Specialist maths vs. Further maths

[bar0029]

Hello,

I know these two subjects are quite on the contrast, however as I am confronted with the school year I am beginning to question my subjects.

I completed Methods CAS last year with an overall study score of 40.

With this background some people say it is better for me to do Further and do really well in that, while some say it is an advantage to me in that, I will have a 'headstart' in Specialist.

I don't want to do both subjects, yet I don't know which one I want to pursue.

This year I will be studying:
-English Language
-Chemistry
-Specialist OR Further Maths
-Uni Bio (UMEP)
I have also completed Biology with a study score of 39.

Is anyone able to help me choose the best option?


 

[Greatness]

If you believe that you can score 45+ in further than choose further, however,take into mind that a 38~ in spesh may yield a 45~.

[samiira]

Spesh all the wayy!!!

[pi]

Spesh all the wayy!!!

+1, but I'm biased

[xZero]

definitely spesh!

[tram]

Spesh all the wayy!!!

+1, but I'm biased

+2

there are a myriad of threads asking the exact same question, i suggest you trawl through VN to find some to get a better idea,

essentialy, i am an strong advocate for spech:

1) it's actually interesting

2) You don;t have to my super 'uncareless' i.e. it's much more focused on understanding concepts rather than being anal about every single mark

3) Scaling

4) Yes, having done methods does put you a little ahead of the pack

5) GENERALLY better teachers

[riv]

I did spesh and further, I'd recommend further.

[kyzoo]

I <3 Spesh.

I don't really know about Further

But what I can say about Spesh is:
~ It requires mathematical confidence to do well, to the point of cockiness even. Otherwise you are just going to give up panicking when you face a question you can't immediately see how to do (I faced lots and lots of these in Spesh) instead of being calm and persistent.

~ External company exams are haarrrd. At first I had to go overtime by 30-40 minutes for some of them, and even then I would get like 70-80%.

~ There is very little theory compared to other subjects. It is mostly about about practice. Although this is probably true of all VCE Maths.

~ Methods makes Spesh a lot simpler. Methods 3/4 was a harder subject for me than Spesh was, because I went into Methods without doing 1/2 and having to learn all the concepts from scratch, whereas Methods concept carry over into Spesh.

~ You need to be fast in doing questions. You don't have time to be super careful and recheck your entire working once you've done the questions

~

[EvangelionZeta]

I'll play devil's advocate and say that there ARE people who do Further after having complete Methods in year 11, and who end up getting high 40s/50 (even with scores of like 35 in Methods).    I'm also under the impression that Further is a lot less stressful; for somebody who has done Methods already, the concepts in it are a piece of cake, and really, you can do minimal study for everything except the exam. 

So yeah, in my opinion, if you just want the top score, want to be able to focus on other subjects AND don't really care too mcuh about maths/don't have the time for spesh, go Further.  If you genuinely want to learn and would rather have a relatively easy "solid" score instead of a potentially easier "perfect" score, then go spesh.

[medge]

I'll play devil's advocate and say that there ARE people who do Further after having complete Methods in year 11, and who end up getting high 40s/50 (even with scores of like 35 in Methods).    I'm also under the impression that Further is a lot less stressful; for somebody who has done Methods already, the concepts in it are a piece of cake, and really, you can do minimal study for everything except the exam. 

So yeah, in my opinion, if you just want the top score, want to be able to focus on other subjects AND don't really care too mcuh about maths/don't have the time for spesh, go Further.  If you genuinely want to learn and would rather have a relatively easy "solid" score instead of a potentially easier "perfect" score, then go spesh.

+1 my thoughts too

[tram]

If I may summarize,

Further= you playing the VCE game and trying to get a high score for the sake of getting a high score, yes I have no doubt you will easily get a 'solid' score if you got a 40 ^in methods

Spech= you extending yourself and actually learning things (requiring time of course) but also with a pretty decent chance of getting a really decent score

It's up to what you want to get out of vce

[bar0029]

am i write in saying that if i do further i will get a better score in my other subjects?

if i want to get high atar, i'm better off going with further?

[iNerd]

am i write in saying that if i do further i will get a better score in my other subjects?

if i want to get high atar, i'm better off going with further?

Doing Further doesn't guarantee you a better score in any other subject - it just increases your chance because Further is conceptually easier than Spesh and thus requires less time/effort and most importantly, stress.

[tram]

am i write in saying that if i do further i will get a better score in my other subjects?

if i want to get high atar, i'm better off going with further?

do you mind me asking what atar you're going for?

[jasoN-]

i'd say spesh as you'll find you have a lot of free time doing only 4 subjects, not to mention one of them is a uni subject
you seem capable of doing well in spesh maths based on your methods score. spesh is a lot more interesting than further and poses a challenge. the content is quite interesting imo and if you are math-capable go for it

and if you can't decide, you could always take the best of both worlds and do both! (let me tell you now that further is ridiculously easy and very manageable as a fifth subject)