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Author Topic: Just Another HSC Journal  (Read 23790 times)

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Justin_L

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Just Another HSC Journal
« on: April 18, 2020, 09:46:28 pm »
+17
Hey everyone,

I've been reading on ATARNotes for a while now, and with the whole pandemic fiasco, I'm now spending way too much time browsing the internet these holidays. I decided to start this journal to try and make a record and keep myself accountable, as hopefully biweekly posting will encourage me to reflect and plan better. This is sort of reminiscent of my HS1511 blogs, where I had to post weekly blogs about coursework and what I've learned about time management, project work, etc.

Anyways, a standard introduction for context to whomever may be reading this. I'm Justin, a Year 12 student doing English Adv, Maths Adv, Maths Ext 1, Software Design & Development, Modern History, History Extension, and Entertainment (This is an actual subject I swear). At the time of writing, I'm hoping to study a combined degree in Advanced Computing and International Security at ANU, although I have ALOT of backup preferences in mind. My current mindset is that Computing will be my "main" field for work, with Security being for personal enjoyment and to complement my computing course if I decide to major in cybersecurity (Which I probably will).

Annnd, that's all for now. In my next few posts I'm going to (hopefully) outline my plans for the rest of my holidays and reflect on my personal progress. My main priorities will probably be getting my major projects up and running again. It's been so long since I last touched them that I don't even know where to start. Honestly, most of my time is probably going to be spent on logbook entries so this is good practice I guess.

See y'all around!
« Last Edit: July 23, 2020, 07:12:03 pm by Justin_L »
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Justin_L

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #1 on: April 18, 2020, 10:09:15 pm »
+7
EDIT: Reworded my last comment to be closer to what I intended to say

Oh damn, that formatting came out much worse than I was expecting. I'll try and separate stuff using more colour, bold, and line breaks.

So, I have a couple of things I need to prepare for this holiday. I'm going to list them out in priority order so I can reference this later on.

Priority 1 (Assessments)
1. Software Major Work (Weighted)
2. History Extension Major Work (Weighted)
3. Maths Extension Half Yearly (Unweighted due to corona)

Priority 2 (Homework)
1. Read King Henry IV (Module B)
2. Polish up general notes for all subjects
3. Misc.

Anyways, this is just a general list to get my thoughts together, I'm obviously going to break this down into subtasks and all that tomorrow. I dread the thought of touching any of my major works so much because it just seems so massive, but it also makes the most sense since those are guaranteed to still be weighted. Luckly, they're both internally assessed so they haven't been impacted by the NESA's new rulings.

P.S. If anyone has any tips on understanding Shakespeare or on KHIV, hit me up because I find reading Shakespeare harder than reading actual academic publications.
« Last Edit: April 19, 2020, 02:09:13 pm by Justin_L »
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angewina_naguen

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #2 on: April 19, 2020, 12:01:38 pm »
+8
Hey, Justin_L!

A warm welcome to the forums  :D I'm super excited to read your journal and to see more of your involvement here!

Your priorities are looking great! In particular, I'd try and nail out whatever you can of your Major Works because the term will get busy again really quickly and getting ahead for those will be ideal. Even if you just make a clear action plan and get into a groove of doing a little each day, you'll find that it makes an enormous difference on how motivated you stay for the rest of the year.

I'd definitely also get a head start on your Module B prescribed text! It always makes me relieved to find students who are willing to get a head start on their texts because it makes life incredibly easier. Shakespeare's super lengthy and challenging in any circumstance but this module particularly demands you to know the text inside out. That being said, I wouldn't say reading Shakespeare is as bad as reading academic journals on JSTOR. I think both have value and merit to academic study and while I understand they're not really the most exhilarating things to do and perhaps aren't so in line with your future prospects, I'd be mindful about making statements like that just because there are people who probably enjoy both (like myself, funnily enough) or who aren't fortunate enough to have access to the learning resources you do.

