[offtopic]Re: How to do well in Chem from ISTAFA (Chem 50, ATAR 99.95)

[Planck's constant]

Hey guys, just thought i'd share my approach:

For Year 12, it's a bit different. You take differing approaches for U3 and U4.

U3:
You need a solid set of notes that cover the concepts, not too much extra detail. Try to adress each point on the study design. Remember though, Unit 3 is very applied, so these notes should be based on just the core and should help you understand the concepts. You should revise these regularly in lead up to exams. A really good thing to cover in these notes is how analytical techniques such as NMR and IR work (very complicated), and what is actually hapenning during the analysis. There is a new trend towards questions about the principles rather than just reading the spectra in Chem.

Next, make sure you read (not write too much notes) broadly. Read as much resources and study guides as possible, as breadth of knowledge in terms of being exposed to various applied situations is important for the exam.

Example: though it wouldn't have been a great idea to write notes on this, having read about catalytic converters in cars from an extension area in the textbook helped me apply knowledge that i had been exposed to in the unit 4 exam, as a question popped up on catalytic converters.

This makes it a good idea to read TSFX, other study guides etc.

Next, trial questions and trial exams. This is the most important if u want to do well. Get a good study guide or two (I recommend NEAP chem guides or the Lisachem Exam Question book – big blue one available from J&P book sellers). Use questions in these (not book questions) to prepare for SACS.  Do tons of practice questions, in fact, try to finish the guides. Also, prepare heavily for SACs by reading into your practicals before hand, and thouroughly understanding the principles behind what is happening. Get a solid set of 25+ practice exams for the mid-year and do all of them in exam situation. Mark them thoroughly and record and revise your mistakes using a Log book that records mistakes under each exam.  Make sure you have solid systems for each question. Record down number of Sig Figs for each data set for each analysis question next to the question during the exam. Develop a solid and memorised fool proof step by step technique for reading spectra. Write sample answer structures for the common questions in your log book.

U4:

The differences are:  Write notes on the bare fundamental s only, no extension. Very summarised.

Ready broadly, but on only the topics that broad reading is required (things like equilibrium are very repetitive, and you should be exposed to enough through exams). So read broadly on only electrochemical cells (TSFX, study guides, textbook etc.) and methods of energy production (advantages and disadvantages, efficiency etc.).

Not us much time for study guides, so only try to do some of the questions.

Do 15-20 trial exams. Not 25+, or else you wont have enough time for maths/eng/others. Persevere with the log book, it's the number one score maximising technique. When reading up on a new question, ask urself "have i made a mistake on this before?". This will help minimise errors.

Good luck, and keep a positive mindset.

EDIT: Discussion is welcome, also, i will most probably be doing chem tuitiion in 2012. PM if interested.

Regards, Istafa

I totally agree that this is the level you need to reach in order to get a 50 in Chem.

But (there is always a but), I also note that you are offering your services as a Chem tutor.
Therefore my question is:
Can a student reach that required level of knowledge without the aid of a tutor/coach, considering that there will be at least another 4 subjects which will demand the student's attention ?

[Aurelian]

Can a student reach that required level of knowledge without the aid of a tutor/coach, considering that there will be at least another 4 subjects which will demand the student's attention ?

Yes. I, for one, had 5 other subjects and never had any sort of tutor. I'd almost contest that it's actually easier to get to that required knowledge on your own than with extra assistance; I could be way off, but I think in at least some cases some people become over reliant on their tutors and perhaps become complacent. At the top level, you really need an independent drive to learn and a strong personal curiosity to fully understand the material, and you need to be able to work through concepts in depth on your own. If having a tutor dulls that capacity, then perhaps steer clear.

That said, I did have an amazing teacher. If you have a teacher who isn't that flash and isn't able to answer important questions you have, then yeah, probably get a tutor.

[Planck's constant]

That said, I did have an amazing teacher. If you have a teacher who isn't that flash and isn't able to answer important questions you have, then yeah, probably get a tutor.

Aurelian, you're a smart kid, so lets inject some realism into this.

Assuming that the OP has got it right as to what it takes to get a 50 (and I think he does), lets look at the implications:

You need to have been born with the ability :
 
1) To know what good notes are AND take those notes.
2) To know that U3 needs more detailed notes than U4
3) To read broadly AND need to know which is the best material AND you need to find it amongst the reems of useless stuff out there AND print it AND read it
4) To do 25+ trial exams AND find them AND print them AND sit them AND correct them!
5) To know which are the best study guides AND buy them AND do all the problems AND have the presence of mind to do the right problems depending on which SAC is coming up

Multiply by 5 subjects.

This in itself would take 10 months
And you haven't even started studying the basics yet
AND you need amazing teachers.

Without coaching.
Realistic ?

[Planck's constant]

Further to my previous post, I more or less agree that the $25 per hour babysitting kind of tutoring is as good as useless.
But I know what it takes to get 50's
You need someone to become involved with organising and directing your VCE campaign.
Nobody, and I mean nobody, is so brilliant as to work out all these 'best ways to do things' all by themsleves and also find the time to actually do whats needed to be done

[Aurelian]

You need to have been born with the ability:
1) To know what good notes are AND take those notes.
2) To know that U3 needs more detailed notes than U4
3) To read broadly AND need to know which is the best material AND you need to find it amongst the reems of useless stuff out there AND print it AND read it
4) To do 25+ trial exams AND find them AND print them AND sit them AND correct them!
5) To know which are the best study guides AND buy them AND do all the problems AND have the presence of mind to do the right problems depending on which SAC is coming up

...

