Does the school you go to REALLY count? (1 Viewer)

Chibios

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Well I go to a selective school and our year adviser is always telling us that "your so lucky to go to SGHS since your cohorts will pull you up."

That got me thinking.

Do you think its fair that nerd factories get scaled up higher than regular schools?

Do you think that scaling actually exists?

Do you feel wonderment for the people who do phenomenally well attending comprehensive high schools?

I think that it doesn't really matter, as long as you do your best and kick ass at what you do.
 

Black Hawker

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Yeah, just be good at what you do. Doesn't matter where you go.

Since going to a selective school, I've kinda lost a bit of self-esteem/self confidence...
 

Artemis.

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I go to a rural public school, and although I may not have the advantage of my cohort "pulling me up", I have fantastic teachers and small classes, which I find really good. If you work hard you'll get a great result, wherever you go.
 

Chibios

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Black Hawker said:
Yeah, just be good at what you do. Doesn't matter where you go.

Since going to a selective school, I've kinda lost a bit of self-esteem/self confidence...
I suppose that's true, but a good Ruse-ian friend told me about a guy in the 07 HSC who did pretty shithouse in it and still got 85 ('cause of the scaling).

Did you also hear that their median UAI this year is 99.45?
 

Undermyskin

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How can your school cohorts affect your marks? You're phenomenal, you come first. You're crap, 'good luck!'

This's been an issue itching lots of people and it's time to suppress it with a certain answer: NO.

Wow. 99.45! That's mad.

Um, 85? Too crap. The scaling for UAI is based on the whole State results, not any individual school per se. That's how he got 85 but not 90. By the end of the day, each student has to work for himself.

Hang on, I think it does count. Great teachers and wonderful fellow students can keep your motivation up and that in turn 'scale' your UAI to your best.
 
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Undermyskin said:
How can your school cohorts affect your marks? You're phenomenal, you come first. You're crap, 'good luck!'

This's been an issue itching lots of people and it's time to suppress it with a certain answer: NO.

Wow. 99.45! That's mad.

Um, 85? Too crap. The scaling for UAI is based on the whole State results, not any individual school per se. That's how he got 85 but not 90. By the end of the day, each student has to work for himself.

Hang on, I think it does count. Great teachers and wonderful fellow students can keep your motivation up and that in turn 'scale' your UAI to your best.

I believe that when people say that a "smarter" cohort pulls your marks up is because they will produce higher HSC EXAMS MARKS which will in turn be adopted by you (depending on your HSC ASSESSMENT RANKING) and produce your HSC MARK. I'm not to sure about scaling, wether is exists or not, another kettle of....stuff.
Cheers.
 

Zephyrio

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I don't think the school you go to will affect your results. If it does, I don't imagine it to be that big.

Just focus on your own studies, and don't fall into the trap of "oh, my school's ranked highly, and it won't matter if I slack off because my peers will push me up."
 
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Black Hawker

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Chibios said:
I suppose that's true, but a good Ruse-ian friend told me about a guy in the 07 HSC who did pretty shithouse in it and still got 85 ('cause of the scaling).

Did you also hear that their median UAI this year is 99.45?
I'm not sure about the exact UAI, but it's definitely something around that.
 

nymphae

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It's something my Latin teacher tells us all the time.

"Girls, it doesn't matter that the mark difference between the eight of you is twenty percent (or more), because those of you in the top half of the class will pull the others up come HSC time,"

It has to do with how your internal assessment mark, I think. I'm not exactly sure. Mainly because I tune out at the information sessions. And my mother's a teacher. She starts going on about HSC marks and I think of the best way to get away from her before she starts ranting.
 

bassistx

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We actually heard the opposite. We heard that the crap people in your class PULL YOU DOWN.
So you could be brilliant, but because of those dumb people, you're screwed.

Our Italian class is worried about this like crazy. We're great and then there's girl who doesn't know crap. She's doing Continuers when she should be doing - Beginners lol. Seriously, Beginners isn't even the right place to start for her. She should learn English first FFS.

But yeah. I don't think the school matters. Does it? Maybe they just started those "rumors" so people would go to all those fancy selective/private schools? Shrugs.
 

risole91

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my school ranked 542 in 2007.
is that bad, or what.

highest UAI in 07 was 80.5
 

tommykins

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risole91 said:
my school ranked 542 in 2007.
is that bad, or what.

highest UAI in 07 was 80.5
Really? What school? It shouldn't matter though, mine was ranked 26th but there were some pretty horrible UAI's (to our standard...)


School cohort does effect your internal mark, otherwise it'd be impossible to determine an internal mark.
I'll use averages to make it alot simpler -
Say school A averages 90 in English, school B averages 70.

Now, if you were a student in school A, and say you ranked 20/100 in that school, that ranking will beat a school B student that is ranked 5-10/100, why? Because you've managed to maintain a ranking (although rawly low compared to school B student) in a cohort that is very solid, as the average is 90, but maintaining a rank of 5-10/100 is impressive, but if that student attended school A, then that ranking wouldn't be too likely to say.