My advice for approaching your text, especially with the module in mind, can be split into two pieces. First of all, in order to enjoy Shakespeare, you have to go in with an open mind. A lot of Advanced students groan at the thought of Shakespeare but I've always found him really fun to study which is why I felt I grasped his whole vibe a lot better. I won't be able to magically transform your entire view on him but I would encourage doing your best to give him a go. It's your last time ever having to do a Shakespeare text in school so make it count  :) Here are some of my favourite TED talks on why Shakespeare continues to resonate with us today; maybe they'll inspire something!

Shakespeare is everywhere | Christopher Gaze
"Why Shakespeare? Because it's 2016" | Stephen Brown
How NOT to Hate Shakespeare | Rob Crisell

Secondly, a fundamental mistake many students make is that they "read" Shakespeare. King Henry IV is a play which means it was meant to be watched. Reading words off a page, especially when those words are unaccompanied by any supporting directions, sources or action, makes it harder for you to visualise how it was intended to be experienced. If you can source a performance of the play, you can follow along with it using your printed copy and make not only more effective annotations but also a better judgement on the reason why Shakespeare's theatre has transcended time and space. You'll see for yourself how the stage directions impact the delivery of the performance, set design, sound effects etc. Another option is to find an audiobook of the play because you can at the very least hear the voice actors read the play as it is meant to be heard.

I also don't promote some of the products AN sells here on the forums but given your efforts to really get moving with English, I would highly recommend the Henry IV Part 1 Text Guide and/or the How to Analyse Shakespeare Analysis Guide. They offer different things so you can have a look at the contents page provided to see if they're potentially worth your investment. I also made a Module B Critic Quotes thread you can have a look at here which myself and a few other students have provided some scholar quotes on King Henry IV. Having some of these perspectives in mind might make the processing of your ideas a little easier  :)

Long post aside, I'm super keen to see how you go over the rest of your HSC! Feel free to ask questions in this journal and around the forums wherever it is relevant  :D

Angelina  ;D
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Justin_L

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #3 on: April 19, 2020, 02:01:44 pm »
+1
Hey, Justin_L!

A warm welcome to the forums  :D I'm super excited to read your journal and to see more of your involvement here!

Your priorities are looking great! In particular, I'd try and nail out whatever you can of your Major Works because the term will get busy again really quickly and getting ahead for those will be ideal. Even if you just make a clear action plan and get into a groove of doing a little each day, you'll find that it makes an enormous difference on how motivated you stay for the rest of the year.

I'd definitely also get a head start on your Module B prescribed text! It always makes me relieved to find students who are willing to get a head start on their texts because it makes life incredibly easier. Shakespeare's super lengthy and challenging in any circumstance but this module particularly demands you to know the text inside out. That being said, I wouldn't say reading Shakespeare is as bad as reading academic journals on JSTOR. I think both have value and merit to academic study and while I understand they're not really the most exhilarating things to do and perhaps aren't so in line with your future prospects, I'd be mindful about making statements like that just because there are people who probably enjoy both (like myself, funnily enough) or who aren't fortunate enough to have access to the learning resources you do.

Hey Angelina,

Thanks for the warm welcome! I'll definitely take a look at all those resources you linked, they look really helpful! About my comment about JSTOR and Shakespeare, I definitely wasn't intending to downplay the value of either, I agree that both are incredibly useful, just hard to understand sometimes. I'm really grateful that our school encourages us to study more complex texts and academic interpretations because they've definitely been useful in getting to understand things at a deeper level.
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angewina_naguen

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #4 on: April 19, 2020, 02:33:03 pm »
+4
Hey Angelina,

Thanks for the warm welcome! I'll definitely take a look at all those resources you linked, they look really helpful! About my comment about JSTOR and Shakespeare, I definitely wasn't intending to downplay the value of either, I agree that both are incredibly useful, just hard to understand sometimes. I'm really grateful that our school encourages us to study more complex texts and academic interpretations because they've definitely been useful in getting to understand things at a deeper level.

