Post by: hums_student on March 27, 2018, 04:59:35 pm
Think I should start with a quick self-intro:
School + Year level:
Won't reveal the name, but it's a school in regional VIC.
Currently in year 12 :-\ rip
Subjects:
Last year I did Chinese 3/4. (study score - 35)
This year I'm doing:
Literature
Methods
Ancient History
Global Politics
Chemistry
Thoughts on my subjects:
Chinese: I'm not even Asian, but I lived in China for 8 years because of my parents work. Got a raw score of 35 which was kind of disappointing (was aiming for 40). Hoping to redeem myself through my 3/4s this year
Literature: meh... I like reading, hence why I chose lit over mainstream English, but I was kind of disappointed when our teacher didn't choose the good texts. Personally I find it outrageous that we're not studying Shakespeare for LITERATURE.
Last year my grades were very up and down, I got mostly B+ or A on assessments, A+ for creative, but got a D+ for a comparative essay.
I'm aiming for a study score of at least 38 in lit.
Methods: I didn't do well in methods last year (C+/B average) because I never paid attention in class :P For our last assessment though (calculus) I actually tried and ended up with an A+. Obviously I'll be trying a lot harder this year. So far, methods has been my favourite subject (I'm not ashamed to say that ;D).
Aiming for a raw score of at least 40.
Ancient History: I actually wanted to do Revolutions, but our school doesn't offer that subject so I ended up with the only other history subject available. Last year I had an A/B+ average. I just finished my first SAC on source analysis and I know I screwed up, because I completely messed up the structure of my answers.
Aiming for a study score of at least 40.
Global Politics: I chose global because I wanted to do Revs and thought it would help with the subject. Global turned out to be my best subject last year, averaging at an A. The school I go to doesn't do very well in humanities subjects though, last year our school's highest raw score for global was a 36.
I'm aiming for a study score of 30.
Chemistry: Aaannnd we've arrived at my absolute worst subject, chemistry. I've never been good at science but I didn't want all of my subjects (except methods) to be humanities-based, hence why I chose it. Last year I averaged a D (I know, what a disgrace). We just got back our results for our first SAC this year and I just scraped a B.
Aiming for a study score of 30, but honestly I feel like I'll only be able to get 25 or above. I suck at this subject.
Plan after VCE
I'm hoping to get into Arts at Melbourne, so I'm aiming for a minimum ATAR of 90+. I want to study history, especially modern history, and I'm hoping to continue to postgrad, and hopefully get into research at an overseas university.
Hobbies
Music. I love piano and performing arts, and nearly chose music performance as one of my VCE subjects. (Didn't end up doing it because my school doesn't offer that subject)
Reading. (Why else would I choose literature?) I used to read a book a day, but since year 11 I've toned it down considerably. Favourite author is Stephen King.
Rubiks Cubes. I can waste hours just playing with them over and over again in my room.
~ Will hopefully update soon ~
Actually, don't expect any updates for a while, because in three days it's holidays XD
Post by: Joseph41 on March 27, 2018, 05:04:30 pm
Welcome to ATAR Notes! Great to have you on the journey journal bandwagon. ;D We had people last year starting their journals right near the end of Year 12, so this definitely isn't too late or anything haha.
Cool subject mix! Really interested in Ancient History in particular - I don't see that subject around much. Does your school always offer Ancient and not Revs?
Love your post-VCE aspirations, and also love the fact that you cube haha. Do you just go the 3x3x3, or do you have other ones, too? Do you time yourself? ;D
Post by: hums_student on March 27, 2018, 05:20:21 pm
Really interested in Ancient History in particular - I don't see that subject around much. Does your school always offer Ancient and not Revs?
Our school didn't even have any history subjects at all in previous years. Hums subjects in general aren't popular at the school I go to so honestly I'm lucky there is at least a history subject running! But yeah, ancient history is a new subject so not many people do it. What really freaks me out is that we only have access to *one* past exam.
Also love the fact that you cube haha. Do you just go the 3x3x3, or do you have other ones, too? Do you time yourself? ;D
Glad to meet another cuber! I have 2x2x2, 3x3x3, and 4x4x4, but my best would still be the 3x3. I usually average around 40 seconds for the 3x3 but I haven't timed myself in a while. If I remember correctly my pb is 28 seconds but I got lucky XD
Post by: Joseph41 on March 27, 2018, 05:22:33 pm
Our school didn't even have any history subjects at all in previous years. Hums subjects in general aren't popular at the school I go to so honestly I'm lucky there is at least a history subject running! But yeah, ancient history is a new subject so not many people do it. What really freaks me out is that we only have access to *one* past exam.
Yeah, right! Awesome that you do a history subject. I reckon you'll love uni if you end up doing Arts. ;D
Quote
Glad to meet another cuber! I have 2x2x2, 3x3x3, and 4x4x4, but my best would still be the 3x3. I usually average around 40 seconds for the 3x3 but I haven't timed myself in a while. If I remember currently my pb is 28 seconds but I got lucky XD
Likewise hahaha. We sound similar; I also have 2x2x2, 4x4x4, and about fifty 3x3x3s haha (slight hyperbole). And my times are pretty much bang on yours, except my PB is 30 seconds on the nose - you've just pipped me. ;)
Post by: Yertle the Turtle on March 27, 2018, 05:44:57 pm
snipHey, welcome to AN, man! Great to see you round the forums, and great first post!
I'm in Year 12 too, and we share Methods and Chem as subjects, and the others you have look really cool. I was kinda upset that I couldn't do more subjects than I did, I would have liked a couple more spots to do History as well. Great to see that you have got an aim for this year and the coming years, so many people have no focus in Year 12, so it's great to see that you do. Good luck, and have fun! :)
Post by: hums_student on March 27, 2018, 06:42:25 pm
Hey, welcome to AN, man! Great to see you round the forums, and great first post!
I'm in Year 12 too, and we share Methods and Chem as subjects, and the others you have look really cool. I was kinda upset that I couldn't do more subjects than I did, I would have liked a couple more spots to do History as well. Great to see that you have got an aim for this year and the coming years, so many people have no focus in Year 12, so it's great to see that you do. Good luck, and have fun! :)
Thanks man! Good luck for year 12 too! 6 subjects in a year must be hectic as hell, (especially with spesh and physics!) but I'm sure you'll ace it. :)
Post by: K888 on March 27, 2018, 11:42:43 pm
Likewise hahaha. We sound similar; I also have 2x2x2, 4x4x4, and about fifty 3x3x3s haha (slight hyperbole). And my times are pretty much bang on yours, except my PB is 30 seconds on the nose - you've just pipped me. ;)And here I am, still going on the same cube 2.5 years later
Post by: hums_student on March 28, 2018, 07:08:20 pm
I also have 2x2x2, 4x4x4, and about fifty 3x3x3s haha (slight hyperbole).
Fifty 3x3s? Dangggg that sounds awesome! I have six 3x3s and my parents already think that's too much hahah. ;D
Post by: Joseph41 on March 28, 2018, 07:36:48 pm
Fifty 3x3s? Dangggg that sounds awesome! I have six 3x3s and my parents already think that's too much hahah. ;D
Nah that was hyperbolic haha - I actually have about the same number as you. ;D
Post by: hums_student on March 29, 2018, 08:39:20 am
Nah that was hyperbolic haha - I actually have about the same number as you. ;D
Oops! ;D knew there was a reason I didn't do English Language haha
Post by: Joseph41 on March 29, 2018, 09:25:09 am
Oops! ;D knew there was a reason I didn't do English Language haha
Hahaha. Do you prefer using the black or white cubes?
Post by: hums_student on March 29, 2018, 02:46:33 pm
Hahaha. Do you prefer using the black or white cubes?
I have both, but prefer using the black ones. What about you?
Post by: Joseph41 on March 29, 2018, 02:51:29 pm
I have both, but prefer using the black ones. What about you?
Yeah, like, I think black, but pretty sure my PB was with a white. I don't want to derail your journey journal thread but I still want to discuss this further hahaha, so I'm going to bump our Rubik's Cube thread. :)
Post by: hums_student on March 29, 2018, 03:07:56 pm
So school has finished for the term! I only had one class today (global politics) as I had double free in the morning and school finished early. Anyway, we started AOS2 for global politics: power in the Asian pacific, with a special focus on China's development which was interesting as I used to live there.
Got quite a lot of holiday homework too, especially for literature as we have a SAC the first week back (Thursday 19th April). We still haven't got our first lit SAC back, even though that was the first SAC we did, in week 3 of term. As there's only one lit class at our school our teacher has to cross-mark it with a teacher from another school, so it'll take a while.
I'll mainly be focusing on lit, methods, and history during the holidays, lit is self-explanatory. I also think methods and history are most likely gonna be in my primary 4 (along with lit and Chinese) so I'll be mainly devoting my time to them. Of course I'll also work on Global and chem but as they're probably going to be in my bottom 2 I don't think I should spend too much time and energy on something that's only contributing 10% to my overall aggregate score.
Well, that was a relatively short update! Have a good holidays everyone ;D
Post by: hums_student on March 29, 2018, 03:08:54 pm
Yeah, like, I think black, but pretty sure my PB was with a white. I don't want to derail your journey journal thread but I still want to discuss this further hahaha, so I'm going to bump our Rubik's Cube thread. :)
Oh nice! Didn't know there was a Rubik's Cube thread but that's awesome! Let's move this conversation over there ;D
Post by: hums_student on April 08, 2018, 10:53:01 pm
The holidays are halfway over already so I've decided to update in order to convince myself to be more productive for next week, by making myself face the horrible truth of how little I've actually achieved since the holidays started.
So let us continue on a rather sombre note~
Let's first look at what I've (miraculously) achieved.
Methods: Got all my holiday homework done, and then like a bug flying headfirst into a lightbulb I also decided to willingly attempt a notoriously difficult specialist maths worksheet our teacher accidentally gave us, and just like that bug, I got absolutely roasted.
Chemistry: I have Edrolo playing whenever I step into the shower (with a waterproof case of course) which was weird at first because Katherine Roan just stares at you the whole time... while I'm in the shower. But now I'm just used to it ;D it's a good way to save time.
Literature: I watched the movie Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. That's it. For an entire week, all I did was watch a 2 hour movie. I also attempted a practice essay but it was really short.
History: The holiday homework is making me lose my sanity (or what's left of it anyway). I like reading, but when the book was written more than 2500 thousand years ago, by a guy who is allergic to full stops, who ended the book mid-sentence, it makes me wonder why I'm doing a subject that requires more reading than literature, global politics, and chinese added together.
Global Politics: I've been watching the news every night and also diligently scrolls through memes of Fat Kim the Third (what China calls Kim Jong Un. I'm not kidding). In other words, I've totally gotten a lot done.
Oh AND of course I went to some ATAR Notes lectures - methods on Saturday, lit and chem today. Personally found methods and lit very helpful (seriously, I learnt more from Lauren in 3 hours than I did from my lit teacher for 3 terms. Thanks for giving me PRACTICAL advice rather than just 'oh just do what you feel like is right'). I found the chemistry lecture useful as well, though my energy level wasn't as great as it was in the morning and the pace was a bit quick for me :-\ My sister found the chem lecture helpful though, and she thought the pace was good. So I guess I just have to keep working on doing problems faster.
Honestly, whenever I see a problem in chem I have to physically stare at it for 20 seconds (or more) before I start.
---------------
By the way I've attached the practice essay I wrote for lit, it's not that good and it's below the word limit, but I would really appreciate it if someone takes a look and give me some feedback? Be as harsh and critical as you want! ;D
Post by: K888 on April 09, 2018, 12:29:25 am
Was disappointed that my school only offered Revolutions - I think the first year of Ancient History was the year I graduated, though. History subjects are definitely content heavy and require a lot of work, but IMO they're so worth it. History was my favourite (and best) subject and I still miss it a few years down the track! I hope you'll have some fond memories to look back on by the end of the year :) if nothing else, you'll have gained some knowledge that'll be handy at trivia nights ;)
Hope you enjoy the rest of your holidays!
Post by: hums_student on April 09, 2018, 10:52:01 am
What's Ancient History like?It's definitely one of the most 'fun' VCE subjects to do, incredibly content heavy and there's a lot of reading involved which I always like to complain about, but at the end of the day it's still the class I look forward to the most. We're studying Ancient Greece right now and while the content seems not as relevant to today's society as revs you can still make connections between ancient societies and ours today which is amazing.
Which two revolutions did you do by the way?
Post by: K888 on April 09, 2018, 03:17:23 pm
It's definitely one of the most 'fun' VCE subjects to do, incredibly content heavy and there's a lot of reading involved which I always like to complain about, but at the end of the day it's still the class I look forward to the most. We're studying Ancient Greece right now and while the content seems not as relevant to today's society as revs you can still make connections between ancient societies and ours today which is amazing.Nice - thanks for the info! :)
Which two revolutions did you do by the way?
I did China and Russia! Really, really enjoyed it (particularly China). Probably the subject I got the most out of from high school - made me more aware of the world and I definitely had a better understanding of how things have come to be the way they are in the present day.
Post by: hums_student on April 09, 2018, 10:31:21 pm
I did China and Russia! Really, really enjoyed it (particularly China). Probably the subject I got the most out of from high school - made me more aware of the world and I definitely had a better understanding of how things have come to be the way they are in the present day.So true! Hate it when people say 'history's already happened so it's not relevant anymore'. Chinese and Russian revolution especially. since they're pretty recent and are now both superpowers, they really impact the world we live in today. For global politics we actually had to study China and Russia's revolution, and also some French revolution as well. I wish I did revs, it sounds so interesting! (and spicy ;D)
Post by: sarangiya on April 09, 2018, 11:52:21 pm
Love shower time with Katherine. I think I need someone to tell me "yeh U can" as I get out of the shower </3
Also same W chemistry the vcaa questions are so damn long it gives me high key anxiety to read them.
Love your work, I will continue to read. Gotta say I was motivated to reply just because your essay is called Big Daddy and the kid yodelling in Walmart is my life at the moment (sad times). BUT now I'm v curious about these lit subjects we don't even have at our school. Nice nice.
Hope you're having a good holiday!!
Post by: hums_student on April 10, 2018, 11:07:19 am
Love your work, I will continue to read. Gotta say I was motivated to reply just because your essay is called Big Daddy and the kid yodelling in Walmart is my life at the moment (sad times).Somehow I wasn't aware of the yodelling kid but I just googled it and MY LIFE HAS CHANGED! He's just adorable! Should really try to work him into my essay or something ;D
Also same W chemistry the vcaa questions are so damn long it gives me high key anxiety to read them.Hahah same! Especially when they give you a whole damn paragraph but all you need to do is balance a friggin equation!
Btw I've been reading your VCE journal for a while now and I just really need to say, your scores are absolutely insane! You'll absolutely smash VCE this year! Enjoy the rest of your holidays :)
Post by: sarangiya on April 10, 2018, 09:25:54 pm
Somehow I wasn't aware of the yodelling kid but I just googled it and MY LIFE HAS CHANGED! He's just adorable! Should really try to work him into my essay or something ;DHahaha!! I think the meme will die pretty quick but it's pretty funny for now. You should watch the remix ones hahah.
Hahah same! Especially when they give you a whole damn paragraph but all you need to do is balance a friggin equation!
Btw I've been reading your VCE journal for a while now and I just really need to say, your scores are absolutely insane! You'll absolutely smash VCE this year! Enjoy the rest of your holidays :)Thank you!! Right back at you! I'm just hoping it'll all be over soon, but for now we just have to keep grinding :( Best of luck and enjoy your holidays too!!
Post by: hums_student on April 16, 2018, 04:05:24 pm
Well, school has started again… in all honesty I’m not complaining much. During the holidays I woke up well past noon each day and would do five minutes of work followed by two hours of YouTube, and slacking all day definitely doesn’t help when it’s VCE. So I’m glad I’m back at school otherwise I’ll never pick up my pace.
Now that I’ve got my ‘feelings’ out of the way let’s get on to what actually happened.
News No. 1:
I got two SAC results back today: lit and history.
History: A. Slightly concerned, as I just made it past the A mark. It was a source analysis SAC and while I did pretty well on the short responses I messed up the longer questions (just as I predicted back in my first post). For one of the questions I only got 5/10, which is pretty bad. At least now I know what I need to work on.
Literature: A / A+ (overall: A). I’m actually really pleased with this mark. It was a creative SAC, I got A+ for my reflective commentary, but A for the actual piece, and as the creative is worth 80% my overall grade was A. Still, I’m pretty happy with it. Definitely way more pleased with this than history.
News No. 2:
I asked my methods teacher how’s my progress compared to the rest of my cohort. At first she did the classic ‘sugar-coating response’ and also tried to dodge my question by saying she doesn’t know since we haven’t had a SAC yet. But I finally got it out of her. Anyway, her response was: “Not bad for someone who only do humanities subjects.”
EXCUUUUUUUUUUUSE ME!
Gotta say, I’m now even more motivated to do well in methods just to prove her wrong.
Well, that’s it from me for now. Hope everyone’s
Post by: Maya24 on April 16, 2018, 04:28:18 pm
Post by: hums_student on April 17, 2018, 10:03:33 am
Congrats on your lit mark.
Thank you! ;D ;D
Post by: hums_student on May 01, 2018, 09:33:53 pm
April went by way too quickly, we're now exactly 6 months away from the final exams... I wonder when's an appropriate time to start getting stressed.
News No. 1
We got our year 12 jumpers today, one week later than planned but at least they're here. Me and some mates got nicknames of elements on the periodic table that starts with the same letter as our names (I know, what nerds), I'm Potassium (my name starts with K) ;D we've also got Tungsten, Krypton, Lutetium, and Francium.
News No. 2
We've finished Unit 3 for literature. Last Tuesday we had our adaptations SAC, which we started on the first week back.
Funny story time: our original SAC was planned for Thursday, halfway through the SAC WE SUDDENLY HAD A F***ING FIRE DRILL (apparently our lit teacher was not aware that we'd be having an evacuation on the day). We ended up finishing it on Tuesday, except all of us already know the topic by then so everyone in the class came in prepared. We were told that both our teacher and the teacher cross marking our SAC would be extra picky while marking, since we all came in on Tuesday prepared.
News No. 3
We have a chem SAC coming up for Unit 3 AOS 2 next Wednesday, and my methods and global politics SACs are the week after, methods is especially terrifying since it accounts for 17% of the final study score. I can sense a tsunami of stress coming to engulf me any moment, and I PROMISE to stop procrastinating as soon as I finish this entry.
On another note, a lot of kids at my school doing the Asian 5 will be soon descending down into hell next week, since many of them will have their chem, physics, and specialist maths sac on the SAME DAY. Pray for them guys. (Glad I'm not one of them).
Well, that's it for now. I hope I stop procrastinating.
Post by: sarangiya on May 02, 2018, 07:56:12 am
Well, that's it for now. I hope I stop procrastinating.Me
Also we had a fire drill yesterday!! Coincidence huh. It's was before the SAC because they're organised by our Chem teacher haha
Definitely feel you re methods... How are you going to prepare?
And lol for literature. Hope you did well
What's your go to remedy for procrastination?
