Should I drop Extension 2 maths? (1 Viewer)

[wjdyeon]

Hi!

So I was wondering whether if it was worth it dropping extension 2 maths? Currently I'm undertaking advanced english, physics, chemistry, SOR 1 and, of course, extension 2 maths.
I've talked to some people and most of them have told me I need to think smart and choose the decision that will boost my ATAR. To be honest, extension 2 maths is hard, much harder than extension 1 maths and I'm worried that since it consumes most of my time, I won't be able to perform well in other subjects. Also, I did some ATAR calculations and if I perform well in all of my other subjects, doing extension 2 won't affect my ATAR in the sense that it'll increase my results drastically. However, it did increase my marks a lot in the case that I didn't perform well.
My performance in other subjects is either good or average, and though my maths mark did drop in term 1, I am confident and motivated to boost it up (and it has so far been going well). But I'm really worried whether I should just drop extension 2 and focus on other subjects while taking that risk or whether I should just do it since there's that high scaling 1 unit that really backs me up well.

What's your advise?

 

[Everwinter]

are you struggling in ext-2? Are you interested in ext-2? Are you struggling in other subjects due to ext-2? What is your position in class for ext-2? Provide more information about your situation I guess

 

[thetestdude]

Probably drop Extension 2. Extension 1 still scales quite well and dropping Extension 2 means you will get more time to study for your other subjects, which should get you good marks in your other subjects, provided you study regularly and are up to date with content etc.

 

[wjdyeon]

are you struggling in ext-2? Are you interested in ext-2? Are you struggling in other subjects due to ext-2? What is your position in class for ext-2? Provide more information about your situation I guess

My extension 2 grades aren't really good but people (who I've talked to) have said that since extension 2 scales really well that even a "bad" mark wouldn't affect my ATAR too much. I got 43% for my extension 2 exam and probably came last because I really wasn't prepared for the exam. Also I'm not performing bad in all of my other subjects - mostly average to top - but I did drop to the bottom half (from top) for my math extension 1. Also, one of the main reasons I'm contemplating is that to be honest I haven't "studied" 4u "properly" yet. Year 12 term 1 has been really tough due to personal issues and it has affected my overall grades. So this situation kind of makes me hopeful that I will do well when I study. But at the same time I know I shouldn't be looking forward to a risky future since I might not produce the best results even IF I actually study.
Also, I'm not sure what will advantage me more; doing extension 2 and embracing its advantages while not performing so well in other subjects OR doing well in extension 1 maths and overall other subjects too. And dropping extension 2 brings me to 10 units - there's also a risk in that.

 

[Qeru]

My extension 2 grades aren't really good but people (who I've talked to) have said that since extension 2 scales really well that even a "bad" mark wouldn't affect my ATAR too much.

You usually need roughly a low 70 to high 60 (in rare cases) raw mark for a band 6. So this isn't neccesarily true. A 43% would not align very well (and Im assuming your school exam is much easier than the actual hsc).

Also, one of the main reasons I'm contemplating is that to be honest I haven't "studied" 4u "properly" yet. Year 12 term 1 has been really tough due to personal issues and it has affected my overall grades. So this situation kind of makes me hopeful that I will do well when I study. But at the same time I know I shouldn't be looking forward to a risky future since I might not produce the best results even IF I actually study.

I would suggest you put in some effort first before seeing whether you want to drop 4U. Without studying you have no indication of how well you would do. I would suggest keeping 4U for one more term (1 term of sacrificing a bit of study for other subjects won't really hurt that much), and then decide.

 

[Everwinter]

Drop it then, ext-2 technically don't offer an advantage in my opinion due to its massive time consumption, it would be painful for you to catch up while having an enormous work. I don't really think 10 unit is risky because no matter how many units you have, the exam should reflect your ability, so less unit less stress and work, meaning higher potential. Another way is that you can continue ext-2 until you see your result for the exam in this term, so you can have a better measure. I think its only like 1 extra month right?