Not a problem at all  :D And I totally agree that they can be difficult to understand at first. What matters is how you choose to respond to that and to rise to the challenge! I forgot to mention this in my previous post but I also would recommend Academia as a place to read things for Advanced English and History Extension work since it has academic resources but also some more accessible readings for the wider public. I found the articles there a lot easier to register and understand when I was doing my Major Works in the HSC! Hope that helps and do let me know how you find the resources  ;D

Angelina  ;D
« Last Edit: April 19, 2020, 05:04:19 pm by angewina_naguen »
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Justin_L

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #5 on: April 25, 2020, 12:13:56 am »
+10
24/04/20

Hey everyone!

Hope you've all been well. It's been a bit of a hectic week for me, and it's only going to get more hectic over the next couple days as we start a return to school. I'm enjoying the fact I have a Maths 3U exam first period back, so that's fun. (/s) I'm looking forward to seeing all of my teachers and classmates again though, and on getting a sensible routine back.

Uni Early Entry
Hot tip for anyone who plans to apply for any early entry programs, scholarships, etc:

Scan EVERYTHING.

Please. Scan any awards, certificates, qualifications, whatever as soon as you get them. Don't be like me and spend hours searching for documents from years prior, it will save you so much time in the future if you have an organised collection of digital evidence ready to go for applications. This probably depends on the school but for reports, your school should be able to give you digital copies on request. Bit niche, but it might save you some time scanning and looks a lot nicer.

General To Dos
hahahaha

So, I'd recently discovered that OneNote had check boxes, and prepared a nice to do list with most of the things I needed to do. Problem is, I ended up doing all the "easy" stuff first and left all the hard stuff (ie Assessments and Majors) til the end. That's something I'll definitely need to keep in mind next time I make a to do list.

Spoiler

English
Thanks to Angelina, I've gotten a good start on KHIV by finding a youtube video of the play and following along with the text. Seeing how the actors deliver the lines as well as the setting and blocking definitely helps me to follow the actions and the meaning! Would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone who is studying Shakespeare or another theatrical text.

I was at the AtarNotes English Advanced lectures, and I definitely think that was one of the best lectures out of all the ones I attended. Kudos to AtarNotes for organising these!

Software
Software has been pretty fun, I decided to do a UI overhaul after my first prototype. I'm going to ignore the fact that I spent the past 3 hours choosing fonts for my project, and just say that it was "productive work". The annoying thing in software is that it often feels like people don't care how good the actual product is, just how it looks. Me and my friends often joked in IST that if you did a 3D game, you automatically got an A regardless of if it actually worked (although pretty much everyone got an A in that course).

Before and After:
Spoiler
Spoiler

Overall, even though I didn't do all the things I wanted to do these holidays, I'm happy with the progress I've made. For the next couple days, I'll probably just focus on preparing for my Maths 3U exam, and then getting my majors done. That's it for now, I guess. Thanks for sticking along and reading if you got this far.
« Last Edit: April 25, 2020, 12:28:58 am by Justin_L »
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angewina_naguen

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #6 on: April 25, 2020, 03:04:37 pm »
+1
Hey, Justin!

Glad to hear that the advice was helpful :D Also really pleased to hear that the AtarNotes English Advanced lecture was a success for you too  ;D Sounds like you're on track for a great term so keen to hear more of it in this journal!

Angelina  ;D
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Justin_L

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #7 on: April 28, 2020, 08:34:55 pm »
+4
Quick Update!

So, I had my unweighted Maths Ext 1 exam today. I was really caught off guard by a lot of the questions, there were a bunch that I didn't even understand what they were asking. I was pretty confident for the exam, so I'm a bit psyched out especially since I had the whole holidays to prep. Time seems to just be flying away at this point, I'm pretty much halfway through my HSC!

