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Study guides → NC(V) Mathematical Literacy Level 2
NC(V) Mathematical Literacy Level 2: where the marks actually are
The alternative to Mathematics on the NC(V) — the same five topics every year, weighted equally, focused on using numbers in real contexts.
What the exam is worth, module by module
These are DHET's own weight values. The syllabus states that a module's weight value gives the time to be spent teaching it and its share of the marks in the final exam — so this table is, in effect, the mark allocation of your paper. It totals 100.
| Module | Weight | Hours | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Numbers | 20 | 30 | |
| Space, Shape and Orientation | 20 | 25 | |
| Finance | 20 | 25 | |
| Patterns, Relationships and Representations | 20 | 15 | |
| Data Handling | 20 | 15 |
How to spend your time
- All five topics are worth exactly 20 marks. There is no priority order here — this is the one subject on the site where even coverage genuinely is the right strategy.
- Teaching hours are NOT even: Numbers gets 30 hours and Data Handling 15, for the same 20 marks. Data Handling is the better return on your own study time.
- Finance gets 25 hours for 20 marks and is the topic you will actually use after college.
How you are assessed
Two things have to go right, and students lose the year on the first one more often than the second.
1. Your college (ICASS) mark
Your college work is assessed continuously through the year. Your final mark is 25% college mark plus 75% exam, so what you do before the exam is 25% of the subject.
2. The final examination
You pass at 30%. It is written in October or November.
A pass is condoned at 25% if it is the only subject preventing you from progressing to Level 3. That is a safety net, not a target — it only applies to one subject.
- The 30% is a SUB-MINIMUM you must reach in BOTH components — your internal (ICASS) mark and the external exam — not just an average across the two. A strong exam does not rescue an ICASS mark below 30%.
- Your internal (ICASS) mark is a year mark out of 100 built from continuous assessment, and it is subject to internal and external moderation.
- Both components must be completed in the same academic year. Your ICASS mark is only valid up to the first supplementary examination after the November sitting — if you fail, you redo every ICASS task for that subject. Nothing carries over to the next year.
- The external examination is national, set and moderated externally, and written once a year.
Also doing Level 2 this trimester?
These are the other Level 2 subjects we have syllabus breakdowns for.
Source: DHET — NC(V) Mathematical Literacy Level 2 Subject Guidelines. Module names, weight values, admission requirements and assessment rules on this page are transcribed from that document. The study advice is ours.