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March 28, 2024, 10:31:36 pm

Author Topic: Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?  (Read 5925 times)

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Coolmate

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Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?
« on: July 06, 2020, 08:43:58 pm »
+3
Hi Everyone! :D

I am currently preparing for the Trial HSC exams and was just wondering what others (who has gone through the Trials) did before their trials. Did you focus more on past paper questions or more on notes? And do you have any tips?

Thanks!
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Justin_L

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Re: Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?
« Reply #1 on: July 06, 2020, 09:09:45 pm »
+3
Also on that note, I think it would be nice to hear people's experiences of how they spent or are spending the Term 2 holidays before trials, and any tips for making the best use of this time.
« Last Edit: July 06, 2020, 09:11:33 pm by Justin_L »
Да здравствует революция государственного модератора

owidjaja

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Re: Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?
« Reply #2 on: July 06, 2020, 10:04:27 pm »
+8
Hey there,

During the holidays, I did a mix of finishing off my Major Work (since it was due on the first day of Trials) and past papers. I will probably say to focus more on the past papers over notes but after Trials, use that to develop your notes to prepare for HSC. This is because you don't have a lot of time leading up to Trials, in comparison to HSC.

The way I structured my study time was to study for the "opposite" subject the next day. For example, I might study Advanced English on Day 1, and then on Day 2 I'll study for Mathematics. This just keeps my brain a bit more refreshed, especially since they're both completely different subject.

Hope this helps!
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fun_jirachi

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Re: Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?
« Reply #3 on: July 06, 2020, 11:14:31 pm »
+6
Hey, just wanted to pitch in as well :)

I did a lot of relaxing during the holidays, especially in comparison to the amount of study people usually associate with Trials - mainly to maintain normality and familiarity. Also, by treating it as just another exam block despite the clear difference also helped with reducing stress :)

When I was studying I mostly used subjects I was good at (maths and maths basically) as a sort of backup when I felt I was being unproductive with my other study. Especially with how 3U was a 2 hour exam that I could smash out quickly, it did the job really well - perhaps there's some similar subject and task you can fit into a similar timeframe to do a similar job :)

Hi Everyone! :D

I am currently preparing for the Trial HSC exams and was just wondering what others (who has gone through the Trials) did before their trials. Did you focus more on past paper questions or more on notes? And do you have any tips?

Thanks!
Coolmate 8)

I mainly focused on notes for English - but past paper questions for everything else. I was totally lost with English at the time and spamming notes wasn't bad - but especially where you could get quick and repeatable exam practice (past papers!), definitely do that for Trials, exactly for the reasons owidjaja said :)

Also on that note, I think it would be nice to hear people's experiences of how they spent or are spending the Term 2 holidays before trials, and any tips for making the best use of this time.

There's no tried and tested formula that works for everyone, and to be honest there isn't really enough time to both work something out for yourself then employ it. If possible, look to first try what you've done to make yourself successful in the first place (don't fix what ain't broke!), trust yourself and believe in yourself - trust that your strats work! If not, maybe there's going to be something that comes up in this thread that'll help you out :)
Spoiler
HSC 2018: Mod Hist [88] | 2U Maths [98]
HSC 2019: Physics [92] | Chemistry [93] | English Adv [87] | 3U Maths [98] | 4U Maths [97]
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Coolmate

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Re: Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?
« Reply #4 on: July 07, 2020, 06:12:06 pm »
0
Hey there,

During the holidays, I did a mix of finishing off my Major Work (since it was due on the first day of Trials) and past papers. I will probably say to focus more on the past papers over notes but after Trials, use that to develop your notes to prepare for HSC. This is because you don't have a lot of time leading up to Trials, in comparison to HSC.

The way I structured my study time was to study for the "opposite" subject the next day. For example, I might study Advanced English on Day 1, and then on Day 2 I'll study for Mathematics. This just keeps my brain a bit more refreshed, especially since they're both completely different subject.

Hope this helps!

Hey, just wanted to pitch in as well :)

I did a lot of relaxing during the holidays, especially in comparison to the amount of study people usually associate with Trials - mainly to maintain normality and familiarity. Also, by treating it as just another exam block despite the clear difference also helped with reducing stress :)

When I was studying I mostly used subjects I was good at (maths and maths basically) as a sort of backup when I felt I was being unproductive with my other study. Especially with how 3U was a 2 hour exam that I could smash out quickly, it did the job really well - perhaps there's some similar subject and task you can fit into a similar timeframe to do a similar job :)

I mainly focused on notes for English - but past paper questions for everything else. I was totally lost with English at the time and spamming notes wasn't bad - but especially where you could get quick and repeatable exam practice (past papers!), definitely do that for Trials, exactly for the reasons owidjaja said :)

There's no tried and tested formula that works for everyone, and to be honest there isn't really enough time to both work something out for yourself then employ it. If possible, look to first try what you've done to make yourself successful in the first place (don't fix what ain't broke!), trust yourself and believe in yourself - trust that your strats work! If not, maybe there's going to be something that comes up in this thread that'll help you out :)

Hi owidjaja and fun_jirachi!

Thankyou for your insights and experiences about Trials study, this was really helpful.
My Trials start mid-August, and was wondering if you think it's a good idea to continue revising over notes, then do a couple (or few) weeks of past paper questions?

