- Five types of official resources and their respective usages
- Three levels of manipulation
- Correct order of By Topic and By Year
- Self-Correction: How to Use Marking References
- Form 4 Practice Planning
- Form 5 exam planning
- Form 6 exam planning
- Keep the most recent year strategy
- Five ways to make manipulation ineffective
1. Five types of official resources and their respective usages
HKDSE at 2012 Held for the first time, as of 15 sessions have been accumulated in 2026 Previous examination papers. But "Past Paper" is actually more than just test questions - the five types of resources released by the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority have different uses, and most students only use the Form 1 type.
| resource | content | Correct usage | Use stage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Previous examination papers | Paper 1 and Paper 2 of 15 sessions since 2012 | Main practice materials; By Topic questions and By Year full paper limited time | Full journey starting from Form 5 |
| sample test paper (Sample Paper) | Released before the first exam starts to demonstrate the question types and test paper formats of the new course | Understand the official description of the structure of each part; supplementary exercises | Form 5 |
| practice paper (Practice Paper) | Complete practice papers released before the exam starts | As an additional full volume of limited time material | Form 6 |
| Marking reference (Marking Scheme) | Question-by-question scoring rubric and score distribution | Mark your own Paper 1 and check whether the steps are complete | After each roll |
| Exam reports and test questions album | Markers’ comments on candidates’ performance this year and analysis of common mistakes | Understand "where most candidates lose points" and prevent similar mistakes | Form 6, matching the year it has been done |
| Assessment outline | Official curriculum and assessment requirements | Check the scope; determine whether the old questions are beyond the course | Watch it before practicing |
The most ignored one is the "Examination Reports and Questions Album". It contains the markers' comments on the candidates' performance, directly telling you which questions the candidates made common mistakes and misunderstood in that year. This is the only official information that can help you avoid "the pit where most people fall," and very few students use it. After finishing the test papers of a certain year, the return of reading the report of that year is much higher than writing another new paper.
First figure out what you are practicing
- Paper 1 Strategy
- Paper 2 Strategy
- time allocation
- Common points lost
- Road map to reach the stars
- DSE courses
2. Three levels of paper manipulation
The same test paper, processed in different ways, can have several times different results. The following three levels should be completed layer by layer without skipping the middle layer.
- Simulate actual combat. Strictly time it, finish it in one go, don’t look up the book, don’t pause in the middle, don’t look at the answers. Any practice that relaxes the conditions cannot reflect the real performance - especially "stopping to look up the formula halfway through", which will make the score falsely high and the diagnosis invalid.
- In-depth review. Analyze the causes of errors one by one and classify them into four categories (concept errors, procedural errors, review errors, and calculation errors). The time investment in this step should be no less than making the paper itself. The processing methods of the four categories are completely different. For details, see Common points lost and errors counted.
- learn by analogy. Summarize the rules of question types, for example, "When finding angles in three-dimensional figures, the first step is to find a right triangle in a certain plane." This level is the real improvement in ability - it allows you to still have a way to solve problems you have never seen before.
Most students parked on the first level. The process is "Make the paper → Check the answers → Check the scores → Next paper". The result of this is that similar questions will still be wrong next time, but the scores will seem to be "working hard". The way to judge whether you have reached the second level is very simple - can you tell how many points you lost on the previous paper were due to "not knowing how to do it" and how many points were due to "knowing how to do it but making mistakes"? Can't answer, it means I only did the first layer.
3. The correct order of By Topic and By Year
This is not a matter of choosing one or the other, but a matter of order.
| Compare items | By Topic | By Year |
|---|---|---|
| practice | Select questions from the same study unit from multiple test papers and do them together | Take Paper 1 or Paper 2 of the entire year, strictly according to the exam time |
| Main function | Establish the ability to identify question types and quickly consolidate the concepts you just learned | Training time management, cross-topic switching and examination rhythm |
| What can be diagnosed | Which subject is insufficiently mastered? | Does time allocation break down and problems arise under pressure? |
| Applicable stage | Form 5 to Form 6 last semester | Form 6 next semester |
| Recommended serving size | 30 to 50 questions per unit of study | 1 to 3 full volumes per week (by phase) |
Why the order cannot be reversed: If you complete the entire paper too early, you will get a distorted score because you have not studied all the topics. For example, if you take a complete paper of Form 5 last semester, one-third of the questions may be unstudy content. At this time, the "40 points" neither represents ability nor can be used to diagnose. It will only undermine confidence. On the other hand, if you always only do By Topic and never do the entire volume, you will never find that there is a problem with your time allocation.
