Art HL in one year?

[Maria]

I'm going into my second year of IB this year, but I've been kind of undecided about which classes to take for the SL/HL credits.

Right now, my HL courses are English, History, and Math, but I'm certain I can't pass the Math HL so I plan on switching to Art HL and taking an SL class for math instead.

I took a general art class during my freshman year, but I haven't done anything for IB at all. My art's not very good, so I should opt for HLB, right?

I'm still in the process of changing my schedule; I just wanted to check if it would be possible for me to take the Art HL. It seems like a lot of work, but it's got to be better than Math HL.

[bigbangfan]

Well, you could switch to Art HL obviously, but the IB visual arts course demands a whole long process during the two years, you would have to rush up into an investigation topic, make artworks and write in your Investigation Workbook like mad! Also, the IB frowns upon the idea of anticipating visual arts even at SL, so don't even think about the idea of taking HL visual arts in one year. As a former IB visual arts SL and mathematics HL student, I believe that they are both hard subjects and demand great amount of time. I believe you can study exhaustively for mathematics HL this year, but for visual arts HL, I believe that one year is a really short period of time to develop high quality ideas, as these ideas must derive from a long process. I'm afraid that you won't get a high grade for visual arts HL if you do it in one year, you might not get a high grade in mathematics HL as well, but you can try harder in mathematics this year and score higher points. However, the choice is up to us!! Best of luck!

P.S. You should also consult with you mathematics and visual arts teacher, and ask them for suggestions!!

[Jaymi]

I strongly think you should discard this. Art HL is not a joke, im taking art HL and im pulling my hair out..literally. Its alot of work, you have to show growth, experimentation and a lot of strong pieces as well as reflection. Even HLB is a hard because of the amount of pages from your IWB that you have to submit. I think that you should just stick with Math HL but just concentrate really hard in class and possibly take extra lessons just to keep you up to speed since you're not so keen on math.

And i repeat, no matter what people say, Art is NOT a joke. Trust me on this one. Its really hard to score marks because of the examiners, (very strict!). Also you said you're not so good at art?? then its a definite no no because even if you do abstract studio pieces you have to do observational studies in your IWB showing what made you do an abstract piece etc..

Think about this decision before making it. Its going to be a toough one!

[Sixthrain]

I find that Art is probably one of my most time-demanding subjects. In terms of grading, I find that if you follow the rubric, you'll be sure to do well. However, prepare yourself for the amount of journal work and extra hours after school that you are going to have to put in If you restrict yourself to class time, you're going to find it an immense struggle to complete everything on time. I really really suggest you take two years for Art, or else some late night coffees are up in order.