Thanks again,
Coolmate 8)
🤯HSC 2020:🤯
🔥Advanced Maths🔥 - 📚Advanced English📚 - ☄️Physics☄️ - ✌Biology✌ - 🙏SOR 1🙏 - 👨‍💻IPT👨‍💻


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fun_jirachi

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Re: Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?
« Reply #5 on: July 07, 2020, 09:52:57 pm »
+4
This is going to sound like a terrible answer, but it depends. You could be that 24/7 grinder type of student or that intuitive learner or anywhere in between. Different things work for different people.

That being said, if you have the time, definitely! More importantly, though, you need the drive to grind out those notes weeks in advance - there's no point bogging yourself down now (6 weeks is that touchy timeframe where it's not close enough but not far enough either). And most importantly, it needs to work for you - don't just look at the person next to you and copy them because it works for them :) If you find that it works and in particular if it has worked for you in the past, keep at it! Don't suddenly change things up for the sake of it - one person could see past papers as efficient but not really take as much away from them as someone else.
Spoiler
HSC 2018: Mod Hist [88] | 2U Maths [98]
HSC 2019: Physics [92] | Chemistry [93] | English Adv [87] | 3U Maths [98] | 4U Maths [97]
ATAR: 99.05

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Guide Links:
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UCAT Question Compilation/FAQ (2020)
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Coolmate

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Re: Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?
« Reply #6 on: July 08, 2020, 03:17:18 pm »
0
This is going to sound like a terrible answer, but it depends. You could be that 24/7 grinder type of student or that intuitive learner or anywhere in between. Different things work for different people.

That being said, if you have the time, definitely! More importantly, though, you need the drive to grind out those notes weeks in advance - there's no point bogging yourself down now (6 weeks is that touchy timeframe where it's not close enough but not far enough either). And most importantly, it needs to work for you - don't just look at the person next to you and copy them because it works for them :) If you find that it works and in particular if it has worked for you in the past, keep at it! Don't suddenly change things up for the sake of it - one person could see past papers as efficient but not really take as much away from them as someone else.

Hey fun_jirachi

Thankyou for your reply, this is great advice I appreciate it :)

Coolmate 8)
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Joseph41

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Re: Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?
« Reply #7 on: June 03, 2021, 03:30:37 pm »
+2
Class of 2020 (and earlier) - now that you've been there, done that, what are your tips? :)

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Re: Pre-Trials --> What Did You Do?
« Reply #8 on: June 03, 2021, 06:12:54 pm »
+4
Class of 2020 (and earlier) - now that you've been there, done that, what are your tips? :)

This thread is a throwback! ;D

Here is what I suggest:

1. !!!Practice Questions!!!
I would 100% suggest doing LOTS of practice questions including those from the NESA website, ask your teachers for extra exam practice style questions and even doing questions from VCE, QCE, WACE etc. (But make sure they are relevant to your syllabus for NSW). Getting to a level where you know that whatever is on that exam paper, I already have either come across a similar question or have a strategy on how to answer that question.

The HSC is about how to apply the knowledge you have learned in class to different types of questions or scenarios

2. Start early.
You think you have time, but each day will pass, and eventually, you will wish you had started earlier; If you did start early, once you get to the exam you will notice the difference.

3. Notes for subjects
I would have two documents for my notes, one for overall notes and a second new one for a condensed version of your notes. Set a goal like, "my Biology notes are only going to be 5 pages long" or have notes that contain the necessary things, for quick referral in the morning before the exam.

4. Rank Improvement
This is the last time (for most subjects) where you can significantly affect your rank in a subject. If you think about it, your current rank, whatever it may be, is not final but can be changed significantly depending on how you do in your trial exam. This is an excellent opportunity as trials are usually weighted pretty heavy (30% - 40%).

5. Now or Never
Go into the exam room with an attitude like, "I will smash this exam not matter what it takes, I did the work, I have put in 120% and now it's my time to show it", and walk into the exam room feeling excited and confident that you will be able to answer any question they are likely to give you (even if you really aren't) --> Kind of do reverse psychologically

6. Question Plan
Have a plan for each type of question and how to approach them for each subject. For Example, what does a 3 mark question need and what structure? Or what does an 8 mark question look like, the different types and what structure will I need?

7. Game Plan
Also, have some sort of schedule/ game plan with goals and how to achieve these goals and envision yourself looking at your paper after its marked

8. Review Constantly
Flashcards are good for this, but once you study something or do a practice question, come back to that piece of material about 3 times every day, this will ensure that over time, your brain recognises this material as "important" and should store it in your long term memory for easier retrieval when sitting the exam.

9. Every Minute Has to Count
If on public transport you could go over flashcards, read notes or think about how you are going to answer some practice questions. If waiting for something (like 10 minutes), that could be an extra 10 minutes of study. Over time these 10 minute or longer will add up to hours and eventually many hours. For Example, if you had to wait for a bus for 10 minutes everyday (including weekends), over the course of a week, it will compound to 1 hour and 10 minutes of extra study. If this continued for a month, then there is an extra 4 hours and 40 minutes

10. Examples
Make sure that under each and every syllabus dot point, you are able to provide at least two examples for that dot point. This is extremely helpful when in exam situations, as you see the question. I would go about it like this:

1. Identify what dot points the question is using
2. Think about the syllabus and identify where these dot points are coming from; Like what module and sub-topic
3. Pull out the examples to show a depth of understanding and also support your answer

Believe in yourself and know that you have learned what you need to know over the course of the year

Goodluck with your trials everyone. You CAN do it!
Coolmate 8)
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