Maths students across the country were left stumped by an 'impossible' GCSE exam question. Many teenagers taking the Edexcel GCSE Maths paper said they were left confused by one particular task.
One parent told Manchester Evening News that even some teachers at their child's school struggled to come up with the solution to the 'impossible' question. A University of Manchester maths student even admitted he found it 'tough'.
Candidates were asked to work out the area of the shaded part of some circles, if all the circles have a radius of four. "A tough one, even I had to spend some time looking where to start," Manchester university student Harry Surplus tweeted.
Read more: Gedling primary school calls on former pupils to help celebrate its 60th anniversary
"Sorry #EdexcelMaths but what was that last question," one student tweeted. Another said they spent '20 mins... just staring at the last question'.
A 2nd year BSc Maths students take on the last question of Edexcel GCSE Maths Higher Paper 1. A tough one, even I had to spend some time looking where to start. How many marks was it worth anyone? #gcses2022 #gcsemaths #gcses #EdexcelMaths pic.twitter.com/zGLNTlgenh
— Harry Surplus (@harrysurplus)
Maths teacher Jonathan Baker also took to Twitter to offer the correct method of answering the question.
As well as leaving many teenagers nonplussed, the conundrum is sure to leave many in a cold sweat as they have flashbacks to their own maths exams. Edexcel has been approached for comment.
