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Should I drop Maths Ext 2? (1 Viewer)

samantha_s

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Hi, ^^... I'm thinking of dropping maths ext 2 because I went from a 60% (ranked 4/7) in my first assessment to a 46% (ranked last!) in my half-yearly. the workload seems too much for me and i've been having problems in my life lately. i'm doing 12 units and these are my subjects and half-yearly marks:

Chemistry- 74%
Economics- 72%
English Advanced- 85% honestly (i think the teachers are cutting out some parts, so maybe 93%)
English Ext 1- 75%
English Ext 2- (Proposal- 80%, Viva Voce 75%)
Maths- 93%
Maths Ext 1- 72%
Maths Ext 2- 46% (hehe i've never failed before and now i know how it feels >.<)

i've gotten top 5 rankings for most of my subjects, but i haven't done as well as i've anticipated, percentage-wise (i should be aiming for more 80s and 90s in right?) hmm so i've been thinking, if i work really really hard i can catch up in maths ext 2... but on the other hand... i could be catching up in my other subjects...

is 11 units ok? i heard that they can count half of a 2 unit subject :confused:

what do you think i should do?
 
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Raginsheep

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They count by single units. If you think MX2 will ultimately be of no help to you then I would recommend that you drop it especially if you're doing well in your other subjects.
 

Slidey

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It's your choice. You'll do well either way. Consider what degree you want. Will you do any maths in it at all? If so, stick with 4unit. High marks are hard to get in 4u. In the actually exam if you are around the 60% raw mark, you'll probably end up with a 90 or so aligned.
 

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samantha_s said:
Maths- 93%
Maths Ext 1- 72%
Maths Ext 2- 46%
From those marks, you seem to have a pretty solid knowledge of the basics and a decent mark in MX1, although I'm sure you can improve that mark on extension 1. Having said that, you should be capable of taking on the rest of extension 2, the later topics do get quite intense and difficult, but that is the nature of the course. Make sure that you keep up with the work and do your homework as well as do plenty of practice.
 

insert-username

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You have 4 units of English and 4 units of Maths. That's very hard to maintain together, and I would advise that you think very carefully about keeping both. They each require a considerable time investment, and if you find you can't make that investment, I would drop one of them. However, think carefully about whatever choice you make. Remember, it's your HSC, and you need to decide what balance works for you. Best of luck,


I_F
 
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pLuvia

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It seems you already have a heavy workload, from all your english and possibly chemistry and economics. But you should know if you do 4u of english and 4u of maths you are required to work a lot, so seeing as your good in your other subjects, maybe just put a little bit more time into 4u maths, maybe lift your rank up
 

samantha_s

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Slide Rule said:
It's your choice. You'll do well either way. Consider what degree you want. Will you do any maths in it at all? If so, stick with 4unit. High marks are hard to get in 4u. In the actually exam if you are around the 60% raw mark, you'll probably end up with a 90 or so aligned.
The degrees I'm considering are Social Work, then Psychology and lastly Human Resources. I guess I don't need more than MX1 for these... So what marks should I be aiming for in this subject? I'm not sure which is better... a 93% in maths adv or a 46% in MX2... So I should aim for a raw mark of at least 60%? I also keep thinking 11 units is unstable, but then my friend's sister said that's the best amount to have. Oh! You know how they don't count maths adv for your UAI if you do MX2... how does it work for English? Hehe sorry asking so many questions... thanks for taking your time to reply lol.
 
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Riviet

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samantha_s said:
how does it work for English? Hehe sorry asking so many questions... thanks for taking your time to reply lol.
If you were doing 12 units, and did poorly in advanced english, then your 3/4 unit english are counted as they are your best units of enlglish. However, just because you are doing 4 unit english, it DOES NOT mean that your advanced mark is cancelled out by your 4 unit mark. Basically, your best 2 units of english count.
 

samantha_s

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Riviet said:
Basically, your best 2 units of english count.
Oh I get what my friend was talking about now. What about if it was 11 units? Wait so it's not possible to count English Adv. and EE1?

Raginsheep said:
They count by single units. If you think MX2 will ultimately be of no help to you then I would recommend that you drop it especially if you're doing well in your other subjects.
My careers advisor said that they can count 1 unit of a 2 unit subject that you do not so well in, I'm not sure. Or I guess if I do bad in an extension course they could cut it out... Still not sure if MX2 will help me. These days when I'm about to start homework in the subject I just feel like giving up and motivation disappears. The marks range from 46-78... I keep wondering if I can work my way up.
 

insert-username

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Oh I get what my friend was talking about now. What about if it was 11 units? Wait so it's not possible to count English Adv. and EE1?
If all 4 of your English units are among your best 10, they will all be counted. If just EE1 and EE2 are in the top 10, they will be counted as 1 unit each. And if just Advanced is in the top 10, it will be counted for 2 units. If you have 11 units, your worst result won't be counted (if it's MX1 or EE1) or half your worst result won't be counted (all your other 2 unit subjects).

