ATAR Notes: Forum
VCE Stuff => VCE Subjects + Help => VCE Business Studies => Topic started by: hf123 on December 18, 2011, 10:46:13 am
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Hey all,
Ok, I'm in year 11 next year and I recently asked this question, but not many people seemed to be answering it
My vce subjects are:
-English
-Methods
-Chem
-HHD
-Bio 3/4 (most likely, or maybe Psych 3/4...you're welcome to give me opinions on that too :) )
- And either Eco 3/4 or Legal 1/2
The problem is, Eco is kinda interesting I guess, and I remember all the stuff, but when it came to exams and sacs for 1/2 I always did pretty badly...I can easily remember the info, but the hugest problem is applying it...I can apply knowledge in any other subject, but I cant get my head around answering Economics questions so easily.. Also, the multiple choice is worth 2 marks each! And stupid me... I always do badly in it. I also think the content is a tad dry, and the only topics I did well in were the first chapter (Introduction to Australia's economic system: 89%) and the chapter on development economics (85%)... Everything else I got <75%. My exam marks were: Semester 1: 74% and Semester 2: 72%...Both times, just below average. I also don't pay attention to the finance side of the news, so I'm so behind in the current affairs that affect the economy... And my brain just switches off when I watch/hear/read anything to do with that..
The only reason I'm doing eco is because I wanna finish 2 3/4 subjects in year 11, so in year 12, I'll have 4. But either way, if I do bad in eco, I plan to pick up another vce subject in y12... So technically I'll be doing 5 subjects in y12 either way. Eugh. Idk.
I've heard that Legal is really interesting, and it's my only option if I don't do eco. I wanted to choose it before, but eco was in the way. I'm reconsidering all my subjects again before school starts, incase I change my mind because for the 3/4 subjects we only have 1 more opportunity to change them.
Please help me out! If you did either of these subjects, please let me know how easy/hard, interesting/boring, lots/little content, and the exam structure and how exam questions will needa be answered! I really would appreciate any opinions
Thankyou :)
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Legal Studies isn't that easy or hard, you just have to remember and understand a lot of information. You don't need to have done Units 1 and 2 to succeed in Year 12 Legal Studies. It is not like maths, where they can really trick you. If you know your stuff inside-and-out, then you'll go a long way to doing well in Legal Studies. There isn't any scaling with Legal Studies (going off previous years). Anything above 40 raw stays the same; if you get below 40 raw, then it scales down 1. To answer your question, it really comes down to you - if you like the subject, then do it. Because the more you enjoy a subject, that generally correlates to better results. Try it and see what you think - because that leads on to the sorts of things you can expect in Units 3 and 4 Legal Studies.
That's what I said in another thread. Legal Studies, in some parts, wasn't that interesting either (to me at least). I didn't do Economics in Year 12, so I'd wait for someone who did the subject to reply because I'm biased. In terms of the exam structure, this year was the first year of the new study design for Legal Studies. The exam was out of 70 marks. It's similar to Economics - in that if you want to do well, you need to know how to answer the question. Also, there isn't any MC questions on the Legal Studies exam.
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Legal. Why? Because as EPL said, legal CANNOT trick you - no matter how hard they try. I remember reading the 2011 exam for the first time and I panicked when I read one of the questions about precedents, as did I panic with some sac questions. But when you read into it, all questions are straightforward and revolve primarily around discussion. Instead of trying to rote learn, if you answer the question as close as possible you'll get the marks. I for one did not rote learn massive slabs of information, instead I just learnt quick dot-points of all my information which helped me tremendously when discussing. I like this subject because it's intricate yet the questions test in a relatively simple and justified manner. This got me a good score, and judging by some friends eco has the ability to trick you - so I'd go with legal but maybe I'm biased.. :)
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Definitely Legal. It's alot easier to cram for and I didn't even do Units 1&2 and found 3&4 pretty do-able. :)
Legal is pretty interesting as you get into those weird cases and its relevance to everyday life makes some stuff alot easier to remember.
