Haven't got all my marks back yet, but the ones I have got back are terrible. The only subjects I did well in were Italian Continuers and Italian Extension, and I think my Bio and Music ranks may have dropped.
I did past papers, summarised my notes, re-read my English texts and notes. I have a problem in exams where I psych myself out and my teachers know that. I am nervous because my school has a reputation of going really well in the HSC, my family sacrifices a lot for me to go to my school and I don't want them to feel like their money was wasted.May I suggest that you take a deep breath and then sit down and honestly analyse what you really did to prepare for these exams - not what you told your family and friends you did but what you truly did - write down exactly how much work you put into each subject and what you did e.g. did you re-read your English texts or just the notes made in class, did you write practice papers or simply read them and plan answers, did you actively study or passively study etc etc...
Now that you have seen what you really did and you have seen the results you know what didn't work - so now you know that you need to do things differently - be more pro-active in your studies, use your time, turn off the music and computer, plan your social time and your excercise time to make that time for yourself but not go overboard now - sure enjoy these final few weeks at school but also remember that although these days won't come back the results of them can be much longer lasting - do you really need to go to every party going or can you sacrifice one party each weekend for some extra study??/
I agree. I have severe ADD and anxiety so I find even getting the motivation to study when I'm in a good mood difficult. During my study periods my friend sits with me and pretty much forces me to study, and that's fine at school, but at home there's my computer, my piano, the TV. I turn off the internet at home, unplug the TV and cover up my piano and it's kind of ridiculous that I have to go to these measures just for me to study.I know what you mean, OP. I did terribly in Maths, Physics and Chemistry, which I failed in terms of the trials, and I'm finding it very hard to motivate myself towards doing better. The thing is that, for me anyway, when I'm in a terrible mood I don't have the motivation to do anything, including study and reassurance that I'll do better next time. This is a recurring cycle for me, where I think of how badly I do, want to do well but, unable to find the motivation to get the study done, sit idly and wallow in my own pessimism. I should probably get some therapy for this, since this doesn't seem normal, but what else can I do? Motivation in a state like this seems a little forced to me.
If your teachers know this what help have they, and the school, been giving you? There are programmes and ways to help people who stress out over exams.I did past papers, summarised my notes, re-read my English texts and notes. I have a problem in exams where I psych myself out and my teachers know that. I am nervous because my school has a reputation of going really well in the HSC, my family sacrifices a lot for me to go to my school and I don't want them to feel like their money was wasted.
I initially do them with the time limit, but with access to the textbook (not the internet though). I then do the same paper with the same time limit but with no access to the textbook. For subjects like Bio which are very content heavy, I do past papers with my teacher one on one, and I made a glossary of all the verbs that exams tend to use (e.g. "analyse", "evaluate", "describe" etc.). In Music 1 I'm coming second in performance, but a self-taught singer competing with a bunch of AMEB grade 8 pianists, and I suck at aural so I give myself practice aural test and use questions from the BOS. I am also doing a music 1 composition which has taken up a large chunk of my time (but is almost finished so once the recording is done I will have more time). My uni course requires 86 ATAR but I'm hoping for 95-96 (sibling rivalry).If your teachers know this what help have they, and the school, been giving you? There are programmes and ways to help people who stress out over exams.
I was trying to help but without knowing your specific problems I can't do any more than offer general advice.
When you say you do past papers - do you do them under exam conditions e.g. at a desk with no distractions and within the time limits? I suggest this because if you can prove to yourself that you can do it with the pressure off a bit then that knowledge might carry across.
I wish I could give you more help and advice as I really do feel for kids like you (and I was one myself).
Thanks. English was actually OK but really inconsistent. I got 10, 9 and 7 in Belonging (not great, but better than last semester), but 20 (Pride and Prejudice/Letters to Alice), 14 (Hamlet) and 12 (Wag the Dog) in paper 2 (Advanced). Music 1, Maths and Bio were really disappointing, haven't got SOR back, an essay and a range but no mark for Italian Extension and just bits of Italian Continuers. Hoping that those three go well considering Ital. Cont. and SOR are my 2 strongest subjects.I know attaining bad results can be unmotivating, but you have to psych yourself up. Think of it as a motorbike race, your on the final straight, just give it all you have and that's all you can do pal.
Personally myself, I have taken a lot from my trials. I have improved my studying techniques, and dedicated more time to the subject i detest (English). In a way, im glad i bombed out in English, because it gave me a wake up call just in time i believe. Of course, i did try before, but didn't allocate an equal amount of study in terms of essays in comparison to other subjects.
So chin up mate, that's what trials are for. GL