This is my weakest subject by far, should I bother improving?

[highSchoolAttender]

I'm doing a few other subjects such as specialist maths and english, that I feel I'll do perfectly fine in (I'm completing all textbook questions to a high standard, am studying the texts / concepts in english etc). However, for whatever reason, I find physics ridiculously difficult. Unlike maths, you have to apply multiple different equations to seemingly simple problems, with little to no reassurance that you're on the right path. There's also the concept of "correct physics, incorrect maths" which makes things even more confusing.

Even though it's unlikely to be in my top 4, is it worth improving on physics? If I don't focus on physics too much, I'll be able to significantly focus more on only 4 subjects which I feel is a major advantage, but are those 3-4 extra study score points really worth it?

[Sine]

I'm doing a few other subjects such as specialist maths and english, that I feel I'll do perfectly fine in (I'm completing all textbook questions to a high standard, am studying the texts / concepts in english etc). However, for whatever reason, I find physics ridiculously difficult. Unlike maths, you have to apply multiple different equations to seemingly simple problems, with little to no reassurance that you're on the right path. There's also the concept of "correct physics, incorrect maths" which makes things even more confusing.

Even though it's unlikely to be in my top 4, is it worth improving on physics? If I don't focus on physics too much, I'll be able to significantly focus more on only 4 subjects which I feel is a major advantage, but are those 3-4 extra study score points really worth it?

depends on how high you are aiming once you get into the high ATARs every single aggregate point is needed.

If physics is i nyour bottom 2 it's unlikely it will cost you 3-4 study scores though. That would mean you go something like a study score of 10 - 20 but if you tried and put your best effort you would've got a 50 so it'll effectively cost you less study scores or maybe improve your aggregate by boosting your other subjects depending on how you are tracking right now.

Although putting the effort in for physics would mean if you have a bad exam day for another subject you could maybe slot it into the top 4.

[meganrobyn]

YES

1. People are frequently surprised by the exam, and by their performance. It's common to get a better score in something you thought was your weakest and even a lower score in something you thought was your best.
2. Giving up gives you no buffer or back-up plan.
3. Improving doesn't work that way. it's not like you take an extra couple of hours and spend them on something you're already pretty good at and then see commensurate improvement. The better you are, the harder it is to get more marks.
4. Your exam score is generally given to another student in your school as their SAC mark (effectively). Don't screw other people over.

[Joseph41]

I'm doing a few other subjects such as specialist maths and english, that I feel I'll do perfectly fine in (I'm completing all textbook questions to a high standard, am studying the texts / concepts in english etc). However, for whatever reason, I find physics ridiculously difficult. Unlike maths, you have to apply multiple different equations to seemingly simple problems, with little to no reassurance that you're on the right path. There's also the concept of "correct physics, incorrect maths" which makes things even more confusing.

Even though it's unlikely to be in my top 4, is it worth improving on physics? If I don't focus on physics too much, I'll be able to significantly focus more on only 4 subjects which I feel is a major advantage, but are those 3-4 extra study score points really worth it?

I think trying to predict your top four subjects is a very risky business. You never really know how you're going to score, because to a degree everything is dependent on how others perform - not just you.

Case in point: I thought I had my top four all sorted. Basically all year I was thinking about it - trying to be strategic and so on. I ended up using my classes for what I thought would be my sixth subject to work on what I thought would be my first subject. I ended up achieving a higher study score in what I thought would be my sixth subject, and what I thought would be my best was actually my worst.

It's hard to predict with any sort of confidence, and for that reason, I'd definitely suggest working hard on Physics if you can.

meganrobyn's post above is a good one. It's only March. You still have heaps of time to improve in Physics very significantly.

[The Special One]

Up to you, improving on a subject outside of your  top 4 can be very worthwhile or a complete waste of your time.

I would do enough so you don't flunk it but don't take them out of your strong subjects for it, totally not worth it then.

[Bri MT]

I didn't think physics would be in my top 4 but it was.

Every single person in my physics class experienced a point in time where they thought about dropping physics or that they shouldn't have chosen it. I would encourage you to persevere and try learning from additional sources (eg YouTube, KhanAcademy) to see if the change in perspective helps you.

Based on what you're saying you have difficulty with I would encourage you to list and annotate all of your formulas.
Eg.  Ek = .5mv^2
Ek = kinetic energy (joules) of the moving body
m = mass (kilograms) of the moving body
v = velocity (m/s) of the moving body
- use to find the speed of a body when energy is known or can be found (conservation of energy)
- in a collision question, use momentum to find the speed and use this formula to see if the collision was elastic
- in an elastic collision Ek (initial) = Ek (final)

I would also advise you to start using diagrams in your working out if you aren't already.