Have a good week :D
Post by: hums_student on May 02, 2018, 09:26:18 am
Also we had a fire drill yesterday!! Coincidence huh. It's was before the SAC because they're organised by our Chem teacher hahaWas the chem sac on electrolysis? How did it go? ;D
Definitely feel you re methods... How are you going to prepare?
For methods I'm probably just gonna do as much practice papers as possible (going over theory doesn't seem to ever work in methods) and hope for the best ... I'm really thankful of the fact that the SAC is gonna be split into 3 parts, though I guess on the other hand it prolongs the suffering.
Is your methods sac coming up too? Or did your school do it in term 1?
What's your go to remedy for procrastination?Go onto ATARNotes and convince myself that reading VCE-related posts is technically doing work 8)
In all seriousness, I've been training myself not to procrastinate the same way I train my dog to not pee on the carpet: rewarding after small achievements. Not gonna lie, it actually works.
Post by: Yertle the Turtle on May 02, 2018, 05:49:43 pm
Update #4: 01/05/2018The fire drill sucks, man, so unlucky :( Hopefully you were still OK to do fine despite it.
April went by way too quickly, we're now exactly 6 months away from the final exams... I wonder when's an appropriate time to start getting stressed.
News No. 1
We got our year 12 jumpers today, one week later than planned but at least they're here. Me and some mates got nicknames of elements on the periodic table that starts with the same letter as our names (I know, what nerds), I'm Potassium (my name starts with K) ;D we've also got Tungsten, Krypton, Lutetium, and Francium.
News No. 2
We've finished Unit 3 for literature. Last Tuesday we had our adaptations SAC, which we started on the first week back.
Funny story time: our original SAC was planned for Thursday, halfway through the SAC WE SUDDENLY HAD A F***ING FIRE DRILL (apparently our lit teacher was not aware that we'd be having an evacuation on the day). We ended up finishing it on Tuesday, except all of us already know the topic by then so everyone in the class came in prepared. We were told that both our teacher and the teacher cross marking our SAC would be extra picky while marking, since we all came in on Tuesday prepared.
News No. 3
We have a chem SAC coming up for Unit 3 AOS 2 next Wednesday, and my methods and global politics SACs are the week after, methods is especially terrifying since it accounts for 17% of the final study score. I can sense a tsunami of stress coming to engulf me any moment, and I PROMISE to stop procrastinating as soon as I finish this entry.
On another note, a lot of kids at my school doing the Asian 5 will be soon descending down into hell next week, since many of them will have their chem, physics, and specialist maths sac on the SAME DAY. Pray for them guys. (Glad I'm not one of them).
Well, that's it for now. I hope I stop procrastinating.
I'm doing the Asian Five, and that's me next week... goodbye, cruel world :(
Nice on getting the jackets, hope they're as awesome as they should be after such a long wait.
Post by: hums_student on May 09, 2018, 09:58:13 pm
I decided to get one of those
Basically during ancient history we were reading a book on the great Athenian military general Pericles, and while 99% of the book just consisted of Plutarch (the author) giving a biographical account of Pericles's life, there was one part, one absolutely beautiful part where Plutarch just absolutely roasted Pericles to pieces.
Here's an excerpt:
His [Pericles's] physical features were almost perfect, the only exception being his head, which was rather long and out of proportion. For this reason almost all his portraits show him wearing a helmet, since the artists apparently did not wish to taunt him with this deformity.
However, the comic poets of Athens nicknamed him ‘schinocephalus’ or ‘squill-head', and Cratinus for example, in his play The Tutors says that ‘Old Cronos mated with the goddess of party-strife, and their offspring was the biggest tyrant of all: now the gods call him “The Head-Compeller”. And again in his Nemesis he refers to ‘Zeus, the protector of foreigners and heads.'
Telecleides describes Pericles as sitting on the Acropolis at his wits end, "at one moment top-heavy with the load of the cares of state, and at another creating all the din of war by himself, from that brain-pan of his, which is big enough to hold eleven couches."
And Eupolis in The Demes asks questions about each of the great popular leaders as they come up from Hades, and remarks, when Pericles’ name is called out last:
" Now you have brought us up the very head
Of those in the world below. "
Of those in the world below. "
Who says ancient history isn't fun?
I'll probably change it once I either get tired of it or find an even more interesting quote.
On another note, I've done my chem SAC and know that I lost at least 6 marks, which is 12%, meaning goodbye A+ (not that I was gonna get one anyway).
I got absolutely trolled by the teacher though: the day before the SAC he handed out a practice paper which I finished later that night. During the SAC I saw a question which seemed exactly the same as one of the practice questions. The diagram was the same, the scenario was the same, even the 4 multiple choice options were the same. My mentally retarded 'brain-pan' decided that it must be the same question so I just went and circled the same option as the practice paper.
After coming out of the SAC my sister comes up and says to me "I almost got trolled, I didn't notice question 4 was different to the practice paper our teacher gave us until 2 minutes before the end."
Turns out one of the most minute details in the question was changed, and I totally overlooked it. What really sucks is that it was a relatively easy question as well and had I just READ THE QUESTION PROPERLY I could've gotten it right.
FML
We were told that as our school does better in science and maths subjects compared to the other schools in our area, so even if I absolutely bomb the SACs I still have hope of geting a decent study score (as long as I don't fail too badly), but I doubt it. My school does better than some of the schools in our area but we also have the notorious Cory High School down the road from ours which is a friggin selective school and is ranked in the 30s in the state.
Oh well, SAC's done. Can't do much about it now, though it kinda scares me that I'll now be starting Unit 4 Chemistry...
Hope everyone's having a good week ;D
EDIT: Check this out if any of you want to learn more about Pericles's peculiar head shape: The Big Greek Elongated Head of Pericles
Post by: Maya24 on May 10, 2018, 09:33:57 pm
Post by: Joseph41 on May 18, 2018, 11:41:11 am
Thanks! ;D My teacher has already marked it even though we only did it yesterday... I'm too scared to ask what I got XD
It's sort of like ripping off a band-aid, haha.
Post by: hums_student on May 18, 2018, 03:28:09 pm
It's sort of like ripping off a band-aid, haha.Accurate. And the pain is pretty intense too.
My teacher ended up coming up to me after school and literally shoved my mark in my face so I couldn't even mentally prepare myself for the pain... I got a B+ (which is an improvement from last SAC) but it still pisses me off cos I was one mark off an A.
Post by: hums_student on May 28, 2018, 11:14:40 pm
I have exactly 163 days till my very first exam.
what a cheerful way to start the entry
Haven’t updated in nearly a month, (I’ll try to stick to a schedule of updating every second Monday). Here’s what’s new.
News No. 1
VCAA exam timetables are out…
Week 1: No exams, just delayed stress and anxiety.
Week 2: Methods (Wednesday + Thursday); Ancient History (Friday)
Week 3: Literature (Monday); Chemistry (Tuesday)
Week 4: Global Politics (Monday)
I was totally hoping global wouldn’t be so late so I could watch Crimes of Grindelwald as soon as it comes out
News No. 2
I’m now halfway through all my SACs for this term (3 done, 3 more to go). I still can’t believe that Unit 3 is over.
Chem: I got a B+ on the last SAC, which I would’ve been exceptionally pleased with had this been last year. But it’s now year 12 and I don’t think low expectations works. I was pretty upset that I was so close to an A.
In the end my unit 3 average (GA1?) is a B+. I know I said in my very first entry that a chem study score higher than 30 would completely exceed my expectations, but now I’m really hoping for a 40 (bit ambitious?), in order to push my lousy Chinese score into my bottom two.
We’ve started Unit 4, practical investigations. This is my chance to redeem myself.
Methods: Well, the SAC which spanned 5 periods of class time finally ended. The marks haven’t been moderated yet, but I apparently my unmoderated score is B+ (*sigh*)… I seriously hope my teacher was just messing with me, cos I need an A at least in order to hope for a 40+.
Literature: We did the SAC at the very beginning of term, and we still haven’t gotten back our results yet. Next Wednesday we’ll be having our Unit 4 AOS 1 SAC on literary perspectives, which I am NOT prepared for.
History: Our next SAC will be writing two essays on the Peloponnesian War, and I am really desperate to do well on this one, as I’m currently rank 2 in the class but I don’t think I’ll have a chance at 40+ unless I get rank 1.
Global Politics: I have an entire rant prepared for this subject so I'm gonna save it for...
News No. 3
Global politics... I hate this subject. It was my best subject last year, but I absolutely loathe it now and just dread. Every. Single. Class. Maybe it's just that I utterly despise my teacher, who forces us to rote-learn everything, is extremely unprofessional, cannot keep his political beliefs to himself, and basically tells any student who thinks differently that they're wrong.
EXTREMELY FRUSTRATED RANT! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!
Last year our 1/2 teacher would hold debates during class and thoroughly welcomed a whole range of political views in our essays. Sure, it wasn't like he remained completely neutral but at least he RESPECTED the students's views and beliefs.
My current teacher though is the polar opposite. Once some students including myself were discussing about the pros and cons of capital punishment, one student said that the International Criminal Court should use the death penalty in serious cases, and the teacher just suddenly swoops in and says 'The fact that countries like US and China uses capital punishment but still has high numbers of crime shows that you're WRONG!"
TF? First of all US and China also has pretty high population so it makes sense that there would be more cases of crime, anyway I'm not even for the death penalty but I thought it was completely unnecessary for him to tell a student his opinion was wrong.
I'm not done. In one of my practice essays recently I brought up a point that he completely ignored in class about ethnic minorities in China, namely that apart from certain groups like the Uighurs who occasionally take part in religious extremism, most minority groups in China (including Islamic groups) are not only well treated but receive much more benefits in terms of welfare and education / job prospects than the Han majority (and yes I included statistics from academic sources to back up my point). He crossed out that entire paragraph and said that I'm somehow undermining the human rights abuses by their government by claiming that ethnic minorities are treated well in China and that the 'statistics are twisted by the government'. OK SURE! COS I'VE TOTALLY NOT LIVED IN CHINA FOR 8 YEARS AND SAW FIRSTHAND HOW PEOPLE WERE TREATED (pretty well).
He has also said in class (and I quote) "I would never willingly visit China... India... Cuba... (list of countries go on and on)". What really pissed me off though was during parent teacher interviews last week. My parents just wanted to know how I was going in class goddammit, but apparently that was too much to ask of this teacher, who spent 8 of the 10 minutes making sure that my parents understood his political beliefs and another minute marvelling at the fact that my parents, despite being Caucasian, willingly spent 8 years living and working in 'a repressed communist country'. With one minute to go my dad finally cut him off and said 'So how is my son doing in this subject?', to which the teacher replied 'Pretty well, but if he could stop being so sympathetic towards the CCP that would be an improvement.' at which point my parents just gave up getting something unbiased out of this teacher.
Can I just add very quickly, I've noticed a trend in my practice essays and it's that the harder I bash China/Chinese government/culture/people, the bigger ticks I get. Meanwhile if I even attempt to bring in another perspective, it gets crossed out.
My current teacher though is the polar opposite. Once some students including myself were discussing about the pros and cons of capital punishment, one student said that the International Criminal Court should use the death penalty in serious cases, and the teacher just suddenly swoops in and says 'The fact that countries like US and China uses capital punishment but still has high numbers of crime shows that you're WRONG!"
TF? First of all US and China also has pretty high population so it makes sense that there would be more cases of crime, anyway I'm not even for the death penalty but I thought it was completely unnecessary for him to tell a student his opinion was wrong.
I'm not done. In one of my practice essays recently I brought up a point that he completely ignored in class about ethnic minorities in China, namely that apart from certain groups like the Uighurs who occasionally take part in religious extremism, most minority groups in China (including Islamic groups) are not only well treated but receive much more benefits in terms of welfare and education / job prospects than the Han majority (and yes I included statistics from academic sources to back up my point). He crossed out that entire paragraph and said that I'm somehow undermining the human rights abuses by their government by claiming that ethnic minorities are treated well in China and that the 'statistics are twisted by the government'. OK SURE! COS I'VE TOTALLY NOT LIVED IN CHINA FOR 8 YEARS AND SAW FIRSTHAND HOW PEOPLE WERE TREATED (pretty well).
He has also said in class (and I quote) "I would never willingly visit China... India... Cuba... (list of countries go on and on)". What really pissed me off though was during parent teacher interviews last week. My parents just wanted to know how I was going in class goddammit, but apparently that was too much to ask of this teacher, who spent 8 of the 10 minutes making sure that my parents understood his political beliefs and another minute marvelling at the fact that my parents, despite being Caucasian, willingly spent 8 years living and working in 'a repressed communist country'. With one minute to go my dad finally cut him off and said 'So how is my son doing in this subject?', to which the teacher replied 'Pretty well, but if he could stop being so sympathetic towards the CCP that would be an improvement.' at which point my parents just gave up getting something unbiased out of this teacher.
Can I just add very quickly, I've noticed a trend in my practice essays and it's that the harder I bash China/Chinese government/culture/people, the bigger ticks I get. Meanwhile if I even attempt to bring in another perspective, it gets crossed out.
Global was never gonna be in my primary 4 anyway, but last year I thought it had a chance. This year though, considering just thinking of this subject gives me a headache, I doubt I'll get good marks on it. Meanwhile, chemistry, the subject I nearly failed in unit 1/2, is steadily improving, and I think now I have a better chance of chem being in my top 4 than global. My school does poorly in global (I wonder why... with such an unprofessional 'teacher'). The highest score in my school’s history was a 36, and our average study score last year was around 27-28 (yikes). For chem the AVERAGE SS in 2017 was nearly 40 , and considering I’m ranked about average among my cohort for both subjects, I’ll definitely do better in chem.
News No. 4
Not VCE related, but we had interhouse cross country last Thursday and my house won! 1st, 2nd and 3rd place of both boys and girls were all from our house, and I came 2nd! I'm off to districts tomorrow, meaning I miss double methods (cry) and double global (CELEBRATION).
Hope everyone has a great week! :)
Post by: sarangiya on May 29, 2018, 09:08:26 pm
News No. 3That's heinous! And so disappointing considering it was your best subject.
Global politics... I hate this subject. It was my best subject last year, but I absolutely loathe it now and just dread. Every. Single. Class. Maybe it's just that I utterly despise my teacher, who forces us to rote-learn everything, is extremely unprofessional, cannot keep his political beliefs to himself, and basically tells any student who thinks differently that they're wrong.EXTREMELY FRUSTRATED RANT! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!Last year our 1/2 teacher would hold debates during class and thoroughly welcomed a whole range of political views in our essays. Sure, it wasn't like he remained completely neutral but at least he RESPECTED the students's views and beliefs.
My current teacher though is the polar opposite. Once some students including myself were discussing about the pros and cons of capital punishment, one student said that the International Criminal Court should use the death penalty in serious cases, and the teacher just suddenly swoops in and says 'The fact that countries like US and China uses capital punishment but still has high numbers of crime shows that you're WRONG!"
TF? First of all US and China also has pretty high population so it makes sense that there would be more cases of crime, anyway I'm not even for the death penalty but I thought it was completely unnecessary for him to tell a student his opinion was wrong.
I'm not done. In one of my practice essays recently I brought up a point that he completely ignored in class about ethnic minorities in China, namely that apart from certain groups like the Uighurs who occasionally take part in religious extremism, most minority groups in China (including Islamic groups) are not only well treated but receive much more benefits in terms of welfare and education / job prospects than the Han majority (and yes I included statistics from academic sources to back up my point). He crossed out that entire paragraph and said that I'm somehow undermining the human rights abuses by their government by claiming that ethnic minorities are treated well in China and that the 'statistics are twisted by the government'. OK SURE! COS I'VE TOTALLY NOT LIVED IN CHINA FOR 8 YEARS AND SAW FIRSTHAND HOW PEOPLE WERE TREATED (pretty well).
He has also said in class (and I quote) "I would never willingly visit China... India... Cuba... (list of countries go on and on)". What really pissed me off though was during parent teacher interviews last week. My parents just wanted to know how I was going in class goddammit, but apparently that was too much to ask of this teacher, who spent 8 of the 10 minutes making sure that my parents understood his political beliefs and another minute marvelling at the fact that my parents, despite being Caucasian, willingly spent 8 years living and working in 'a repressed communist country'. With one minute to go my dad finally cut him off and said 'So how is my son doing in this subject?', to which the teacher replied 'Pretty well, but if he could stop being so sympathetic towards the CCP that would be an improvement.' at which point my parents just gave up getting something unbiased out of this teacher.
Can I just add very quickly, I've noticed a trend in my practice essays and it's that the harder I bash China/Chinese government/culture/people, the bigger ticks I get. Meanwhile if I even attempt to bring in another perspective, it gets crossed out.
I would just abide by his racist ways for your SACs, using your own knowledge and research of China for essays to be corrected by others. You could possibly have your 1/2 teacher look over the """"controversial""" ones if your current one won't take too much offence.
If it's good enough for the exam, he won't be marking that. Soemtimes you just have to bend one way for a biased, arrogant teacher and then be yourself for the VCAA assessors who are, hopefully, more reasonable.
Congrats for methods and Chem! You've got great results so keoe your head high and grind on :))
Edit: cough I said favourite subject when you said best... Is it just me who correlates good results with likeability ? Lmao
Post by: hums_student on May 30, 2018, 07:59:42 pm
That's heinous! And so disappointing considering it was your best subject.
I would just abide by his racist ways for your SACs, using your own knowledge and research of China for essays to be corrected by others. You could possibly have your 1/2 teacher look over the """"controversial""" ones if your current one won't take too much offence.
If it's good enough for the exam, he won't be marking that. Soemtimes you just have to bend one way for a biased, arrogant teacher and then be yourself for the VCAA assessors who are, hopefully, more reasonable.
Congrats for methods and Chem! You've got great results so keep your head high and grind on :))
Thanks man :) Our sac's coming up so I'm probably just gonna write from his perspective for the time being and see if I can find anyone to look over the answers he doesn't like!
Edit: cough I said favourite subject when you said best... Is it just me who correlates good results with likeability ? LmaoYep it's not just you! I'm automatically more motivated to do well in a subject if I enjoy it. I have so much respect for people who can do well in subjects they dislike... just HOW?
Post by: hums_student on June 11, 2018, 01:29:58 pm
I would have started off with a Happy Birthday to our head of state but it's not even her actual birthday. This date was chosen to (according to Wikipedia) space out public holidays evenly in Australia.
Completely off topic, but is there anyone out there who would actually want Australia to remain a part of the Commonwealth like me? It seems that everyone I meet is in favour of becoming a republic.
News No. 1
Unit 3 is well and truly over. Also - ALL OF MY SACS ARE DONE FOR THE TERM! Ok, that’s a lie, I still got the chem practical investigation to do, as well as the GAT to look forward to (oh joy), but all the ‘proper’ SACs are done!
Lit: Two news. First, we FINALLY got our Unit 3 AOS 2 results back, I got an A+ which exceeded my wildest expectations (got D+ on the same SAC last year). I kind of expected a decent grade, since we got an extra period due to an evacuation, but no way would I have expected that high. I only lost one mark – wrong tense (why do I always make stupid mistakes like this smh).