My careers advisor said that they can count 1 unit of a 2 unit subject that you do not so well in, I'm not sure. Or I guess if I do bad in an extension course they could cut it out... Still not sure if MX2 will help me. These days when I'm about to start homework in the subject I just feel like giving up and motivation disappears. The marks range from 46-78... I keep wondering if I can work my way up.
If you don't feel that MX2 will help you, if you don't feel like working, and you know you won't need it, drop it. Number one priority of subject choice is to choose subjects you like, because those are the subjects you will want to work at. Unless you can change your attitude to 4 unit, you won't get much better, and if that's the case, it's better to drop it. From your earlier question, 93 in 2 unit is far better than below 50s in 4 unit in the HSC.

But remember, think carefully over what you want to do, and when you decide, don't agonise over it. Choose, let it go past, and concentrate on the future. :)


I_F
 

IronMaiden

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samantha_s said:
(hehe i've never failed before and now i know how it feels >.<)
A Wise Person said:
Being beaten is often a temporary condition, giving up is what makes it permanent
I wish a positive attitude was all that was needed in life.
 
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rawr26

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samantha_s said:
Hi, ^^... I'm thinking of dropping maths ext 2 because I went from a 60% (ranked 4/7) in my first assessment to a 46% (ranked last!) in my half-yearly. the workload seems too much for me and i've been having problems in my life lately. i'm doing 12 units and these are my subjects and half-yearly marks:

Chemistry- 74%
Economics- 72%
English Advanced- 85% honestly (i think the teachers are cutting out some parts, so maybe 93%)
English Ext 1- 75%
English Ext 2- (Proposal- 80%, Viva Voce 75%)
Maths- 93%
Maths Ext 1- 72%
Maths Ext 2- 46% (hehe i've never failed before and now i know how it feels >.<)

i've gotten top 5 rankings for most of my subjects, but i haven't done as well as i've anticipated, percentage-wise (i should be aiming for more 80s and 90s in right?) hmm so i've been thinking, if i work really really hard i can catch up in maths ext 2... but on the other hand... i could be catching up in my other subjects...

is 11 units ok? i heard that they can count half of a 2 unit subject :confused:

what do you think i should do?
They are great marks you got samantha :) if you find your struggling a bit in maths ext2 then i suggest you drop it, unless your prepared to sacrafice a majority of your study time to it. 11 units is fine.
 

samantha_s

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insert-username said:
If all 4 of your English units are among your best 10, they will all be counted. If just EE1 and EE2 are in the top 10, they will be counted as 1 unit each. And if just Advanced is in the top 10, it will be counted for 2 units. If you have 11 units, your worst result won't be counted (if it's MX1 or EE1) or half your worst result won't be counted (all your other 2 unit subjects).

If you don't feel that MX2 will help you, if you don't feel like working, and you know you won't need it, drop it. Number one priority of subject choice is to choose subjects you like, because those are the subjects you will want to work at. Unless you can change your attitude to 4 unit, you won't get much better, and if that's the case, it's better to drop it. From your earlier question, 93 in 2 unit is far better than below 50s in 4 unit in the HSC.

But remember, think carefully over what you want to do, and when you decide, don't agonise over it. Choose, let it go past, and concentrate on the future.
I_F
Hmm sounds a little more flexible than maths. I was thinking it would be great if i kept MX2 and could still sit for the adv test... but on the other hand that's pointless lol. I'm getting deja vu... this reminds me of the time I had 15 units (>.<). I dropped extension history, which I don't regret because it sounds like it's got a lot more to do with modern than ancient, the latter which I loved. Although I loved Ancient History, I dropped it because it didn't scale enough and my marks went down in the prelim yearly. Now I 'agonise' over it because it was really easy and I could have improved. The subjects I've kept are seem so demanding. But as you said, concentrate on the future!

IronMaiden said:
I wish a positive attitude was all that was needed in life.
I agree!

rawr26 said:
They are great marks you got samantha if you find your struggling a bit in maths ext2 then i suggest you drop it, unless your prepared to sacrafice a majority of your study time to it. 11 units is fine.
Really? Thanks! I know there's room for improvement though.

