If you are in year 11, read this first. (1 Viewer)

withoutaface

Premium Member
Joined
Jul 14, 2004
Messages
15,098
Gender
Male
HSC
2004
I've created this to hopefully stem the flow of "I'm in year 11, should I do 4u?" threads that have been coming into this forum of late.

Points to note:

1. Your 3u marks should be up around 70%. This is by no means set in stone, because of varying test difficulties etc, but if, for example, you're getting 40% in 3u I'd strongly advise you against 4u.
2. You should love maths. Nothing else, unless you are extremely talented, will give you enough motivation to get through this course.
3. You must be prepared to give a substantial amount of your study time to 4u (50+% of your study time should go to 3 and 4u study).
4. If your teacher says you're not 4u material, they're probably right.
5. If you can't get through the course without spending $100 a week on tutoring, don't do it.

FAQ
Is 4u hard?
Yes.
Is it rewarding?
Yes.
Will I have to have early morning/late afternoon classes?
Depends on your school, but if you're at a selective school or a school with a lot of people then probably not.
Does 4u scale well?
Only if you work hard. Doing a subject just for the scaling is never a good idea.

If anyone wants to suggest anything else to add to this thread just post it underneath.
 

velox

Retired
Joined
Mar 19, 2004
Messages
5,521
Location
Where the citi never sleeps.
Gender
Male
HSC
N/A
Slide Rule, you will find that the BOS can restrict you. If the school doesn't have the capacity for you to do the subject (i.e class is full), they can restrict you. Trust me i've been down that avenue and you wont get anywhere.
 

KFunk

Psychic refugee
Joined
Sep 19, 2004
Messages
3,323
Location
Sydney
Gender
Male
HSC
2005
Threatening to contact the BOS worked for me; it took about a four or five week fight to get into 4-Unit (because we were "full"). If there's a will there's a way.
 

Sparcod

Hello!
Joined
Dec 31, 2004
Messages
2,085
Location
Suburbia
Gender
Male
HSC
2006
That's so stupid.
A 4-unit student going to tutoring. I don't why its funny. If you do 4-unit, you don't need help, you should be doing everything by yourself. Also, 4-unit students are smart. They don't need them. ONLY DO IT IF YOU ARE SMART.
 

Sparcod

Hello!
Joined
Dec 31, 2004
Messages
2,085
Location
Suburbia
Gender
Male
HSC
2006
FAQ...
at the average selective school, how many students do 4-unit maths?


what is the drop-out rate out of 4-unit maths?


how's it different to 3-unit maths in terms of content?


what if you fail IT?
 

David_O

Member
Joined
Jun 24, 2005
Messages
95
Location
Auburn
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
N/A
I've found Sydney Boys papers considerably harder than CSSA when it comes to non-conics questions.

joeylike2hiphop said:
man that is so fucken good!!!are your 4u exams really easy?
He's probably referring to HSC mark though.
 

KFunk

Psychic refugee
Joined
Sep 19, 2004
Messages
3,323
Location
Sydney
Gender
Male
HSC
2005
Smart_Dunce said:
FAQ...
at the average selective school, how many students do 4-unit maths?
I go to an average selective school and about a third of the students in year 12 do 4-unit maths.


Smart_Dunce said:
what is the drop-out rate out of 4-unit maths?
I suspect that this might be quite variable. At my school something like 5% of students that take 4-unit mathematics end up dropping the course.

Smart_Dunce said:
how's it different to 3-unit maths in terms of content?
It is far more intensive. It really requires you to develop your ability to sustain a mathematical argument. The algebra is harder. Where 3-unit often gives you numbers to work with 4-unit seems to have more theoretical exercises where you deal with 'n' (or however they want to represent a variable quantity). The thinking is more abstract and you run into infinity more often. The relation between 4-unit and 3-unit in terms of content:

Graphs ---> A lot more depth than basic 3-unit graph drawing. More a tool than a topic.

Complex Numbers ---> This is probably the most unfamiliar topic. Different to topics in 3-unit.

Conics ---> Like parametrics but much harder... Conics is the devil ( in case you didn't know).

Polynomials ---> Harder polynomials.

Integration ---> Harder integration. Once you've done this you kill 3-unit integration.

Volumes ---> There is a lot mroe to this than basic 2/3-unit volumes. It often involves derriving the integral for a volume from scratch using limits etc. You can deal with non-circular cross sections (eg. parabolic or triangular cross sections).