We’ve also completed our Unit 4 perspectives SAC. Sadly, I ran out of time for a conclusion. I’m sincerely hoping that my unnecessarily detailed analysis made up for it, as I finally saw hope for a 40+ and I don’t want to mess it up.
Methods: Our final Unit 3 results are still being moderated, but I know for sure that I got somewhere between B and A. Meanwhile, we’ve started integration, and I stupidly managed to piss my teacher off in the very first lesson by calling the integral sign ‘that snake thingy’. Our next SAC is planned for the first week back of term 3.
Chem: Currently I’m working on my practical investigation poster. I’ve pretty much spent all my time and energy on this for the past few days, as it’s the only chem-related ‘SAC’ which I get to take home and work on, so even if I suck at chem there’s no reason why I can’t get an A (and I really need one if I want a 40!).
We've started organic chem, and naming all those hydrocarbons with random as functional groups and long as chains actually gives me headaches. Organic chem is the worst for me (actually failed the SAC last year and I had to bribe the teacher into letting me stay in his class), but as chem has been working out considerably better in comparison to last year, I'm hoping I'll be able to keep this going.
Does anyone else feel like unit 3 of chem is more related to physics while unit 4 is more bio?
History: WE’VE STARTED ROME! I’VE WAITED FOR THIS FOR SO LONG!
To recap Unit 3: Ancient Greece was definitely one of the most interesting things I’ve ever studied at school. The amount of parallels between a war that happened 2500 years ago and modern day society were astonishing. Learning about Alcibiades was also especially interesting, my teacher described him as “professional douchebag and the world’s first legitimate politician”.
As for our AOS2 SAC, I think I did a lot better than the first one, though I know I completely messed up one of my essays. In the introduction I outlined my 3 main points, I then changed my mind and wrote another point for my 3rd paragraph instead, sadly ran out of time to change my contention.
Global: I didn’t really prepare for my global SAC, partly due to my hatred for the teacher and also because I figured that it’s definitely going to be in my bottom 2 regardless of how hard I try. Looking back now I kind of regret it. Our teacher still hasn’t given back our marks, but he did give out our approximate rankings in the class, so I know I messed up.
News No. 2
Unit 3 rankings for my subjects:
Literature: 1st (feels like my most recent SAC just sabotaged this ranking though)
History: 2nd (out of a class of 6 people so it doesn’t mean much)
Methods: top 25%
Spoiler
Considering that earlier this term my teacher thought I was below average and my grades can only be considered decent for someone who does hums subjects, I’m really pleased with this. I would love to push to the top 10% and prove her wrong once and for all though.
Chemistry: average
Pretty funny when you compare that to my 1/2 scores, where I was ranked 1st for global, below average for lit, bottom 25% for methods, and probably last in the entire school for chem.
News No. 3
Cross country – I’ve progressed to regionals after coming 1st during districts (I got lucky, the guy who outran me during interhouse couldn’t go cos of a SAC.) I’m not sure whether I should go to regionals though, as I really don’t want to miss too many classes.
How do some kids do well in school while balancing hours and hours of extracurricular activities, while also having a social life AND getting a healthy amount of sleep at the same time? They are a mystery to me.
Have a good week! And good luck to everyone doing the GAT on Wednesday!
Friendly reminder: if the teacher doesn't arrive after 15 minutes we're legally allowed to leave
Post by: hums_student on June 26, 2018, 04:57:14 pm
Countdown till exams: 133 days.
I didn’t update on Monday but school finished today so I thought I might as well wait till the term is over before I update. And also because something really awesome was planned for today which I really wanted to talk about (see below).
News No. 1
I turn 17 this week (god I feel old), now I can finally say I’m older than the year 11s at school. ;D
News No. 2
Subject updates:
Lit: So I’m currently rank 1 in the class. I’m really surprised by this to be honest, so is my teacher, who told me that he is 1, surprised that I’ve finally stopped falling asleep in class, and 2, that I’ve actually started reading the set texts. Last year I was so pissed that Shakespeare wasn’t a set text I flat out refused to read any of the texts given. (Tbh I still am pretty pissed, though I care more about my study score)
Methods: I’ve started revision for our upcoming SAC. So far I’ve just been going over some extra worksheets but I’m planning to start previous years’ papers by the first week of holidays. I’m really hoping for an A for this SAC, the B+ from last SAC was really unsatisfying. (Currently ranked 7th in the class out of 24)
Chem: ORGANIC CHEM WILL BE THE DEATH OF ME! Holy crap this is content heavy. There is so much rote-learning involved. Even our teacher told us to quit trying to *understand* everything, and that as long as we can *remember* we’ll be set. I was going so well in chem and was actually hoping for a good study score until unit 4 hit.
On another note, our posters have been marked, though we won’t be getting them back soon. I have no idea how I went, but I do know that my discussion and evaluation were complete and utter waffle.
History: Rome turned out to be so much more content-heavy than Greece, but I’m enjoying it so far. Our teacher warned us that it would be getting hectic soon, which is horrible news since all my other subjects are piling up as well.
I got an A+ on my last SAC, which was the highest in the class. Still rank 2 though, since my first SAC dragged my average down.
Global: I got a B+ on the last SAC, which surprisingly was still above average considering I’ve kind of given up on this subject by now. Honestly I’d be happy with a study score of 25. It’s still kind of disappointing though, considering last year I did so well and was hoping for a 30+.
News No. 3
Unit 3 average scores for my subjects:
Lit: 96% (A+)
History: 91% (A+)
Global: 80.5% (A)
Methods: 77% (B+)
Chem: 75% (B+)
I am indeed living up to my title of ‘hums student’.
News No. 4
Cross country – I ended up going to regionals since the only class I missed was double global. Ended up coming 6th which was horrendously irritating – top 5 goes to states. This was the first year I didn’t qualify for states, though I guess that could be a good thing, since I won’t be missing more classes.
News No. 5
Year 10s are preparing for subject selections at my school and the teachers put together a panel of 4 year 12s to hold a Q and A today. I was chosen for doing a ‘variety of subjects’ along with 3 others.
a little on the other students
There were 2 guys and 2 girls, basically 1 guy and 1 girl did strictly hums/arts or strictly science subjects, and the other 2 did a mix. I was obviously one of the 2 who did a ‘mix’ of subjects, and the other girl did an even more varied set of subjects of Englang, methods, spesh, bio, media, and PE.
As for the 2 strictly hums or science kids, one was my sister (science representative, though she also does music for the lols) and the hums representative does English, further, legal, eco, busman, and Japanese SL.
As for the 2 strictly hums or science kids, one was my sister (science representative, though she also does music for the lols) and the hums representative does English, further, legal, eco, busman, and Japanese SL.
We started off with introducing ourselves and then the teachers opened it up for the year 10 kids to ask us questions. Most were directed at the 2 ‘hums/science’ reps though 2 kids asked me about ancient history which was exciting (glad to know that the future is in good hands). Bunch of kids asked me about lit as well, and one particular student asked me why chemistry was among my subjects because ‘it seems so out of place’ (direct quote).
Some questions all four of us got were on future plans (Arts at UoM for me), ATAR goals (I had the lowest ATAR goal of ‘90+’ XD), favourite subject (history), hardest subject (hard to answer, all are difficult in different ways, overall methods probably is the hardest for me though), and what other subjects we’ve also considered doing (eco/psych/music).
Hope everyone enjoys their holidays! (or last week of school)
Post by: Joseph41 on June 26, 2018, 05:02:04 pm
Post by: hums_student on July 09, 2018, 03:27:09 pm
Countdown till exams: 121 days.
Holidays are halfway over, and so is year 12. I went past unimelb a few days ago and felt it’s unbelievable that in a couple more months I could be a student there (if I do well of course…).
News No. 1
Subject updates:
Lit: Exam preparations have started. Our teacher gave everyone a choice of 2 out of 3 set texts: Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad, Robert Browning’s poetry, and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams. After reading through the examiners’ reports though, I found that all 3 were THE most popular texts chosen in 2017.
Quote from: 2017 examiners’ report
Novels: The overwhelmingly popular choice for this category was Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness.Problem is, I’m not exactly keen on choosing the same texts as everyone else. I read a couple of sample, high-scoring essays on those texts from last year, and all are ridiculously sophisticated and way beyond my level. When compared against those, none of my essays stand a chance. Unfortunately, with the exception of one, all the texts we’re studying are insanely popular. I wonder if it’s too late for me to start studying a completely different text yet.
Plays: The most popular choices were Tennessee Williams’s Cat on a Hot Tin Roof…
Poetry: The most popular texts were Robert Browning…
Methods: The integration SAC is on the first Friday back, ironically only a few hours before year 12 formal that same evening. So far I’ve probably spent more hours preparing for formal than the SAC, which is appalling.
I did get a practice SAC done, which I scored a 72% for (not exactly ideal). Also went to the AN methods lecture on Saturday, though I was so mentally drained from the chem lectures in the morning I completely zoned out for the last hour or so.
Chem: I didn’t do any work for chem until Saturday, when I went to the AN lectures in the morning and realised how behind I am. The couple of people I went to the lecture with could all keep up (at least up until NMR spectroscopy – what the bloody hell was that?), meanwhile by the second content block I felt like the lecturer was speaking another language. (Optical isomerism??? Ionisation and fragmentation??? The n+1 rule??? Shielding??? And also why are the PEAKS for IR spec at the LOWEST point of the graph???)
On a more positive note, during the lecture I made it onto the Kahoot scoreboard for a solid 2 and a half minutes.
History: I managed to finish all of my holiday homework on the first day of holidays, finished reading An Introduction of the Roman Republic by David Gwynn earlier this week, and am now working my way through the early works of Livy. If only I could have this attitude for all my other subjects.
I’ve also started marathoning (if that’s a word) through Horrible Histories again, just because.
Global: Got no update cos I haven’t opened the textbook once this entire holidays. Still watch the news if that counts.
News No. 2
Formal is coming up soon and it’s the only reason why I’m looking forward to term 3. And before anyone asks, no, I’m not going with anyone (totally not because the girl I was planning to ask decided to go with someone else). Still, I’m really looking forward to it, especially since our year 10 formal was cancelled so everyone’s been waiting for this for years.
News No. 3
I wrote an article for ATAR Notes! Really, really awesome experience, can’t wait to write more in the future.
Hope everyone's been enjoying their break!
Post by: sarangiya on July 10, 2018, 02:30:56 am
So far I’ve probably spent more hours preparing for formal than the SAC, which is appalling.exceptionally relatable
Quote
On a more positive note, during the lecture I made it onto the Kahoot scoreboard for a solid 2 and a half minutes.Omg what was your username!? The anal one was a laugh because I am indeed twelve years old. But dotty boi was my fave.
Quote
I wrote an article for ATAR Notes! Really, really awesome experience, can’t wait to write more in the future.Same!! Has been published yet? Afaik mine hasn't but do send a link if yours is!
Happy holidays
Post by: hums_student on July 10, 2018, 09:43:31 am
Omg what was your username!? The anal one was a laugh because I am indeed twelve years old. But dotty boi was my fave.Dotty boi was such a classic haha!
My username was 'Tassie Jones', cos it seems that all the methods examiners for VCAA are absolutely adamant on putting the poor guy through all kinds of escapades. (I bet Tasmania Jones is gonna appear in our exam at the end of the year).
Same!! Has been published yet? Afaik mine hasn't but do send a link if yours is!Mine hasn't yet either, but I just wrote it this week so maybe that's why. I'll make sure to put a link up when it does get published though.
What's your article on? Be sure to put a link up too! Can't wait to read it.
Post by: DogBlackTheBlackDog on July 14, 2018, 10:21:26 am
History: I managed to finish all of my holiday homework on the first day of holidays, finished reading An Introduction of the Roman Republic by David Gwynn earlier this week, and am now working my way through the early works of Livy. If only I could have this attitude for all my other subjects.
I’ve also started marathoning (if that’s a word) through Horrible Histories again, just because.
News No. 3
I wrote an article for ATAR Notes! Really, really awesome experience, can’t wait to write more in the future.
No wonder you’re rank 1 in ancient right now, with all those extra readings that you’re doing. Have you finished Livy yet? How long did that take you?
What’s your article on? Love to read it once it gets published!
Enjoy the rest of your holidays, see you in like 5 days ahahah!
Post by: Joseph41 on July 14, 2018, 12:14:54 pm
In saying that, this article here looks pretty tops. ;)
Post by: hums_student on July 14, 2018, 12:18:47 pm
On articles, the only reason they wouldn't be published at the moment is because I don't want to push out too many at once haha.
In saying that, this article here looks pretty tops. ;)
Looks amazing! ;D Thanks Nick, you're a legend.
Post by: Joseph41 on July 14, 2018, 12:19:55 pm
Looks amazing! ;D Thanks Nick, you're a legend.
(https://www.reactiongifs.us/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/i_know_you_are_pee_wee_herman.gif)
Post by: hums_student on July 14, 2018, 12:33:31 pm
(https://media.giphy.com/media/xT8qB3gj6AxN7AsIta/giphy.gif)(https://www.reactiongifs.us/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/i_know_you_are_pee_wee_herman.gif)
Post by: hums_student on July 23, 2018, 02:48:15 pm
Countdown till November: 101 days.
Apologies in advance, this one is kinda long, so I've littered it with spoiler thingys (what do you call them??) to make it look more readable.
My final term of high school has officially begun, and it was one hell of a rollercoaster. First, the school most inconveniently had no power for the first 2 days back (foreshadowing the dark times ahead no doubt). Next, we had our second methods SAC on Friday, along with year 12 formal that same evening. But the most important news is that we got a new teacher for global politics.
News No. 1
No kidding, on Thursday afternoon our global class was greeted by our vice principal who told us that ‘Unfortunately, Mr ____ will no longer be returning as a teacher for the rest of the year due to personal reasons.’ Of course, all of us already knew since the first day back (news travel fast in a small cohort). I’m not exactly sure of exactly why yet, but according to rumours he was fired.
background of what happened last term
I know I’ve complained about my global teacher on here before, and no joke I’ve also complained to the school about it. Around mid-last term the year 12 sector of our global class collectively wrote an email to the principal about his inability to keep his political bias to himself and his habit of telling students to shut up, or sometimes straight up insulting / humiliating students when presented with opposing views (just the tip of the iceberg of all the grievances our class has against him). But our goal was merely for the teacher to be warned of his behaviour and to restrain from being too unprofessional during class. If he really did get fired, then our plan worked TOO well.
With that said though, my more optimistic side is kind of looking forward to classes with a new teacher. Nothing has been finalised (at least that I know of) as the rest of our global classes last week were cancelled, and so has our classes for this week. Most of us speculate though that our new teacher will probably either be our 1/2 global teacher or the legal studies teacher, since they’re most likely the only ones qualified anyway.
just me rambling
I’m really hoping that it works out, because from my point of view the school made a seriously risky move by making changes less than 4 months away from our exam. Also I don’t know too much about hiring/firing processes work, but I’m pretty sure 2 weeks was WAY too short of a notice to fire somebody (unless my teacher already knew beforehand??? If that’s the case he seriously played us cos none of us had any idea that he was leaving), and shouldn’t they have made sure to find a replacement before actually firing the person??? I know my school isn’t exactly a *top(or even above average)-tier* school but shouldn’t this be BASIC COMMON SENSE?!?!?
Also, our global class was already two weeks behind our original schedule before he even left, and now we could be more than 4 weeks behind. Our first SAC for unit 4 was originally scheduled for LAST WEEK, which was then postponed to this week. With the sudden change of staff our SAC has been put on hold and we were told it would most likely happen around week 4. I wonder if there is still a chance for me to get 25+ in this subject.
Also, our global class was already two weeks behind our original schedule before he even left, and now we could be more than 4 weeks behind. Our first SAC for unit 4 was originally scheduled for LAST WEEK, which was then postponed to this week. With the sudden change of staff our SAC has been put on hold and we were told it would most likely happen around week 4. I wonder if there is still a chance for me to get 25+ in this subject.
News No. 2
Subject updates:
Lit: Bob Browning and his dramatic monologues are eating what’s left of my brain cells one by one. Though to be fair, I love the poems where he *indicts* the crap out of the church.(Sincerely hoping that my parents do not read this)
We also got our AOS 3 results back… I messed up.
me rambling about the SAC
Not really surprised. I’m crap at time management and on the day of the SAC, I was so hell bent on making sure my body paragraphs were perfect I completely ran out of time for a conclusion. I was one mark off A+, which isn’t bad but to me that matters a lot since I was only one mark off full marks in the last SAC. This also means that I’m no longer rank one for lit.
Methods: We’re now onto everyone’s least favourite topic – Probability. I’ve already forgotten what the hell standard deviation was, so has half the class, but that’s not stopping my teacher from racing through the textbook at full speed.
The integration SAC was pretty decent IMO, not overly difficult and I even managed to finish with 10 minutes to spare, unfortunately there was a 4 mark question that I had no idea how to even approach. I’m sincerely praying for an A (not sure if God’s on my side since I skipped church on Sunday to study lol…)
To think that way back in my first post I was so confident about this subject… It’s now my worst.
Chem: Our practical investigation posters have finally been moderated and I found out my results this morning…
I GOT AN A+!
I just made it, but honestly I’m just too in awe by the fact that I got above an A in chemistry, the only subject I’ve never had any confidence of doing well in. Even my teacher was astonished, in the comments section he wrote “I see you’re finally staying awake in class”. I also (somehow) outperformed my sister, which provided me with some thoroughgoing satisfaction and ego.
me rambling some more
Of course ultimately it’s my ranking that matters, and most people did pretty well for the poster (average was a low A). I guess the main reason why I’m so ecstatic is because I’ve kind of given up all hope of ever seeing a good score for chem. I’m also surprised by the fact that chem is now my third best subject, ahead of methods and global. I would’ve never believed anything like this could’ve happened this time last year. My chem teacher later told me that he expected me to do well for the poster, as unlike the other chem SACs, is completely writing based. Direct quote from him, “Many of the more humanities students did better in this outcome, as they’re more used to writing and research.”
Glad to know I’m still living up to my name.
Glad to know I’m still living up to my name.
History: My upcoming history SAC is most annoyingly on the same day as chem. Even more annoying is the fact that I’m the only one who also does chem (3/4) in my history class, so no one else feels my pain.
Onto more serious and *academic* matters though, Rome is for lack of a better term, hella confusing. For Greece the content was taught chronologically. For Rome though, we’re simultaneously learning 2 different concepts with timelines that run parallel. It’s fun to read about, I have to admit, but the thought of being tested on it is daunting.
an update on my readings
I’ve finished 2 of the 4 Livy books: The Early History of Rome and Rome and Italy. I might read the other two if I have extra time, but as they aren’t relevant to the study design I might not bother with them for now. (Also because they’re ridiculously expensive to buy and I don’t like borrowing books from the library lol)
I did add two more books to my ancient history collection over the weekend: Dynasty by Tom Holland (not that Tom Holland) and The Death of Julius Caesar by Barry Strauss. Both of them are on content of the next outcome, but I thought there’s no harm getting some reading done early to avoid overwhelming myself when we start AOS 4.
