is it a disadvantage doing hard subjects hsc? (1 Viewer)

[sluGzxxX]

Is it a disadvantage to do subjects like physics and chemistry over easier subjects.

 

[Masaken]

the general trend is that relatively 'harder' subjects such as physics and chemistry scale higher (as compared to let's say what is called the 'easier' sciences like bio and earth + environmental) - there's scaling data to show this, so no it's not really a disadvantage at all, especially if you're looking to maximise atar and/or you need those courses for uni

 

[jimmysmith560]

No, as Masaken mentioned above, it is not a disadvantage to take subjects that are considered more difficult. This is because the HSC system is largely based on a student's performance relative to that of other students in their cohort in a particular subject as well as the state's performance in that subject, where all students will be exposed to the same level of difficulty imposed by the subject, and will have to rank as high as possible relative to their cohort to ensure favourable internal performance, as well as having to perform at the best possible level in the HSC exam. This is so that their overall HSC mark is sufficiently high so as to place at a sufficiently high percentile that will ultimately enable them to achieve their desired ATAR

However, taking a subject that you are not fully confident that you can perform well in could place you at a disadvantage in the sense that you may not be able to perform at a sufficiently high standard that would lead you to a favourable result in the subject. For example, if a Mathematics Extension 1 student wishes to take Mathematics Extension 2, despite unfavourable performance and their teacher advising against it, they could be placing themselves at an inherent disadvantage performance-wise.

I hope this helps!

 

[sluGzxxX]

No, as Masaken mentioned above, it is not a disadvantage to take subjects that are considered more difficult. This is because the HSC system is largely based on a student's performance relative to that of other students in their cohort in a particular subject as well as the state's performance in that subject, where all students will be exposed to the same level of difficulty imposed by the subject, and will have to rank as high as possible relative to their cohort to ensure favourable internal performance, as well as having to perform at the best possible level in the HSC exam. This is so that their overall HSC mark is sufficiently high so as to place at a sufficiently high percentile that will ultimately enable them to achieve their desired ATAR

However, taking a subject that you are not fully confident that you can perform well in could place you at a disadvantage in the sense that you may not be able to perform at a sufficiently high standard that would lead you to a favourable result in the subject. For example, if a Mathematics Extension 1 student wishes to take Mathematics Extension 2, despite unfavourable performance and their teacher advising against it, they could be placing themselves at an inherent disadvantage performance-wise.

I hope this helps!

thanks. if i do well in maths, would that potentially help my atar.

 

[mmmmmmmmaaaaaaa]

thanks. if i do well in maths, would that potentially help my atar.

Yes. Just as any other subject would

 

[jimmysmith560]

thanks. if i do well in maths, would that potentially help my atar.

The short answer is yes. As mentioned above, doing well in maths (or any other subject for that matter) will result in a positive contribution to your ATAR.

The extent to which that would be the case would require a slightly deeper understanding of elements that are relevant to your performance, including:

• Your rank relative to your cohort in a particular subject, which is used to determine the mark that reflects your internal performance (i.e. the Assessment Mark, which contributes 50% of your overall HSC mark for a subject) as part of a process called moderation. The higher your rank, the higher your Assessment Mark is likely to be.
• The subject itself - you may need to achieve higher marks in a particular subject than in another subject to attain the same level of performance as the other subject. For example, you may need to achieve a mark of 90 in a particular subject for it to have the same effect on your ATAR as an 80 in another subject.