The Start of Something New: Da_coolest1's VCE Journey

[da_coolest1]

Hey everyone,


So, here's a bit about me. I go to a not-great-performing, small, rural, government school. I've been a bit of a lurker on here for a while and think its a pretty cool community. I have no idea what I want to do after school besides go to uni. I'm good at and interested in a lot of areas so it's just really hard for me to pick one. I'm in Year 11 next year and feel a bit anxious about it since I'm doing Methods 3/4 and really don't want to screw it up. I've always thought I was at a disadvantage at my school but a girl in my school got a 50 for VCD and that made me think that a 50 could be possible for me too. Also, I am a bit of a scatterbrain but I do well at school.


Next year my subjects are..

Methods 3/4: I am really worried about this one just because of how bad I did last year but in our class, I think I would usually be in the upper rank (except for Probability). I'm pretty slow with solving and could be quicker with my CAS. I would really like a 40+ for it but right now, that doesn't seem too achievable. I've always thought maths was "my thing" but Methods just slapped me back with the cold, harsh reality and said "lol no".

English 1/2: I can write pretty good essays but only with heaps of time. In my Year 10 exam, I had to resort to writing "This shows..." so much because I was running out of time. I think I'm pretty good with public speaking too if I practice but I'll try to work on my confidence.

Indonesian SL 1/2: I'll be honest. A big reason I'm doing this subject is for the extra points to the study score. Next year, if I had any bets about getting a 40+ it would be in Indo. I'm pretty good at it because I'm half-Filipino and the languages are a little similar. I hope it will be more fun than last year and go into the cultural aspect more.

Chemistry 1/2: I picked this to get into Medicine, Engineering and Science. I'm a bit surprised about how much math is involved. We didn't do heaps of Chemistry in Junior Science.

Biology 1/2: I picked Bio instead of Physics mainly just because of how bad I am at physics plus I am interested in living things more anyways sooo..

Australian and Global Politics 1/2 through VSV: I originally picked Legal Studies through my school because of how much my careers counsellor thought I couldn't handle the workload for a VSV subject. Well, I had a clash anyway so I had to pick a VSV subject anyway and I thought that I should know about politics for later on anyway sooo... why not hit two birds with one stone? Also, I've heard some horror stories about VSV teachers not replying back or giving enough feedback etc sooo yikes.


So that's pretty much it for now. I have A LOT of homework to do and my own prep for each subject so have a good holidays....

See ya in February.

[eemmaa]

Hey! It's great to see another class of 2021 journal, nice to meet you! I relate to a lot of what you said - my school isn't underperforming exactly, but it's decidedly average. This year 2 people got 50s for the first time since 2015 and I found that really inspirational! Can't wait to hear more from you throughout the year 

[da_coolest1]

Hi, it's nice to meet you too. It's nice to know that someone else can relate. 

[yesh.weerakkody]

Heyoo!! Excited to see new updates and the entire methods extravaganza! Good luck I’m sure you’ll do great!

[da_coolest1]

Hahah thanks. It should be interesting. Apparently our class have to do it via web conferencing through to another school. That's a bit scary but the teacher has PhD so hopefully it'll be alright.

[KatieWolf]

Hey! It's great to see you here I'm excited to read more about your journey as you progress through VCE!
I can relate too when it comes to school status. My school isn't exactly great either, we barely get anyone nowadays with a 40+ and we've only ever had 1 student achieve a 50 in ~60 years of our school!
I understand 100% that you're scared about methods. However, if you do your absolute best and always ask for help from your teachers whenever you can, I'm positive you can get a 40+! Keep trying your best, we're all here for you cheering you on! Nothing is impossible - even if you want a 50, there's nothing stopping you from doing that!
Good luck! You'll do amazing, I know it! 

[marble2]

ayyy i'm doing english and biology 1/2 as well next year! your pick of subjects sounds great! what are some of your interests/hobbies outside of school?

