Problem deciding Year 12 subjects, Advanced or Standard English (1 Viewer)

[trxpleflatt]

Hi everyone!
I go to a selective high school and I'm currently doing these subjects for preliminary and my results (from memory) for them in all the assessment tasks are listed below:

• English Advanced: 11/15 (26th), 20/30 (17th), 13/15 for speech (33th), 29/45 (yearlies 74th) - cumulative rank 35th out of 160
• Biology: 92%(11th), 96%(1st), 96% (1st - cumulative 2nd), 83% (unknown rank, but pretty sure dropped a hell lot)
• Chemistry - 93% (3rd - half yearlies), 22/24, 21/30 (cumulative 13th), 53/65 (81%) (yearlies - didnt study)
• Physics - changed the Senior Science for Y12
• Maths 3U - 96% (8th), 90%(cumulative 12th), 88%
• Agriculture - 96%, 100% (half yearly), 100% (cumulative 1st), havent got yearlies back

Total: 13 Units

Problem: I feel I am not going to cope with 13U, because I am already feeling the pressure of just studying 11 units (I basically did not attempt Physics at all, slept through the exams after attempting half the questions). My careers advisor also tells me 13U will be too much. I also do not know whether I should move across to Standard Eng.

1) Please help me pick what science subject I should drop. I love all my sciences and love to study them, but I can't let them go LOL. Here are the things running through my mind:
- I've been told around 28% of Chem students, 33% of Bio and 70% of Senior Science Students get a Band 6 (and around 3 people each year get top 10 in the state )
- I heard that an 84 in chemistry equals a 94 in senior science? I've heard Agriculture and Senior Science scales crap (I am scared because I cannot guarantee I will have great marks in all my subjects next year, although I do try extremely hard in all of them)

• I like Chemistry and go tutoring for it. This is good because my tutor teaches things in advance, forces me to write summaries ... and so, I feel a bit more prepared. Apparently it scales the highest out of all the sciences? Chemistry is recommended for Medicine T_T
  Cons: A lot of content, I get only okay marks in the prelims (and I never feel that I will get 100%)
• I love Agriculture, get good marks... Cons: a lot of content, heard it scales bad? I haven't got my yearlies back but I'm sure I didn't answer many questions properly and my rank will drop because people here at my school are so freaking smart.
• Biology - I do enjoy it a lot, although there's a lot of content. As you can see in my yearly mark, I can easily do crap and drop many ranks. Scared of the genetic and evolution topic.
• Senior Science: scared that the scaling is bad and that a few marks lost in an assessment can make my rank crap and screw everything up. PRO: possibly did the third topic in IPT ?(got 94 for HSC - is this bad) Heard it's easy? I looked at the dot points and they look easy to understand.

2) English Advanced or English Standard: I hate English. This is what I do when I get an assessment task: spending the entire time (since receiving the notification) preparing for it and ignore my other subjects. I cannot make up great essays on the spot (I always get a mind block, spend hours thinking of a thesis and topic sentences when writing practice essays). I also suck at writing creative writing on the spot. I suck in expressing my already non-existent ideas. My marks for creative writing are okay though (13/15, 12/15) if I write them the day before an exam and regurgitate. For my first assessment, I did pretty okay for my essay (11/15), but for my yearlies practice and real essay - I got a C (around 8/15). Cumulative rank:35/160
So, should I do Advanced or Standard?
1) Standard: Like most people, I heard Standard scales crap and only like 30 people in the state get band 6 per year. But I like the topics (e.g. Wilfred Owen) studied and like the fact there is one less text needed to be studied. But also, I can't guarantee I will even ace in Standard with my crappy writing skills. I've heard (from teachers) you will get a bit more time practicing out your skills.
2) Advanced: I feel that the texts studied are so long! :O I have to do a Shakespeare play, a 500 word novel, another play, some poems and 8 freaking long speeches D: I know that a Band 4 in Adv is worser than a Band 5 in Standard. I heard (from teachers) this is a demanding course, and is very fast paced Like everyone else, I have heard that Advanced scales higher. People have told me my rank is great, and that I shouldn't be moving across to Standard. I am going to also ask for my teacher's opinion tomorrow.

I'm sorry for the long post but all this is what is currently going through my head right now. I am so frustrated. Please help me and end my misery! =D
Any advice or tips you give me will be greatly appreciated. Please tell me your personal experiences!

 

[LoveHateSchool]

Hey 2013er

First thing with your rank in Adv Eng, I wouldn't drop to standard.
If you want to do 11 units, if you hated physics and are worried about senior science scaling, why not just drop physics and not pick snr up?
It'll give you more time for your other subjects?

 

[Shadowdude]

1. NEVER drop to Standard English
2. Try the Sciences you have and figure out if you have to drop them later. Why? Because you probably may find you can cope with the subjects you have. There is no magic number of units so stop thinking you have to drop something.
3. If you pick subjects because of how well they scale, you're an idiot.

 

[LoveHateSchool]

See you could try 13 units to sample, but honestly if you're dropping physics anyway and why not just not pick up snr and have 11 units.

 

[interesting]

drop senior science and keep english advanced

 

[LoveHateSchool]

^See now there's two votes for that decision. But honestly it's your decision, you could try 13 for a bit and drop the two unit subject you hate the most. But seeing as you are dropping physics, why would you want to pick up snr science in its place?

 

[enoilgam]

DONT DROP TO STANDARD. It aligns poorly i.e. less than 5% get band 5 with only 64/32,000 getting a band 6 in the subject last year. We really need to start a beware of standard thread.

 

[trxpleflatt]

but what happens if i do crap in adv english and get a band 4? isnt that worser than a band 5 in standard?

 

[isenseven]

I know that a Band 4 in Adv is worser than a Band 5 in Standard.

Definitely Standard for you buddy.
Na jks, do Adv it's really not that hard if you put effort in. I used to suck at Adv in year 11 coming around 100/150 BUT i stuck to it and put the work in and finished 4/150 so i recommend it.