Implementation details of By Topic
- Group 10 to 15 questions into groups and review them after completing them at one time.
- The time limit is set according to the score of the question: about 4 minutes for the short questions in Paper 1, about 6 minutes for the medium questions, and 1.29 minutes for the long questions multiplied by the score.
- After completing the entire unit of study, redo all the incorrect questions in the unit.
- If the error rate for the same unit still exceeds 30%, return to the conceptual level rather than continue practicing.
By Year implementation details
- Choose a period of at least 2.5 hours without interruption (Paper 1 135 minutes plus review).
- Prepare all stationery and computer, and make sure the computer is set to degree mode.
- Turn off your phone and simulate a real exam environment.
- Time strictly and stop writing when time is up - papers completed over time cannot reflect true performance.
- Correct immediately after completion, do not deal with it the next day (review is most efficient when the memory is still there).
4. Self-correction: How to use marking reference
This section is the most practical part of the article, because most students use the marking reference as an answer book - which wastes 90% of its value.
The marking reference shows how the scores are distributed
Roll one click reasoning steps Give points. Commonly used in grading references are M The marking method is divided into A Mark answer points and allow in some cases Carrying forward calculation— That is, if the previous step is wrong but the subsequent method is correct, you can still get method points for this part.
Correct marking process
- Don't look at the answers first, just repeat the wrong question yourself. If it can be redone, it is a calculation or procedural problem; if it cannot be redone, it is a conceptual problem. The classification in this step is more important than the score.
- Compare the marking reference step by step to check "Have I written this step?" It's not about checking whether the answer is correct, but about whether the steps are complete - has the formula been written out first? Do you have any reasons to prove it? Is there a sentence about setting variables?
- Score yourself and strictly follow the standards for marking. Deductions for skipping steps, deductions for lack of reasons, and deductions for unit mistakes. Being easy on yourself is equivalent to creating false data before the exam.
- Classify the lost points into four categories one by one (Wrong concepts, wrong procedures, wrong review questions, wrong calculations), and record various scores. This set of numbers is your true diagnosis.
- Check the "Examination Reports and Questions Album" for that year, look at the grader's comments on the question - are your mistakes common among test takers that year?
Three questions you should ask yourself when correcting
- "Am I losing this point because I don't understand it, or am I losing it because I didn't write it?" The latter is a purely technical problem, with the lowest cost of correction and the highest return.
- "Have I used all the conditions given in the question?" DSE rarely gives useless conditions. If a certain condition is not used, it usually means something is done wrong.
- "Is the answer format correct?" Whether it is expressed as π, accurate to the specified number of digits, and attached with the unit as required.
For the specific handling methods of the four types of errors and the format of the error booklet, see Common points lost and errors counted.
5. Form 4 operation plan
Highlights of Form 4 It’s not about practicing a lot of Past Paper, but to ensure that the concepts of each topic are clear. The amount of homework this year should be small and accurate.
Form 4 last semester: concept building period
Manipulation methodOnly By Topic, not the entire volume. After each topic is completed, take out 15 to 20 questions from the previous papers for practice.
Recommended to invest every week- Schoolwork: Approximately 30 to 45 minutes daily
- Topic review: 2 to 3 hours per week
- By Topic Exercise: About 1 hour per week
- The basics of exponential and logarithmic functions
- Factoring (extracting common factors, cross multiplication, identities)
- Quadratic equations of one variable (factorization method, formula method, combination method, discriminant)
- Basic concepts of functions and their images
Form 4 next semester: Advanced topic period
Manipulation methodStill focusing on By Topic, the amount of training is increased to 1 to 2 groups (about 2 hours) per week.