[da_coolest1]

Hey! It's great to see you here I'm excited to read more about your journey as you progress through VCE!
I can relate too when it comes to school status. My school isn't exactly great either, we barely get anyone nowadays with a 40+ and we've only ever had 1 student achieve a 50 in ~60 years of our school!
I understand 100% that you're scared about methods. However, if you do your absolute best and always ask for help from your teachers whenever you can, I'm positive you can get a 40+! Keep trying your best, we're all here for you cheering you on! Nothing is impossible - even if you want a 50, there's nothing stopping you from doing that!
Good luck! You'll do amazing, I know it! 

Thanks so much! I don't think my school has had anyone get a 50 ever or at least in a while. I'll try my best to solidify my 1/2 knowledge maybe introduce some 3/4 stuff. Bit scared but I'll give it my best crack.

[da_coolest1]

ayyy i'm doing english and biology 1/2 as well next year! your pick of subjects sounds great! what are some of your interests/hobbies outside of school?

Thanks. I play basketball after school (not very well though). I watch a fair bit of YouTube; mainly Pyroynical, Danny Gonzalez, Pewdiepie and Idubbbz.
There's not a lot to do in my town so I try to tick off my small bucket list items like learning to knit, solve a rubix cube, guitar, code, etc. so that when I'm older I can do the big things like skydiving or something like that. My favourite shows on Netflix are Sex Education, La Casa de Papel, Derry Girls and Lucifer. I also love Asian dramas. They may not have the best, believable storylines but they can always make you feel good inside.

[da_coolest1]

Hi, so it's been a while. So, school's obviously started and on the first day (as usual) my school spent three periods talking about rules and expectations. My teacher said something that really scared me. She said that if you're doing a 3/4 subject and spend 3 hours studying that subject every night, you'll get a C. Now, surely that's a bit off. Like what about all the rest of the subjects we're doing? What about our part time jobs? How about when we're in Year 12 and have to do 5 3/4's? Does that mean we have to spend 15 hours studying just to get C's in them?

Anyways, I have come to discover that Year 11 is a lot. Like, last year, I thought that once I got spares I could just muck around and play google snake. That's not the case. I always have something to do. Oddly enough, I'm kinda loving it. I'm being really productive and I feel great because of that. I have to sort out my work experience week too and I tried in the holidays but that didn't work out. I wanted to do it with the Florey but the applications closed the next day without any warning or indication. But I guess that's fine. Meh. I'll work it out sooner or later.

So, here are a few of my concerns, I picked a VSV subject and no one gave me the form for it until I asked about my log-in details for VSV on the first day. So, I'm worried about what I've missed for Aus+Global Pol. Also, Methods through Webex is really not good. The teacher is fine and all but all we did was go through class expectations and it was really hard for me to hear because of the fuzzy audio quality plus he was writing on the board and I guess their camera was too far away for me to really see anything. I have actually somehow become more worried than I was about this class.

Here's some positives, I wasn't late for form assembly at all (although I came pretty close). I've always had trouble coming on time to school and if I'm late my teacher will mark me absent which isn't good so I'll work on that. I was the only one in my class who did their Indo homework. Chem is pretty great because we do a lot of basic maths and idk, it's just nice to do maths with numbers again. Bio is great and fun and so is English.

Anyways that's all for now. Have a great what's-left-of-your-weekend! 

[Bri MT]

 The whole 3 hours per day thing definitely isn't true.  I didn't consistently do 3 hours per day for bio (which I did in year 11) & I got a 47.

I'm not sure how many hours per day I studied in year 12 but it was definitely less than half of what your teacher is suggesting.

[da_coolest1]

The whole 3 hours per day thing definitely isn't true.  I didn't consistently do 3 hours per day for bio (which I did in year 11) & I got a 47.

I'm not sure how many hours per day I studied in year 12 but it was definitely less than half of what your teacher is suggesting.

Yeah I thought she had to be off somehow. Maybe she just wanted to scare us straight. Our class is infamously carefree when it comes to studying. Also, a 47 in Bio in Year 11? That's so impressive.

[Geoo]

So, here are a few of my concerns, I picked a VSV subject and no one gave me the form for it until I asked about my log-in details for VSV on the first day. So, I'm worried about what I've missed for Aus+Global Pol. Also, Methods through Webex is really not good. The teacher is fine and all but all we did was go through class expectations and it was really hard for me to hear because of the fuzzy audio quality plus he was writing on the board and I guess their camera was too far away for me to really see anything. I have actually somehow become more worried than I was about this class.

