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Let’s be honest: this can be a pretty tricky time for a Year 11 QCE student, particularly given uncertainty surrounding the new ATAR system.
Year 11 was one of my toughest years. Academically, of course, it was the trickiest I’d encountered to that point. But more the fact that I wasn’t really sure how I was meant to be feeling. I’d almost finished school, but not quite. I was nearly at the top, but there were still people older than me. My subjects were pretty important, but not absolutely. Basically, I felt as though I had limited direction, and motivation suffered as a result.
A lot of Year 11 students feel the same way, and it’s understandable. A lot of students will also be disillusioned by changes that will affect them, but in confusing ways. So, in this article, we’ll look at some ways to spend the rest of Year 11 – ways to really make the most of your time, and set yourself up to doing really well.
1. Nail your Units 1&2 subjects – it’ll pay dividends
If you’re struggling for motivation (like I was), know that doing well in your Units 1&2 subjects can actually make a big difference.
“But they don’t directly count toward your ATAR!”, I hear you cry.
Well, that’s true – they don’t. But doing well in your Units 1&2 subjects puts you in a fantastic place to do well in your 3&4 subjects – and for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it demonstrates you have a solid understanding of the content at hand. In some subjects, there is content overlap, meaning you’ve essentially got a head start on the Units 3&4 course. But even with that aside, doing well in your subjects gives you a great indication that your study methods work for you. And that’s so, so important. Knowing how you study best is the best knowledge you can have before you start Year 12, and the way to find that out is to try different things before that time.
So, work hard on doing well. If you’re struggling for motivation, try to push yourself to improve. Doing this will put you in a great position going into next year – trust me.
2. Prepare for your Units 3&4 subjects
If you’re super keen, you can make a more conscious choice to get a head start on the Units 3&4 content.
Now, let me address this properly: there’s no need. You don’t need to do this to do well in Year 12. I travelled through all of December and some of January, came back with no content knowledge of my 3&4 subjects, and received a 99+ ATAR. Year 12 courses are designed to fit the time you’re given.
BUT, if you’re feeling a lack of motivation at the moment and you think having a casual look over some Year 12 content will help that, there’s no harm. Your best bet is probably to start with the syllabus for each subject, which covers everything you need to know for the 3&4 course. A savvy thing to do would be to see if there’s any assumed knowledge that carries over from the 1&2 course. If you identify these areas, you can focus on them more this year. This is smart.
Otherwise, it’s probably best to chat with your teachers about this. They know you best, so they’ll be able to point you in the right direction.
3. But, most importantly, try to chill a bit
Seriously.
You’ve probably heard the old “QCE is a marathon; not a sprint” thing thousands of times. It’s true.
It’s all well and good thinking, “you know what? I’m going to learn the entire Year 12 subject before it even starts! Guaranteed 100!” But like, it just doesn’t work like that. There are many months until the end of Year 11. There are many more months until the end of Year 12. You have ages to get your content knowledge sorted, and that’ll happen in time as you progress toward the top of the school.
What’s really more important at the moment is to 1) look after yourself, and 2) get your study habits in check. The way I see it, nailing these two points will do way more for you than trying to smash out the practice exams 18 months before Year 12 exams.
And remember, ATAR Notes is here for you across the entire QCE journey (and beyond). Check out our QCE forums, where you can get a hand with study strategy, get your essays marked, and get help with content for your QCE subjects. 🙂
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