Pick up bio?

[DarkVisor]

SO I got a dissapointing mark in chem this year... thinking of doing Bio 3&4 in 2011 instead of History: Revolutions..
I've always liked history, and got A&A+ for exams and sacs in yr 11, But i'm not sure how yr 12 differs.. whether i'll still get what I hoped?
I'm aiming desperately for a raw 40... I think maybe im safer with a rote memorisation subject like bio?
Anyone have suggestions

[BSKT]

No.

Biology is harder then it sounds.

I only got my shitty 38 -.-

But seriously don't bother with biol just do something you like.

[lexitu]

Bio is not a rote memorisation subject, give it some credit please. If you want a raw 40, do Further.

[Russ]

Bio is not a rote memorisation subject, give it some credit please. If you want a raw 40, do Further.

At VCE it is very similar to one

[lexitu]

I disagree. Exams are written in a way that demands application beyond simple recognition of the relevant concept. They do a good job of presenting unknown data which need to be analysed before an answer is prepared. The basic questions involve retelling of something that is memorised, but there aren't too many basic questions.

[thushan]

+1

[DarkVisor]

@lexitu, I wasn't implying Biology was easy at all, or simple to learn!! I know it's one of the harder sciences, I just thought it's more structured in exams&SACs etc, that there is set info that you need to know, compared to History where you'd write an essay, and it's not always apparent how well you went.

[Darren]

Since you said you get A's/A+'s with history I'd probably advise you stick with it, rather then taking a random chance with a hard subject like biology, which you might end up despising. In all seriousness, I'd say stick with history.. It's probably going to be more rote required than biology because biology is all applying!
Do psychology/bm if you want more rote style subjects.

[lexitu]

@ DarkVisor - No worries mate It is pretty structured in terms of responses I suppose, but it's not really a rote-learning subject

[happyhappyland]

The chemistry in Biology is very simple, atleast at VCE level. Its not a rote learning subject, alot of people perceive as it is because there are many unfamiliar words and process. If you learn them through understanding these words become part of your vocab and you wont need to "memorise" them.

Its like proton, electron and polar... these words in chemistry are not really everyday used words, but after time they become part of the "chemistry language".. did you ever rote learn these words?

[simpak]

Oh God, you're taking TS.  Get into Bio right now.

[DarkVisor]

you're scaring me even more mavis... explain?

[Russ]

at a guess it's because ts has a reputation for being not what students expect/want

[simpak]

Well compare my score in it to my other scores!
It's just not fun - it's one of those things where you're all 'this is a good idea' and then later on you realise it wasn't such a good idea...
Especially the monologue part.
Yeah it's hard to do well in.  Work input does not equal score output.

[Slumdawg]

Since you said you get A's/A+'s with history I'd probably advise you stick with it, rather then taking a random chance with a hard subject like biology, which you might end up despising. In all seriousness, I'd say stick with history.. It's probably going to be more rote required than biology because biology is all applying!
Do psychology/bm if you want more rote style subjects.

Psych definitely won't be rote in 2011. In fact both the 2010 exams required a considerable amount of application. This is due to new exam writers who got hired in 2010 and were instructed to make exams which tested a person's understanding of the material rather than ability to memorise info. P.s. Psych is very competitive, although I highly recommend it cos it's awesome

Even though a subject may be about memorising (psych + bio) doesn't mean memorising everything will guarantee you a high score. It's kinda silly to assume something like that It's about knowing how to write good answers in the exam, really understanding all aspects of the course instead of just memorising it and also really enjoying the subject because it'll help you to study more and put more effort in!

DarkVisor, stick with history. Unless you really don't like it. Rote subjects can be just as hard, if not harder, to get a very high score in (One person I know said she put equal effort and felt equally confident in revs and psych and got 38 in revs and 31 in psych. So some people don't do as well in "rote" subjects).  Seeing as you're getting A/A+ in history why stop?