I did add two more books to my ancient history collection over the weekend: Dynasty by Tom Holland (not that Tom Holland) and The Death of Julius Caesar by Barry Strauss. Both of them are on content of the next outcome, but I thought there’s no harm getting some reading done early to avoid overwhelming myself when we start AOS 4.
haven’t you done this already before???
Yes, I know I said that at the end of last term year 10s had a subject selection Q+A panel which I was a part of. The difference is that was more of a general ‘Q and A’ with the entire year 10 population while this time it’s more subject specific, and we talk to one class at a time. Also, while last time we talk about our experiences with VCE in general and other subject selection tips, this time we'll just be talking about one subject we were assigned to and convincing future students to pick it.
I wasn’t even supposed to be a part of it since I was already a part of the Q+A panel, but the original history rep chosen (our current rank 1) is doing the UMAT. I got the job instead, and I’m more than ready to brainwash some year 10s into doing history lol.
I wasn’t even supposed to be a part of it since I was already a part of the Q+A panel, but the original history rep chosen (our current rank 1) is doing the UMAT. I got the job instead, and I’m more than ready to brainwash some year 10s into doing history lol.
News No. 3
Some non-VCE related stuff, because I don’t want it to seem as if my entire year 12 year is being consumed by studying and that I actually have a life.
me ranting about formal
FORMAL!!! Really shouldn’t talk too much about it since it’s not strictly academic related, but HELL YEAH IT WAS FUN. I know some people think formal is usually overhyped but after such a hectic week and such a traumatising methods SAC, it was a good ‘recovery time’ for both me and my sanity. The food was delicious, the venue looked like it was out of The Great Gatsby, and seeing everyone turn from our normally wild, coarse, ‘bogan’-ish selves to sophisticated and refined *ladies* and *gentlemen* with our shirts tucked in and ties done properly was hilarious.
On a side note, I was beyond confident I would win the sash for either ‘best dressed’ or ‘most talented’ …………… and instead won ‘class clown’. Oh well, it’ll probably become the greatest accomplishment of my lifetime, so I’ll take it.
On a side note, I was beyond confident I would win the sash for either ‘best dressed’ or ‘most talented’ …………… and instead won ‘class clown’. Oh well, it’ll probably become the greatest accomplishment of my lifetime, so I’ll take it.
me ranting about our school musical
I know I’ve never talked about it before, but I’m part of our school musical (AVPM) which will hit the stage in mid-August. Rehearsals were pretty chill in the first two terms but now that the day is looming closer and closer the teachers are frantic in getting everything perfect, so our rehearsal times have nearly doubled in just the first week back. That’s bad news for me, and pretty much every other year 12 involved in the production (also it’s worth noting that year 12s have all the lead roles so there’s even more pressure on us). At the start of the year, I really thought balancing school and other activities wouldn’t be that difficult. At the same time though, the musical is the only reason why I haven’t completely lost my sanity yet and I’m really glad I’m a part of it.
News No. 4
I changed my profile pic… long story short, for as long as I can remember I’ve aspired to be a professional classical pianist, but with my music-less set of VCE subjects and my newfound love of history, I’ve decided to change it to something that more accurately reflects who I am now (“not that it makes a big difference, neither a pianist nor a historian can feed a family” – my dad).
If you were wondering, my history teacher made this meme and he puts it at the start of every single powerpoint he makes.
That’s it for this update, though I feel like I won’t be following my schedule these couple of weeks, I’ll hopefully update on how global turns out as soon as I find out who’s our new teacher, and maybe how year 10 subject expo goes as well.
Also - good luck to everyone doing the UMAT!
Post by: Joseph41 on July 23, 2018, 02:55:53 pm
Post by: hums_student on July 23, 2018, 11:02:40 pm
Post by: Joseph41 on July 24, 2018, 09:29:25 am
ThanksJosephNick! ;D
Nice stepping around my username trap. ;)
Post by: hums_student on July 26, 2018, 10:14:07 pm
I’ve pretty much had no school this week, ironic because a lot has happened and hence, to avoid a ridiculously long update like last time, I’ve decided to doa quick update on stuff that has happened in the last couple of days (for a week with pretty much no classes, a hell of a lot has happened).
if anyone was wondering why I had pretty much no classes (probs no one but…)
All of my global classes were cancelled as expected, but lit was cancelled as well as my lit teacher suddenly had to go overseas (family emergency I presume, no actual idea why). They’re cancelled for, as far as I know, the entirety of next week as well, which is, not trying to be dramatic but, seriously catastrophic since our SAC is coming up. It’s even worse than missing a fortnight of classes for global. Because of all the cancelled classes, I didn’t have to go to school on Thursday, and only went for half a day on Monday and Tuesday.
Apart from that, school was also cancelled on Wednesday because of UMAT(I went to school anyway cos of year 10 subject expo) and will be cancelled tomorrow due to parent-teacher interviews. So basically this entire week I was at school for 7 hours.
You would think that not much can happen in 7 hours.
Apart from that, school was also cancelled on Wednesday because of UMAT(I went to school anyway cos of year 10 subject expo) and will be cancelled tomorrow due to parent-teacher interviews. So basically this entire week I was at school for 7 hours.
You would think that not much can happen in 7 hours.
Global
We finally have a new teacher – our current legal studies teacher whom I had for economics 1/2 last year. So far, I’m feeling pretty optimistic. This teacher is professional, good at giving feedback and advice, and also knowledgeable (she teaches 4 subjects, 5 if you count global). Most importantly, she doesn’t tell you to shut up for having a different opinion.
why our last global teacher left
We weren’t officially told this by the school, but apparently during a 1/2 global class earlier last term the teacher made a really racist statement towards India while talking about women's rights. The two Indian students in the class, along with other students reported it to the principal, and he was fired.
On a completely unrelated note, I recently found out that, to my surprise, the current rank 1 in global is a year 11, and not a year 12 like everyone thought. The news is a huge blow to all the year 12s’ egos, but I have to admit – the year 11s work way harder than us.
Year 10 Subject Expo
This was quite interesting, since only two years ago I was in the year 10s’ shoes, sitting down in the classroom while teachers and current VCE students came to talk about their subjects.
structure
How it worked was that multiple classrooms were set up for the year 10s to rotate through (15 minutes each). The teacher in charge gives a general run-down of the structure of content and assessments, then students talk about their feelings towards the subject and why they encourage future students to pick it.
Hums subjects were split into history, revs, and global/aus politics in one room, and (the more popular) legal studies and economics in the other. I was in the history/politics room, along with a 1/2 revs student. Because of recent *staff changes* there was no actual teacher allocated to our room, though the legal/eco teacher occasionally pops in every now and then, hence me and the other student just led the whole thing (loved having the authority haha).
Hums subjects were split into history, revs, and global/aus politics in one room, and (the more popular) legal studies and economics in the other. I was in the history/politics room, along with a 1/2 revs student. Because of recent *staff changes* there was no actual teacher allocated to our room, though the legal/eco teacher occasionally pops in every now and then, hence me and the other student just led the whole thing (loved having the authority haha).
The rotations afterwards worked out a lot better. I talked about global and auspol first to avoid running out of time at the end, and also made a point of reminding all the students that global and Australian politics scale up higher than bio, although once the teacher walked in just as I was saying that and I don’t think she exactly approved of it.
I’m not exactly sure how successful I was in persuading the kids to do history though. At the end of each session (except the first lmao) we’d ask if anyone had any questions, and we were constantly met with blank stares. I did get 3 questions in the end – one was on global, and two asked about goddamn legal studies.
At least five students also asked me about bloody specialist maths, no doubt kids who just assume I’m the same person as my sister :'( Speaking of maths/science, the bio rep later told me that she was overwhelmed with questions at the end of each session... smh
History
Nothing happened unless you count subject expo, I just wanted to talk about it cos an update just doesn’t feel the same without me talking about history.
Actually, I take that back. Something did happen – I realised that I actually suck at reading study designs properly.
So about two weeks ago I said that:
Quote from: me two weeks ago
I'm pretty sure only [Livy’s] first book is relevant to the VCAA study design.Fast forward to my last update:
Quote from: me earlier this week
I’ve finished 2 of the 4 Livy books. I might read the other two if I have extra time, but as they aren’t relevant to the study design I might not bother with them for now.It was only after I bought two other books to read for the next outcome that I realised – hold up… ALL FOUR of Livy’s books are actually relevant.
So I’ll have to put my new books on hold while I finish off Livy’s last two books. It doesn’t help that the dude's more of a story-teller than a historian either, his books are so interesting to read I’ve completely put off all chem revision till a later unspecified date, even though the chem SAC is less than five days away. (You know there’s a problem when a historian from 2000 years ago is much easier to read than a modern historian)
I’m not looking forward to parent-teacher interviews tomorrow…
Post by: hums_student on August 06, 2018, 02:33:57 pm
Countdown till November: 87 days. yikes
This morning I was talking to a kid at school not knowing he was a year 10. He asked about history, and I answered, truthfully, that it’s a lot of work. He immediately said, “Then why didn’t you tell us THAT during subject expo?”
Subject Updates
Lit: teacher came back early, thank god. I’m now putting all efforts into the SAC this Wednesday as I’m still sour about my ranking.
exam preparations
I’m set on doing COAHTR for part A, though I’m still unsure about B. Not gonna lie, I actually love Browning, however it was the most popular poetry text in 2017 and probably will be for 2018. My other two options are Foreign Soil, the short stories collection we did this year, and Diary of a Madman, my favourite short stories collection ever. The only problem with the latter is that we didn’t do it for school, and my teacher has never read it in his life.
I know I shouldn’t choose a text just for the plot or for being unique, but I despised Foreign Soil and would be more than happy to never lay my eyes on that book ever again. Sadly, liking a text is one thing, being able to dissect it is another. I’m not sure how ‘deep’ I can analyse with Gogol, especially if my teacher doesn’t know the text. Maybe it’s time for me to get a tutor lol…
I know I shouldn’t choose a text just for the plot or for being unique, but I despised Foreign Soil and would be more than happy to never lay my eyes on that book ever again. Sadly, liking a text is one thing, being able to dissect it is another. I’m not sure how ‘deep’ I can analyse with Gogol, especially if my teacher doesn’t know the text. Maybe it’s time for me to get a tutor lol…
Chem: We’ve done our 3rd SAC, and I stuffed up big time – I didn’t realise that there was a BACK PAGE on the booklet, and handed in my SAC with a 5 mark question completely blank.
WHY DO I ALWAYS MAKE STUPID MISTAKES AARRGGGHHHHH
Apparently an average of 75% is needed for a 35+ SS. So far, I average at just below 80%, hopefully losing 5 marks due to sheer stupidity did not sabotage my chances.
History: SAC 3 is done, and boy am I glad. I didn’t like this AOS as much, mainly since we covered 607 years of Roman history in 5 weeks. That includes the Regal Period, the birth of the Republic, its conquest of Italy, and SIX long wars, IN 5 WEEKS! Nothing was in depth and it felt more like getting facts and dates dumped on us. I prefer the last AOS, where we covered 57 years of Greek history in 7 weeks, and we actually got to learn about Periclean Athens and the Peloponnesian War.
With that said though, we’re starting the new AOS next week, and I can’t wait to learn more about my boi JULIUS CAESAR (heck yeah!)
an update on reading progress
I didn’t have time to finish Livy’s last book before the SAC, though thank goodness it didn’t come up lol.
I’m currently *slowly* working my way through Dynasty by Tom Holland. Also bought another Tom Holland book, Rubicon at the suggestion of my teacher. Holland’s books are just so goddamn long, it’ll probably take me the entire term to read these two.
On another note, I’m now officially broke due to the number of books I’m buying. Tom better not let me (and my wallet) down.
I’m currently *slowly* working my way through Dynasty by Tom Holland. Also bought another Tom Holland book, Rubicon at the suggestion of my teacher. Holland’s books are just so goddamn long, it’ll probably take me the entire term to read these two.
On another note, I’m now officially broke due to the number of books I’m buying. Tom better not let me (and my wallet) down.
News No. 1
VTAC opens today! Haven’t submitted them yet, but my preferences are, in order:
1. Melbourne – Bachelor of Arts
2. Melbourne – Bachelor of Music
3. Monash – Bachelor of Arts + Music
4. Monash – Bachelor of Arts + Fine Art (Musical Theatre)
5. Monash – Bachelor of Arts + Education
6. ACU – Bachelor of Arts + Education
7. Monash – Bachelor of Arts
8. Monash – Bachelor of Arts + Science
Apart from VTAC, I’m also applying for UAC. My course preferences are:
1. ANU – Bachelor of Arts + Classical Studies
2. ANU – Bachelor of Arts + European Studies
3. ANU – Bachelor of Arts + Music
4. UNSW – Bachelor of Arts + Music
5. UNSW – Bachelor of Arts + Education
Tbh, I’ve never even considered going interstate until literally *last week* when I took a look at the ANU website for the lols. They offer some really interesting degrees, eg. European Studies is only offered at UoM as a minor.
Other News
musical
2 weeks to go before we hit the stage! I’m trying to savour rehearsals as much as I can, since this is the last school musical I’ll ever be a part of. We have rehearsals every day after school, and I’ve nearly lost my voice.
I sure hope that unis also have musical productions, cos that and cross country are the only activities I actively participate in at school lmao
I sure hope that unis also have musical productions, cos that and cross country are the only activities I actively participate in at school lmao
parent teacher interviews
I had my last ever parent-teacher interviews last week, and the thought of never going through them ever again is liberating to put it mildly. Most comments were positive, some (mainly methods) weren’t. Nevertheless, I’m glad it’s done.
Have a good week everyone! ;D
EDIT - Typo
Post by: Joseph41 on August 06, 2018, 02:59:48 pm
Post by: PhoenixxFire on August 06, 2018, 05:10:56 pm
Quote
Tbh, I’ve never even considered going interstate until literally *last week* when I took a look at the ANU website for the lols. They offer some really interesting degrees, eg. European Studies is only offered at UoM as a minor.We might end up at the same uni next year haha. ANU is my one and only preference (although I’m going to add some others just in case)
Post by: hums_student on August 06, 2018, 09:30:47 pm
We might end up at the same uni next year haha. ANU is my one and only preference (although I’m going to add some others just in case)That'd actually be so awesome! What are your preferences for ANU?
Cool preferences! What an exciting time. :)Thank you ;D
Post by: PhoenixxFire on August 06, 2018, 09:55:41 pm
That'd actually be so awesome! What are your preferences for ANU?I want to do a double degree in Environmental science/science. Anything else I put down will just be for the sake of having other preferences/in case I change my mind
Post by: hums_student on August 20, 2018, 10:46:28 am
Countdown till November: 73 days.
This week has been particularly eventful…
News No. 1 – MUSICAL!!!
My last ever school musical was a complete success! Yes, I will talk about it before any VCE related news, and I will definitely dedicate an unnecessary amount of paragraphs to this because it just ended yesterday and I’m still on a post-performance high.
Our production was (a clean version of) A Very Potter Musical. We performed for 3 nights from Friday to Sunday, and I played the best role of Lord Voldemort. I wasn’t allowed to be shirtless though, like they did in the original.
more details
Apart from some last minute changes to backstage, the performance went smoothly. Sunday was the most memorable, especially for the year 12s (most of us who have been participating in productions since our first year) as it was our last performance. The younger year levels played a video they made which compiled all of our previous productions from year 7. It has always been a tradition at our school and I’ve helped put together videos before, but it’s a different experience when the video is actually about us.
Honestly, I’m a little sad that it’s over. The entire process was a fantastic experience, from our first day of rehearsals back in March when none of us had no idea how it would go, to our spectacular finish last night.
I have also completely lost my voice. (Imitating Joe Walker’s voice for Voldemort was serious business), and spent the entirety of today mouthing words like an idiot.
Honestly, I’m a little sad that it’s over. The entire process was a fantastic experience, from our first day of rehearsals back in March when none of us had no idea how it would go, to our spectacular finish last night.
I have also completely lost my voice. (Imitating Joe Walker’s voice for Voldemort was serious business), and spent the entirety of today mouthing words like an idiot.
I guess I’m partly relieved that it’s over. It took up too much time, and in year 12 that’s our most precious thing. Also, as music captain I had to spend so much time planning this. The musical was our last item so I’ve got no more duties till the end of the year, giving me more time to catch up on school. Time to get back to VCE!
Subject Updates
Lit: Second last SAC is done, and I think I did well. Hope it’s enough to get me back to rank 1.
exam preparations
Exam texts are finalised!
Section A: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams
Section B: Diary of a Madman and other short stories by Nikolay Gogol
My teacher advised me against it, but I’m challenging myself to do Gogol. Anyway, lit is already a challenge, and so far I’ve done better than I expected.
I’m trying to find previous lit students who did Gogol because I desperately need a tutor lol.
Section A: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof by Tennessee Williams
Section B: Diary of a Madman and other short stories by Nikolay Gogol
My teacher advised me against it, but I’m challenging myself to do Gogol. Anyway, lit is already a challenge, and so far I’ve done better than I expected.
I’m trying to find previous lit students who did Gogol because I desperately need a tutor lol.
Chem: Food chem has been interesting so far, though due to rehearsals I’m horrifically behind, not to mention half our chem class also does (or did) bio, so they already know the content.
History: I got an A+ on the last SAC! Guess what that means? RANK ONE BABY!!
Maybe I shouldn’t celebrate so early lol. After getting rank one for lit I overestimated myself and soon slipped back down in the following SAC. With that said, I’m really glad that the excessive reading I did paid off. Now I just have to keep that going for next time.
update on reading progress
I came across this absolute gem while reading Plutarch:
I’m slowly progressing through The Death of Caesar by Barry Strauss. My teacher recommended me the book, but so far it’s been pretty dull. I’ve been skipping boring parts and the only full chapter I’ve read so far was Caesar’s assassination.
Words cannot describe how much I miss Livy and his extravagant stories.
Quote from: Cato the Elder (probably)
“It is difficult, my fellow citizens, to argue with the belly, since it has no ears.”This shall now become my comeback whenever someone accuses me of overeating at buffets.
I’m slowly progressing through The Death of Caesar by Barry Strauss. My teacher recommended me the book, but so far it’s been pretty dull. I’ve been skipping boring parts and the only full chapter I’ve read so far was Caesar’s assassination.
Words cannot describe how much I miss Livy and his extravagant stories.
News No. 2 – UoM Open Day
I ditched church on Sunday for Melbourne Open Day with my sister and some friends. First stop was Bachelor of Science, where my sister cornered the poor guy standing at the Mathematics and Statistics info booth and interrogated him for 15 minutes straight. I mainly wandered between chemistry and engineering, and tbh they seem interesting. While science isn’t my plan, I wouldn’t mind studying them for breadth.
Next stop – Arts! We talked to the reps there about diploma of languages first – I managed to have a full conversation in German with one of the reps there (my proudest moment). Following that we talked to the reps for various Arts majors and minors (cos I still don’t know what to do with my life rip).
Ancient World Studies
This is pretty much a fancy name for ‘ancient history’. The lady at the info booth (who was wearing a Pharaoh’s hat, may I add) talked about the digs that students go on, especially to Israel. The best part? It’s open to undergrad students. The fact that there are ACTUALY DIGS (paid too lol), at UNDERGRAD, is really appealing.
History
History was the most crowded booth in the entire room and it took me literally 5 minutes to get to the front. The guy I talked to was really informative about the subjects offered as well as career pathways. However, he did say that history doesn’t offer internships at undergrad level.
Classics
The classics brochures began with ‘Do you want to read Herodotus in its original language?’ and I screamed internally. Reading it in English is bad enough. Classics does seem interesting, but my only knowledge of Latin and Ancient Greek comes from VCE history and the various fancy symbols in methods. I would love to learn more, but maybe in my own time lol.
European / German / Italian studies
If I do a minor then it would be out of these three. I’d probably have an advantage if I did German studies, since I’mhalfGerman, have lived there before, and know the language, though I’m more attracted to Italian studies, or the broader European studies. (My dad wants me to do German studies and ‘remain loyal to my roots’, though I’m more interested in learning about another culture, and am particularly obsessed with Italy lol)
Political Science
Didn’t do much here – I’ll definitely do electives from political science, but as a major I think it’s pretty useless – notable political figures and commentators all have backgrounds in history, law, or business. Very few actually majored in politics.
We then went around to look at Fine Arts, Music, and Commerce, though we didn’t stay long for any of them. Music Theatre major is probably the most appealing (AND HEY I HAVE EXPERIENCE!) but I can’t imagine working in that field haha.
News No. 3
I’ve submitted my preference!
[image removed - contains personal info]
Hope everyone has a SMASHING week!! Till next time!
:D
Post by: Joseph41 on August 20, 2018, 11:23:33 am
One of us, one of us.
Post by: sarangiya on August 20, 2018, 10:48:11 pm
I’m starting to think that methods will be my bottom subject. If I can’t even get an average ranking at a school ranked ~150 in the state, how will I get a 40?Same same same. I think this all the time about pretty much all of my subjects. My school is also ranked within 5 places of the 150th according to BetterEducation. But what I wanted to tell you is to not worry about it. It's a downer knowing that some kids can go to particular schools and almost be guaranteed great scores. But the problem is that it isn't always true.
I'll share a personal anecdote. One of the schools in my area is one of the top in the state. Everyone thinks that if you go there you're virtually guaranteed a great ATAR, and frankly they're probably not wrong. But they almost never do well in Japanese. I barely ever see any raw over-40s. As a comparison, our school gets some raw 40s and some more get scaled 40+. Just because there are 'superior' schools doesn't mean they are better in every way. Your school might do particularly well in maths. Have you checked previous records of study scores?
In any case, I know it's hard, but try not to get bogged down in it. You never know what might happen. Just give it your all and hopefully all will be well.
I digress: much sympathies for methods... I can really relate!! Have a great week :)
Post by: hums_student on September 03, 2018, 10:45:01 pm
59 days till November.
Damn, September already! I was talking to a year 11 the other day, who was marvelling at how close I am to graduation. Weirdly (and worryingly) enough, I’m still yet to feel as if I’m anything close to the end of my VCE journey. I’ve got 65 days till my first exam, which feels like ages away, and hence I’m still yet to fix my procrastination issue.
Subject Updates
Lit: Guess who just got absolutely roasted on his Literature SAC: me, in case that wasn't obvious enough.
Quote from: my idealistic thoughts of 2 weeks ago
I think I did well. Hope it’s enough to get me back to rank 1.And here’s the harsh reality
(https://i.imgur.com/TFNCMMU.jpg)
Man, if only I knew that beforehand, I wouldn’t have bothered using the word ’ephemerality’ in my essay.
Note how he used ‘refrain from’ when ‘avoid’ would’ve been sufficient. Double standards???
This was my worst SAC for lit this year. Still A, but right on the border of B+. Needless to say, I didn't improve my rankings. In fact, I slipped.
Methods: LAST. METHODS. SAC. DONE. No doubt I’ll get another B but hey - AT LEAST IT’S OVER!!
I got a SS prediction from my teacher – 30 to 33. Not exactly what I hoped for, but my expectations are gradually lowering with each passing day.
Chem: We got back our SAC on org chem right after my last update, though I couldn’t be bothered making another post so I left it till now. I JUST missed out on A+, having lost 6.5 marks in total. I was pretty pissed at myself, considering 5 of those were due to sheer stupidity of not doing the BACK PAGE.
Last chem SAC is coming up next week. I’ve been spending far more time studying for it than certified health practitioners would probably recommend me to, but I’m desperately hoping for an A+.
History: Not going ideal. We are now more than 3 weeks behind schedule. This is extremely bad news as the 3 key figures all fall at the END of the period, meaning we won’t have time to cover them.
reading update
Stayed up till 3:30am to finish Rubicon. It was totally worth it. Who needs a healthy sleep cycle anyway ;D
a mind boggling history problem we were debating over in class
Just for funsies - not related to my VCE journal whatsoever but I just want to share it with people:
Hannibal Barca is universally recognised one of the greatest military generals of all time alongside figures like Alexander the Great. In the 16 years he spent in Rome he never lost a single battle. He was eventually defeated by Scipio Africanus, a Roman general most people don’t even know.
Question: Who was the greater commander - Hannibal or Scipio?
Sincerely hoping that VCAA examiners aren’t reading this and thinking ‘Hmm, nice essay topic!
Hannibal Barca is universally recognised one of the greatest military generals of all time alongside figures like Alexander the Great. In the 16 years he spent in Rome he never lost a single battle. He was eventually defeated by Scipio Africanus, a Roman general most people don’t even know.
Question: Who was the greater commander - Hannibal or Scipio?
Sincerely hoping that VCAA examiners aren’t reading this and thinking ‘Hmm, nice essay topic!
Global: ARGHHH! *deep breath* ok This subject is currently in a bigger mess than the Liberal Party was in last week. First, our teacher was away AGAIN so now we’re probably about half a term behind. Then to make matters worse, we got audited by VCAA, meaning instead of a ‘normal’ SAC we’ll be getting some wacky assignment that has nothing to do with the final exam! And to think our class was just starting to feel more optimistic about this subject! Raw 20 here I come!
On a more positive note, we got our SAC back, and my result really exceeded my expectations. It was my best score in global this year, and I guess this proves that the *teacher swap* worked out.
Other news
I am now officially a financial burden on the hardworking taxpayers of Australian society.
So I quit my part time job, which was a music school that I’ve worked at since year 10 work experience. I really liked the place (man it’s weird to use past tense), my job was mainly helping kids out during practice and band rehearsals, and I’ve really formed a connection with the staff and students there. My manager told me to come back after exams, and I would love to. However now that I have a clear idea of what I want to do after school – which is unrelated to music – I’m hesitant to accept the offer.
I just hope that I do get into arts because if I failed then my plan would’ve hilariously backfired.
I just hope that I do get into arts because if I failed then my plan would’ve hilariously backfired.
Hope everyone has an enjoyable week :)
Post by: DogBlackTheBlackDog on September 05, 2018, 04:56:58 pm
a mind boggling history problem we were debating over in class
Hannibal Barca is universally recognised one of the greatest military generals of all time alongside figures like Alexander the Great. In the 16 years he spent in Rome he never lost a single battle. He was eventually defeated by Scipio Africanus, a Roman general most people don’t even know.
Question: Who was the greater commander - Hannibal or Scipio?
Scipio africanus all the way!! Without him carthage would’ve conquered rome.
Also how come I dont remember having that discussion in class?
Quote
Sincerely hoping that VCAA examiners aren’t reading this and thinking ‘Hmm, nice essay topic!why would you give them ideas!
Post by: hums_student on September 14, 2018, 07:32:14 pm
48 days till November.
So, my final term of high school is done. 66 days till freedom. Damn. I can’t believe it. Honestly. I can’t. In less than 4 months I’ll have to move out and be independent. I don’t know how I feel about this – kind of nervous, kind of excited. Definitely clueless.
Subject Updates
Literature
Last SAC done! Hoping for an A+, predicting an A.
In the holidays I’m going to a lecture on Gogol and Russian literature. It’s not specifically made for VCE, but I can’t find any other resources for it. Maybe choosing Gogol was a mistake, but now that I’ve made the choice, I’ve got to commit to it.
In the holidays I’m going to a lecture on Gogol and Russian literature. It’s not specifically made for VCE, but I can’t find any other resources for it. Maybe choosing Gogol was a mistake, but now that I’ve made the choice, I’ve got to commit to it.
Methods
Get ready for this guys…
I, Lsjnzy13, the hums student who’s actually mentally retarded at maths, just got his very first A in methods!!
Ok, now that we’ve got the good news out of the way, the bad news:
The average for the SAC was a low A+.
Let us continue on on a rather awkward note
I, Lsjnzy13, the hums student who’s actually mentally retarded at maths, just got his very first A in methods!!
Ok, now that we’ve got the good news out of the way, the bad news:
The average for the SAC was a low A+.
Let us continue on on a rather awkward note
Chem
I was hoping to finish the year off strong and get an A+ in my final chem SAC. Long story short, I didn’t. I got a B.
My chem average is now back to B+, and the only way left for me to turn that around is to smash it out on the exam.
From all the SACs and practice exams I’ve done (one and a half lol), I can tell my worst area by a mile is calculations (why am I not surprised it’s the maths-related area). Like seriously, for my last chem SAC, I left an entire calculations question (7 marks!) blank because I couldn’t even calculate the mole right, and we learnt that all the way back in year 10 transition!
My chem average is now back to B+, and the only way left for me to turn that around is to smash it out on the exam.
From all the SACs and practice exams I’ve done (one and a half lol), I can tell my worst area by a mile is calculations (why am I not surprised it’s the maths-related area). Like seriously, for my last chem SAC, I left an entire calculations question (7 marks!) blank because I couldn’t even calculate the mole right, and we learnt that all the way back in year 10 transition!
History
Last SAC done!
Reading Update
I’m putting a pause on books – and am now instead reading past high scoring essays, which is a pain, may I add, but sadly necessary.
I swear, the more I read, the more talentless I feel.
Reading Update
I’m putting a pause on books – and am now instead reading past high scoring essays, which is a pain, may I add, but sadly necessary.
I swear, the more I read, the more talentless I feel.
Global Politics
Our last SAC has been postponed to the holidays (yeah I know, our school messed up). The SAC is split into two - a debate and a written SAC. We’ve already done the written one, but the debate will be on Tuesday.
In four days, I would be able to finally say that I won’t have to do another SAC for the rest of my life.
Our debate is on Keynesian vs. Austrian economics, and this week our teacher went around with a survey on who leans more towards which side. I put down Austrian, so she gave me Keynes lol ;D.
Most people got the opposite to what they wanted, and to be honest I think that’s a really good idea – to force us to step out of our own little box and think on the other side of politics, so that we can understand the whole story better.
In four days, I would be able to finally say that I won’t have to do another SAC for the rest of my life.
Our debate is on Keynesian vs. Austrian economics, and this week our teacher went around with a survey on who leans more towards which side. I put down Austrian, so she gave me Keynes lol ;D.
Most people got the opposite to what they wanted, and to be honest I think that’s a really good idea – to force us to step out of our own little box and think on the other side of politics, so that we can understand the whole story better.
Next term
Week 1 - trial exams (they were supposed to be this week but most 3/4 classes still haven't finished the content).
Week 2 - final classes + revision..
Week 3 - muck up day (Thursday), farewell day (Friday)
I can’t believe how fast time is flying!
Week 2 - final classes + revision..
Week 3 - muck up day (Thursday), farewell day (Friday)
I can’t believe how fast time is flying!
Final Music Captain duty
As the school year’s coming to an end we’ve started the hunt for next year’s domain and school captains. Unlike school captains, which are elected by a student vote, the domain captains (music, sport and debating) are decided by teachers and current domain captains.
Here’s the fun part – I get to look at everyone’s applications and decide who to shortlist. I also get to sit on the interview panel along with the head of our music department and
VTAC Preferences
So I was hit with the realisation that while I love music, I would not want to do it at uni. How can it lead me anywhere except unemployment? Also, if I really wanted another music qualification, then I’d rather get an LMus than a BMus.
I’m now leaning towards Fine Arts and teaching. I’ve never had the guts to fully consider Fine Arts, but after 4 years of productions, I realised that I adore the stage. I love the adrenaline of each performance, and honestly would love it as a career, however ‘unpractical’ and far-fetched it may seem. Also, I reckon it wouldn’t be that hard finding a job in theatre, as guys are heavily underrepresented in this stereotypically ‘female’ industry.
As for teaching, I’ve never considered UoM before, however my teachers encouraged me to put it as my top preference, as it would be a postgrad degree and I’m not obligated to continue with it after my first 3 years if I do change my mind.
The problem? My top preference now requires a 95 ATAR, unlike the previous 85. Pressure’s on!!
Preferences:
1. Melbourne – Arts / Teaching (postgrad pathway)
2. Melbourne – Arts
3. Monash – Arts + Education (Secondary)
4. Monash – Arts + Science
5. Melbourne – Fine Arts (Music Theatre)
6. Melbourne – Fine Arts (Theatre)
7. Melbourne – Fine Arts (Dance)
8. ACU – Arts (Humanities) + Teaching
2. Melbourne – Arts
3. Monash – Arts + Education (Secondary)
4. Monash – Arts + Science
5. Melbourne – Fine Arts (Music Theatre)
6. Melbourne – Fine Arts (Theatre)
7. Melbourne – Fine Arts (Dance)
8. ACU – Arts (Humanities) + Teaching
Just for the lols: my sister’s preferences
Proof that not all twins are alike
1. Melbourne – Science Chancellor’s Scholars
2. Melbourne – Commerce Chancellor’s Scholars
3. Melbourne – Commerce / Engineering (postgrad pathway)
4. Melbourne – Science / Engineering (postgrad pathway)
5. Monash – Commerce + Science
6. Monash – Engineering (Honours) + Science
7. Melbourne – Commerce
8. Melbourne – Science.
1. Melbourne – Science Chancellor’s Scholars
2. Melbourne – Commerce Chancellor’s Scholars
3. Melbourne – Commerce / Engineering (postgrad pathway)
4. Melbourne – Science / Engineering (postgrad pathway)
5. Monash – Commerce + Science
6. Monash – Engineering (Honours) + Science
7. Melbourne – Commerce
8. Melbourne – Science.
Post-VCE Plans
I can’t put this off forever.
First item on the list - travel.
When? 6th – 15th December, 2018.
Who with? Ancient History class, plus teacher.
Destination? IRAQ!!!
The trip’s been thoroughly planned out! The year 12 sector of our history class, along with our teacher, will be travelling to Iraq, the present day site of ancient Mesopotamia, in December. It took a lot of convincing for the parentals to agree, but they eventually did, so now I’LL BE OFF TO IRAQ!
Why Iraq?
Several reasons. One, it’s the cradle of civilisation and has a longer recorded history than any other country on this planet. Two, we studied Mesopotamia for 1/2, so we actually know about the history. Three, due to present-day conflicts, a lot of ancient Mesopotamian ruins are being destroyed. My history teacher, an avid traveller, has been to Iraq multiple times and each time there’s less and less to see. Hence, we want to see as much as we can before any more is gone forever.
Next - finding somewhere to live.
My parents are moving back to Germany in January 2019 to enjoy retirement. Luckily, a couple of mates at school are also planning on moving out, so we’ll probably either get an apartment together, or crash someone’s place. No concrete plans yet, but hopefully we’ll have everything sorted out by December. My sister might be joining us, if she’s keen on sharing a space with guys that shower twice a week lol.
Finally - figure out what I’m gonna do with my life, because I am clueless.
The light at the end of the tunnel is finally approaching! I just hope it’s not an oncoming train.
Enjoy your holidays everyone! ;D ;D
Post by: DogBlackTheBlackDog on September 17, 2018, 04:20:20 pm
I see that you haven’t mentioned it, so I hope you don’t mind if I do, but congrats on getting the award for ancient! Looking forward to seeing you on stage when we get back! You deserved it, I don’t think anyone in our class worked harder than you, especially with all those ridiculous number of books you read!
btw, thanks for all the notes and summaries you’ve supplied me this year. really kept me from failing lol!
Have a good break!
Post by: sarangiya on September 20, 2018, 11:32:55 am
Also I totally understand what you mean about accommodation...! Living so far away from your parents might be difficult. I might have to move interstate but I suppose we're still in the same country. I suppose we all have to take a big step into independence and adulthood soon, huh! Best of luck to you (and your sister - poor thing lol).
Best of luck!!
Post by: hums_student on October 01, 2018, 04:55:08 pm
Exactly ONE MONTH till November.
37 days till my first exam!
Hope everyone’s enjoying the break! For me it’s been seriously hectic as aside from practice exams, I also have dance rehearsal nearly every. single. day. It’s been productive overall, which is nice.
Subject Updates
Literature: No news regarding our final SAC scores. Looks like we’ll have to wait till term 4. Really hope I can get an A+ for this, to make up for my horrific score from the last SAC.
Practice Exams
I have done 4 practice exams in the holidays so far, 3 of which were under timed conditions. My most important discovery was that I simply write way too slow. There’s so much I want to write about, but so little time for me to put everything down on paper.
I want to blame my teacher for this, but I guess I should've seen it coming. For our SACs we always get a 30 minute planning period, plus another hour and 45 minutes to write one essay. Meanwhile for the exam we only get 15 minutes reading time (no planning), and two hours to write two essays. I went from writing up to 8 pages for SACs to 2 pages for exams. Also, I keep getting writer's block for Section A, which doesn't help.
I want to blame my teacher for this, but I guess I should've seen it coming. For our SACs we always get a 30 minute planning period, plus another hour and 45 minutes to write one essay. Meanwhile for the exam we only get 15 minutes reading time (no planning), and two hours to write two essays. I went from writing up to 8 pages for SACs to 2 pages for exams. Also, I keep getting writer's block for Section A, which doesn't help.
Lecture
I also went to a lecture on Russian literature and 90% of it was on Gogol (how ironic…). It was totally worth the money, even though it wasn’t VCE-specific. Afterwards I may or may not have spammed all the presenters’ emails with questions, and have gotten some pretty helpful replies so far, including one lady who sent me two PDFs called - I kid you not - The Sexual Labyrinth of Nikolai Gogol and a Goose, a Horse, and a Nose - Exploring Gogolian Phallic Symbols.
I will be having a LOT of fun reading these. ;D
I will be having a LOT of fun reading these. ;D
Methods: URGH… is all I have to say on this subject.
Practice Exams
I attempted the VCAA 2015 exam under timed conditions. Exam 1 was okay but I got absolutely roasted on exam 2. I used the ““proven method”” of doing short answer first and leaving MC to last, but the result was that I completely ran out of time for MC and guessed ‘C’ for 19 out of 20 questions.
Following that I entered all my SAC scores, plus my exam scores into a study score calculator, and got a solid 28~31 raw.
To quote my sister, “Why did [Lsjnzy] get all the retarded genes.”
I’ve done more practice exams for methods than any other subject, but I’m not seeing ANY improvement. At this point, I wonder if it's best for me to just be strategic and not bother with methods at all, instead investing time into other subjects I actually have a chance to score well in.
Following that I entered all my SAC scores, plus my exam scores into a study score calculator, and got a solid 28~31 raw.
