Significant Figures

Significant figures are important in the VCE exams.

This is to ensure that you are presenting your numerical data in the most complete form possible.

The best rule of thumb is to represent your final answer according to the lowest number of significant figures provided in the question.

Here are the official set of rules for significant figures in VCE Chemistry as determined by VCAA.

Practice Material

Sig Fig Quiz

Teacher's Tips:

You must get significant figures correct for ALL your mathematical working out. This is important because on the whole VCE paper, you will only be penalised one time for significant figures. BUT you are not told which question will be "THE sig fig question". To ensure you get that mark, be consistent with those sig figs throughout the exam.

Always write out an answer with a decent number of significant values and then in the next line simplify it to show the final answer with the correct significant figure. This allows for consequential marks where possible. See example: