grades? uh oh

[matrix0978]

Heres my problem. Im 14, great at computer and electronics and etc. But my school grades are going down. Im in 8th grade... 6th and 7th were easy for me All straight A's. Math being my best subject coming easy for my first quarter of 8th grrade i get a C in that class. And B's in all my other classes besides PE. I seemed to be doing everything the same as the past 2 years as in organizing and writing down assignments. And i dont understand. Im also good in other subjects.... they all come easy and i dont know why my grades are slipping. and if i dont get good gradese in 8th grade then i will be put into gay classes in highschool that are to easy and i know i would be able to handle hard classes in highschool. Im getting to p***ed..... Any ideas or suggestions?

[bart of borg]

Tell your teachers what you just wrote here...ask them what they think you need to do to bring your marks up. Remember, The higher you go in school the more work you have to put in to stay on top. Doing the same things as you did in grade 6 & 7 for grade 8 is probably not enough.

[matrix0978]

Yeah but the thing is all my teachers are freeaks..... none of them are down to earth. Only 1 of my teachers is down to earth... i guess i could try but... dont think it would help much..

[ripken204]

i have the same problem, except my school is private and so hard, last yrs have been fine but this year im doing crappier, high 80's and low 90's suck a**. the thing that ide have to suggest it to get off ur computer and hit the books,mayb if i did that then ide be back gettting all 90's again

[mark]

What bart and ripken say is correct. If you can find a good teacher and that teacher sees you are serious, the they will be serious also. Remember also that to stay at the top of your abilities in classes, you need to stay up with everything that is going on and move ahead of the program by learning what will be coming up and anything extra you can. If you get ahead and stay ahead, the classes will be easier and will re-inforce what you have already learned. Some teachers don't mind helping you get ahead of the curve.

DL

[matrix0978]

Aight i will try all of these. I think im going not get on the computer as much and hit the books. I also and going to go ahead in the books.....

any other ideas?

[zprog]

Dude, I hate to break it to ya.

Take your computer and shut it down. Hide it somewhere. Try to use school computers or a shared home computer if you need it for school.

If you have enough time to be posting in MSFN, then you are not spending enough time studying. Try this. Get a pencil and a notebook or notepad. Turn off TV, computer, and any other distractions (things you normally like to do) and start writing about your life. You know, issues ongoing - President Bush, Iraq, how you like that girl that sits next to you, how to calculate pi.

If you can't sit there and write feverishly for an hour (and you want to go to your computer and check MSFN or go watch TV, or do something that you know is not productive), you know that you are wasting too much time.

The number one thing people mostly regret in high school is having wasted too much time. Try, instead of sitting online all day, to cut yourself off from the internet and start actually programming (if that turns you on) - make a cool text editor, figure out different ways to calculate pi, or get into USACO (http://www.usaco.org). It's free, it's online, it's awesome!!!

Also, I suggest reading. I don't know what you like to read, but I really hate fiction (anything that would remotely resemble English class). I also can't stand those histories or biographies. If you are like me, I would suggest Simon Singh's Fermat's Enigma: The Quest to Solve the World's Greatest Mathematical Problem.

Other than that, study. If things came to you easy before, then you are not used to studying. There will come a moment when you have to realize that things just don't make sense anymore. You actually have to study and learn and do things.

I actually think that this is not your fault that you were put under these conditions. It is the fundamental flaw behind Elementary School education. They instill in you a sense that all learning must come from the teacher, and to learn ahead (where if the class is on Chapter 7, you want to be reading Chapter 15) is a crime. When you get into High School or even Middle School, that limitation has been taken away. You are instead encouraged to "explore" on your own, and since you have never done that, you are unsure of how to do that. Whereas before things just flowed smoothly from one topic to the other, now they just don't make sense.

If any of these things apply to you, then you are wasting too much time having fun and not putting enough effort into doing actual work. If no, then oh well. I tried.

[mark]

Read what zprog said and then read it again and then read it again. No truer words could be spoken about education.

[phoenix_nf]

i stick with ask your teachers...but prepare well with the subject before meeting them. in that way you will not look like a complete fool.

[phoenix_nf]

note i mentioned fool as some teachers like the students to prepare themselves well. else if they are the bad ones they will ridicule and make fun of you. (we had one teacher like that in high school.) so better be prepared.

[Jeremy]

I know how students feel about teachers. There are no worse teachers than those at my old school (A.W.E.C. - Annapolis West Education Centre). I swear its the core of corruption and conspiracy there. I see right through all my teachers. I classify them all as absentminded and naive. But as for you still doing the same amount of work and getting lower grades, that's odd. Maybe your teachers notice you daydreaming and decide to be harsher with the way they mark to give you more incentive to succeed in school? I look beyond the system anyway. I got called to Sudent Services for voicing my opinion on an English test. The robots just say, "Doing it once is better than failing it and doing it all over again", when the crap that we do the first time is what I was finding the least relevance in. I mean, Romeo and Juliet...people PLEASE!!!

Cheers,

Jeremy

PS: I'm 19, second semester of Grade 12.

[Zxian]

Well, as someone who's been through what you're going through, matrix, I can say that I understand.

My best suggestion would be to follow what everyone else has said, and make sure that you stay on top of things. I know it's cliche, and easier said than done, but in the end you'll end up doing less work to get to where you are.

I'm in third year engineering physics at University of British Columbia, and let me tell you, it's not easy! I'm taking 7 courses, as well as juggling tutoring (for others, not me), a girlfriend, and trying to keep my place clean.

All I can say is that you just gotta buckle down, hammer away at the work, and you'll be done before you know it. I can remember just two weeks ago, I had a lab that took about 20 hours total to do the analysis for (I'm not exaggerating, either). I had done a bit of it, but last sunday, I just sat at my desk from about 10:30 in the morning and just beat the crap out of my lab book.

Another really good study tip: Reward yourself.

The first thing that you should reward yourself with is food. Your brain needs energy to work, and without food, it has no energy.

Second, after 45 mins of work, allow yourself 5 mins to do something else (like post here). A small break from your work will actually keep you more focused while you are working.

Third, make sure that you get enough sleep. You're 14 and your body is growing. In order to grow, your body needs food and sleep. Be sure to get lots of both.

If you have any questions about studying or math, physics, chemistry, etc, PM me. I'd be glad to let you know the things that I've learned from experience.

Hang in there!

[matrix0978]

Thanks everyone i hope all this helps!.... ill tell you what my grades are at the end of the quarter!

[epic]

We will yell at you if you come back

[sven]

my rules: listen in class.

for me, thats the best way. chemistry: listen, math: listen. thats how i do it, and it worjks for me. you have to find out what type of learner you are, and what your mind is made for.

im visual/audible. anything i see or hear i remember. but reading... not so good. my mind is set on math and problem solving. i have high marks in chemistry, math, and physics. french and english... not so good.

find how you learn, and use it.

also, unlike me, not leaving things to the last minute might help (if you do that)