In terms of school, I'm not sure whether to be excited or anxious about online learning tomorrow. Definitely looking forward to seeing some of my classmates and teachers though! Our periods have all been reduced down to 40 minutes to give us regular breaks from our computers, which is a bit of a downside since that's probably only 30 minutes of effective class time. Luckily, our school is giving year 12 priority for returning, and we should be back in school full time by Week 3. I personally think this is a bit proactive, but I trust my school to make the right choices and take all the proper precautions.

Right now, the only thing I'm really worried about are maths and my majors. I have 12 units, but 3 of them are maths so I have to include 1 unit of maths either way. Poor planning on my part since I knew way back in Yr 10 that I was fairly weak at maths. My History Ext major should be fine provided I get all my sources and logbooks compiled by Week 3. However, my software major is tied to one of my friend's D&T projects, which is much more complex than mine and I feel that I'm going to let him down if I don't produce a product comparable. I suppose there's really nothing I can do other than to keep chipping away at my workload considering the circumstances.

Just as I'm writing this, I think that week 3 is going to be the major deadline for me since that's when pretty much everything is happening. I think one thing that I'm definitely going to take away from this year is planning, because holy heck there is a lot of stuff to juggle. This turned from a quick update into a bit of a ramble, so thank you for reading and I hope you didn't find this too boring. I'll try and get some more coherent entries from now on by actually structuring my journal although there is a high chance I'll just forget and default to this style. See y'all next time!
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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #8 on: April 28, 2020, 08:42:44 pm »
+4
Hey Justin,
Keen to read your journal! :D What are you doing for your history extension major?
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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #9 on: April 28, 2020, 10:15:06 pm »
+3
Heyo Justin! Bit late to the party- wanted to ask what they teach in Entertainment :) Is this more of film/tv stuff or theatre stuff or something completely different?
Which will hold greater rule over you? Your fear or your curiosity?

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If you need any assistance, please message an admin or a natmod instead.

Justin_L

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #10 on: April 28, 2020, 10:55:25 pm »
+6
Hey Justin,
Keen to read your journal! :D What are you doing for your history extension major?

Hi Katie!

It's still a bit of a mess but I'm looking at evaluating the impacts social media has had on historical discourse. I'm still deciding, but I think I'm leaning towards looking at the political impacts that social media has had and how it's impacted on our perception and consumption of history. I'm currently looking for case studies, which will hopefully help to further narrow down and define my question.





Heyo Justin! Bit late to the party- wanted to ask what they teach in Entertainment :) Is this more of film/tv stuff or theatre stuff or something completely different?

Glad you asked! Entertainment is a VET course which gives you a Certificate III in Live Production, and yeah, it focuses mainly on live production aspects (theatre, bands, festivals) but the specifics generally depend on your teacher and the equipment your school has access to. For example, my teacher plays in a band and as a result we often end up looking at concert/band style setups as opposed to theatre ones.

In terms of the course itself, it's a Category B VET course (Dual Accreditation and Optional HSC Exam), which is why there's so much flexibility and variation between schools. Throughout the course, you study key focus areas like WHS, Audio, Lighting, Staging, Vision, Customer Service, and Working In Industry, generally through practical tasks. It's good fun, and honestly more like an extracurricular than a class.

It's been ages since I've done a show, so you've just given me an excuse to go over all my old show photos!

Spoiler
EDIT: Looks like the forum didn't like me doing a massive photo dump so go here to see my awesome show photos: (Taken on my potato quality phone camera)
https://imgur.com/a/I6y1NeU

They say a picture speaks a thousand words, so hopefully that's given you a good idea of what we do. Let me know if you want to know more, it's definitely quite interesting!
« Last Edit: April 29, 2020, 07:34:21 am by Justin_L »
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alice343

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #11 on: April 29, 2020, 08:37:50 am »
+3
Hey Justin!