I'm not adding external marks into the example, but you should get the drift.
 

veronica6535

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Gee if the school really does pull you down then im FKD... (love the abbreviations)

My school like ranked bottom 80 or something.. and so many people dont even qualify for a UAI.. terrible
 

MathsIsWeird

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Yes, your cohort does pull you up, there was a thread about this not sure where but basicly your marks get pulled up a bit along wth your cohorts.
Find the thread i think it was the thing callled moderation but not sure, wait for the smart peoples to answer you ;)
 
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risole91

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tommykins said:
Really? What school? It shouldn't matter though, mine was ranked 26th but there were some pretty horrible UAI's (to our standard...)


School cohort does effect your internal mark, otherwise it'd be impossible to determine an internal mark.
I'll use averages to make it alot simpler -
Say school A averages 90 in English, school B averages 70.

Now, if you were a student in school A, and say you ranked 20/100 in that school, that ranking will beat a school B student that is ranked 5-10/100, why? Because you've managed to maintain a ranking (although rawly low compared to school B student) in a cohort that is very solid, as the average is 90, but maintaining a rank of 5-10/100 is impressive, but if that student attended school A, then that ranking wouldn't be too likely to say.

I'm not adding external marks into the example, but you should get the drift.
Leumeah High School.
Yeah i can kind of understand it.
Ive dropped my goal from 90 to 80, although secretly i still aim for 90, but this way i won't be too dissapointed if i don't get it.
But in saying that, 3 years ago we did get 5 people above 90, which is solid.

Im just going to do my best and aim for the highest ranks, what else can i do.
except change to James Ruse lol.
 

live.fast

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If your cohort, for a certain subject, all ended up with some awesome HSC exam marks, then your assessment marks (and therefore overall HSC mark) will be awesome too - because your assessment mark comes from the HSC exam marks, assigned according to internal ranking (i'm pretty sure that's how it goes?)

So yeah, logically, selective schools = more smart people, according to those selective school entry exams etc = better HSC marks in the end = better assessment marks, even if you're coming 10th or 20th etc = better overall HSC marks = school does count, in THAT way.

Then again, screwing up an assessment, in a selective school probably means a big drop in your internal rankings! Whereas, at a little unknown school, you might still be 1st internally, even with the screw up! And if you still ace your HSC exams, then you were better off at the little unknown school, than at the selective school - because otherwise, your HSC marks would have been assigned to someone else's assessment marks, rather than to your own!

So I guess school does count, but sometimes it can be an advantage being at a crappy school, as much as it might be an advantage to be at a top of the state selective school.

However, this talk of 'marks being pulled up' has occured - I do know of one case where, in my history extension class, me and some other guy were the only ones left at the end of the year. I ended up 1st internally, the other guy 2nd (obviously loll) and after the hsc, our marks for the exam were 49/50, and his 45/50. However, although my assessment mark was 49/50 (I came 1st, so I got the 1st best HSC exam result as my assessment mark), his wasn't 45/50 (as I would have expected, because he came 2nd, so he gets assigned the 2nd best HSC exam result as his assessment mark - which SHOULD have been 45/50). He ended up with an assessment mark of 48/50 instead. So I know that my mark must have pulled him up (not trying to boast or whatever, just giving a real-life example of marks actually being 'pulled up'). So yeah - if you have a smart cohort, then its possible that, during moderation, you won't just get assigned your HSC assessment marks according to rank, but they might be pulled up in the process also - as to whether they can be 'pulled down' as well, i've got no clue.

oh and btw - read one of those threads on 'HSC moderation' before you start asking me 'what the hell you on about???' - you might understand what I've written here better after you read up on moderation. In any case!

YOUR SCHOOL DOES COUNT. As to 'how' it counts, or how advantageous/disadvantageous it is... that really all depends on your circumstances. :)
 

bassistx

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My school was ranked 200.
Oh yeah, public <3 lol.

I guess the conclusion is that schools do count. But you see people who graduate from Wiley Park with a UAI of 98+ lol. And they're like in the bottom 3 or 5 or whatever. So it shouldn't be something to worry about.

Worrying about your school means that you don't think you're good enough and you're depending on everybody else to do great and pull you up lol.
 

me121

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Chibios said:
Did you also hear that their median UAI this year is 99.45?
But how would the school even know what all their students got?


MathsIsWeird said:
Yes, your cohort does pull you up, there was a thread about this not sure where but basicly your marks get pulled up a bit along wth your cohorts.
This is not entirelly true. Your cohort does not pull you up. Firstly your cohorts performance will only ever affect your school assessment marks which is only 50% of your HSC mark. Secondlly, if you do bad in the school assessments and then bad in the HSC examination, then your school assessment mark will still be bad. I think with moderation they allign the means and then the top mark. Meaning that if you are way below others in your school assessment and you are way behind others in the hsc exam, your school assesment will not be moderated hugely upwards
 
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