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March 29, 2024, 03:27:34 am

Author Topic: What gets/got you through Year 12?  (Read 11039 times)  Share 

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JR_StudyEd

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #15 on: May 20, 2019, 04:35:10 pm »
+1
Motivation fluctuates steeper than a rollercoaster. I'm currently in a phase where next to no subject satisfies me. What do I mean by that? Well, I just can't be bothered at the moment. The impending flood of SACs still isn't enough to spur me on. I'm uncertain and scared about the future. Learning is supposed to be fun, yes? Right now, it is extremely tedious, painful and unrewarding and even with my best attempts to cultivate a growth mindset, nothing my teachers say seems to be going in.

Is it just a matter of patience? It's getting really hard for me to develop self-discipline when I would much rather watch TV or YouTube.
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anna.comet

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #16 on: May 20, 2019, 04:58:04 pm »
+5
Motivation fluctuates steeper than a rollercoaster. I'm currently in a phase where next to no subject satisfies me. What do I mean by that? Well, I just can't be bothered at the moment. The impending flood of SACs still isn't enough to spur me on. I'm uncertain and scared about the future. Learning is supposed to be fun, yes? Right now, it is extremely tedious, painful and unrewarding and even with my best attempts to cultivate a growth mindset, nothing my teachers say seems to be going in.

Is it just a matter of patience? It's getting really hard for me to develop self-discipline when I would much rather watch TV or YouTube.

Hey, I just wanted to say first of all it really sucks that you're feeling this way about school. I always enjoyed school, from prep all the way until about year 10, but then VCE is not even learning - it's about regurgitating answers that your teachers have drilled into you will create marks. It's so frustrating when it becomes a matter of appealing to the assessors, and bouncing from one SAC to another without pausing to ask why we are learning any of these things, or without getting to have deep discussions on interesting topics. This can very quickly lead to feelings of disenchantment and frustration.

I also underwent a lot of mixed motivation throughout VCE - I got burnt out quite quickly, and small disputes with friends or family would send me spiralling. Further, I was very busy a lot of the time outside of school (with extra-curricular activities), so it constantly felt like I wasn't studying enough or I wasn't doing enough.

I think that in your case, my advice would be to find parts of your course, or study activities that you enjoy. Perhaps in Psychology you find learning really interesting - make sure that you study hard and know the course back-to-front for the parts that you DO like! Then hopefully, that passion and enthusiasm will carry across into other parts of the course. Further, if you explore different study techniques that you find entertaining, e.g. creating mind-maps, making cue cards, colour-coding your notes, then you'll feel a lot more ready and excited to study.

Moreover, in regards to your concerns about self-discipline, I found it really helpful to speak to my parents, friends, and teachers to let them know that I'd like them to hold me accountable for my study. I told my mum that my phone was distracting me often, and so she would usually ask me if I'd like her to take away my phone - this allowed me to remove distractions without having to practice that discipline myself. Further, I asked my Eng Lang teacher to make sure I handed in a practice analysis every few weeks, in order to keep this skill up during Unit 4. Asking other people for help usually kept me motivated.

Finally, I think that if you are 'good' at your subjects, that often creates motivation as well, because it works in the whole 'positive reinforcement' sort of way (i.e. you work hard, and you get rewarded with good marks). If you feel comfortable, ask your teacher for help in areas that you don't fully understand, or ask what tasks you can do to improve - or more simply, just try to get all of your class assigned work done! I find that even completing what appears to be 'bear minimum', actually leads to a lot of success! Your teachers assign the work for a reason :~)

I really hope that you get out of this rut soon, I've been there a few times too, and I've found that after a little while, my friends and family are always there to pull me out :) All the best!

JR_StudyEd

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #17 on: May 22, 2019, 12:34:01 am »
+1
Honestly I developed some good relationships with a couple of my teachers and didn't want to let them down.

What's your biggest motivation atm, JR?

I re-read this and thought a little harder about what you wrote. I definitely agree with you. Another great, newfound source of motivation for me to do well is to not let my teachers down, as they work so hard to try to get us to do the best we can. So much of their work is taken for granted, don’t you think?
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Joseph41

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #18 on: May 22, 2019, 08:51:00 am »
+1
I re-read this and thought a little harder about what you wrote. I definitely agree with you. Another great, newfound source of motivation for me to do well is to not let my teachers down, as they work so hard to try to get us to do the best we can. So much of their work is taken for granted, don’t you think?

