General Questions

[guy_332]

So basically I have been bludging and not doing jack s**t in my HSC for chemistry (ranked 22/22), physics (ranked 16/22) and EXT 1 maths (ranked 10/15). I am really low ranked in all those subjects but doing OK in standard english (40 / 115) and business studies (20 / 48)  and fortunately doing really well in mathematics (ranked 3 out of 45).
Im about to sit my HSC half yearlies for which I will most probably keep the low rank for chem, drop ranks in physics to maybe 20, drop the english rank to about 60, hopefully raise my rank for Business to top 5, keep my top 3 rank in mathematics and definitely drop my extension rank to last. All these predictions are based on my preparation for these exams and are a personal evaluation.
Based on all that information what can i still hope for ATAR wise? I have had a complete mind shift in prepping for these half yearlies and am totally willing to put 1000% effort into my work and studies but would love some sort of indication so I know what to aim for.
Thanks you heaps for reading my story and hope for some replies. =D

[jamonwindeyer]

So basically I have been bludging and not doing jack s**t in my HSC for chemistry (ranked 22/22), physics (ranked 16/22) and EXT 1 maths (ranked 10/15). I am really low ranked in all those subjects but doing OK in standard english (40 / 115) and business studies (20 / 48)  and fortunately doing really well in mathematics (ranked 3 out of 45).
Im about to sit my HSC half yearlies for which I will most probably keep the low rank for chem, drop ranks in physics to maybe 20, drop the english rank to about 60, hopefully raise my rank for Business to top 5, keep my top 3 rank in mathematics and definitely drop my extension rank to last. All these predictions are based on my preparation for these exams and are a personal evaluation.
Based on all that information what can i still hope for ATAR wise? I have had a complete mind shift in prepping for these half yearlies and am totally willing to put 1000% effort into my work and studies but would love some sort of indication so I know what to aim for.
Thanks you heaps for reading my story and hope for some replies. =D

Hey Guy_332!

It is really hard to give an ATAR estimate, mostly because I hate giving them, and I'm under-qualified anyway. And if I did, I wouldn't be more confident than giving it to a Band range (90+, 80-90, 70-80), and even that makes me uneasy. I could give you one fairly confidently if I had your HSC Marks, but your way far off that, who knows what 8 months will bring!

The thing is, it depends on a whole lot of things besides rank; what your mark is sitting at for each, which will likely reflect your HSC Exam Mark, which is where half your ATAR comes from. It depends on how far behind first you are mark-wise, it depends on the performance of the rest of your grade, it depends on... A whole bunch of stuff. I wrote an article on How Your ATAR is Calculated, it might be worth a read for you!

I try and emphasise not focusing on an ATAR. All the time you spend trying to figure that out is time you could spend working on getting good results. Rather than analysing, "Okay, my rank will probably do this", be optimistic! Whose to say you won't smash your English exam and your rank jumps to Top 20! You never know, and mindset is super important, be optimistic!! 

What I will say is that your ranks sound great! It sounds like you are really doing well overall. Don't stress too much about ranks and all that sort of stuff. It is important to keep track of, but use it to set goals for yourself, rather than resign to rank-drops. You are obviously really dedicated, aim for the highest band you think you can achieve!

[brenden]

I'll also pipe in to say that you have no idea what can happen when you smash some effort. My girlfriend went ballistic on study maybe three quarters of the way through the year and score 25 points higher than projected. I also tutored a guy who didn't speak a word of English before he moved here when he was 7. Safe to say he was not in a good spot for his English, but he came to me maybe halfway through the year and ended up graduating with a score in the top 8% for English - after a lot of effort.

Don't lose hope just because you have some pretty low ranking subjects. Just work hard at it and you'll be surprised how much your ranks jump and happy with the score you end up with - because you'll know you worked for it.

[christinebelista]

this gave me life thank you for externalizing my inner worries guy_332

[Hasti]

Hey!

I'm pretty much on the same page as Jamon and Brenden here. Depending on how hard you study/work, your ATAR could be way higher than you think. The one thing I'd say is study smart - for physics and ext 1 maths ( I did both in year 12) - the BEST thing ever in my experience is for you to do plenty of past papers. My ext 1 maths results were pretty shocking for trials - I did 10 different past papers leading up to HSC exams and ended up doubling the mark I got for trials. Exact same thing with physics. Get your hands on the past 10 past papers, sit down for the 2 or three hours and pretend you're doing the actual exam at home, under timed (and distraction - free) conditions, (probably a good idea to just turn your phone off), and mark your papers at the end. With each paper, you'll probably see your marks will go up a little each time. By the end of the year, or at least by the time HSC comes around, you'll be set. As for English, I personally found rote learning worked for me. (But I reallllly enjoyed English and the texts I studied). Best tip I can give for English is to know your text inside and out. You have the rest of the year to know 4 or 5 texts. (I'm an English major an uni, and I had to study 2 novels a week - you can demolish your HSC texts in the amount of time you have!). When you know your texts really well, you can begin to draft and redraft your essays - become a little buddy buddy with your teacher, ask them to look over your drafts and give feedback - and you'll be able to smash the HSC. Practice makes perfect. And at the end of the day, no matter what ATAR you get, if you've given 100% dedication, then you'll be so proud of yourself - and your life outside of school can finally begin.