To quote my sister, “Why did [Lsjnzy] get all the retarded genes.”
I’ve done more practice exams for methods than any other subject, but I’m not seeing ANY improvement. At this point, I wonder if it's best for me to just be strategic and not bother with methods at all, instead investing time into other subjects I actually have a chance to score well in.
Chem: Chem actually ended up being better than I thought. Our last SAC got remarked and my B went up to an A!
HALLELUJAH MY STUDY SCORE IS SAVED!!
Now that the good news is out of the way…
Practice Exams
I did a practice paper, scored a 33%, then realised that I’ve completely forgotten everything from terms 1, 2, and 3.
Galvanic cell? What is that? Sounds familiar…
I did another one this morning, except I did it open book and without a timer. Needless to say, this one ended up much better. Now I just have to figure out a way to cram everything in the textbook into my brain.
Galvanic cell? What is that? Sounds familiar…
I did another one this morning, except I did it open book and without a timer. Needless to say, this one ended up much better. Now I just have to figure out a way to cram everything in the textbook into my brain.
History: I’ve started typing up all my notes because reading my own handwriting gives me headaches. I've also started rereading all my books from unit 3, including Herodotus, Thucydides, Kagan, all that juicy stuff, except this time I'm also taking notes as I read WHY DIDN'T I DO THIS THE FIRST TIME ARGH!.
Practice Exams
I have done 7 complete practice exams for history so far during the holidays, all timed, and my hand is positively dead.
I’m experiencing the same problem for history as lit, which is that I write way too slow and simply cannot finish the exam in the 2 hours given. The first practice exam ended with me leaving AN ENTIRE 20-MARK ESSAY blank. Luckily I'm slowly starting to get the hang of it. On the other hand, I've written so many essays to the point where every single essay I write sound exactly the same now.
I’m experiencing the same problem for history as lit, which is that I write way too slow and simply cannot finish the exam in the 2 hours given. The first practice exam ended with me leaving AN ENTIRE 20-MARK ESSAY blank. Luckily I'm slowly starting to get the hang of it. On the other hand, I've written so many essays to the point where every single essay I write sound exactly the same now.
Global: Woohoo! Final SAC done! I’LL NEVER HAVE TO DO ANOTHER SAC FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE!
Our debate went exceptionally well. It was by far the best SAC of the whole year. I don’t care if I completely bombed it but man I loved every. single. minute. of it. The debate wasn’t formal, and after the SAC our teacher just let us go off on tangents and argue for a solid 15 minutes. It felt good to just be able to banter with our classmates one last time before all of us get plunged into hell.
I’m so thankful SACs ended on a positive note. Who knew it would be global as well. Oh the irony.
As expected, I got a B on the written SAC. I’m slightly disappointed, as I feel like if only I put more effort into revision, I could’ve done better.
Practice Exams
Didn’t do one for global, and I’m not planning on doing one in the holidays.
My plan (which is horrible, may I add, and will definitely NOT work in my favour) is to not do any global work at all until after the chem exam, as six whole days is (hopefully) enough for me to cram all that content in my brain. In other words, I’m just going to pretend that I only do four subjects for the time being, as five is way too much for me to handle.
My plan (which is horrible, may I add, and will definitely NOT work in my favour) is to not do any global work at all until after the chem exam, as six whole days is (hopefully) enough for me to cram all that content in my brain. In other words, I’m just going to pretend that I only do four subjects for the time being, as five is way too much for me to handle.
Other news
GUESS WHO CAN APPLY FOR HECS NOW!!!!
So as of last Monday evening, I am officially an Australian citizen!
So now that I can finally call myself an Aussie and speak Bogan without cultural appropriating, I’ve been spending the past few days contacting VTAC because on my VTAC application it still says German citizenship. I don’t know how long it’ll take before it changes around.
On another note, I think my dad is finally ready to disown me. (Germany doesn’t normally allow for dual-citizenships so I had to also officially ““abandon my heritage”” lol).
I finally qualify for HECS in university!
Is it true that HECS is just delayed poverty? lol
So now that I can finally call myself an Aussie and speak Bogan without cultural appropriating, I’ve been spending the past few days contacting VTAC because on my VTAC application it still says German citizenship. I don’t know how long it’ll take before it changes around.
On another note, I think my dad is finally ready to disown me. (Germany doesn’t normally allow for dual-citizenships so I had to also officially ““abandon my heritage”” lol).
I finally qualify for HECS in university!
Is it true that HECS is just delayed poverty? lol
Dance Rehearsals
Yeah, I know I know… 37 days till exams and I’m still talking about stupid irrelevant stuff.
So, some of the year 12s are doing a medley of The Greatest Showman first week back. For most of us it’ll be our last performance at school EVER so we have to get everything perfect. We have rehearsals nearly every single day, 3-4 hours each. I absolutely love it and it’s the only way for me to feel not as overwhelmed for my upcoming exams.
At the same time, I feel conflicted. During every rehearsal there’s always a voice at the back of my mind saying “If you stayed home you could have written two essays by now”, or “That's a chem exam you could've done if you didn't go”.
AAARRRRRRGGGHHHHHHHHHHH
But all in all, I’m loving the rehearsals. I get ALL the male ballet parts (cos all the other guys are too cool for ballet) so I’m not complaining lol.
So, some of the year 12s are doing a medley of The Greatest Showman first week back. For most of us it’ll be our last performance at school EVER so we have to get everything perfect. We have rehearsals nearly every single day, 3-4 hours each. I absolutely love it and it’s the only way for me to feel not as overwhelmed for my upcoming exams.
At the same time, I feel conflicted. During every rehearsal there’s always a voice at the back of my mind saying “If you stayed home you could have written two essays by now”, or “That's a chem exam you could've done if you didn't go”.
AAARRRRRRGGGHHHHHHHHHHH
But all in all, I’m loving the rehearsals. I get ALL the male ballet parts (cos all the other guys are too cool for ballet) so I’m not complaining lol.
That’s it for now, hope everyone is enjoying their final school holiday!!
By the way, thank you AN so much for the MOTM! Glad I can give back to a community that has helped me download so many free notes!
Post by: Joseph41 on October 01, 2018, 05:22:46 pm
Re: MOTM, you absolutely deserved it. Some stellar contributions, including this thread!
That reminds me - I must get around to updating the honour board. :D
Post by: hums_student on October 15, 2018, 03:07:30 pm
23 days until methods exam!!!
I didn’t go to school today, not that I was deliberately planning to wag. Thanks to some random pedestrian on the M1 Freeway I was stuck in traffic for 2.5 hours straight until I gave up, got off the bus (which had moved about two stops), and walked home. (I’M SORRY BUT I’M STILL PISSED! I WASTED AN ENTIRE MORNING! I COULD’VE BEEN IN LIT FORCING MY TEACHER TO READ MY ESSAYS GODDAMNIT! BUT NO, I SPENT AN ENTIRE MORNING ON A BLOODY BUS).
No subject updates today, as there’s not much to talk about. We got our SACs back – messed up history and global, but lit and chem far exceeded my expectations. For SAC averages, lit ended up being the highest, followed by history, global, chem, and methods. Isn’t it funny how in term 1 methods was one of my best subjects?
Living up to the ‘hums student’ title…
For trials, I got full marks for history (TOO BAD IT DOESN’T COUNT!). Lit and global follow at 80%, chem - 72%, and finally methods - 78% (exam 1) and… 39% (exam 2).
Indeed, I am still living up to my title.
Yeah I know. I messed up methods. It was the NHT exam, so I guess that’s a pretty good reflection of how I’ll go in the final thing.
For lit my teacher spent the holidays reading Gogol and he’s giving me extra tutoring after school. He is honestly amazing. He’s the type that reduces at least ten students to tears per year, but also cares about making sure you do the absolute best you can. If I ever become a teacher, then that’s who I aspire to be (except maybe not the making students cry bit).
On Saturday, I bought 16 high-scoring essays from a fellow AN user who got a raw 50 in lit in 2016, and I’m currently highlighting like crazy. I just hope it’s not too late to save my study score. Thank you @qwerty54321 for your amazing essays. And for making me suddenly insecure about my own writing ability.
Finally, I thought I’d use this space to share with you guys a piece of holiday homework I did. I had a lot of fun writing it so I hope you guys would also get some joy out of reading it. :)
Background info: In year 10 when we were learning about the Cold War, I wrote this for my teacher:
Lsjnzy’s greatest work of art: HOW TO BAKE A GLORIOUS SOVIET CAKE
(https://i.imgur.com/oUncAQb.png)
A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO OVERTHROWING THE GOVERNMENT (contains strong language)
(https://i.imgur.com/7Hn7A9k.png)
MAKE ATHENS GREAT AGAIN
(https://i.imgur.com/ZrseU94.png)
Other news
Audition for UoM’s BFA (Music Theatre!)
I’ve qualified for an audition for Fine Arts at UoM, taking place right after exams. I’m feeling really unsure about this. I applied for BFA because I wasn’t confident on whether I could get into Arts, and also because I was unsure about history as a career. Now that I’m set on doing a BA, I don’t want to ‘waste’ time preparing for something else. I mean, I love theatre, but after a read through the audition requirements, which includes two monologues, two songs, and a freaking jazz dance assessment (which I had previously stupidly overlooked), I’m not so sure anymore.
In the meantime, I’ve started looking at monologues within my lit text. My lit teacher suggested Big Daddy’s Mendacity monologue, though the email specifically said that I should choose one delivered by a character close to my own age, and Big Daddy’s 65 lol. ;D
I’ll figure it out in the next couple of weeks… Meanwhile, I’ll try to badger the career counsellor into giving me an ATAR estimate. If it’s safely over 90 then I probably won’t bother auditioning. For now, it’ll serve as a backup plan.
In the meantime, I’ve started looking at monologues within my lit text. My lit teacher suggested Big Daddy’s Mendacity monologue, though the email specifically said that I should choose one delivered by a character close to my own age, and Big Daddy’s 65 lol. ;D
I’ll figure it out in the next couple of weeks… Meanwhile, I’ll try to badger the career counsellor into giving me an ATAR estimate. If it’s safely over 90 then I probably won’t bother auditioning. For now, it’ll serve as a backup plan.
Performance!
Our final performance, The Greatest Showman medley was on Friday, right after trials, and it was a success!… unless you count the part when I was supposed to catch a hat thrown at me from offstage, except either the throw was off or my peripheral vision is slipping, as I completely missed it.
Other than that it went smoothly and I also got to show off some ballet moves. Towards the end a bunch of teachers joined us, including my methods teacher (and part time dancer) and we had a little improv right there on stage (highlight of my life ;D). The performance finished with all the year 12s singing MGMT’s Time to Pretend, a seemingly cheerful song with depressing lyrics about leaving your childhood behind as you become adults, which describes pretty much everyone’s moods at the moment.
Rehearsals aren’t over though. For our final day we’ve got a multicultural flash mob planned, which was SUPPOSED to be a surprise for the younger year levels except the news got out somehow :-/. It’ll still go ahead. The three cultures I’m involved in are Chinese, Indian, and European. For China we’re doing a song and for India we’re doing a Bollywood dance. We’re still figuring out what to do for Europe.
More on that next time!
Other than that it went smoothly and I also got to show off some ballet moves. Towards the end a bunch of teachers joined us, including my methods teacher (and part time dancer) and we had a little improv right there on stage (highlight of my life ;D). The performance finished with all the year 12s singing MGMT’s Time to Pretend, a seemingly cheerful song with depressing lyrics about leaving your childhood behind as you become adults, which describes pretty much everyone’s moods at the moment.
Rehearsals aren’t over though. For our final day we’ve got a multicultural flash mob planned, which was SUPPOSED to be a surprise for the younger year levels except the news got out somehow :-/. It’ll still go ahead. The three cultures I’m involved in are Chinese, Indian, and European. For China we’re doing a song and for India we’re doing a Bollywood dance. We’re still figuring out what to do for Europe.
More on that next time!
Muck up day preparations
This, ladies and gents, is the event I’m looking forward to more than anything, possibly even more than graduation. I’ve heard legendary stories of muck up days since year 6, and have witnessed it first hand from year 7 onwards. But this time, I will finally be a part of one!
Sadly, last year’s cohort got a bit too carried away with pranks so this year our principal made this rule that everyone doing ANY activities on muck up day MUST have it approved by a teacher. So far, a number of hilarious pranks have already been rejected, including bringing an alpaca to school and editing our principal’s face onto Pauline Hansen’s body.
Thankfully the pranks my friends and I came up with have all been approved (though one NEARLY didn’t). As I know a certain year 11 from my school also reads this (looking at you Joel ;D), I won’t say what I’m doing yet. Again, more on that next time.
Sadly, last year’s cohort got a bit too carried away with pranks so this year our principal made this rule that everyone doing ANY activities on muck up day MUST have it approved by a teacher. So far, a number of hilarious pranks have already been rejected, including bringing an alpaca to school and editing our principal’s face onto Pauline Hansen’s body.
Thankfully the pranks my friends and I came up with have all been approved (though one NEARLY didn’t). As I know a certain year 11 from my school also reads this (looking at you Joel ;D), I won’t say what I’m doing yet. Again, more on that next time.
[EDIT] - NOPE! Sorry for my mathematically inept brain. I'm actually graduating next week LOL.
Clearly I cant' do maths.
Clearly I cant' do maths.
EDIT - typo
Post by: hums_student on October 27, 2018, 09:04:50 am
ELEVEN DAYS until methods!!!
So… WE’VE GRADUATED!!!!!!!!!
Boring stuff
Lit: With only 2 weeks to go, I’ve gotten myself a tutor for section B because I seriously need help.
HELLO
Methods: I’m actually slipping. In term 2 I attempted the VCAA 2016 exam and got a ~70%. Two days ago I did it again and got 58!
HELLO
Chem: My scientific calculator (which I’ve had since year 6) has finally died, conveniently 2 weeks before my chem exam.
HELLO
History: I’ve taped quotes to my bathroom door so I can study in the shower. #lifehacks.
HELLO
Global: Still haven’t finished the content, and have classes throughout Swot Vac guess who won’t be there.
ATAR prediction: 89~96. The gigantic range in between is due to the fact that it’s our first year running both lit and history, so there’s no historical data to compare with.
Seeing that I’m above what’s needed for Arts, I’ve emailed back UoM declining the audition offer.
Alea iacta est.
Awards
Awards ceremonies! We had several– one for legitimate academic achievement (the *serious* awards), a ‘joke awards’ ceremony, and also several ironic awards in our individual classes.
I got the academic award for history WOOHOO! My first (and last) academic award., as well as the ‘most likely to be deported in the near future’ award (so soon after my citizenship??? lol).
HELLO
Enjoy the list of my ironic subject awards:
Methods: The Tasmania Jones Award – for the student who never fails to get himself into ridiculous situations.
Chemistry: The Fluorine Award – for the student that always overreact.
Global: The Emmanuel Macron Award – for the fence-sitting centrist who refuses to make up his mind on anything politics.
History: The Mark Antony Award – for the overdramatic and hopeless romantic who will do anything for his girlfriend.
Lit: The Brick Pollitt Award – for the student who will become an alcoholic by his mid-30s.
Chemistry: The Fluorine Award – for the student that always overreact.
Global: The Emmanuel Macron Award – for the fence-sitting centrist who refuses to make up his mind on anything politics.
History: The Mark Antony Award – for the overdramatic and hopeless romantic who will do anything for his girlfriend.
Lit: The Brick Pollitt Award – for the student who will become an alcoholic by his mid-30s.
Our final week
We had our final performances on Wednesday, they went well. Thursday was muck up day (yes I know most schools have muck up day last. My school’s weird). My friends and I dressed up as Mormon missionaries. (I even rode my bike to school instead of catching my normal bus. That’s how dedicated I was).
Some of our “practical jokes” involved
HELLO
list of possible pranks for future students
- a sign saying ‘FREE SAUSAGE SIZZLE ON THE OVAL!’ (there was no sausage sizzle).
- Interrupting classes with “Do you have a moment to talk about our Lord and Saviour?”.
- Our sax-playing friend barging into random classrooms playing ‘Careless Whisper”
- 100 x Mousetraps in the main school corridor. (This was the one my school nearly didn’t allow us to do.)
- Interrupting classes with “Do you have a moment to talk about our Lord and Saviour?”.
- Our sax-playing friend barging into random classrooms playing ‘Careless Whisper”
- 100 x Mousetraps in the main school corridor. (This was the one my school nearly didn’t allow us to do.)
Finally, we had the guard of honour, where all the year 12s left the school with 7s to 11s on either side ceremoniously seeing us off. I managed to go through the whole thing with a dry poker face, but it was hard.
After I got home I saw a text from a classmate - we’ve been in the same class for 4.5 years, but never really talked. The text was long and it ended with “I just wish we could’ve gotten to know each other more. Seeing that it’s unlikely our paths will ever cross again, I just want to wish you all the best for the future.” That was when it finally dawned on me, that high school is over. Man, there are so many people who I’ve never talked to, and now I’ll probably never see them again.
So… That was my final week of high school. After eleven years, it’s all coming to an end. Eleven years of parent teacher interviews, school reports, roll-calls, Kahoots, faking medical notes, beep tests, scrambling for lockers, 7:53am buses… Eleven years of school is over. In eleven days I would walk into my first exam. In another eleven days I would be free.
A look back at my time in high school
We got these ‘reflection’ questions at school and I thought I’d share some below.
I’m not used to the past tense in all these questions.
HELLO
Some *deep* reflections
What was your greatest accomplishment in high school?
Winning the Class Clown sash at year 12 formal. ;D
Okay. Serious answer - being music captain.
I was never really into leadership positions (responsibility scares me), and never even did stuff like SRC. I applied for music captain because I lost a bet, and unexpectedly ended up getting it.
What was your most memorable event in high school?
2017 musical production - We Will Rock You.
This was the first time I was casted as lead, and it wasn’t just any lead – he was a freaking reincarnation of FREDDIE MERCURY. I got to sing his vocals for so many Queen songs, including Bohemian Rhapsody, We are the Champions, I Want to Break Free, and of course, We Will Rock You, and that was by far the most amazing experience of my life.
Our 2018 musical was cool as well, and playing the lead villain was a whole new experience. It doesn’t compare with channelling Freddie Mercury though.
Year 12 formal was also quite a memorable experience.
What was your favourite / least favourite extracurricular activity?
Favourite(s): Jazz band and cross country.
Whenever I tell people I do cross country they say “What? You can do sport? But you’re a theatre kid!”
Jazz band is just awesome. ‘nuff said.
Least favourite: Stage crew.
I did this in year 8, as I came to the school midway through and the musical cast has already been decided. This was torture.
What was one class you’ve always looked forward to / dreaded going to?
Looked forward to: Before VCE – music, PE (prac). Now – history.
Dreaded: Before VCE – Japanese, PE (theory). Now – global.
What was your most embarrassing moment?
Year 11 - Our drama teacher was leaving and on his last day, a bunch of us theatre kids did a re-enactment of the ‘O Captain, My Captain’ scene from Dead Poets Society, except the desk I was standing on turned out to be a prop that was NOT designed to hold weight. You can probably imagine what happened next.