Likely the case. I'm sure there are many, many hidden hours.

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JR_StudyEd

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #19 on: June 10, 2019, 06:21:38 pm »
0
What if you don't have an end goal in mind? What if you feel like you're just going through the motions, like myself? My 'goals' are difficult to quantify, since I'm not such a big fan of using numbers to evaluate my academic progress. I prefer to ask myself, 'What did I really learn?' My medium-term goal is to be as ready for final exams as possible, but it's very broad and doesn't really inspire any action. Long-term, I got nothing. Who knows what course I'll end up doing next year, or even if I'll be in uni.
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EllingtonFeint

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #20 on: June 10, 2019, 06:33:10 pm »
+3
I feel like mini motivations are the way to go!
(^I don’t even feel like that’s real English but whatevs!)
Like, rewarding yourself with small things so that you always have something to look forward to.
I have a job and I don’t usually buy a tonne of stuff and mostly save it up but when I have a massive slab of study coming my way, like before a horrific SAC or an exam or something when I know I’ll have no life for a while, I like to do online shopping.
I don’t mean like splurge on HEAPS of stuff, but maybe just a small thing that you’ll like. I typically will order a book and try and play around with the shipping so that it arrives on the day that my SAC finishes. You have NO IDEA how good that feels.

When my long term motivation kinda diminishes, I find it helpful to put in place a small thing to look forward to.

One more thing, Sam and Dean Winchester are also getting me through year 12.  ;) I’m obsessed.

Hope this helps  ;D
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JR_StudyEd

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #21 on: July 05, 2019, 12:49:05 pm »
0
To what extent did setting goals help you to persevere through the adversity brought about by Year 12? I'm trying to set goals right now, but they aren't motivating me to do anything. I'm even setting deadlines and breaking them down into smaller parts, but even that still doesn't seem to be working.
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JR_StudyEd

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #22 on: September 22, 2019, 11:52:42 pm »
0
My thoughts have evolved quite a lot since making this thread...

I fully understand how self-discipline is more effective in the long-term than motivation, but right now, I am seriously lacking in motivation. I feel like I need that "push" or "nudge" to get me going again. Self-discipline and hard work aren't going to cut it for me right now, as my motivation levels are really close to zero. So, surely, to push past the most difficult parts of Year 12 (which I believe I am in right now), you need both self-discipline and motivation? In other words, do you need motivation in order to be disciplined and also work hard and smart?
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caffinatedloz

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #23 on: September 23, 2019, 08:18:47 am »
+1
In other words, do you need motivation in order to be disciplined and also work hard and smart?
Motivation is always helpful, but sometimes it won't just fall in your lap. I use the "10 minute rule". When I'm putting something off, I just start it and spend ten minutes on it. At the end of those ten minutes, if I still hate what I'm doing, I stop and try again another day. I don't think I've ever actually stopped though. Most things are fine once you get started!

JR_StudyEd

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #24 on: September 25, 2019, 10:33:40 pm »
+1
Does anyone believe in what sheer willpower can achieve? To what extent can willpower help you with the study grind? I don't have a lot of it right now, personally. (Not to be confused with motivation, as I already addressed that)
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caffinatedloz

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #25 on: September 26, 2019, 07:49:08 am »
+1
Does anyone believe in what sheer willpower can achieve? To what extent can willpower help you with the study grind? I don't have a lot of it right now, personally. (Not to be confused with motivation, as I already addressed that)
I think that if someone got rid of every single distraction (willpower) and sat down at an empty desk with only their study materials for hours (more willpower), the could motivate themselves to do some work through their willpower. What do you think JR_StudyED?

JR_StudyEd

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #26 on: October 25, 2019, 08:15:53 pm »
+1
I think that if someone got rid of every single distraction (willpower) and sat down at an empty desk with only their study materials for hours (more willpower), the could motivate themselves to do some work through their willpower. What do you think JR_StudyED?

Hey Laura, I'm sorry for replying so late. Isn't willpower finite? Doesn't it run out after a while? And even I forced myself to sit at a desk for 2 hours or something with no distractions and only writing materials and a past exam in front of me, wouldn't I still find a way to procrastinate?