Key topics- Equations of straight lines and circles (slope, intercept, various straight line forms)
- Variation (direct variation, inverse variation, joint variation, partial variation)
- Continuous polynomials (remainder theorem, factor theorem)
- Quadratic function image (vertex, symmetry axis, opening direction)
- Systematic review of all Form 4 topics (about 2 weeks)
- Complete 3 to 5 sets of By Topic exercises, focusing on the topics with the highest error rate (approximately 2 weeks)
- Preview key topics in Form 5, especially continued triangles (about 2 to 4 weeks)
Summer arrangements can be accommodated summer maths courses.
6. Form 5 operation plan
Form 5 is the year with the most intensive course content. The principle of examination is "learn one, practice one, and stabilize one."
Form 5 last semester: tackling core topics
Manipulation methodMainly By Topic, 2 groups (about 2 to 3 hours) per week. Cumulatively complete 30 to 50 questions per unit of study.
Key topics and sequence of recommendations| stage | unit of study | Cumulative number of practice questions | Weekly practice time |
|---|---|---|---|
| first stage | Continuous Trigonometry (Trigonometric Ratios and Basic Identities) | 30 to 40 questions | about 3 hours |
| second stage | Continuous Trigonometry (sine formula, cosine formula, three-dimensional problems) | 40 to 50 questions | about 4 hours |
| The third stage | Basic properties of circles | 30 to 40 questions | about 3 hours |
| Stage 4 | Equations and trajectories of straight lines and circles | 30 to 40 questions | about 3 hours |
| Arrangement and combination | 40 to 50 questions | about 4 hours |
Beginning this semester to build Wrong question book. The error book created in Form 5 will become the most valuable asset in Form 6, because it records your personal error patterns.
Form 5 next semester: Integration and first complete paper
Manipulation methodBy Topic 2 to 3 sets per week;1 additional full volume per month as a transition.
Key topics- Continuous probability (addition rule, multiplication rule, conditional probability)
- Measures of dispersion (standard deviation, interquartile range, standard score)
- Applications of Statistics
- Inequality and Linear Programming
At this time, there are still some topics that have not been completed, so the score must be low - this is normal. The purpose of the first volume Not a measure of ability, but three things: understanding the structure and rhythm of the entire test paper, training question skipping strategies (immediately skipping unstudied topics), and establishing psychological adaptation to the exam. Don't use this score to judge yourself.
Summer vacation arrangements (up to Form 6)- Weeks 1 to 2: Systematically review Form 4 topics and complete 2 complete papers
- Weeks 3 to 5: Review Form 5 topics in depth and complete 4 to 5 complete papers
- Weeks 6-7: Reinforce Topics with the Highest Error Rate By Topic
- Week 8: Preview the remaining topics of Form 6
7. Form 6 operation plan
The focus of Form 6 has changed from "building abilities" to "eliminating lost points". Our Form 6 courses are offered at Complete the entire course in October, and then distribute Mock Paper in each class and review it in the next class, just to make the practice period as long as possible. See DSE course schedule.
Form 6 First Semester (September to December): Learning and practicing at the same time
Manipulation method- September to October: Complete the remaining topics and fill in the unpracticed learning units with By Topic.
- From November: Switch to By Year, 1 to 2 full volumes per week and strictly timed.
- December: Maintain 1 to 2 copies per week and begin to establish statistics on lost points.
- Topic review: 6 to 8 hours per week
- Whole paper practice and review: 4 to 6 hours per week (the time for paper writing and review is similar)
- Review of wrong questions: about 1 hour per week
- All learning units have completed at least one By Topic exercise
- Completed the first strictly timed complete Paper 1 and 2
- Can tell the four types of distribution of points lost by oneself
- Three learning units with the highest error rates have been identified
Form 6 second semester (January to February): Intensive training
Manipulation method2 to 3 full volumes per week, each reviewed in full. The January on-campus mock test is an important diagnostic point - it can expose problems that only arise under real pressure.