Hey!
Fellow VSV student here. Don't worry about missing anything for Aus/Global Politics, last week was orientation week/launch pad which is essentialy where they tell you to contact your teachers and do a few tasks (like make a study schedule, contact info etc. ). So the first week of submission is this Friday, so don't worry.
The education department made VSV transfer over to Webex this year from adobe which has left alot of teachers confused. They don't know how to use it at the moment and are currently going through a learning curve. Are you doing methods via VSV as well?
If your finding it really hard to hear, contact the teacher and just give them a chat, they are happy to help.
Best of luck

[da_coolest1]

Hey!
Fellow VSV student here. Don't worry about missing anything for Aus/Global Politics, last week was orientation week/launch pad which is essentialy where they tell you to contact your teachers and do a few tasks (like make a study schedule, contact info etc. ). So the first week of submission is this Friday, so don't worry.
The education department made VSV transfer over to Webex this year from adobe which has left alot of teachers confused. They don't know how to use it at the moment and are currently going through a learning curve. Are you doing methods via VSV as well?
If your finding it really hard to hear, contact the teacher and just give them a chat, they are happy to help.
Best of luck

Thanks. I was really worried about VSV. I did get enrolled later than I thought I would but I finished my week 1 tasks on time so that's something. I'm actually pretty fortunate with that because there are a few other people in my class doing VSV who still haven't got their emails and I'm pretty sure they only accept enrolments until Feb 7. Also, I haven't attended any of the online lessons though I did hear about the tech difficulties. Lastly, I'm not doing Methods through VSV but I kinda wish I was. My school doesn't have any teachers qualified to teach Methods 3/4 so we have to video conference with another school's Methods class. Some periods don't perfectly line up so for a few periods, we're just on our own. Also, it's really difficult to hear/see what's happening sometimes  because the camera is so far from the board. It's also hard to ask questions because of that. I think that if this continues, exams are going to be a disaster and I really wanted at the very least a 40+ Honestly, VSV seems better than this arrangement my school set up.  I might bring it up to the principal idk.

[da_coolest1]

Sooo here's a bit of an update. I'm planning on auditioning for my school's production. It was heaps of fun two years ago and it's my last chance to do it so might as well. It's called 'Annie Get Your Gun' which I'm not really familiar with. I was also thinking of applying for a second after-school job at my local pharmacy but... the production rehearsals might coincide with that so... we'll see.

So far, I am living for Year 11. I am surprised at how productive I am. I've done so much this week while still having time to watch Korean dramas, go to work and play video games. I applied for SRC, the Year 7 mentor program and did canteen duty. I am ahead in Bio, Chem and Indo. This guy from Elevate Education gave us some sessions on studying smart and time management. I was a bit salty because he interrupted my study periods to tell us to study but it was entertaining so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Now for the ranting. English is soooooo boring. Why is it mandatory?  We haven't even got to writing essays and I am just overcome by boredom. All the analysing is just ughhh. Our class is doing Invictus and I think it's just not that deep.

Also, my concerns about Methods are growing. Our school doesn't have anyone qualified to teach Methods 3/4 so they arranged for us to video conference another school. I don't think that video conferencing through Webex is an effective way to teach a Maths subject. The camera is a bit far from their whiteboard so we're mainly focusing on deciphering what's written on the board as opposed to just absorbing it. The sound quality isn't the greatest. What our teacher says is just a slur of words to me. Also, I think we're a bit of a hindrance to the other school's class so I don't think this is helping anyone. Also, some of our periods don't match up so our class is completely unsupervised and have practically nothing to do for a period or two. So far, no one in my class has said anything about it (we're practically unsuprevised, no physical teacher with us) so I'm a bit hesitant to say something to the teacher/principal. I feel like this will be a disaster in the making if I don't so I'll just suck it up and tell someone. The actual teacher is great. He explains things very well. If only he taught at our school ;-;

The troubles of being at a rural school.