Your History Project topic sounds really interesting! I hope you can update us on more of it. And don't worry too much about your Maths exam, it's only one internal assessment out of all your subjects. Good luck for reaching your deadlines in week 3 :)
2020 HSC: English Advanced, Modern History, Legal Studies, Japanese Beginners, Society and Culture, History Extension

Justin_L

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #12 on: April 29, 2020, 04:26:09 pm »
+3
Hey Justin!

Your History Project topic sounds really interesting! I hope you can update us on more of it. And don't worry too much about your Maths exam, it's only one internal assessment out of all your subjects. Good luck for reaching your deadlines in week 3 :)

Thanks for the encouragement! Luckily, the exam was unweighted although it was more the fact that I studied so much and still achieved such a poor result. There's definitely time to improve though!
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Justin_L

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #13 on: May 01, 2020, 10:26:04 pm »
+6
T2 Week 1 Update

Hello, just wanted to check in with an end of week update this time making full use of colours, sizes, and headings.

So, first week of online learning done! Not gonna lie, that was so much more tiring than normal school. It was only 3 days though, which I'm glad for. Our school has mandated 40 minute periods with 20 minute breaks between each class, which really helps by letting you do a quick walk around, grabbing some food or water, and setting up for your next period. We're getting our new assessment schedule over the weekend, which will be great to get an idea of how the year's going to go. Luckily, I had all most of my half yearlies adjusted into hand ins, and so the only changes I have will be maths.

Maths Adv/Ext 1
Maths is pretty much entirely self directed learning now. I'm a bit behind, but we've been given lesson plans, notes, and worksheets to work through at our own pace, which I plan to catch up on over the weekend. We're currently covering integration and differential equations, which I find fairly hard. (But then again, I find most topics fairly hard)

English
We've been lucky enough to get zoom calls for English, and although the content is a bit slow, me and my friends setup a google doc where we chat and take notes during the call, which is really fun. Having a collaborative document really helps with motivation, attention, and just makes the class so much better because we can all cover for each other and get a full set of notes without having to be fully attentive the whole time.

We're currently on Module C and to be honest, I enjoyed the Common Module and Mod A a lot more. Discursives and imaginatives are fine, but I just can't seem to do persuasives. I don't know why, but I personally find it really difficult to argue something without reservation and with the purpose of persuading instead of informing.

Modern History
Modern has been really great and chill, we've been doing class zoom calls where our teacher just talks to us about apartheid. I'm sure work will ramp up once we return, but I'm glad for the easing in.

History Extension
Alright, so this is the one subject I'm really excited about and wanted to talk about.

Last night, I finalised my case study + question and emailed my teacher to get her opinion, and got a really positive response! I'm so happy right now because I was afraid that my project wasn't historigraphical enough, but my teacher gave me really good advice on how to approach each of my case studies and relate them to different aspects of constructing history. Now that I've gotten these checked and approved, I can start writing up a proposal and annotated sources for my assignment (these components are due week 3).

That's all for now! Hope you've all been safe and well, and thank you for reading!

EDIT: Random question - has anyone else found the past few days strangely cold? I've been wearing full winter uniform with my jersey, but I'm still feeling chilly
« Last Edit: May 01, 2020, 10:28:59 pm by Justin_L »
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alice343

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Re: Just In Time? - Justin's HSC Journal
« Reply #14 on: May 02, 2020, 01:16:30 pm »
+2
Yay! Sounds like the term is starting off on a good note. That's some solid progress on your History Project! I myself only found a good question a few days ago, but it really gives you the motivation to complete it. And yes, it has been super cold lately!!

EDIT: Btw your formatting looks really nice so now I'm inspired to make a post with colours and proper headings
« Last Edit: May 02, 2020, 01:18:24 pm by alice343 »
2020 HSC: English Advanced, Modern History, Legal Studies, Japanese Beginners, Society and Culture, History Extension