Good luck with everything! Do your best and you'll be fine

[cajama]

I have a question about verbs: Can you list things in bullet points for the verb "Outline"? or do they have to be in full sentences?

[jamonwindeyer]

I have a question about verbs: Can you list things in bullet points for the verb "Outline"? or do they have to be in full sentences?

Hey cajama! I think it depends a little on the context (which subject are you thinking of), but yeah I think so! As long as:

- It answers the questions
- They still give a basic level of detail, kind of like these do 

[RuiAce]

I have a question about verbs: Can you list things in bullet points for the verb "Outline"? or do they have to be in full sentences?

Most school diaries have a list of key words used in the HSC and what they mean. Otherwise, get used to the blooms taxonomy as an alternative

[ssarahj]

I have a question about verbs: Can you list things in bullet points for the verb "Outline"? or do they have to be in full sentences?

The BOS has a glossary which gives official definitions (http://www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/syllabus_hsc/glossary_keywords.html)

Outline
Sketch in general terms; indicate the main features of

I just have the page bookmarked on my computer just in case I need to check the verbs sometimes when I'm doing past papers etc. 

[RuiAce]

The BOS has a glossary which gives official definitions (http://www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au/syllabus_hsc/glossary_keywords.html)

Outline
Sketch in general terms; indicate the main features of

I just have the page bookmarked on my computer just in case I need to check the verbs sometimes when I'm doing past papers etc. 

Convenient and basically what my school diary had. Definitely bookmark the page if it's not in your school diary

[hannahboardman98]

I was just wondering if you know any good related texts for The Story of Tom Brennan? It has to be Australian too... The Module is 'Exploring Transitions' - use to be 'Into The World' - very similar

[jakesilove]

I was just wondering if you know any good related texts for The Story of Tom Brennan? It has to be Australian too... The Module is 'Exploring Transitions' - use to be 'Into The World' - very similar

If you want an easy, Australian read with lots of themes to do with transition, belonging to the Australian culture etc. try Romulus, my Father! I'm not too familiar with much Aussie writing, so can't offer any other suggestions.

[mitra]

If you want an easy, Australian read with lots of themes to do with transition, belonging to the Australian culture etc. try Romulus, my Father! I'm not too familiar with much Aussie writing, so can't offer any other suggestions.

Here is a list of related stories and films:

- Pleasantville (film).
- Vincent (shot animation) by Tim Burton.
-The Door by Miroslav Holub (Poem).
- The Little Train by Graham Greene (short story).
- No such thing - John Meyer (song).
- The Sea Child - Katherine Mansfield.
- Lighthouse - the waifs.

[studybuddy7777]

If you want an easy, Australian read with lots of themes to do with transition, belonging to the Australian culture etc. try Romulus, my Father! I'm not too familiar with much Aussie writing, so can't offer any other suggestions.

Here is a list of related stories and films:

- Pleasantville (film).
- Vincent (shot animation) by Tim Burton.
-The Door by Miroslav Holub (Poem).
- The Little Train by Graham Greene (short story).
- No such thing - John Meyer (song).
- The Sea Child - Katherine Mansfield.
- Lighthouse - the waifs.

While I agree with all of these, my (standard) friends have used most of these texts for Mod C Transitions (those in bold) there is nothing stopping you from using the unseen texts that are in paper 1. The deconstructing has been done for you (well, you have already done it) and they almost always relate. The only downside with this is that in Paper 2 you have to mash it in, so (please dont take this the wrong way) the majority of standard students wont remember/be unable to mash in an unseen text into their essay. If you are good at english (as many people in standard are) then there is nothing stopping you from doing this.

Feel like I just contradicted myself an awful lot there, and I am not doing standard so feel completely free to disregard, ignore, ask or hate anything ive written here (preferably over pm if its a hate thing tho, we dont need that on the forums :p)

[RuiAce]

While I agree with all of these, my (standard) friends have used most of these texts for Mod C Transitions (those in bold) there is nothing stopping you from using the unseen texts that are in paper 1. The deconstructing has been done for you (well, you have already done it) and they almost always relate. The only downside with this is that in Paper 2 you have to mash it in, so (please dont take this the wrong way) the majority of standard students wont remember/be unable to mash in an unseen text into their essay. If you are good at english (as many people in standard are) then there is nothing stopping you from doing this.

Feel like I just contradicted myself an awful lot there, and I am not doing standard so feel completely free to disregard, ignore, ask or hate anything ive written here (preferably over pm if its a hate thing tho, we dont need that on the forums :p)

Hmm

Depending on how you argue the related text you can use it for any module. (Obviously I don't advise the same related text for all modules but you can pick which one you use which.)