Mechanics ---> Similar to 2/3-unit particle dynamics but much harder. The algebra can be pretty intensive in this topic.

Harder 3-unit ---> This one speaks for itself.

(*Note: the above is full of generalisations)

Smart_Dunce said:
what if you fail IT?
Then it sucks to be you :p. Should that happen you should be thankful that your 3U mark counts for 2 units (which is a bonus given the scaling) and keep the difficulty of the course in perspective.
 

Sparcod

Hello!
Joined
Dec 31, 2004
Messages
2,085
Location
Suburbia
Gender
Male
HSC
2006
Thanks. Is Extension 2 maths the hardest subject of them all (and the one that gives the best scaling)?
 

David_O

Member
Joined
Jun 24, 2005
Messages
95
Location
Auburn
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
N/A
EE2 Maths is most definitely NOT the hardest subject of them all; I'd say something open ended like EE2 English tops it. The scaling is quite good (whether it is the best varies from year to year, but it's always up there).
 

ishq

brown?
Joined
Nov 12, 2004
Messages
932
Gender
Female
HSC
2005
Smart_Dunce said:
Thanks. Is Extension 2 maths the hardest subject of them all (and the one that gives the best scaling)?
No.
It depends on what you're good at.
And some languages scale more. :)

David is right - EE2 takes a lot more out of you.
 

jellibelli

New Member
Joined
Nov 4, 2004
Messages
2
Location
sydney
Gender
Female
HSC
2006
im in yr 11 doin 4u early. i derno how im goin tho. wats with the scaling? if i get bout 85 4 raw mark is that ok?
 

Sparcod

Hello!
Joined
Dec 31, 2004
Messages
2,085
Location
Suburbia
Gender
Male
HSC
2006
KFunk said:
I go to an average selective school and about a third of the students in year 12 do 4-unit maths.




I suspect that this might be quite variable. At my school something like 5% of students that take 4-unit mathematics end up dropping the course.



It is far more intensive. It really requires you to develop your ability to sustain a mathematical argument. The algebra is harder. Where 3-unit often gives you numbers to work with 4-unit seems to have more theoretical exercises where you deal with 'n' (or however they want to represent a variable quantity). The thinking is more abstract and you run into infinity more often. The relation between 4-unit and 3-unit in terms of content:

Graphs ---> A lot more depth than basic 3-unit graph drawing. More a tool than a topic.

Complex Numbers ---> This is probably the most unfamiliar topic. Different to topics in 3-unit.

Conics ---> Like parametrics but much harder... Conics is the devil ( in case you didn't know).

Polynomials ---> Harder polynomials.

Integration ---> Harder integration. Once you've done this you kill 3-unit integration.

Volumes ---> There is a lot mroe to this than basic 2/3-unit volumes. It often involves derriving the integral for a volume from scratch using limits etc. You can deal with non-circular cross sections (eg. parabolic or triangular cross sections).

Mechanics ---> Similar to 2/3-unit particle dynamics but much harder. The algebra can be pretty intensive in this topic.

Harder 3-unit ---> This one speaks for itself.

(*Note: the above is full of generalisations)



Then it sucks to be you :p. Should that happen you should be thankful that your 3U mark counts for 2 units (which is a bonus given the scaling) and keep the difficulty of the course in perspective.

Can you tell me briefly what each of these topics are about and what they involve? complex numbers? conics? mechanics?
 

jarrypan

Mr.
Joined
Jun 15, 2005
Messages
22
Location
nsw
Gender
Male
HSC
2006
5. If you can't get through the course without spending $100 a week on tutoring, don't do it.
I don't agree with this idea. it is a total waste, how about the poor students, should they abandon the chances to study?
And I think if you can understand all the question the teacher teaches, you will do well in 4U
 

jellibelli

New Member
Joined
Nov 4, 2004
Messages
2
Location
sydney
Gender
Female
HSC
2006
the tests arent easy, they're alright like not realli realli hard. i derno. i got 103/120 n im comin 10th. I might move up a couple of places, but the marks dont scale that much right?
 

The Intergrator

New Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2005
Messages
18
Gender
Male
HSC
2005
withoutaface said:
. If you can't get through the course without spending $100 a week on tutoring, don't do it.
That's Bull. The person who has tutoring in my class is third from the bottom.
 

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 0, Guests: 1)

Top