Leaving Certificate Mathematics:
Ordinary Level

Number in Leaving Certificate Mathematics Ordinary Level covers the numerical skills that underpin the full OL course — including integers, fractions, decimals, and percentages, ratio and proportion, rates, percentage change including profit and loss, simple and compound interest, financial mathematics including loan repayments and investments, indices and scientific notation, surds and irrational numbers, and the real number system. Students develop the ability to apply numerical reasoning in both theoretical and applied contexts across the LC OL examination papers. Ordinary Level Number content reflects the Project Maths emphasis on connecting mathematics to real-world financial and practical situations.

Algebra in Leaving Certificate Mathematics Ordinary Level covers a solid range of algebraic skills relevant to the OL examination — including simplifying expressions, expanding and factorising including quadratic expressions, solving linear and quadratic equations by factorisation and the quadratic formula, solving simultaneous equations, rearranging formulae, working with inequalities, and an introduction to complex numbers including their arithmetic and the Argand diagram. Students also work with sequences and series including arithmetic and geometric progressions and their applications in financial contexts. OL Algebra is assessed across both LC examination papers and is a significant component of the course.

Functions in Leaving Certificate Mathematics Ordinary Level develops students’ ability to represent and interpret mathematical relationships graphically — covering function notation, domain and range, plotting and interpreting linear, quadratic, exponential, and logarithmic functions, identifying key features of graphs including intercepts, turning points, and asymptotes, transformations of graphs, using graphs to solve equations, and applying function concepts to model real-world situations such as population growth and financial change. The Project Maths approach emphasises connecting function behaviour to realistic applied contexts. OL Functions is assessed across both LC examination papers and includes both written and graphical questions.

Geometry and Trigonometry in Leaving Certificate Mathematics Ordinary Level covers a broad geometric and trigonometric syllabus — including the synthetic geometry theorems and corollaries required at OL, coordinate geometry of the line including slope, distance, midpoint, and the equation of a line, coordinate geometry of the circle including the equation and properties of a circle, trigonometry including right-angled and non-right-angled triangles using the sine rule, cosine rule, and area formula, 3D trigonometry applications, and the unit circle and trigonometric graphs. Students are required to recall and apply geometric theorems and to solve a range of applied trigonometry problems across both LC OL examination papers.

Statistics and Probability in Leaving Certificate Mathematics Ordinary Level is one of the most distinctive strands of the Project Maths syllabus — covering the statistical investigation cycle, data collection and representation using bar charts, histograms, stem-and-leaf plots, scatter plots, and back-to-back plots, measures of central tendency and spread including mean, median, mode, range, and standard deviation, the normal distribution and z-scores, correlation and lines of best fit, probability including fundamental rules, conditional probability, and expected value, and the binomial distribution at an introductory level. OL Statistics and Probability is examined in both LC papers and rewards students who can interpret and communicate statistical findings clearly.