So I'm now getting to the worst (some might say it's the best) time of Year 12. In a matter of days, the book will close on my final year of schooling. The truth is, despite my best efforts, I have come to dislike each of my subjects more as the year has gone on. My hard work has been rewarded with an unprecedented number of mental breakdowns during SACs and trial exams. And as you would expect, the results have not been great compared to previous years. I'm not going to go ahead and blame my year-long dip in motivation on Year 11 subject selection or the VCE system, because those are things I am not in control of at this present moment. I'm not particularly great or confident in any of the subjects which I have studied this year. And I know it's never too late, and there's always a way.

There's no worse feeling than regret. I do in fact want to do my best in these exams, so that I don't walk out of my school gates wondering if I should have done more. But all my mediocre and outright terrible results this year have only added to the burden. All I know is that no matter how hard I try, I'm just mediocre at science and oftentimes near-clueless in Methods. Right now, it feels like the minute I stepped into a Year 12 classroom (Psych 3/4 in Year 11 doesn't count) all the desire and drive to actually learn something new has completely disappeared. I've searched far and wide, but am unable to rediscover it. I just feel that I don't have it in me to push just for these next several days.
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r1ckworthy

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #27 on: October 25, 2019, 08:45:43 pm »
+4

So I'm now getting to the worst (some might say it's the best) time of Year 12. In a matter of days, the book will close on my final year of schooling. The truth is, despite my best efforts, I have come to dislike each of my subjects more as the year has gone on. My hard work has been rewarded with an unprecedented number of mental breakdowns during SACs and trial exams. And as you would expect, the results have not been great compared to previous years. I'm not going to go ahead and blame my year-long dip in motivation on Year 11 subject selection or the VCE system, because those are things I am not in control of at this present moment. I'm not particularly great or confident in any of the subjects which I have studied this year. And I know it's never too late, and there's always a way.

There's no worse feeling than regret. I do in fact want to do my best in these exams, so that I don't walk out of my school gates wondering if I should have done more. But all my mediocre and outright terrible results this year have only added to the burden. All I know is that no matter how hard I try, I'm just mediocre at science and oftentimes near-clueless in Methods. Right now, it feels like the minute I stepped into a Year 12 classroom (Psych 3/4 in Year 11 doesn't count) all the desire and drive to actually learn something new has completely disappeared. I've searched far and wide, but am unable to rediscover it. I just feel that I don't have it in me to push just for these next several days.

You are not the only one feeling this. I am feeling this too ;D. What keeps me happy though is the thought that one day I will look back at laugh at myself in yr12, remembering how down I was from a grade that would have a negligible impact on the long term ;D.

I think the truth is while bad grades suck, they are certainly not the end, and we can take joy in the fact that no matter what happens, we will always get a chance to reach our goals. I just finished a maths exam I am not too proud of, and I felt terrible, really terrible the 2 hours after. But then in a moment, I decided to change it to a positive moment. I don't know why, but I felt I will probably laugh at myself in 10 years or so of how stupid I was at getting sad about marks.

Seriously, this is not the end! You probably know this, but just keep going. Even if you get mediocre or surprising grades, it does not matter. What matters is that you have experienced what you have said above, to become a wiser, much more experienced adult. Even if you procrastinated, you will reach the goal you want one day, even if it is not defined right now. Don't worry about grades; hopefully you, like me, will be laughing at them in a few years too ;D

I don't know if that helps, probably not, but just keep going!
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caffinatedloz

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #28 on: October 26, 2019, 07:18:33 am »
+1
Hey Laura, I'm sorry for replying so late. Isn't willpower finite? Doesn't it run out after a while? And even I forced myself to sit at a desk for 2 hours or something with no distractions and only writing materials and a past exam in front of me, wouldn't I still find a way to procrastinate?
If you were determined to procrastinate, I'm sure that no matter what you did you wouldn't actually get the exam done. And I agree that willpower with no motivation will run out. (However, in theory, infinite willpower could help you with the study grind. The more you have, the more you can use it to accomplish. Right?) If you don't care then there's no reason to force yourself to do something. However, if you do care and you want to get a good mark, that motivation can help you when it feels like your willpower is waning.

Joseph41

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Re: What gets/got you through Year 12?
« Reply #29 on: October 31, 2020, 11:35:10 am »
+3
Bump - for the Class of 2020 and younger, what's getting you through this year?

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