General advice

[Talia2144]

Hi, can anyone please give me some advice, last year i took on methods and specialist unit 3 and 4 when i was in year 111, i really love math and i really worked very hard while even sacrificing my year 11 subjects so i can proceed on getting good marks for my math subjects but that wan't the case i got about 27 in specialist and 30 in methods i don't know if i should give math another go. i am worried about the amount of time i have to spent each night on them, i want to concentrate on my other subject which is just as hard as math. can you guys please give me some advice.

[Talia2144]

i don't know i did like 30 exam 1 and 20 exam 2 for each exams, methods and specialist. i probably felt nervous and rushed though it but what i got was very low. any more advice anyone

[ekay]

hey talia,

it's important to learn the maths content thoroughly and ensure that you really understand what a concept is or how it works. i'm not trying to say that you necessarily did this, but it's common for students to just memorise and rely on the formulas from the textbook and unfortunately this won't help you perform well on the end of year exams because unless you understand the concepts, you won't be able to apply them to these harder VCAA questions. another thing is, how were you using your practice exams? it's not so much how many exams you do, but rather how much you've benefited from each exam. if you don't understand a question or got something wrong, make sure you study the solution carefully to find out why you didn't understand it or why you got it wrong. some people make log books as well to record down every mistake they make in every trial exam they do to help them remember what they've learnt. the more practice you've done, the more confidence you'll have in yourself and that can help to reduce that nervousness you're always going to feel in the real exam. that's just some general advice, i don't know if it helps...

as for whether you should repeat the subjects, that's a tough decision you'll have to make on your own. given that you like maths, at least it wouldn't feel like a burden throughout this year, but as you said it means you would have less time to spend on your other subjects. i can't say whether you should or shouldn't repeat and i think it's best for you to weigh up the pros and cons yourself to try and see what's best for you, sorry about that.

anyway, best of luck with everything