Key points of training- Prioritize practice of the past 5 to 7 exam papers to familiarize yourself with the more recent question styles.
- After completing each paper, you must make corrections step by step based on the marking reference, not just the answers.
- Check the "Examination Reports and Test Questions Album" for previous years and compare your mistakes to see if they are common mistakes.
- Learning units that continue to make errors are transferred back to By Topic for reinforcement.
Pre-examination holiday to examination: narrowing and consolidation
Daily schedule suggestions| time period | Activity | duration |
|---|---|---|
| morning | Complete 1 full paper (strictly timed, mock exam) | About 2 to 2.5 hours |
| Early afternoon | Compare the marking reference with corrections, classification of lost points, and review of related concepts | about 2 hours |
| late afternoon | By Topic drills for weak areas | about 1.5 hours |
| night | Review wrong question books and sort out formulas | About 1 to 1.5 hours |
- About two weeks before the exam: Complete the retained test papers from the most recent year and maintain the feel.
- About a week before the exam: Reduce new papers and shift the focus to review of wrong questions - at this time, the marginal return of doing new papers is lower than ensuring that old mistakes are not repeated.
- Days before exam: Only do light review (formula sorting, computer operation confirmation), and no longer try to learn new skills.
- One day before exam: Get enough rest; check the computer (approved model label, battery, temperature mode) and stationery. See list Computer strategy.
8. The strategy of retaining the most recent years
This is a simple but often overlooked planning question:Keep the last 2 to 3 exam papers until one month before the exam.
| use | Recommended year | illustrate |
|---|---|---|
| By Topic | earlier years | You do not need to complete the paper to practice the selected questions. You can use an earlier year. |
| Form 6 whole paper from last semester | mid vintage | Used to establish rhythm and diagnosis |
| Intensive training from January to February | The last 5 to 7 sessions (retain the last 2 to 3 sessions) | Closer to more recent question writing styles |
| Final mock before exam | The last 2 to 3 sessions retained | Closest to the current style, used for final feel confirmation |
Why keep it: If you use the latest three papers in the first semester of Form 6, you will only have the earlier papers in hand a month before the exam - the simulations done at that time are farthest from the style of the actual exam, and this is the moment when it is most important to accurately reflect the real level.
Regarding the old system examination questions: Supplements can be made, but the course scope and question types are different from those of DSE. Some contents are no longer in the current courses, and some current topics do not exist in the old system. Before use, you should refer to the current assessment syllabus to eliminate questions that are beyond the scope, otherwise you will waste time on content that you will not test.
9. Five practices that make the manipulation ineffective
- Just look for quantity and ignore review. Doing a dozen papers at a time without analyzing them carefully. Correction method: After completing each paper, invest no less than the time required to make the paper to review, and classify the lost points into four categories. use Repeat error rate Rather than measuring the number of papers, progress is measured.
- Use the marking reference as an answer book. Only the final answer is checked, not how the points are distributed across the steps. Correction method: Compare step by step and check "Have I written this step?" - The method of Paper 1 is obtained by writing.
- Avoid weak areas. If you skip a topic that you are not good at, you will never make progress on that topic. Correction method: The weaker the subject, the more it must be dealt with first; if the same unit is wrong more than three times, stop the exercise and return to the conceptual level.
- Practice without time. Not timing your papers or allowing yourself to time out, causing a breakdown in rhythm during the real exam. Correction method: Paper 1 is strictly 135 minutes, Paper 2 is strictly 75 minutes. Writing will stop when the time is up, and unfinished parts will still be recorded as lost points.
- Do not create a wrong question book. Once done, there is no system record. Correction method: Four-column format - question source, where I made the original mistake, error classification, repeat offense record. The fourth column is the most important, it shows which type of error was actually eliminated. For format and examples, see Common points lost and errors counted.
An easily overlooked addition: regarding review frequency. Memory research generally shows that newly learned content will decay quickly if not reviewed at all. Therefore, it is recommended to briefly review the content learned on the day that night, review the content within the week on the weekend, and regularly sample earlier content. But be careful: Mathematics Comprehensive Content, its retention pattern is different from that of purely memorized materials - concepts that are well understood decay slowly, while formulas that are memorized and memorized decay quickly. This is why we advocate understanding first and then practicing: understanding itself reduces the cost of review.
The most difficult part to learn on your own
The test itself can be taught by yourself, but there is one part that almost requires external assistance:Mark your own Paper 1 according to the grading requirements. The reason is that you have to use the wrong set of judgment standards to judge where you are lacking - if you can see that a certain step is missing a reason, that step has actually been written down. This is a structural limitation of self-study, not a matter of effort.
our DSE maths tuition courses Institutionalize the correction process: Mock paper will be distributed in each class of Form 6, and the next class will review the questions one by one, and the teaching assistant will sort out the errors and give feedback to the main instructor to adjust the content of the next class. The course is taught by an instructor who took the exam as a self-taught student and obtained 5** in Core, M1, and M2. He himself completed the entire examination and self-correction process as a self-taught student, so he knows which links are easiest to relax on. The teacher-student ratio in small classes is no more than 1:7, and each class has about 12 to 14 people taught by two instructors at the same time.
- TOLL: Core 4 classes per month (1.5 hours each) HK$1,360; compulsory M1 or M2 (2 hours per class) HK$1,600. See details Charge page.
- Other courses: junior secondary maths tuition, IB/GCE maths tuition, Summer Courses, One to one and online courses.
- Class location: Room A, 9/F, Landmark City, 761 Nathan Road, Prince Edward, Kowloon (About 2 minutes’ walk from Exit C1 of MTR Prince Edward Station).
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Students mainly come from Band 1 secondary schools in Kowloon district, including Diocesan Boys' School, Diocesan Girls' School, La Salle College, Maryknoll Convent School, Wah Yan College, Kowloon and Heep Yunn School. See centre background About Math Insight, please see the instructor’s qualifications Maths Tutors, actual results are shown in Results.
Past Paper FAQ
How many past papers are there in DSE Mathematics?
The first session was in 2012, and there will be a total of 15 sessions as of 2026. There are also sample test papers, practice papers, annual marking references and "Examination Reports and Questions Album" from the HKEAA.
When do you start making Past Paper?
Form 5 starts with By Topic; Form 6 will only be converted to By Year in the next semester to complete the full paper. The order cannot be reversed, otherwise distorted scores will be obtained.
How many years should it be done?
The last 5 to 7 sessions have been carefully prepared and reviewed completely, and the rest will be supplemented. Be sure to save the last 2 to 3 sessions for final simulation one month before the exam.
How should the marking reference be used?
Don’t settle for answers. Compare step by step to check whether the steps are complete - whether the formula has been written first, whether the justification has been written, and whether the sentence for setting variables has been written. The methods in Paper 1 are obtained by writing.
Is "Examination Reports and Test Questions Album" worth reading?
It’s worth it and the rewards are great. It contains the markers' comments on the performance of this year's candidates and analysis of common mistakes. It is the only official information that can help you avoid "the pitfalls that most people fall into."
How to allocate time for writing and reviewing papers?
The review should take no less than the time required to write the paper. Finishing 30 papers without reviewing them is not as effective as taking 10 papers and analyzing each wrong question in depth.
Can I use the old system of examination questions?
It can be supplemented, but the course scope and question types are different, and some of the content is no longer in the current course. Before use, you should refer to the current assessment syllabus to eliminate questions that are out of scope.
My score in the whole paper of Form 5 is very low. Is this normal?
normal. At this time, there are still topics that have not been completed, and the score will inevitably be low. The purpose of the first full paper is to familiarize yourself with the structure, practice skipping questions and establish psychological adaptation, not to measure ability.
How many servings should be made every day during the holidays before the trial?
1 full volume plus full review per day is sufficient. Quality is far more important than quantity; if you have enough time, you should add By Topics that target your weaknesses instead of adding another full volume.