What’s your funniest story about a teacher?
I think I’ve talked about this on AN before.
During a maths test in year 8 our supervisor was a sub, and being the mathematically challenged individual I was, I copied off my sister. Our sub saw, and dragged both of us out, but instead of a lecture on cheating, she lectured us on DATING. Needless to say, it was super awkward.
She later became a full time teacher at our school. Fast forward to 2018 and guess who’s my methods teacher??
We’re cool now lol. She was the teacher I had a ballet duet with during our Greatest Showman performance last week.
She still hates me for being intellectually inept though.
Do you have any regrets about high school?
Yes. Of course. I regret taking year 11 as a joke and not putting in any effort at all.
Another regret is quitting extracurricular activities in year 12 (Debating + Model UN). Looking back, they really didn’t take up that much time.
I also wish I talked to a lot more people. It’s just dawning on me that the people I’ve been seeing 5 days a week for the past 4.5 years are all going our separate ways and I’ll never see them again.
If you could give one advice to the younger year levels, what would it be?
Participate in as many extra-curricular activities as you can, whether it be sport, performing/visual arts, public speaking etc.
Also, try out for leadership positions. They actually aren’t that daunting, speaking from personal experience as someone who has never undertaken any leadership positions until this year. They really help you with time management, problem-solving and communication skills. You also get some sick as privileges (like using the staff bathroom ;D) Super rewarding. Even if you don’t get the position, just trying out is better than not doing anything at all.
Winning the Class Clown sash at year 12 formal. ;D
Okay. Serious answer - being music captain.
I was never really into leadership positions (responsibility scares me), and never even did stuff like SRC. I applied for music captain because I lost a bet, and unexpectedly ended up getting it.
What was your most memorable event in high school?
2017 musical production - We Will Rock You.
This was the first time I was casted as lead, and it wasn’t just any lead – he was a freaking reincarnation of FREDDIE MERCURY. I got to sing his vocals for so many Queen songs, including Bohemian Rhapsody, We are the Champions, I Want to Break Free, and of course, We Will Rock You, and that was by far the most amazing experience of my life.
Our 2018 musical was cool as well, and playing the lead villain was a whole new experience. It doesn’t compare with channelling Freddie Mercury though.
Year 12 formal was also quite a memorable experience.
What was your favourite / least favourite extracurricular activity?
Favourite(s): Jazz band and cross country.
Whenever I tell people I do cross country they say “What? You can do sport? But you’re a theatre kid!”
Jazz band is just awesome. ‘nuff said.
Least favourite: Stage crew.
I did this in year 8, as I came to the school midway through and the musical cast has already been decided. This was torture.
What was one class you’ve always looked forward to / dreaded going to?
Looked forward to: Before VCE – music, PE (prac). Now – history.
Dreaded: Before VCE – Japanese, PE (theory). Now – global.
What was your most embarrassing moment?
Year 11 - Our drama teacher was leaving and on his last day, a bunch of us theatre kids did a re-enactment of the ‘O Captain, My Captain’ scene from Dead Poets Society, except the desk I was standing on turned out to be a prop that was NOT designed to hold weight. You can probably imagine what happened next.
What’s your funniest story about a teacher?
I think I’ve talked about this on AN before.
During a maths test in year 8 our supervisor was a sub, and being the mathematically challenged individual I was, I copied off my sister. Our sub saw, and dragged both of us out, but instead of a lecture on cheating, she lectured us on DATING. Needless to say, it was super awkward.
She later became a full time teacher at our school. Fast forward to 2018 and guess who’s my methods teacher??
We’re cool now lol. She was the teacher I had a ballet duet with during our Greatest Showman performance last week.
She still hates me for being intellectually inept though.
Do you have any regrets about high school?
Yes. Of course. I regret taking year 11 as a joke and not putting in any effort at all.
Another regret is quitting extracurricular activities in year 12 (Debating + Model UN). Looking back, they really didn’t take up that much time.
I also wish I talked to a lot more people. It’s just dawning on me that the people I’ve been seeing 5 days a week for the past 4.5 years are all going our separate ways and I’ll never see them again.
If you could give one advice to the younger year levels, what would it be?
Participate in as many extra-curricular activities as you can, whether it be sport, performing/visual arts, public speaking etc.
Also, try out for leadership positions. They actually aren’t that daunting, speaking from personal experience as someone who has never undertaken any leadership positions until this year. They really help you with time management, problem-solving and communication skills. You also get some sick as privileges (like using the staff bathroom ;D) Super rewarding. Even if you don’t get the position, just trying out is better than not doing anything at all.
All the best to the English students on Wednesday! Let the final countdown begin!
By the way, hope you guys like my newly updated personal text. It accurately describes how I’m feeling at the moment.
Post by: Joseph41 on October 27, 2018, 10:47:35 am
Btw, I really like those questions you answered. Might have to steal something similar for a new reflection thread! ;D
Post by: hums_student on October 27, 2018, 05:16:07 pm
^Congrats on your awards! Haha. What happened to Tasmania Jones?.
Btw, I really like those questions you answered. Might have to steal something similar for a new reflection thread! ;D
Thanks Nick! Not too sure what happened to Tasmania Jones... I think he retired from VCAA after the 2015 methods exam ;D ;D
OOoooh a reflection thread! It's still so weird to think that we're at that time of the year already!
Post by: Joseph41 on October 27, 2018, 05:17:10 pm
.
Thanks Nick! Not too sure what happened to Tasmania Jones... I think he retired from VCAA after the 2015 methods exam ;D ;D
OOoooh a reflection thread! It's still so weird to think that we're at that time of the year already!
Class of 2016 must have been super confused about the lack of TJ haha.
Post by: S200 on October 27, 2018, 05:28:38 pm
Our sax-playing friend barging into random classrooms playing ‘Careless Whisper”Oh boy! You managed that?
This was literally the only prank that I really wanted to do, but we had no-one who played the sax... :'(
Post by: hums_student on November 05, 2018, 07:32:02 pm
TWO. DAYS. UNTIL. METHODS!
HHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPP
Most people I know are already done with their exams, you lucky English + bio + further + psych people. Meanwhile, mine are about to start.
I’d do anything - anything - to be able to travel to the future and grab the Examiner’s Reports for all of my subjects. I feel that my entire future depends on the next three weeks and if I mess up I’ll spend the rest of my life leeching off of Centrelink.
I'll try to keep this update short.
Plan of attack for each exam
Methods: For tech free, I'll be working on the probability/statistics questions first (literally the only topics I can understand), then I'll (attempt to) work through the rest of the booklet in order.
As for tech active, I'll be doing short answer first, followed by multiple choice. If I do run out of time - which is highly likely - at least I can guess a couple.
History: Unless I get some really wacky question for Greece, I'll just work through the booklet in order. My plan is to spend no more than 26 minutes for each section, that way I'll have roughly ~15 minutes at the end to check through all my responses.
Lit: For lit I'll be starting with section B - close passage analysis, which is my stronger area. The plan is to spend 55 minutes on this essay, then another 55 minutes on section A, leaving myself with 10 minutes to check at the end.
Chem: Like methods, I'll be doing short answer first, followed by multiple choice. No doubt we'll also get two ridiculous questions - one for experimental design and one similar to that absurd Mars question from 2017. I'll be leaving these to last.
The subjects I’m worried about the most are lit and history. They’re my best SACs, but VCAA might just moderate them down into oblivion. I’m also still incredibly pissed that I lost my rank 1 for lit, just due to a freaking TRIAL exam.
Lit is my biggest worry. For Section A we only get one prompt – so we don’t even get a choice! If the prompt contains some fancy word that I don’t know the meaning to, then I’m legitimately screwed. This has happened to students before, who knows, maybe this year it’ll be me.
Predictions on exam topics
Come back to this post in 2 weeks to see how wrong I've been about everything.
.
Lit
SECTION A – Mendacity / entrapment / family / flaw of character / American Dream (?)
SECTION B – The Nose / The Overcoat / Nevsky Prospekt / Shponka / Diary of a Madman
Overcoat and Diary of a Madman definitely won't appear together. I'm 100% sure that The Nose will be on this year's exam though.
The dream combo would be Nose + Overcoat + Nevsky Prospekt.
If I get an Ukrainian story, I’ll actually shoot myself.
SECTION B – The Nose / The Overcoat / Nevsky Prospekt / Shponka / Diary of a Madman
Overcoat and Diary of a Madman definitely won't appear together. I'm 100% sure that The Nose will be on this year's exam though.
The dream combo would be Nose + Overcoat + Nevsky Prospekt.
If I get an Ukrainian story, I’ll actually shoot myself.
History
GREECE Source Analysis – Predicting either Sparta, or the end of tyranny in Athens. Hopefully it’s NOT Sparta, though my teacher seems pretty confident that it is.
GREECE Essay – I’m predicting that the key figure essay would be on Alcibiades, however I think EVERYONE in the state is expecting Alcibiades so VCAA might just throw a curveball. The other essay will hopefully be on their political systems.
ROME Source Analysis – Punic Wars. I’m almost 100% certain. Not sure exactly which one though.
ROME Essay – Like Greece, EVERYONE is expecting Julius Caesar for this year’s key figure. I’m hoping for Caesar too. VCAA better not let me down.
GREECE Essay – I’m predicting that the key figure essay would be on Alcibiades, however I think EVERYONE in the state is expecting Alcibiades so VCAA might just throw a curveball. The other essay will hopefully be on their political systems.
ROME Source Analysis – Punic Wars. I’m almost 100% certain. Not sure exactly which one though.
ROME Essay – Like Greece, EVERYONE is expecting Julius Caesar for this year’s key figure. I’m hoping for Caesar too. VCAA better not let me down.
Well, gotta go and memorise some quotes now. My predictions are probably miles off anyway.
Best of luck everyone!! Hope you've all been acing those pesky exams ;D
The next time I update my exams would be done! Even just thinking about it feels mildly liberating.
Post by: crawlingvines on November 05, 2018, 07:40:44 pm
Update #17: 5/11/2018
I’m also still incredibly pissed that I lost my rank 1 for lit, just due to a freaking TRIAL exam.
Lit is my biggest worry. For Section A we only get one prompt – so we don’t even get a choice! If the prompt contains some fancy word that I don’t know the meaning to, then I’m legitimately screwed. This has happened to students before, who knows, maybe this year it’ll be me.
Predictions on exam topics
Come back to this post in 2 weeks to see how wrong I've been about everything.
.LitSECTION A – Mendacity / entrapment / family / flaw of character / American Dream (?)
SECTION B – The Nose / The Overcoat / Nevsky Prospekt / Shponka / Diary of a Madman
Overcoat and Diary of a Madman definitely won't appear together. I'm 100% sure that The Nose will be on this year's exam though.
The dream combo would be Nose + Overcoat + Nevsky Prospekt.
If I get an Ukrainian story, I’ll actually shoot myself.HistoryGREECE Source Analysis – Predicting either Sparta, or the end of tyranny in Athens. Hopefully it’s NOT Sparta, though my teacher seems pretty confident that it is.
GREECE Essay – I’m predicting that the key figure essay would be on Alcibiades, however I think EVERYONE in the state is expecting Alcibiades so VCAA might just throw a curveball. The other essay will hopefully be on their political systems.
ROME Source Analysis – Punic Wars. I’m almost 100% certain. Not sure exactly which one though.
ROME Essay – Like Greece, EVERYONE is expecting Julius Caesar for this year’s key figure. I’m hoping for Caesar too. VCAA better not let me down.
Well, gotta go and memorise some quotes now. My predictions are probably miles off anyway.
Best of luck everyone!! Hope you've all been acing those pesky exams ;D
The next time I update my exams would be done! Even just thinking about it feels mildly liberating.
Woah woah woah — since when did school trial exams hold any influence over your ranking? I thought it was only SACs that were responsible for this??
Post by: crawlingvines on November 05, 2018, 08:23:35 pm
Theoretically it's only SACs that can influence rankings, but I was outperformed on the trial exam, and the teacher predicts that the same would happen on the actual exam hence he gave someone else rank 1 instead. Unfortunate, but there's not much I can do. :-\ It's within the teacher's powers to rank his students (within reason) however he wants to.
Yikes :/ I'm hoping that the same doesn't apply to my school, or maybe it already has and I've just been living under a rock. My whole lit class bombed the end of year trial exam after acing the midyear one (warranting a scathing lecture from our teacher) so if that disaster unleashed its wrath on our rankings, then... RIP.
Best wishes for the rest of your exams! I'm writing about Cat as well for lit perspectives so hopefully VCAA blesses us with the comfort of an American Dream based prompt ;)
Post by: hums_student on November 09, 2018, 08:11:12 pm
10 days. Just 10 more days.
Two subjects down, three more to go.
Methods 1: That was not an exam. That was butchery.
Our rank 1 walked out in tears. I think the rest of us had grown accustomed to depression.
I had done every VCAA exam from 2003 till 2018 NHT but nothing - I repeat - nothing could have prepared me for that absolute monstrosity that was Question 9. When I flipped the page and saw something that looked more like a bloody Infrared Spectrum than a circular function, I resigned to my fate.
Quote from: Also, remember when I said this:
For tech free, I'll be working on the probability/statistics questions first (literally the only topics I can understand)Well that went down the drain, as the complete absence of statistics was an utter disgrace.
Methods 2: Exam 2 was slightly better, though not by a lot. I’m fairly certain that I got all the probability/statistics questions right, but oh dear lord the amount of ’find the value of a’ questions made me want to neck myself. I kind of gave up in the end and wrote ‘5’ for every a I was told to find.
Predicted study score for methods: 32~35
History: I don’t know how to feel about this one, to be honest. I’m fairly confident I did well on the Greece Part B and Rome Part A, but the other two I completely messed up.
Let’s look at how off my predictions were:
Quote from: Predictions
GREECE Source Analysis – Sparta OR End of tyranny in AthensGREECE Source Analysis - very off. It was the reforms of Cleisthenes, which honestly I forgot existed. I wasn't too far off about Sparta though, as question c) was on comparing Cleisthenes's reforms in Athens with Sparta.
GREECE Essay – Alcibiades + Political systems.
ROME Source Analysis – Punic Wars.
ROME Essay – Julius Caesar + [blank].
GREECE Essay - very off on both of them. The key figure wasn't Alcibiades - it was bloody Pericles, the one person I wished wouldn't be on the exam. I guess this only means that the 2019 Ancient History exam would definitely have Alcibiades on it.
The other essay wasn't on political systems either, it was on the Peace of Nicias, which again I forgot existed.
ROME Source Analysis - Spot on. Punic Wars. I did a silent cheer when I saw this.
ROME Essay - Spot on. Julius Caesar was indeed the key figure. HOWEVER I did not expect the topic to be so narrow. The prompt was something along the lines of "Discuss how the Gallic Wars led to Julius Caesar becoming dictator". When I first saw Caesar I thought YES! but then I saw 'Gallic Wars' and just went *nope*.
Seriously VCAA? Despite all the stuff Caesar actually did IN ROME, you decided to go with something he did in bloody France??
The other essay was unexpected. I didn't write it in my predictions for some reason, but I predicted Marius and Sulla. But NOPE NOPE NOPE VCAA decided to put the Second Triumvirate on the exam instead, EVEN THOUGH THEY'VE ALREADY BEEN ON THE EXAM ONCE AND MARIUS AND SULLA HAVEN'T!
Predicted study score for history: 39~43
(I'm still hoping desperately for a 45+, but after today, I think I'll have to expect less).
My two most stressful subjects are out of the way. WOOHOO! Next week I've got lit (Monday) and chem (Tuesday), then finally global the week after. And then I'm throwing everything into a bonfire and will honestly never touch another textbook for as long as I live.
Hope everyone's been smashing their exams so far ;D All the best for the rest of the exam period.
Post by: hums_student on November 19, 2018, 04:13:20 pm
Two hours ago, I walked out of my last exam.
(https://media1.tenor.com/images/1c844548256cf245b86712da2851c9e7/tenor.gif?itemid=4581783)
Exams
Lit
Ok, I don’t want to sound too overconfident, but lit was AMAZING.
SECTION A: Spot on with the topic –family values. Managed to finish in 55 minutes as planned. Regrettably due to the focus on family I couldn’t bring in my analysis on the reverend and the spiritual corruption of 1950s US, which was my strongest point. Other than that it was great.
SECTION B: Once again, spot on! The Nose, Diary of a Madman, and Shponka. (It wasn’t my dream combo, but who cares). I was worried about Shponka at first, as I’m not familiar with his Ukrainian stories, but I got lucky. That passage was the only Ukrainian passage I ever wrote an analysis for. I’m not even religious, but that seemed like a miracle.
All in all, I managed to write 15 pages in 2 hours. Of course, it’s not about the quantity, but I reckon the content were top-notch too. At least to me, they were the best essays I’ve ever written.
Predicting a study score of 39~42.
SECTION A: Spot on with the topic –family values. Managed to finish in 55 minutes as planned. Regrettably due to the focus on family I couldn’t bring in my analysis on the reverend and the spiritual corruption of 1950s US, which was my strongest point. Other than that it was great.
SECTION B: Once again, spot on! The Nose, Diary of a Madman, and Shponka. (It wasn’t my dream combo, but who cares). I was worried about Shponka at first, as I’m not familiar with his Ukrainian stories, but I got lucky. That passage was the only Ukrainian passage I ever wrote an analysis for. I’m not even religious, but that seemed like a miracle.
All in all, I managed to write 15 pages in 2 hours. Of course, it’s not about the quantity, but I reckon the content were top-notch too. At least to me, they were the best essays I’ve ever written.
Predicting a study score of 39~42.
Chem
Flunked it.
To be honest, I didn’t find it to be that difficult. I was expecting something on par with 2018 NHT but nothing really shocked me.
HOWEVER, I MADE SO. MANY. STUPID. MISTAKES. The questioned asked for skeletal structure and I drew structural. Question asked for the recharge but I worked out discharge. Question asked for the answer to be in grams and I wrote kilograms. Question stated hours and I wrote minutes. R=8.31 and I wrote 3.81. There were four solar panels and I only worked out one.
There were probably more, but those were the ones I remember. I wouldn’t be that pissed if I genuinely didn’t know how to do the question – but losing marks over silly mistakes like not reading the question properly?! ARGH!
Prediction: 39~42
My chem teacher has told me that, if I get 40+, I get to be on first name basis with him for the rest of my life. I was so confident I straight-up replied “Cool, Jazza!”
After the exam though, not as confident.
To be honest, I didn’t find it to be that difficult. I was expecting something on par with 2018 NHT but nothing really shocked me.
HOWEVER, I MADE SO. MANY. STUPID. MISTAKES. The questioned asked for skeletal structure and I drew structural. Question asked for the recharge but I worked out discharge. Question asked for the answer to be in grams and I wrote kilograms. Question stated hours and I wrote minutes. R=8.31 and I wrote 3.81. There were four solar panels and I only worked out one.
There were probably more, but those were the ones I remember. I wouldn’t be that pissed if I genuinely didn’t know how to do the question – but losing marks over silly mistakes like not reading the question properly?! ARGH!
