Need help learning math (1 Viewer)

[learner222]

Hey guys I'm really struggling in math advanced (I'm year 11 currently), every math lesson I have, I don't thoroughly understand the concept being taught by the teacher. I have a really bad habit of procrastination where after each math lesson, if I don't understand the topic being taught clearly, which is basically most of the times, I will tell myself I'm going to review the topic at home and self study but I never do it, I just get carried away playing video games, and this repeats and eventually stacks up to a lot of crucial math knowledge I don't bother to learn and understand and I fall behind. Now when I do the math homework there's lots of math questions which go back into prior years of mathematics knowledge year 9/10 and since I never really listened focused in class back then I have lots of gaps in between when trying to solve a math question for example, I use chatgpt to explain a math concept to me now if I don't understand it and it'll explain the steps to solve it and it refers to prior methods taught in previous years and since I didn't listen back then I don't know how to solve it in this situation it was factorisation in math first it was differnce of squares and I need to relearn it now because I didn't learn back then and then when I dive deeper theres stuff like five term polynomial factorisation and I'm jusut getting overwhelmed by all this new stuff I have to learn and I don't know if I can do it, now that I'm in year 11 I'm trying to actually lock in and do good academically because hsc is edging closer as we speak and I'm getting a bit scared now and am now concerned if I'm too far gone and can't catch up and being overwhelmed. I was also thinking about how mathematics has so many different topics, how can I effectively self study each individual topic one by one so I can actually understand it and master it, but I lack the knowledge of any tools, now that ai is the new helpful tool like ai bots that can assist me with this journey, I don't really want to ask my teacher for help because it feels weird and I'm maybe too scared, but if anyone can give me some advicce/tips with my current situation that would really help. Ok im gonna stop venting and yapping here please help me im struggling.

Ai version for clearer and more concise understanding of my situation (I feel like my own paragraph explaining it is maybe a bit unclear and rushed so read this one if its too confusing):

Hey everyone, I'm really struggling with Year 11 Advanced Maths. Every lesson, I find it hard to fully understand what the teacher is explaining. I also have a bad habit of procrastination—after class, I tell myself that I'll review the topic at home, but I never actually do it. Instead, I get distracted playing video games, and this cycle keeps repeating. Over time, this has led to a huge gap in my understanding of key math concepts, and now I'm falling behind.

When I try to do my math homework, I notice that many questions require knowledge from previous years (Year 9 and 10). Since I didn’t pay much attention back then, I struggle to apply the necessary methods. For example, when I use ChatGPT to explain a math problem, it refers to concepts like factorization—things I should have learned before but didn’t. At first, it was just the difference of squares, but then I realized I also needed to understand five-term polynomial factorization. It feels like every time I try to catch up, I uncover even more gaps in my knowledge, and it’s really overwhelming.

Now that I’m in Year 11 and the HSC is getting closer, I’m trying to take my academics more seriously. But I’m scared that I’ve fallen too far behind to catch up. On top of that, math has so many different topics, and I don’t know the best way to self-study each one effectively. I also don’t know what tools or resources I should be using, aside from AI tools like ChatGPT.

I don’t really want to ask my teacher for help because it feels awkward, and maybe I’m just too scared. But if anyone has any advice or tips on how to catch up, study effectively, and actually understand math, I’d really appreciate it.

 

[MPabe22]

I was pretty much in the same situation as you at the start of year 11 so i would say use the maths in focus textbook since it covers the main foundations you need for advanced in the first 4 chapters and also youtube really helped me understand hard concepts. i would recommend try reading over the concept that your teacher will teach next lesson, even if you dont understand it, you will feel slightly less confused. But tbh i never understood the basic algebra until about halfway through year 11 when i applied it (e.g in calculus) so dont worry if u dont understand it, as long as you put in the work

 

[BadBubble]