I guess I'm not that eager in MX2, and I think I do enjoy EE2 and my other subjects more. Well right now I'm 75% sure I'm dropping MX2, I think I'll be decided by the beginning of term 2. I hope my decision won't be too late.
 

Porcia

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insert-username said:
You have 4 units of English and 4 units of Maths. That's very hard to maintain together, and I would advise that you think very carefully about keeping both. They each require a considerable time investment, and if you find you can't make that investment, I would drop one of them. However, think carefully about whatever choice you make. Remember, it's your HSC, and you need to decide what balance works for you. Best of luck,


I_F
rubbish - i do 4u english 4u math 2u latin and 2u art which is two major works. although you may be right - it really does depend on the individual. at the start of hsc many people were warning me about the possible "workload" in taking three heavy weights plus two major works and a classical language - however i feel that i have the most free time out of all my friends as i have alot of frees and manage to get all my work/homework done in these frees - so samantha_s, if i were you, and if you hadnt started using your copious amounts of frees, i'd start right now - devote all ur frees to all units maths and say - economics so at home all u have to do for homeowkr/reivision/study is english (which is easy for you if u do 4u) and chem... its quite simple when you put it all in perspective. plus, yuo do realise that you do four subjects - and four subjects itself is the minimum? be aware of that fact before you do anything.
 

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noooo.. don't drop it, just invest more time into it than economics. The scaling for 4u maths is much higher. your marks, if 47 pecent is the lowest are not that bad! Just work harder. I'm sure a 60 percent or so in 4u is equivalent to at least an 80 in economics. And considering you can't drop economics, and you're not doing all that amazing in it, you should probably concentrate more on 4u.

Also if you're doing 4u, then 3u counts as 2 units, and that will also help increase your UAI.

I guess it's your decision though.. if you really hate maths then just drop it. But think of the advantages. :D
 
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pLuvia

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If you drop 4unit maths, you will or should find 2u still really easy, so you don't have to worry about that too much, but then 3u might not be as easy if you had 4u maths's tricks and fast methods. Stick with it till the next assessment? and seeing how you go, rank wise, then think about if you want to drop or not
 

samantha_s

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Porcia said:
if you hadnt started using your copious amounts of frees, i'd start right now - devote all ur frees to all units maths and say - economics so at home all u have to do for homeowkr/reivision/study is english (which is easy for you if u do 4u) and chem... its quite simple when you put it all in perspective. plus, yuo do realise that you do four subjects - and four subjects itself is the minimum? be aware of that fact before you do anything.
It does seem that I have more free periods than most of my friends, even though it evens out with extensions in the end. If I keep 4u maths then I'll make sure to stop chatting so much in my free periods lol... and this also applies if I do drop it of course hehe.

YBK said:
noooo.. don't drop it, just invest more time into it than economics. The scaling for 4u maths is much higher. your marks, if 47 pecent is the lowest are not that bad! Just work harder. I'm sure a 60 percent or so in 4u is equivalent to at least an 80 in economics. And considering you can't drop economics, and you're not doing all that amazing in it, you should probably concentrate more on 4u.
Maybe it's not too late try to lift my marks in eco? I used to get higher last year =/

pLuvia said:
If you drop 4unit maths, you will or should find 2u still really easy, so you don't have to worry about that too much, but then 3u might not be as easy if you had 4u maths's tricks and fast methods. Stick with it till the next assessment? and seeing how you go, rank wise, then think about if you want to drop or not
My 2u and 3u assessments are in weeks 4 and 3 respectively... and my 4u one is in week 9... I guess week 9 will be too late. Maybe I'll see how I do in 3u? Tricks from 4u? Do you still get full marks for using shortcuts in 2u and 3u?
 

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samantha_s said:
My 2u and 3u assessments are in weeks 4 and 3 respectively... and my 4u one is in week 9... I guess week 9 will be too late. Maybe I'll see how I do in 3u? Tricks from 4u? Do you still get full marks for using shortcuts in 2u and 3u?
You are allowed, but 4u will mostly help through the sense that you're actually doing more maths, and more demanding algebra, making 3u seem easier.
 

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4u really makes you appreciate just how relatively easy 3u is. I only passed one 4u exam in all of year 12 (out of about 7) and it still scaled pretty well (mid 70's if i recall correctly). Keep at it.
 
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pLuvia

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samantha said:
Maybe I'll see how I do in 3u? Tricks from 4u? Do you still get full marks for using shortcuts in 2u and 3u?
Of course, provided you actually show the 4 unit method and how you get all those answers etc, no point just using a 4 unit formula to find an answer you get what I mean?

Harder 3u will make normal 3u seem easier, the integration topic will help, and polynomials as well
 

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