Prediction: 39~42
My chem teacher has told me that, if I get 40+, I get to be on first name basis with him for the rest of my life. I was so confident I straight-up replied “Cool, Jazza!”
After the exam though, not as confident.
Global
To be honest, after chemistry my brain went on holiday mode. After all, global is destined to be in my bottom two – an improvement from 20 to 30 raw would only add 1 extra point to my total aggregate, so why bother studying? Coming out of chem was like finally finding my way out of a confusing parking lot, and the global exam was a tiny, insignificant speed bump I had to drive over.
The actual exam turned out quite well, actually. Maybe it was because I wasn’t stressed, but I was able to remember everything I revised for. I also did a bit of improvising during the exam – at school we learnt about terrorism + armed conflict (the other options were economic instability + climate change). When I saw the questions I realised that I had no idea what to talk about for terrorism in relation to global cooperation (at least, not without sounding like an opinionated and cynical little twat) so I decided to take a risk and write about climate change instead. I did no VCE-related preparation for this – all my knowledge came from watching the news – so I really hope that I made the right choice, because now thinking about it, that was really risky.
I actually did quite a lot of bullsh**ting throughout the exam – BS’ed about Australia’s foreign policy, about migrant workers, about women’s rights in Saudi Arabia, about Joseph Kony, and about the Arab Spring uprisings. In the end I was pretty much summoning my inner news reporter.
I finished the exam right as the lady announced that we had five minutes left – that gave me more than enough time to check. All in all, I thought it was a pretty good exam.
The actual exam turned out quite well, actually. Maybe it was because I wasn’t stressed, but I was able to remember everything I revised for. I also did a bit of improvising during the exam – at school we learnt about terrorism + armed conflict (the other options were economic instability + climate change). When I saw the questions I realised that I had no idea what to talk about for terrorism in relation to global cooperation (at least, not without sounding like an opinionated and cynical little twat) so I decided to take a risk and write about climate change instead. I did no VCE-related preparation for this – all my knowledge came from watching the news – so I really hope that I made the right choice, because now thinking about it, that was really risky.
I actually did quite a lot of bullsh**ting throughout the exam – BS’ed about Australia’s foreign policy, about migrant workers, about women’s rights in Saudi Arabia, about Joseph Kony, and about the Arab Spring uprisings. In the end I was pretty much summoning my inner news reporter.
I finished the exam right as the lady announced that we had five minutes left – that gave me more than enough time to check. All in all, I thought it was a pretty good exam.
So… What now?
It’s a weird feeling, coming out of an exam knowing that I’ll never to anything related to that subject ever again. I won’t ever differentiate another function, or find the calibration factor. In 6 months I would’ve probably forgotten everything I learnt in methods and chem this year.
It’s also weird to think that my study scores and ATAR are now set, and nothing I do will be able to change what I see when I open the VTAC website on ATAR day.
Tonight I’m going to a bonfire, about half the year level will be there, all of us chucking worksheets and SACs and essays and past exams in. Methods and chem are going straight into that pit of flames. It’ll be the most liberating feeling, throwing my bundle of 21 chem exams into that fire and watching it disintegrate before my eyes.
(I’m keeping everything for lit, history, and global though, figured they might come in handy in uni.)
My VCE journey is certainly not over. There’s still December 14th to look forward to, and after that, uni offers. Meanwhile, I’m not staying idle. I’ve been looking forward to this for SO LONG and when I look back on this time, ‘bored’ will NOT be one of the words to come to mind.
December will be my ‘chill’ month. In January I have to start planning for uni – mainly moving out. I have ZERO plans at the moment – I won’t start working on that until after I know for sure which uni I’ll be heading too. I’ll have to find a job too, though that can wait as well.
Lsjnzy’s Post-VCE Bucket List
- Throw a surprise dinner for parents
- Learn to play the clarinet
- Overcome the fear of contact lenses and ditch glasses once and for all
- Learn to speak Estonian.
- Go to an all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ place
- Start playing piano again
- Start cubing again
- Start ballet again
- Start running marathons again
- Start reading books for my own enjoyment again
Funny how half of that list is just stuff I used to do but not anymore because VCE crushed my soul.
- Learn to play the clarinet
- Overcome the fear of contact lenses and ditch glasses once and for all
- Learn to speak Estonian.
- Go to an all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ place
- Start playing piano again
- Start cubing again
- Start ballet again
- Start running marathons again
- Start reading books for my own enjoyment again
Funny how half of that list is just stuff I used to do but not anymore because VCE crushed my soul.
Finally, I thought I’d end this post on some good old self-depreciation. While cleaning out my stuff I stumbled upon some rather *questionable* pieces of homework I did throughout my VCE journey – so I’m gonna publicly embarrass myself to let all of you in year 11 (or below) know that no matter how much you screw up (like I did in the examples you’ll soon see), you’ll make it through school.
Acing my prac reports
(https://i.imgur.com/1XpsVOs.jpg)
By the way, this was my practical investigation poster for an actual SAC that could possibly impact my ATAR (Unit 4 AOS 3). I did not notice the mistake until afterwards.
By the way, this was my practical investigation poster for an actual SAC that could possibly impact my ATAR (Unit 4 AOS 3). I did not notice the mistake until afterwards.
I’m not TECHNICALLY wrong with this
(https://i.imgur.com/kdwnrbn.jpg)
Evidence of the abuse I suffer at the hands of my methods teacher
(https://i.imgur.com/BHA95gB.jpg)
Though to be fair, writing 4 x 3 = 43 definitely warrants abuse.
Though to be fair, writing 4 x 3 = 43 definitely warrants abuse.
This isn’t even homework. It’s just stupid.
Teacher asked some VCE students to give advice to year 10s on subject selections. I got my own subjects mixed up.
(https://i.imgur.com/xcKrH5A.jpg)
(This was a draft. It got fixed before they printed it lol.)
Though my advice on subject selection stands – if you’re uncertain about picking a subject because you think it might be too hard, just go for it!!
(https://i.imgur.com/xcKrH5A.jpg)
(This was a draft. It got fixed before they printed it lol.)
Though my advice on subject selection stands – if you’re uncertain about picking a subject because you think it might be too hard, just go for it!!
The time I got Greece and Italy mixed up
(https://i.imgur.com/W7YnBJK.jpg)
And the time I got McCarthy-era America and Tsarist Russia mixed up
(https://i.imgur.com/rZ5k7o9.jpg)
The stressful exams are well and truly over. There will still be two more updates coming – one on the dreaded ATAR day (might update late as I’ll be overseas) and uni offers – whenever that may be.
Hope everyone all smashed their exams, and to those who still have more to go, all the best for them! Thanks so much for sticking with me and my mindless rants throughout the year - I'm so glad I found this community.
Hope you all have a wonderful and relaxing holiday. See you all in December. :)
Post by: Poet on November 19, 2018, 04:22:28 pm
Post by: PhoenixxFire on November 19, 2018, 04:23:14 pm
Your homework screwups definitely made me laugh
Post by: S200 on November 19, 2018, 05:04:52 pm
My Eco teacher said that if I got a 40 he'd buy me a bottle of Green Label... ('cause I always joke about the amount h drinks on weekends to get relief from our class...)ChemFlunked it.
Prediction: 39~42
My chem teacher has told me that, if I get 40+, I get to be on first name basis with him for the rest of my life. I was so confident I straight-up replied “Cool, Jazza!”
After the exam though, not as confident.
Quote
- Start ballet again
:o :o :o :o ;DGood luck!
Post by: hums_student on November 19, 2018, 11:49:43 pm
Congrats, man! That is fantastic. Look after yourself. :)) <3
Congrats on finishing! ;DThanks guys ;D Hope you're all enjoying your breaks!
Your homework screwups definitely made me laugh
Loving those homework errors... :DNow *that* is the true definition of a good teacher.
My Eco teacher said that if I got a 40 he'd buy me a bottle of Green Label... ('cause I always joke about the amount h drinks on weekends to get relief from our class...)
:o :o :o :o ;DGood luck!
Re: ballet - don't judge ;D I was forcibly dragged to ballet classes as a kid (being the only dude in a class of 10 girls in pink tutus was HELL) but after a couple of years developed stockholm syndrome towards it lol.
Just came back from the bonfire, we had to finish early because neighbours complained lol. Spent all that time making sure that we were abiding by council regulations and never once did we think of the *neighbours*. Still managed to burn all the stuff, so that's all I need.
Here's a visual representation of how much stuff went into that fire from one person:
Spoiler
(https://i.imgur.com/K04WzTJ.jpg)
Also, if you know where that reference is from, I like you. ;D
THE FREEDOM IS ALREADY FEELING GREAT!!!!!!
Post by: hums_student on December 04, 2018, 09:56:32 pm
10 more days until *that* day.
Long time no see! Took a break from AN for a week and I came back to find three pages of unread posts lol.
The post-exams feeling is phenomenal. I’ve surprisingly been productive. I had cleaned out all VCE-related stuff within the first two days, sold / burnt / gave away everything I didn’t have an emotional attachment to (i.e. everything except my history books), and now my desk looks so empty it’s downright unsettling. My habit of waking up at 6am hasn’t died (which is annoying because I despise waking up early.) One morning I instinctively reached for my school shirt before remembering that I’ve graduated already.
Valedictory was last week, possibly the last time we were together as a cohort. My sister, along with another student, was made the 2018 Valedictorian, she had to made a speech and I felt like a proud mum. I managed to get a photo with every teacher, principal included, which was legendary.
We also got our last ever yearbooks – and got pranked by the school. In previous years year 12s have always been organised alphabetically by surnames. So my sister and I planned out our yearbook quotes – hers would say “I’m only 4 minutes younger” and mine would say “Best 4 minutes of my life” (totally original idea ;)). The yearbook team, however, decided to dog us out and organise everyone first names instead. [insert the laughing / crying emoji here]
Another update-worthy news is that I’ve started preparations on tutoring. I was at school a few days ago doing some advertising, and already 2 students have said that they’re interested in getting tutored by me for lit. I’ve tried expanding towards history and chem, but with rather limited success.
Looking ahead
By this time tomorrow I would be on a plane to Iraq with my history teacher and classmates. We're staying in Iraq for 10 days, after that I'll be flying directly to Europe, then China, where I'll stay until February.
I’m also working on guides for lit and history. Highly doubt people will read it (especially history, god that board is a ghost town) but I enjoying writing them. I’m actually already 90% done with the history guide, though there’s still some stuff I need to look over. Lit will take me a while to finish. I’ve realised too late that I’ve thrown away more than I should have, as I took quite a lot of useful lit notes throughout the year that would be good for the guide, except I can't find them anymore.
Moral of story – do NOT throw away your notes/essays impulsively.
My god, the next update will be on my ATAR. What will everyone be looking at first? I’ll probably check ATAR before study scores. Think that
That’s it for this update. I’ll be mostly inactive until February, when I get back, however I’ll try to make an update when results come out (if I don’t update and never come back on AN ever again, then you’ll know that I bombed it ;D.)
See you all soon, and to the class of 2018 - and anyone else doing a 3/4 - good luck! I hope all of us get the results we wish for.
Post by: hums_student on December 17, 2018, 07:42:26 pm
Good evening ladies and gents, and welcome to the final episode of the hums student’s VCE Journey Journal, the show where a particular AN user mindlessly rants about his various first world problems once a fortnight. In tonight’s disappointing finale, you will see first hand the four digit number that allegedly "does not define you", as well as various other two digit numbers which he will continuously rant about for the next couple of paragraphs.
So pull up a chair, pour yourself a mug of hot chocolate, and let’s dive right in.
Hello AN, greetings from Fulda, Germany! Apologies for the late update, I’m aware that results are becoming kind of irrelevant now. Also I’m typing this from my phone and this is hard lmao, but who brings a laptop overseas?
Iraq
I thought I’d briefly talk about my trip. Iraq is simply amazing. It’s a beautiful country and it’s such a shame that the political instability in the region is eroding away its stunning history. We visited the Great Ziggurat of Ur, which we studied in Unit 1, and seeing it in person was phenomenal. The structure is absolutely majestic and none of the photos we saw in our history textbooks did it justice.
Anyway, I should cut out the chatter and get to the *juicy stuff*.
So, results. The four digit number that I’ve spent the past eleven years of my life working towards shall henceforth define me for the rest of my life.
I actually found out my history study score the day before results were officially released. I was, and still am, beyond disappointed. I initially thought was that my teacher must have been playing some cruel prank on me. It was much, much lower than my prediction. My teacher was disappointed too, he kept saying all those sugarcoating crap like "It’s hard to score high in history", but sugarcoating words never work. I was devastated by my result and his words only succeeded in confirming the fact that I did badly. I was so ashamed of my score. I had made it so, so clear - both on AN and in real life, that history is my passion and it that it was bound to be my best subject, yet I flunked it.
The wait for ATAR release was, to put it simply, pure agony. My group pulled an all nighter, and passed the time by playing ‘the floor is lava’ in our hotel room and having a planking contest. Who would’ve thought that a planking contest just made time go by even slower? Just before 3am hit (7am AEST), the hotel internet decided to throw a tantrum and we had to wait for another hour and a half before the app finally loaded, and I was greeted with that dreaded 4-digit number before I could even mentally prepare myself for it.
My ATAR ended up being much higher than anything I could’ve ever hoped for. In fact, I thought I was seeing someone else’s result at first. The first thought to race through my head was ‘Did I log into the right account?’
Before I could even recover from my shock, I had seen my scaled lit study score right below my ATAR, and I did have an audible reaction, as it was beyond my wildest dreams. I quickly scrolled through the rest of my scaled scores but none of the other numbers seemed to make sense to me. It took me about two minutes to finally register my ATAR, and to open study scores.
Despite already knowing my scaled lit score, I still did a double take when I saw the raw score, as it confirmed the fact that I was definitely not dreaming. Global and methods made me laugh out loud - despite being the subjects I gave up on, they were not bad at all (at least, not by my standards). However, chem was like a slap in the face. It was so, so close to my goal, but I just fell short, and it significantly ruined the joy I felt from seeing my ATAR.
Overall, the two subjects I had the highest hopes for - history and chem - ended up being the most disappointing. Instead, it was literature that saved my ATAR. Unexpected, definitely. I am over the moon with my ATAR, however slightly disappointed with study scores. I mean, lit and my 2 bludge ended up doing well... but history and chem! My best subjects! The subjects I cared about the most! How in the world did I flunk them so badly?
Anyway, my results:
Literature: 40+
History: 40+
Chemistry: 39
Global: 39
Methods: 34
(Won't be giving specific scores for literature and history for privacy)
ATAR: about 10 points higher than expected
History: 40+
Chemistry: 39
Global: 39
Methods: 34
(Won't be giving specific scores for literature and history for privacy)
ATAR: about 10 points higher than expected
My history teacher had expected nothing less than a 47 from me. As for chem, the teacher have said that as long as I perform NORMALLY on the exam I am guaranteed a 40 at the very least. Instead, I screwed up both big time. I feel that I had not just let myself down but my teachers and peers too. Especially history. If I hadn’t choked on the exam, maybe my entire cohort’s SACs would’ve went up more.
(At least that’s how I think it works.)
also...
Quote from: my young and naïve pre-results self
My teacher said that if I get above 40 for chem I get to be on first name basis with him for the rest of my life.Well, guess I have to go back to calling him ‘sir’.
I am also kind of pissed that two of my subjects got 39... so, so close to that glorified raw 40 everybody dream of (especially chem!! Argh! I had a chance and I screwed it!) It doesn’t even matter that much considering I didn’t give permission to be on the 40+ honour roll anyway, but still.
Ultimately, I’ve got the ATAR needed for my course - which is what matters.
Looking ahead, our celebration evening (awards night) is on the night I land back at Melbourne. I’m excited to go, having went to the one for the 2017 cohort. It was at Melbourne Town Hall and was absolutely grand. I’m looking forward to seeing all my classmates again.
It is now time to start preparing for 2019. I’ll be moving out, hopefully to somewhere just outside the Melbourne CBD so that getting to uni won’t take too long. My sister won’t be living with me - she did much better on the SATs and is moving to the US for ""college"", which starts in the latter half of 2019. My parents will be leaving Australia in exactly two months from today, so for the very first time in my life, I’ll be all by myself. (There’s friends, but it’ll be weird not having any family around.)
I also need to get a job, I actually applied for a job at a tutoring place near me, but with my 39 chem score that just went down the drain. I still need to sort out Youth Allowance and all that crap. (Urgh adult life is hitting me and I’m not even legal yet). I also need to learn how to parallel park - there’s still a while to go before I can get Ps, but I should learn how before the parentals leave in which case I’ll have to spend money on a driving instructor.
I’m just ranting now, aren’t I?
There’s more to come from me on AN too! I’ve nearly finished the history guide, that will hopefully be posted before the new year. I can promise that it will be useful as I had my history teacher look over the whole thing and he also gave his own tips and comments. I also consulted a friend at another school who got a raw 46 (5th in VIC!), so I reckon it’ll be pretty good!
Lit guide is in progress! It’s actually written by both me and another AN user (hint hint, they got a 50 in literature... in year 11!) and it should be posted in January. It will be from their account (@Colline) so please be on the lookout for it!
I think I might also start a university journey journal.
All in all, I’ve got that 95+ ATAR needed to guarantee me into my first preference, and I guess in the end that’s what counts. I do have some slight regrets, but at the end of the day I’m just glad that I have guaranteed entry into my course, and that I can finally call myself a Bachelor of Arts student!
University of Melbourne, here I come!!
This marks the final chapter of my VCE journey. Certainly a roller coaster of a ride, there were definitely more bumps than I had expected when I first entered Year 12 (teacher changes, fire drills during SACs, getting audited for global, ranking scandals, loads more I never wrote about... you name it). But hey - I survived. And I think AN played a big part in that. In January I had made an account to download lecture slides, and ended up getting so much more. Thank you all for accompanying me through this hectic year of my life, and offering me so much support, help, and advice along the way. AN is truly a remarkable community, and now that I’ve finally graduated, I can’t wait to help the next cohort of VCE students!
Thanks guys, so much.
Signing off,
The hums student.
Post by: Lear on December 17, 2018, 08:38:53 pm
Well done in your excellent score and I hope you enjoy your well early holidays.
I just wanted to point out a very big lesson that is to be learned from your results. Often students sort of throw away one or two subjects by immediately deciding it will be their ‘bottom two’ and won’t count as much as their other beloved subjects. I strongly, strongly advise any future students reading to not do this. Anything can happen and you do not want to have a regret at the end of the year about not trying in your other subject which actually turned out to be one of your best. Give all subjects your best shot and leave chance to decide which one ended up being your bottom subject.
Sorry for hijacking your journal but this was a perfect opportunity to convey my point!
Post by: sarangiya on December 19, 2018, 04:36:57 pm
I hope you had a great time overseas and sorry that you had to come home to all these changes, responsibilities, youth allowance, driving... blurgh haha
I'm so happy you got into your dream course at UniMelb! I'm sure you'll love it. Looking forward to your uni journal if you plan on writing one!!
Post by: PhoenixxFire on December 19, 2018, 11:28:06 pm
Can't wait to hear what you get up to at uni next year ;)
Also, I finally know how to spell your username lol