Ratio, rates and proportion
What ratio, rates and proportion means
You learn how to split amounts fairly and compare one quantity with another. You also work out simple rates such as speed, which helps you solve everyday word problems with money, time and distance.
What you will practise
- Find the total number of parts in a ratio
- Share money or objects in the given ratio
- Simplify ratios by dividing by a common factor
- Calculate speed from distance and time
- Use proportion to compare matching quantities
Before you start
You should already be able to divide whole numbers and multiply and simplify basic fractions. It also helps if you can read simple word problems carefully and pick out the important numbers.
Worked example
One question from this skill's own question bank, shown with its full working.
Share GH₵120 between Ama and Kofi in the ratio 3:2. How much does Ama get?
- GH₵48
- GH₵60
- GH₵72
- GH₵80
Working: Total parts = 3 + 2 = 5. One part = 120 ÷ 5 = GH₵24. Ama gets 3 × 24 = GH₵72.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Adding the ratio numbers correctly but forgetting to divide the total into equal parts first.
- Using subtraction instead of division when finding one part of a ratio.
- Mixing up distance, time and speed in rate problems.
- Stopping after one calculation without checking if the answer matches the question.
Curriculum and exam alignment
This topic normally appears in Junior High School number work, where learners build skills in sharing, comparing and solving practical measurement problems. It supports the kind of reasoning often needed for BECE questions on ratios, rates and proportion.
Curriculum notes are a general guide to where this work normally sits. Always check the syllabus your school or examination body is currently using.
Related skills
Other JHS Number & Proportion skills in Maths, at the same point in the course.
Other Maths topics
Related study guides
Core Maths is compulsory and it fails more WASSCE candidates than any other paper. This guide breaks…
The BECE decides SHS placement for every JHS graduate in Ghana. Here is a realistic, week-by-week st…
Exams that assess ratio, rates and proportion
Junior High work on this skill feeds directly into these exam papers. Each page lists the Maths topics that appear on it.
How this page was produced
This text was drafted with AI assistance from the questions and topics already stored on the platform. A subject-specialist review is scheduled but has not yet been recorded, so we do not claim it here.
- Written by
- DigiTransact Mastermind editorial team
- Human review
- Not yet. Subject-specialist review is scheduled; this page will say so once it has happened. See which content receives human review.
- Last updated
Spotted a mistake on this page? Report a content correction and we will check it against the source. You can also read our editorial policy and how we use AI and where it falls short.
Practise ratio, rates and proportion
6 questions with a worked answer after every attempt, and a SmartScore that tracks how close you are to mastery.
