Inverse Operations - Checking Your Answers

Inverse Operations: How to Check Your Answers

Inverse operations are opposite operations that undo each other. Addition and subtraction are inverse operations. Multiplication and division are inverse operations

You can check your answers to math problems by using inverse operations (back checking) or by plugging your solution back into the original problem and reworking it. To learn how, find the section below that pertains to the type of problem you'd like to check.

Mean / Mode / Median / Range

Mode, median and mean are three different types of average.   
The mean is found by adding up all the data and dividing by how many pieces of data there are.
The median is the middle value when the data is put in order of size.
The mode is the most common piece of data.
The range is the difference between the biggest and the smallest number.

Graphs & Charts

A bar graph is useful for comparing facts. The bars provide a visual display for comparing quantities in different categories. 

Bar graphs help us to see relationships quickly. Another name for a bar graph is a bar chart. 

Each part of a bar graph has a purpose.

The Wales Essential Skills Toolkit (WEST)

If you have taken the WEST Assessment, WEST puts you in charge of your learning and gives you all the tools and support you need for Essential Skills success. Courses are added to suit individual needs, so only materials that are relevant to you will be in your course list.

Find Percent

'Percent' means 'out of 100'. 

If 90 per cent of the population owns a mobile phone, this means 90 out of every 100 people have one. 

The symbol '%' means per cent. 

BODMAS

BODMAS is a helpful acronym meaning brackets, order, division, multiplication, addition and subtraction, ensuring that equation steps are completed in the right order. A mathematical question with multiple operations may give different answers depending on the order in which it is solved.

Explain Calculation Methods

You need to explain how you got or will get your answer.

Why can’t you just do the problem, enter the answer and be done with it?