If you can cram for legal, you're pretty much set! It's alot of theory and essay writing but there are no "tricks" to it (unlike, say, English)
Make sure you get a good sac ranking tho, and keep redoing questions/SACs until you get 100% for them.
EDIT: OH and - do NOT rote learn answers. Use case studies and refer to examples, and answer the question for what it is. Rote learning is where many people fall behind. Attempt to understand instead of regurgitate, and try to hold a genuine interest in whatever you learn in legal. :)
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QUOTE: "Please let me know how easy/hard, interesting/boring, lots/little content, and the exam structure and how exam questions will needa be answered! I really would appreciate any opinions "
Legal is not easy. The content can be challenging to understand. I found business management alot easier to get a 50 in. Legal was a struggle for me. It is not HARD like in methods or chem, where the logic is super tricky, but it is HARD in the sense that you have to be absolutely clear about what you say because the content is confusing at times.
Content? PWWOOOAAHHH. Legal has HEAPS AND HEAPS of content. Trust me on that one, you'll have alot to memorise. But - understanding is the key. If you can understand stuff well, memorising it is not a problem. I had like 20 pages of business notes to memorise/study at the end of the year, and with legal - my typed notes all together exceeded 70 pages. It was crazy but I enjoyed the subject.
The exam structure - it begins easy but it gets harder and harder. You have to complete 70 marks worth of stuff in 2 hours, with a massive 10 mark essay at the end. Legal is a subject where you absolutely have NO "thinking time" - you just gotta learn to write without thinking, as fast as possible. Just write and write and write as fast as you humanely can or else you'll run out of time. I always ran out of time in my legal trial exams, it was crazy.
Use PARAGRAPHS. Do not give rote learned answers. Again, use PARAGRAPHS so the examiners/assesors know exactly where to give you your marks. Start each paragraph with a VERY CLEAR idea/point that is worth 1 or 2 marks. Back up your answers with relevant examples that you can explain well. Do not just refer to an example - link it to the question and show that you actually understand how it is relevant to the exam question. Do not repeat yourself. Dicuss questions as if you're genuinely interested/understand what you're talking about.
Most importantly - for the big 8/10 mark questions - break them down into smaller paragraphs so it feel like you're answering a series of 1-2 marks questions instead of trying to juggle a massive 10 mark question.
:)
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I'd go with legal.
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Legal is way more boring and dry than economics in my opinion.
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Legal. Why? Because as EPL said, legal CANNOT trick you - no matter how hard they try. I remember reading the 2011 exam for the first time and I panicked when I read one of the questions about precedents, as did I panic with some sac questions. But when you read into it, all questions are straightforward and revolve primarily around discussion. Instead of trying to rote learn, if you answer the question as close as possible you'll get the marks. I for one did not rote learn massive slabs of information, instead I just learnt quick dot-points of all my information which helped me tremendously when discussing. I like this subject because it's intricate yet the questions test in a relatively simple and justified manner. This got me a good score, and judging by some friends eco has the ability to trick you - so I'd go with legal but maybe I'm biased.. :)
Economics questions are really broad and you've seen about 90% of them before. Don't really think it can trick you unless you don't know your theory well.
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Purely basing on ur SS, eco scales up by
2, while legal is slightly marked down, unless u get 40 and
above, where it just stays.
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Legal can be pretty dry
go for Eco if it interests you.
If the difficulty is in applying what you've learned - then learn how to apply yourself = tutors + teachers + classmates + atarnotes. It's all about perspectives, and you probably just need to alter yours
i'd rather do a challenging but interesting subject over a less trickier, but un-interesting subject, because you're more likely to study for it more
go over the study design of legal studies, see if you find it interesting, if so, then consider legal :)
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I have said go for legal:)
but if you like interesting stuff and want more knowledge, then go for eco.
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You should do both.
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Locked sigh