Without coaching.
Realistic ?

Mmm I'm not sure to what extent I'd agree with this. Starting with 1) and 2), that's probably true, I'll admit, although I'm a bit unsure what you mean by "good" notes - but it's irrelevant to this discussion really; I think it's questionable to what extent you can be "taught" how to write "good" notes. As for 3), I don't know what you count as 'reading broadly', but I never really read anything outside directly relevant notes my teacher gave me and Heinemann. Either way, if this is necessary for a good mark, you don't need a tutor unless you've forgotten how to read. Personally I don't think the opening of 4) is true at all, but, again, you don't need a tutor for this - you just need a strong will. With 5), I think the importance of 'study guides' is overrated in itself, but once more a tutor is unnecessary for this.

All of those points, regardless of whether there is truth in them or not, do not require an additional person - whom you even pay - to guide you through, and furthermore this additional person really couldn't assist in all cases.

You need someone to become involved with organising and directing your VCE campaign.
Nobody, and I mean nobody, is so brilliant as to work out all these 'best ways to do things' all by themsleves and also find the time to actually do whats needed to be done

Yeah, I don't disagree with the first statement there if by 'organising and directing' you mean a) core teaching, b) providing other off-curriculum tips (like exam technique) and perhaps c) sourcing materials for you (eg practice exams). But this should really come from your teacher first and foremost. If your teacher is unable to provide a) and/or b) then tutoring might be worthwhile. If they are unable/unwilling to provide c), you *can* do it yourself, it's just a bit of a pain.

I just can't believe that anyone capable of getting a top-end mark needs third-party tutoring to do so - that is, that they would be rendered incapable of such a mark without this assistance.

[paulsterio]

Aurelian, personally, I wouldn't bother arguing or debating with argonaut because he does not talk from a rational point of view. For some reason, which I don't know of, he is particularly biased towards tuition and seems to have difficulty understanding the fact that there are different types of students out there, those who need tuition and those who don't.

I agree with you when you say that all of what argonaut has said does not really require an additional person and that in reality, all of what he has said can be done if you set out the time and know what you're doing. Furthermore, I would even argue that a tutor should be someone who helps you, not someone who gets involved with organising and directing VCE campaigns. How could someone you see for 1 hour or maybe 2 hours per week possibly do that?

Furthermore, he seems to neglect the fact that a tutor is not a substitute for your own hard work. It is hard work which gains the marks, not tuition. I've given up arguing with him a long time ago.

[Planck's constant]

[Planck's constant]

and you have already shared your views with everybody

You never thanked me

[Aurelian]

But if you live in the same planet as I do, Aurelian, you well know that the tutoring industry in this country is about to overtake mining as the largest industry in the land.

Hey investors - screw BHP Biliton and your revenue of $71.7 billion USD last year, TSFX is where it's at!

[86]

But if you live in the same planet as I do, Aurelian, you well know that the tutoring industry in this country is about to overtake mining as the largest industry in the land.

Hey investors - screw BHP Biliton and your revenue of $71.7 billion USD last year, TSFX is where it's at!

TSFX would be printing even more junk if they had even a fraction of that.

I couldn't help but burst out laughing at that.

[Planck's constant]

But if you live in the same planet as I do, Aurelian, you well know that the tutoring industry in this country is about to overtake mining as the largest industry in the land.

Hey investors - screw BHP Biliton and your revenue of $71.7 billion USD last year, TSFX is where it's at!

You start a grinding shop Aurelian, and I will invest everything I own.
All $1.50 of it

But serioulsy, consider the irony of your offering a tutoring service. Obviously you would not do so if you didnt think that it would be of some use to someone. I believe it would be. You simply understand things better than others and you can help them attain the required level.

By the same token you must consider the possibility that someone understands things better than you, and he can help you. We are NEVER that good that we cant get better, right ?

Also consider that the fact our parents could afford the high standard of tuition we got at our particular schools is a form of tutoring in its own right. 

[Aurelian]

But serioulsy, consider the irony of your offering a tutoring service. Obviously you would not do so if you didnt think that it would be of some use to someone. I believe it would be. You simply understand things better than others and you can help them attain the required level. 

Please do not strawman me; I have never said that tutoring is of no use to anyone. For a great number of people it is extremely useful - my contention is merely that I believe it to be unnecessary for the very top end.

[Planck's constant]

But serioulsy, consider the irony of your offering a tutoring service. Obviously you would not do so if you didnt think that it would be of some use to someone. I believe it would be. You simply understand things better than others and you can help them attain the required level. 

Please do not strawman me; I have never said that tutoring is of no use to anyone. For a great number of people it is extremely useful - my contention is merely that I believe it to be unnecessary for the very top end.

Are you telling me that any prospective client of yours is condemned to never achieve a 50 by virtue of his asking to be tutored ?
Or are you telling me that you have a way of determining whether someone is destined for the very top end, and if such a student asks for help, you will decline his business ? 'Do it yourself mate!'

[Aurelian]

Are you telling me that any prospective client of yours is condemned to never achieve a 50 by virtue of his asking to be tutored ?
Or are you telling me that you have a way of determining whether someone is destined for the very top end, and if such a student asks for help, you will decline his business ? 'Do it yourself mate!'

No (non sequitur anyway) and no. That's their choice to make, not mine.

Anyway, this discussion has became too off topic like 5 posts ago, so I'll surrender in the hope that it will make you be quiet.

[Planck's constant]