OKAY.. I also struggled severely in maths in Year 10, and when Year 11 came by it was a nightmare. Your post is really relatable for me because I kinda used to be a gaming addict who literally did not study a single day in my life through Years 7-10. When I got placed in Math Standard in Year 11 and HSC approached closer I had the same epiphany and knew I had to change something. My mental was terrible --> I hated school due to how behind I was. I forced myself to get out of my comfort zone, and removed my PC from easy access and anything that would distract me (hardest process for me in my opinion). I worked hard during term 1 of Year 11, and they let me into the Advanced course since my grades were adequate enough (I just had to get above average in my task 1 math standard exam)

I could not do
- basic algebra such as x times x = x^2 or x+x = 2x (nonetheless factorisation was impossible)
- Pythagoras theorem (I should know that by year 11)
- even simple linear relationships and finding the gradient of the graph
(I got under 25% mark in one of the lowest classes in my school exams in Year 10, btw heads up: I go to a top 20 school)

I just wanted to say it really IS possible to catch up if you put in the work. What worked for me back then was getting a private tutor to go through each chapter step by step to and genuinely just go through the important questions in the cambridge textbook, and it helped me procrastinate a lot less since I had a tutor to do it with. He could basically do an example on how to do the question and get me to do one myself and it made Math a lot more enjoyable for me, since I actually understood what was going on at a basic level. Once I mastered the basics, I could do harder questions etc. Thus day by day, I got a lot better gradually throughout the year. I cannot emphasise this enough but the way you learn maths has to WORK FOR YOU. I found brute forcing textbook questions by myself using AI quite difficult which caused me to procrastinate too. For me at least, studying shouldn't be insanely difficult and if it is really difficult you will inevitably procrastinate, so try to figure out a way to make it enjoyable for you.

In one years time (currently in year 12 now)
- I can factorise, solve quadratics, actually do basic algebra know my index laws
- I can graph polynomials, log/exponentials and basically any equations now tbh
- I can do all sorts of trigonometry, learned my trig identities, learned sine rule/cosine rule, do 3d trig problems
- Differentiate and integrate equations (finding area of graphs, derivatives/gradients of graphs + tangents etc)
- Basically anything else that existed in the Year 11 Math Advanced course I can think of I could do adequately
- I got 73/100 in my Math Advanced yearly prelim exam

I made a lot of progress and went from the very bottom of my grade to above-average marks in Maths Advanced in my school. Ofc, I still have a lot to learn and I'm not saying I'm getting straight 100% in my exams.
What worked for me was
- Going through the specific textbook content/excercises with my tutor initially
- Once you are actually confident with the confident -> start past papers (extremely important)
--> past papers kinda show where you are lacking and where you can work on, i.e. if you are slow at differentiating -> time yourself doing maybe quotient rule question, until you can do them within a minute. Or if you can't do a 3d trig question --> practice that kind of questions specifically. (for me it was speed and precision I could not do questions fast enough due to my weak algebra initially, which lead to a lot of silly errors, but as well as not being able to adapt my math knowledge to difficult questions)

I believe it is different for everyone based on what you are weak at. In my opinion, math is a relatively more straightforward subject to study, as long as you can understand what is being taught and practice applying it then there really shouldn't be too much problems from then onwards. I find studying maths quite rewarding for me since the more practice you do the better you will get. (You cannot get worse from practicing honestly)

A lot of people kept telling me that Math required heavy fundamental knowledge, which is somewhat true but I just want you to know it is really not too late if you figure out a way to learn it now. I used to hate maths because my teachers just made me brute force textbook questions while I had no clue how to do them, and when I asked for help, I wouldn't even understand his explanation since I didn't even know the basic of basic algebra.

i can tell you it definitely isn't an easy process, as it was hard for me initially, but i promise you it does get easier for you later on as long as you figure your shit out is all i can say. even if u don't figure it out don't give up, your efforts wont be wasted! i don't know which Math course you are doing or if this even helps but.. good luck, you can definitely get through it! ^^

never too late to lock in now!