Do I have time to improve my grades?

[icandothis]

So I need help, I messed this year up really badly and didn't put much effort into my work

I have always been a procrastinator, which is a old habit that I'm really trying to get rid of because it

obviously doesn't work for me in the IB.

Anyways here is what i got on my Quarter 3 report (I am in DP1):

HL

Bio : 4

Econ: 5

English literature: 5

SL

Maths: 4

danish: 5

chem: 4

I know that I am capable of achieving better grades but I just don't know if its possible now. Exams start on the 8th of june and I'm not sure how much they will affect my final grades for the year. I always thought the grades from this is year didn't count towards next years but apparently they do so I'm pretty much screwed.

Also I would like to ask what grades contribute to your final grades in last year of IB?

And is it even possible for me to get into a good university next year?

Thank you so so much in advance

[Jyrgen]

I always thought the grades from this is year didn't count towards next years but apparently they do so I'm pretty much screwed.

They really don't, the final grade you get is based on

1) The external assessments = the final exams.

2) The internal assessments (IAs) for each subject. It's true that in a few subjects, like languages, your teachers could use some speeches or presentations you do in class for your IA grade. However mainly the IAs are individual projects which you can do well if you want to and of which a portion is also assessed outside the school

If you have a year till your finals, yeah you can definitely improve.

I was getting 4s and 5s from my Psych HL exams. Then I studied it intensely for like a month and got a predicted grade of 6 from the subject, with 7 being a realistic possibility (taking my finals beginning from next week)

[opus92fan]

Your exams aren't until 2013 so you have time. At my school, most of our IA's were done in the second year of IB anyway.

[HiggsHunter]

Arrowhead and ChikkyD gave you some excellent advice when you started in August last year, and at that time you said that you were determined to really put a lot of effort into your work to get good grades.

So what went wrong? You are on the road to get a diploma, but not with grades that will get you admission to a top-ranking university.

There is still time to make up for lost time in the first year by doing some extra study during the summer. But the main thing is to make a new resolution for the final year and stick by it!

[icandothis]

I was actually doing pretty well in the first half of the year but my grades were gradually getting worse, I guess I just lost self confidence and motivation but thank you guys so much (and yes I really do need to stick to my resolutions )

[HiggsHunter]

Probably motivation is the key. IB studies are not conceived for genius types (who don't need them anyway), but for normally intelligent students who appreciate that they have a great educational opportunity and who apply themselves accordingly.

So ask yourself why the IB is important to you. As a qualification to start your professional life? Because you will never again have the freedom to spend so much time on your own education? As a stepping-stone to university studies in your field of choice? Just as a challenge to prove to yourself and to others what you can achieve?

Whatever it is, keeping your target in mind should help you stay on track in spite of all the appealing diversions that surround you!

[Sean Banan Janse]

Iim the exact same spot as you, I actually had 3-2 in four subjects, and my best tip is, change your way of thinking! If you fail an assignment, an IA, recieve a low predicted or if you don't get a topic; ignore it! Don't ignore it in the way that you forget about it, but forget about "failing" it, see it as something new and re-learn it, from the internet or through your books. If your IA does not go well, you have more to go, and they're only around 20% of the grade anyway. (Plus, your teacher will probably just send the better ones.)

And as people previously have stated; it is possible, find motivation. My motivations are that a) I want to get as far away from my hometown as possible (cliché) and b) that a friend of mine who did IB always told me to do it as well (she passed away this winter), which is the strongest one. Find a person in your class you want to continue being with, some alumni you want to be able to relate to, a person you want to prove wrong (a teacher giving you low predicted?) or someone you want to make proud. Or you could do it for yourself, to show yourself that you're able to excel.

Another major motivation for me is that some day, I'll be able to say that I actually finished the IB.. With about half of the ones beginning in PDP dropping out, it's extremely motivating to be one of the "survivors", and to be one with better grades is even more cool.

And hey, you have to make studying a habit rather than an "I will", go somewhere you can't do anything else than studying, like a university or a library. Suck in the atmosphere, leave all procrastination tools (phone, laptop) at home and just read and take notes. I don't like some of my teachers, so I study twice as hard independently, compared to class work. Let's say you go to the library every Sunday between 13-17, you're gonna get stuff done, and then increase it to going there after school on Monday, etc.

Now, I realize I haven't really answered your question.. Yep, it's very much possible to improve your grades now. Study hard the rest of this term, make mindmaps and notes with key words and concepts, so that you can study "a little bit" even when you're getting tired. And assign a few days of summer where you get in as much as possible. Study while sunbathing or something, just do it, like your nick says you can

(Could brag a bit and tell you that I'm now on 5-6 in a few subjects, not in risk of failing any.)

Edited: missing words and being generally vague..

Edited May 15, 2012 by Sean Banan Janse