mark questions. If the value is wrong, the mark is lost.
When a question asks a student to determine, it often requires selecting the correct outcome from a set of possibilities, sometimes using reasoning or constraints. Students frequently treat this as a calculation task and ignore the decision-making element.
These distinctions are small, but they matter because the marking guides are written around them.
Why explanation is often penalised rather than rewarded
Many students assume that writing more protects them. In General Mathematics, this instinct is often harmful.
The Study Design does not prioritise written explanation in the way other subjects do. Reasoning is assessed implicitly through correct selection and application of mathematics, not through extended prose.
Examiner’s Reports repeatedly note that students provided lengthy explanations where none were required, yet failed to supply the correct value or outcome. In these cases, the explanation does not earn marks and can distract from the required response.
General Mathematics rewards precision, not justification.
How command terms interact with mark allocation
Command terms are closely tied to the number of marks available.
One-mark questions usually assess recognition, interpretation, or accurate execution. Two-mark questions may assess a slightly more complex decision or a correct result supported by a simple step.
Students who treat all questions as if they require the same depth of response often misallocate their time. They overwork low-mark questions and rush higher-demand ones later in the paper.
The Examiner’s Reports consistently praise students who tailor their responses to the mark allocation implied by the command term.
Common command term traps identified in Examiner’s Reports
Several patterns appear repeatedly across recent reports.
Students often:
- calculate when they should interpret
- describe when they should quantify
- explain when they should state
- apply a method when the task is to identify a value
These errors rarely reflect misunderstanding of the mathematics itself. They reflect failure to align the response with the instruction.
Because marks are allocated strictly, these mismatches result in lost marks even when the mathematics is sound.
Why SACs do not always expose this issue
In many SACs, teachers can infer student intent and award partial credit. They may prompt students verbally or design questions with clearer scaffolding.
The exam does none of this.
The marking guide does not infer. It checks whether the response satisfies the instruction. If it does not, the mark is not awarded.
This is why students who perform well in SACs are often surprised by exam outcomes. They have not been required to practise responding precisely to command terms under strict conditions.
How high-performing students read command terms differently
Students who perform strongly in General Mathematics develop a habit of reading the instruction before engaging with the mathematics.
They identify:
- what form the response must take
- whether a value, relationship, or interpretation is required
- how much working, if any, is appropriate
They do not assume that explanation is helpful. They match the response to the instruction.
This habit alone prevents a significant number of avoidable losses.
What this means for exam preparation
Improving command term awareness does not require learning new mathematics. It requires changing how students read questions.
Effective practice includes:
- labelling the command term in practice questions
- checking whether the response actually satisfies it
- marking strictly against official marking guides
- reflecting on whether lost marks were due to instruction mismatch
These practices align directly with what the Examiner’s Reports highlight.
An ATAR STAR perspective
ATAR STAR explicitly teaches students how to interpret command terms in General Mathematics and how to tailor responses accordingly.
This approach benefits students across the spectrum. Developing students gain clarity about what is actually required. High-performing students eliminate unnecessary losses that separate strong results from top-end outcomes.
In VCE General Mathematics, marks are not lost because students do not know enough mathematics. They are lost because students answer the wrong question.
Understanding command terms is one of the fastest ways to fix that.